My Big Whaleboner

Today while hunting for Miocene petrified whalebone from the Monterey Formation and biconoids from the Franciscan Melange in Templeton, CA, I discovered this end-piece of a large petrified Miocene whalebone, parts of which are highly silicated. This is the first such piece of I have ever found in regards to end-pieces with ball-joints. It is also one of the largest pieces of petrified whalebone I have ever found.

Photo by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).

Picture of the Day - Tropical Storm Lidia Sunset

I was out rockhounding in Templeton early this evening and captured this image of the sun setting through a gathering gloam as a line of dying thunderstorms approached from the east. A bit later it rained in the area shortly after sunset. This moisture originated from the death of Tropical Storm Lidia which expended itself in the area of Baja California. Photo by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).