Heritage Cases

In late 2017, the permit applicant (Prof J N Choiniere, University of the Witwatersrand) was shown a series of fossil bone deposits by Mr James Ralane, David Mei, and Themba Jika Jika. These men live and work in the Sterkspruit Municipality, with Mr Ralane now retired and living in the village of Qhemegha. These fossil bones together constitute what appears to be one of the largest bone-beds every discovered in South Africa, and contains minimally the articulated specimens of 12 dinosaurs. These animals appear to be sauropodomorphs, large-bodied, long-necked animals that are common in Triassic-Jurassic terrestrial faunas. The bones are in the lower part of the Lower Elliot Formation, which is hypothesized to be Triassic in age. It is imperative that these fossils be excavated and studied and this proposal seeks a permit to do so. I have secured the support of the community, especially the three local contacts listed above, and I believe that this project will be a tremendous boon to the area. The size and scope of the bone bed area mean that the project will likely span at least three years, and will incorporate the activities of many participants, especially South African students. The relevant points are summarized below: 1. Project participants: Prof Jonah Choiniere, PI. Responsible for all site operations, direction of scientific work, funding, and coordinating outreach. Dr Emese Bordy (UCT). Collaborator. Responsible for taphonomic data collection and analysis, sedimentology. Will be bringing students to project. Dr Jennifer Botha-Brink (National Museum). Collaborator. Responsible for histological assessment of excavated specimens. Will be bringing students to project. Prof Paul Barrett (Natural History Museum, London). Collaborator. Responsible for taxonomic assessment of specimens. Will be bringing students to project. Prof Roger B J Benson (Oxford University). Collaborator. Responsible for biostratigraphic assessment of specimens. Will be bringing students to project. Prof Richard J Butler (University of Birmingham). Collaborator. Responsible for taxonomic assessment of specimens and work on extinction dynamics. Will be bringing students to project. Dr Celina Suarez (University of Arkansas). Collaborator. Responsible for chemostratigraphy of site and work on detrital zircon dating of strata. 2. Funding. This project will be mostly funded by an NRF AOP grant to Jonah Choiniere in 2018, which has been applied for renewal and, if received, will continue until 2021. Participants from overseas will be obtaining their own funding for their participation in the project. 3. Scientific importance. Dinosaur remains from the lower parts of the Elliot Formation are exceedingly rare, and what is currently exposed on the surface at the quarry would increase our known Lower Elliot specimen list by nearly 10% - a staggering number given that the first Lower Elliot fossils were recovered in the mid-1800s. Another famous bone bed at Maphutseng, in Lesotho, was excavated in the mid-20th century, but the provenance data for those specimens has been lost, decreasing its utility considerably. The area near Qhemegha has been targeted by my research group for the last 5 years, and we know that the area is rich in fossils from all parts of the formation, and additionally we have a radiometrically dated volcanic tuff from the outskirts of Lady Grey, only 40km away. Thus this area has the potential to yield biostratigraphic data of enormous importance. 4. Work plan. The site is very large, and because one of our goals is taphonomic reconstruction of the site, we will begin by mapping the area carefully using GPS units and photogrammetry, coupled with google earth satellite imagery. We will carefully prospect the area, and begin digging at the most promising sites. Currently, the best site we know of is a small donga outside of Mr Ralane's property - this area has several articulated skeletons and is actively eroding. At each fossil quarry, we will produce a detailed, 3D map using handheld cameras to make photogrammetric models, and a 2D map using standard grid-based field mapping techniques. Excavation will be done with hand tools, such as picks and shovels, and where larger amounts of sediment need to be cleared we will use petrol-powered jackhammers and rock saws. Specimens will be isolated by trenching and consolidated with Paraloid B-76 copolymer dissolved in acetone solvent prior to full excavation. Larger specimens will be protected with plaster-of-paris and hessian jackets. Fossils will be catalogued each day, and placed in either numbered sample bags or in plaster-of-paris jackets marked clearly with specimen numbers. Fossils will be reposited in the Karoo collections of the University of the Witwatersrand and prepared at the same facility. 5. Remediation. The site is in an active donga system, and our diggings will be unlikely to contribute to the overall erosion of the area. However, we will store sand and soil excavated from the site locally and backfill any holes we create as part of this project. All plaster, hessian, and plastic trappings used in the excavation will be removed and discarded remotely so that the area is not aesthetically damaged by our excavations. 6. Involvement of community We have a preliminary community involvement plan already prepared with Mr Ralane, Mei, and Jika Jika. This involves meeting with the community during the project, having an open day for the community while we are digging, developing a high-school curriculum add-on that uses the lessons of the site for math and science teaching, and ultimately developing a viewing area with tourism officials.