The San Bernardino County Museum

10/14/2015 - National Fossil Day at the County Museum

Event date: Oct. 14

The San Bernardino County Museum will recognize National Fossil Day on Wednesday, Oct. 14 with a special cart talk in the museums Hall of Geological Wonders that will be offered continuously from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The program is included with paid museum admission.

This years National Fossil Day highlights Cenozoic Era life and landscapes. The Cenozoic Era is also known as the Age of Mammals, after the great Mesozoic extinction that marked the extinction of dinosaurs (except, of course, of birds). The Cenozoic is also notable for a change in climate from the greenhouse-like world of dinosaurs to gradual cooling that led to the development of savannas and grasslands. The Cenozoic is represented in the Museums Hall of Geological Wonders with exhibits of Miocene-age fossils from the Barstow Fossil Beds and Cajon Pass along with Ice Age fossils from southern California.

Visitors will especially want to look at our 15 million year old chalicothere skull from Cajon Pass, since chalicotheres are this years featured animal for National Fossil Day, said Eric Scott, the museums curator of paleontology. Chalicotheres were weird mammals with rhino-like heads, giraffe-like necks, and long front legs with claws like a sloth.

National Fossil Day and the County Museums other exciting events and exhibits reflect the effort by the Board of Supervisors to achieve the Countywide Vision by celebrating arts, culture, and education in the county, creating quality of life for residents and visitors.

The San Bernardino County Museum is at 2024 Orange Tree Lane, at the California Street exit from Interstate 10 in Redlands. The museum is open Tuesdays through Sundays from 9 am to 5pm. General admission is $10 (adult), $8 (military or senior), $7 (student), and $5 (child aged 5 to 12). Children under five and Museum Association members are admitted free. Parking is free. For more information, visit www.sbcountymuseum.org. The museum is accessible to persons with disabilities.
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