INSIDER
Panguitch • Panguitch Lake • Hatch • Bryce • Tropic • Antimony • Henrieville • Cannonville • Escalante • Boulder • Fremont • Loa • Lyman
Thursday, July 25, 2013 • Issue # 1005
Bicknell • Teasdale • Torrey • Grover • Fruita • Caineville • Hanksville
Big-Nosed, Long-Horned Dinosaur Named for GSENM Scientist
KANAB – For the third time in five years, a Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument employee was honored by having a newly discovered dinosaur named for them. The British scientific journal, Proceedings of the Royal Society B announced July 17 that a remarkable new species of horned dinosaur unearthed in GSENM is called Nasutoceratops titusi. The first part of the name, Nasutoceratops, translates as “big-nose horned face,” and the second part honors Monument paleontologist Dr. Alan Titus for his years of research collaboration. Previously, in 2010, GSENM volunteer and seasonal employee Scott Richardson had a dinosaur he discovered on the Monument in August 2006 named in his honor, Kosmoceratops richardsoni; and in 2009, park ranger Merle Graffam was honored when a therizinosaur he found in 2000 on a section of Utah State Institutional Trust Lands near GSENM was named Nothronychus graffami. The published study, funded in large part by the Bureau of Land Management and the National Science Foundation, was led by Scott Sampson, when he was the Chief Curator at the Natural History Museum of Utah at the Uni-
versity of Utah. Sampson is now the Vice President of Research and Collections at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. Additional authors include Eric Lund (Ohio University; previously a University of Utah graduate student), Mark Loewen (Natural History Museum of Utah and Dept. of Geology and Geophysics, University of Utah), Andrew Farke (Raymond Alf Museum), and Katherine Clayton (Natural History Museum of Utah). Nasutoceratops, belonging to the horned dinosaur family Ceratopsidae , was a huge plant-eater inhabiting Laramidia, a landmass formed when a shallow sea flooded the central region of North America, isolating western and eastern portions for millions of years during the Late Cretaceous Period. As epitomized by the renown Triceratops, most members of this group have huge skulls bearing a single horn over the nose, one horn over each eye, and an elongate, bony frill at the rear. The newly discovered species, Nasutoceratops titusi, possesses several unique features, including an oversized nose relative to other members of the family, and exceptionally long, curving, forward-oriented horns
over the eyes. The bony frill, rather than possessing elaborate ornamentations such as hooks or spikes, is relatively unadorned, with a simple, scalloped margin. For reasons that have remained obscure, all ceratopsids have greatly enlarged nose regions at the front of the face. Nasutoceratops stands out from its relatives, however, in taking this nose expansion to an even greater extreme. Scott Sampson, the study’s lead author, stated, “The jumbo-sized schnoz of Nasutoceratops likely had nothing to do with a heightened sense of smell— since olfactory receptors occur further back in the head, adjacent to the brain—and the function of this bizarre feature remains uncertain.” Paleontologists have long speculated about the function of horns and frills on horned dinosaurs. Ideas have ranged from predator defense and controlling body temperature to recognizing members of the same species. Yet the dominant hypothesis today focuses on competing for mates—that is, intimidating members of the same sex and attracting members of the opposite sex. Peacock tails and deer antlers are modern examples. In keeping with this view, Mark Loewen, a co-author of
Scott Richardson
Dr. Alan Titus, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument paleontologist, prepares a fossil for transport out of the field. the study claimed that, “The amazing horns of Nasutoceratops were most likely used as visual signals of dominance and, when that wasn’t enough, as weapons for combating rivals.” A Treasure Trove of Dinosaurs on the Lost Continent of Laramidia Nasutoceratops was discovered in Grand StaircaseEscalante National Monument (GSENM), which encompasses 1.9 million acres of high desert terrain in south-central
“I Was Amazed to Know I Was Walking Where They Walked”
PANGUITCH weather
LOA weather
sea levels flooded the lowlying portions of several continents around the world. In North America, a warm, shallow sea called the Western Interior Seaway extended from the Arctic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico, subdividing the continent into eastern and western landmasses, known as Appalachia and Laramidia, respectively. Whereas little is known of the plants and animals that lived on Appalachia, the rocks Dinosaur
cont’d on page 2
Mega Cat Fix Event Scheduled for July 26 & 27
Youth From Loa LDS Stake Take Martin’s Cove Trek
MARTIN’S COVE, WY On June 10, 2013, at 8:30 PM, 260 youth, adult leaders and support from Loa Utah Stake, boarded four buses travelling throughout the night approx 520 miles to Martins Cove on the high plains of Wyoming. They arrived at sun up to experience walking in possibly the exact same places as those incredible pioneers so long ago in the Martin Willie handcart companies. Couples throughout Loa Utah stake were called as Ma’s and Pa’s of twenty families. These families made
Utah. This vast and rugged region, part of the National Conservation Lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management, was the last major area in the lower 48 states to be formally mapped by cartographers. Today GSENM is the largest national monument in the United States. Sampson proclaimed that, “Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is the last great, largely unexplored dinosaur boneyard in the lower 48 states.” For most of the Late Cretaceous, exceptionally high
up six handcart companies. They would spend the next three days in a pioneer experience. An undertaking such as this took five years of planning and preparation to be able to make this a successful memorable experience. This year’s theme was “Stand Ye In Holy Places”. (D & C 87: 8) Prior to the pioneer trek, the young men and young women spent time doing family history research to get to know their ancestors and where they came from. They were to choose one to write a short history of their life. Some discovered that their ancestors were some of the original pioneers in the Martin and Willie handcart companies. The youth participated in various activities leading up to the trek. One activity took place at the old church in Cainville. The youth were lead by their bishops to the hillside overlooking Ephraim K. Hanks grave. He was a Wayne County famous pioneer, who took part in the rescue at Martin’s Cove. President Jeffery Olsen, second counselor in the Loa Utah Stake presiMartin’s Cove cont’d on page 2
BRYCE VALLEY/ESCALANTE/BOULDER - Know of cats or kittens that need fixing? Then we’ve got a deal for you! Best Friends Animal Society is scheduled to be in Escalante, Boulder, and Bryce Valley this Friday and Saturday (July 26 and 27) to collect and transport cats and kittens, both feral and tame, to their Kanab clinic to provide spay and neuter surgeries and vaccinations. Adults cats and kittens weighing at least two pounds (usually eight weeks old) can undergo surgery. The cats will be rounded up on Friday and Saturday and will be returned to their homes on Sunday and Monday. The goal each day is 40 cats. Feral cats will be given first priority, but spots are usually available for pet cats also. Though the services provided by Best Friends are nocost, the local organizing crews request donations from those that can afford to do so. If you have cats or kittens that need to be fixed, or know about feral cat colonies in your area, please contact the following people: Escalante: Cindy Calbaum at 826-4452 or Allysia Angus at A newly-neutered youngster shows a 616-4480. distinctly tipped left ear. Ear tips are Boulder: Stacy given to feral cats in Best Friends’ Davis at 335-7575 community cat fixing program to inBryce Valley Commu- dicate that he or she has been neunities: Janice Dankert tered or spayed. at 435-644-4469 or Sarah Haas at 690-9558 (after this weekend). And whether or not you have cats needing this service, if you would like to donate to Best Friends in support of this effort, please go to their website: bestfriends.org. —Allysia Angus Phone: 435-826-4400 Wayne: 435-836-2622 Fax 1-888-370-8546 PO BOX 105 Escalante, Utah 84726 snapshot@live.com
I’ve had a perfectly wonderful evening. But this wasn’t it. —Groucho Marx US comedian with Marx Brothers (1890 - 1977)
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PRE-SORT STANDARD PAID RICHFIELD, UTAH PERMIT No. 122