Tumbler Ridge Museum excavates skull of ancient extinct marine animal

TUMBLER RIDGE, B.C. — The skull of an ancient marine reptile traced back to around 250 million years ago has been unearthed in Tumbler Ridge.

A Facebook post from the Tumbler Ridge Museum on Sunday, October 26th said staff from the museum, alongside staff from Tumbler Ridge UNESCO Global Geopark recovered a fossilized skull of an ichthyosaur from the Kiskatinaw River valley on October 6th. 

According to the post, the skull embedded in 780-pounds of rock was found two summers ago by father Kevin Geist and his son.

The museum’s collections manager, Eamon Drysdale, says Tumbler Ridge Museum was contacted earlier this year in an email.

A paleontologist, Drysdale believes the fossilized skull’s origin was initially in a different area.

“We have previously found some ichthyosaur material up in some of the mountain areas in the Peace River region,” said Drysdale. “They are usually high up in the mountains, which is why we think this skull was carried to its location by something like a glacier. 

“The interesting thing about this specific skull is that it’s relatively intact. Most of the material we get is only partial, so bits and pieces, but it’s pretty rare that we actually find the majority of the skull in one single block.”

Drysdale said the reptiles – although unrelated – resembled modern-day mammals like dolphins and whales.

“They had really long, pointed snouts and really big eyes,” said Drysdale. “They were one of the primary marine vertebrates during the time of the dinosaurs.”

The museum said the excavation was made possible by a donation from LaPrairie Crane, which covered the cost of a helicopter lift by Ridge Rotors.

Drysdale said the skull, which was carried by helicopter, will be in the museum’s heavy collections storage for further analysis.

“What we want to do is try and determine what species of ichthyosaur it is,” said Drysdale.  “There is a probable number of species that it could be, whether this is a smaller ichthyosaur or a juvenile.

“We have to take a look and analyze the bones and see if we can determine what type of species it is.”

For more details about the Tumbler Ridge Museum, visit the museum’s Facebook page.