www.esconI.org

From the Book --

Pennsylvanian age concretions from the Mazon Creek area in Illinois contain fossils of such diversity, outstanding beauty and detailed preservation that they must be considered one of the world’s most important fossil assemblages and certainly provide one of the most comprehensive records of life during this geologic interval. This fame has resulted in “Mazon Creek” becoming a byword against which other, globally distributed, localities with similar types of preservation are compared.

Both amateurs and professionals have heavily collected the Mazon Creek locality for more than 100 years. Jack Wittry is one of the amateurs who have contributed so much to our understanding of this biota.

Jack is currently the librarian of the Earth Science Club of Northern Illinois (ESCONI) and is renowned for his enthusiasm in promoting Mazon Creek to those from all levels, from elementary school children to professional scientists. A prolific collector, Jack has a long standing interest in the taxonomy of the Mazon Creek flora and has been welcomed to the Illinois State Museum, The Field Museum and The Smithsonian Institute to study and consult upon collections from this locality.

The Mazon Creek flora is incredibly diverse, over 200 species having been described. As a consequence, any synoptic work such as this must involve considerable study and review. Jack has put many years of meticulous research into untangling the taxonomy of the Mazon Creek flora and to tackling some of its longest running issues. The result of this work is a publication that summarizes a wealth of data and that includes many classic images that will help the scientist and amateur alike.

In providing such a comprehensive review, Jack has created an up-to-date reference that will support the enthusiastic amateur in their search to identify the fossil plants of this fascinating locality.

Ian Glasspool
The Field Museum
Chicago, USA

Further Reviews: