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Friday, June 30, 2006
Printed in The Manitoulin West Recorder
Article by Tom Sasvari
MISERY BAY - Manitoulin Island is a
treasure trove for fossils, says fossil
enthusiast Bill Caesar.
"There is a gold mine out there," stated
Mr. Caesar, in a presentation he made at
the recent annual general meeting of the
Friends of Misery Bay (FOMB).
"I'm kind of new to the whole field of
fossils," acknowledged Mr. Caesar.
He said he first got introduced to
fossils when he had been out fishing one
day with his dog, couldn't get the fish
to bite, and ended up moving his craft
to a reef outside Little Current.
"My dog wandered out of the boat, and it
was then that I noticed the slabs of
limestone rock. What was
incredible to me was everywhere I looked
there were designs and squiggles in the
rocks. Later I was kidding with a
neighbour of mine saying that it was a
dinosaur dropping but he said no, and
indicated the name of the fossil I had
seen. From there I thought this is
definitely a subject I would like to
learn more about."
Mr. Caesar began attending lectures on
fossils and visited museums on the
Island, as well as in England when he
made a trip there, to learn more about
his newfound hobby. "I have to say
that after gaining some knowledge on
fossils I am concerned we are losing
them. People have been picking up
fossils since the 1800s." He
further noted that, "There aren't the
protective zones for fossils in (in
Canada) that there are in the US."
He related that, "when I go around to
schools, the students are always
fascinated hearing about fossils,
because, but for the most part, they
have no access to fossil collections.
But over the last couple of years I've
been thrilled that fossils have become
more of a focus of a lot of people.
It is important to keep records of these
fossils, and I see there is a fossil
collection here, and even on the floor
of this building (interpretive centre),"
continued Mr. Caesar.
Mr. Caesar brought several of the
fossils he collected to the meeting,
giving their names and describing their
history, and explaining what type of
fossil, and where they can be found on
the Island.
"At one point in time, all of Manitoulin
Island was under water, even the Cup and
Saucer hiking trail, and because of this
you will find many of the (fossil)
marine creatures around the Island.
Where there was land there was no life,
everything was barren, but in the sea
the waters were seething with these
creatures," said Mr. Caesar.
"There is a tremendous variety of
fossils everywhere. It was
difficult talking to the kids in classes
because there weren't any sources on
Manitoulin for them to see or read about
fossils. So I applied and received
a grant from LAMBAC (LaCloche Manitoulin
Business Assistance Corporation), and
Keith McKeen of SEC Graphics took on the
challenge of printing the booklet."
'Manitoulin Fossils-A Story of Our Past
Told in Stone,' written by Mr. Caesar,
is 20 pages in length with illustrations
and line drawings of the fossils on the
Island. "I tried to tell the story
of the incredible fossils on Manitoulin
Island," continued Mr. Caesar.
As well, a guide book titled 'Manitoulin
Rocks,' written by Paul Karrow, Mario
Coniglio and Peter Russell of Waterloo
University, was launched last week at
the Gore Bay Museum. In this
publication, Mr. Caesar provided a
reminder to the readers that most of
Manitoulin Island and Northern Ontario
is private property, and visitors who
want to look at fossils need the
permission of property owners,
municipalities and First Nations before
they go on their land. "There are
50 sites on Manitoulin Island listed in
the book, including this one here at
Misery Bay," he said.
Mr. Caesar also pointed out that later
this summer local fossil expert Betty
Eley will have an extensive fossil
collection displayed at the Gore Bay
Museum.
"In the area of fossils I would
recommend you find out about them for
your own knowledge. There are many
areas to explore on the Island, and I
hear, for example, that Meldrum Bay has
an extraordinary amount of fossils
around their landscape," added Mr.
Caesar.
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