Environment and Conservation
September 29, 2009
Collaborative Project Replicates 565-Million-Year-Old
Fossil Surface
The Provincial Government
and the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), in association with
Research Casting International, have completed the first
phase of a joint venture to produce an exact replica of
world-famous fossils at the Mistaken Point Ecological
Reserve. A 70 m2 detailed mold covering of the fossil
surfaces has been successfully created. Other partners
in this project are the Johnson GeoCentre, Queen�s
University and the University of Oxford.
�Creating a replica of
this irreplaceable and internationally important surface
will serve as a permanent record of world heritage and
support ongoing scientific research and education,� said
the Honourable Charlene Johnson, Minister of Environment
and Conservation. �This is an essential step in
protection of the Mistaken Point fossil record and a key
addition to our future bid to achieve World Heritage
Site status for the reserve.�
Mistaken Point is home to
the world�s oldest, largest and best preserved examples
of Ediacaran life forms, representing the earliest known
complex multicellular organisms in the fossil record.
The silicone cast of these fossils will be important for
studying early animal evolution and will complement the
ROM�s current Mistaken Point collections.
In the next phase of the
project, Research Casting International will produce
full-size casts that precisely replicate the surface.
These will be the largest reproductions of abundant
Ediacaran fossils anywhere in the world. The casts are
intended for scientific and educational use and for
display at the Portugal Cove South visitor centre near
Mistaken Point, as well as the future Peter F. Bronfman
Gallery of Early Life at the ROM.
�When I first visited the
site, I could not believe my eyes,� said Dr.
Jean-Bernard Caron, Associate Curator of Invertebrate
Palaeontology at the ROM. �I was gazing on thousands of
exquisite three-dimensionally preserved fossils of large
multicellular organisms, dating from about 350 million
years before the first dinosaurs roamed our planet.
Reproducing a large area of this amazing surface will
uniquely convey the spectacular concentrations of the
fossils, and show the arrangement of these ancient
communities on the seafloor just before they were buried
by volcanic ash 565 million years ago.�
Mistaken Point Ecological
Reserve was added to Canada�s official list of potential
UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2004. The fossil surface
has been, and continues to be, affected by various
issues such as erosion and weathering that, over time,
contribute to its gradual deterioration. The fossil beds
in the reserve are also vulnerable to human foot
traffic. Because of the steady increase in visitation to
the site, access to the fossils is now by guided tour or
special permit only.
�The partnerships created
to produce this replica of the fossils at Mistaken Point
will further promote and educate the world on the rare
nature of what we have at Mistaken Point,� said Keith
Hutchings, MHA for the District of Ferryland. �Through
the appropriate management plan support and exposure
given to the site by the Royal Ontario Museum when the
cast is displayed there, Portugal Cove South and the
Irish Loop will see another exciting tourism draw for
the region to support those already in existence, adding
to the unique list of experiences we already share with
our many visitors.�
The reserve will also be
visited by a film crew who will cover the casting
project for the Discovery Channel�s Daily Planet show.
As well, Atlantic Productions from the United Kingdom
are filming part of the casting activities for an
upcoming documentary entitled First Life.
Mistaken Point Ecological
Reserve is located along the southeast coast of the
Avalon Peninsula between Cape Race and Portugal Cove
South. It was established to protect a diverse fossil
record of the first large, complex multi-cellular
organisms, which include the oldest (579 million years)
and largest Ediacaran fossils known in the world. The
reserve�s fossil-bearing surfaces furnish a unique
natural laboratory for the study of early, deep sea
communities.
For more information
about the fossils at Mistaken Point and for details on
the casting project and guided tour schedule, please
call the interpretation centre at 709-438-1100, the
Parks and Natural Areas Division at 709-635-4520, or
e-mail
parksinfo@gov.nl.ca.
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Media contacts:
2009 09 29
9:45 a.m.
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