2B
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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 8, 2022
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APPEAL TRIBUNE
Hike
Continued from Page 1B
first running predator in Oregon, Da-
phoendon, were more abundant in the
period following the eruption.
Busy volcanoes create layered
cake
Nick and I walked deeper still into the
otherworldly badlands, on dry, dusty
ground, crossing several small foot-
bridges.
Below the ignimbrite, layers of pale
multi-colored rock shot up before us — a
layered cake of geology.
Before and after the Crooked River
eruption, volcanism in Oregon was
busy. Volcanoes east and west of John
Day erupted frequently, spewing rhyo-
lite ash that piled up and weathered into
clay and silt, eventually hardening into
siltstone and claystone.
The brown and tan layers of our geo-
logical cake are unaltered siltstone or
claystone. Other layers tell a different
story.
“Blue-green colored layers,” Nick ex-
plained, “is from a mineral called cel-
adonite.” Celadonite forms when hot
water chemically weathers volcanic
soils before solidifying into rock.
White shelf-like layers are volcanic
tuff—formed from the ejected ash from
more explosive eruptions. Each layer
represents only one eruptive event.
All this layering — or stratigraphy —
allows paleontologists to divide time
into subunits, characterized by their
ashes and geological composition. Each
layer of colorful rock represents a differ-
ent time frame and different environ-
ment.
“The ashes are like page numbers,”
Nick said. Each layer represents about
10,000 years.
All in all, at Blue Basin, there are 7
subunits — numbered B through F with
some letters divided further.
Travel through time at Blue Basin at
John Day Fossil Beds National
Monument. EMILY PARENT / STATESMAN
JOURNAL
The Blue Basin Overlook Trail in John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
features gorgeous views of volcanic ash that has turned to blue-green claystone,
now exposed to the weather and carved into towering cliffs. The three-mile trail
loops around the rock formation and up the hillsides of the surrounding John
Day River Valley. THOMAS PATTERSON/STATESMAN JOURNAL
This can be answered in one word —
water.
Though hard to imagine now, with
the hot summer sun beating down on us
in a dry, desert environment, Blue Basin
was once a wide, river valley. A river val-
ley that flooded frequently, depositing
sediment along its banks and into its
floodplains — sometimes burying the
remains of dead animals or plants, and
preserving them in sedimentary rock.
Collecting fossils
Now looking at the crumbly hillsides,
it was easy to see how water was still at
work — this time eroding away the lay-
ers of rock and exposing fossils.
On any given day,” said Nick, “ten
field collections might be extracted from
this unit.”
Considering that Blue Basin has been
studied for over 30 years, that is a lot of
fossils!
According to Nick, “a collection” is a
fossil “that can be identified to a fairly
high level.” In other words, identifying
that a fossil came from a mammal would
not constitute a collection, but identify-
ing the fossil came from a rhino, that
would!
“What is most important is the con-
text,” explained Nick. So, in addition to
gathering the fossil, additional informa-
tion is gathered.
Any specimen found loose, or “in
float,” is put into a bag with any other
material that is found within a three-
meter area.
It’s sedimentary, my dear
Nick directed me over to a spot where
rocks were crumbling from the hillside.
You could see material falling from the
exposure — a perfect place to look for
fossils!
John Day Fossil Beds National Monu-
ment, perhaps not too surprisingly, is
known for its fossils.
Which raises the question — Why?
Why is John Day a hotbed for fossils?
Fossils that are found “in situ,” or in
the rock, also require detailed docu-
mentation of fossil location and posi-
tion in the rock, as well as other contex-
tual information.
It should be noted that fossils are col-
lected in the park only by permit. Indi-
vidual collecting is not allowed, Nick
warned, and is a “bad idea for science.”
Evidence of past life
“Fossils are evidence of past life,”
Nick stated.
So, what life existed in Oregon’s John
Day region?
One of the best records of life at Blue
Basin is found in the blue-green layers
of the Turtle Cove Assemblage from 29
million years ago — just before the
Crooked Caldera Eruptions.
Imagine expansive open areas with
rolling hills and dales. The climate
would have been dry and cool — suit-
able for the hardwood forests.
As for the animals, there were a lot of
them! According to Nick, the diversity
of life that once existed in the John Day
region was tremendous with at least 100
different extinct species of vertebrate
life found in the Turtle Cove assem-
blage.
Most abundant were herbivores,
specifical ruminants like Hypertragulus
— a mouse-deer creature — which make
up about 47% of fossils collected in the
Turtle Cove Member. There were also
sheep-like and pig-like ungulates, small
horses, and massive rhinos.
Evolution see-saw
FORM ED-1
NOTICE OF BUDGET HEARING
A public meeting of the Silver Falls School District 4J School Board will be held on June 13, 2022 at 7:00 pm at Silverton High School’s Library; 1456 Pine
Street, Silverton, Oregon. There will also be a virtual option to join via Zoom. The link can be found at https://mettings.boardbook.org/public/Organization/1569.
The purpose of this meeting is to discuss the budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2022 as approved by the Silver Falls School District 4J Budget
Committee. A summary of the budget is presented below. A copy of the budget will be available at https://silverfallsschools.org. This budget is for an annual
budget period and was prepared on a basis of accounting that is the same as the preceding year.
Contact: Steve Nielsen - Business Manager Telephone: (503) 873-5303 Email: nielsen_steve@silverfalls.k12.or.us
FINANCIAL SUMMARY - RESOURCES
Actual Amount
TOTAL OF ALL FUNDS
Last Year 2020-21
Beginning Fund Balance
$3,586,474
Current Year Property Taxes, other than Local Option Taxes
12,869,903
Current Year Local Option Property Taxes
0
Other Revenue from Local Sources
3,048,695
Revenue from Intermediate Sources
1,034,091
Revenue from State Sources
38,884,410
Revenue from Federal Sources
3,610,734
Interfund Transfers
335,000
0
All Other Budget Resources
Total Resources
$63,369,307
Adopted Budget
This Year 2021-22
$5,892,733
13,438,800
0
7,227,250
1,200,000
42,920,186
4,355,000
480,000
0
$75,513,969
Approved Budget
Next Year 2022-23
$4,147,452
13,960,870
0
6,373,934
1,165,000
42,953,530
5,098,100
535,000
0
$74,233,886
FINANCIAL SUMMARY - REQUIREMENTS BY OBJECT CLASSIFICATION
Salaries
$23,994,489
$27,755,377
Other Associated Payroll Costs
16,644,631
17,757,505
Purchased Services
7,806,977
11,500,047
Supplies & Materials
2,923,236
3,889,362
Capital Outlay
492,195
1,268,270
Other Objects (except debt service & interfund transfers)
680,288
738,200
Debt Service*
6,268,812
8,445,000
Interfund Transfers*
335,000
480,000
0
1,328,216
Operating Contingency
0
2,351,993
Unappropriated Ending Fund Balance & Reserves
Total Requirements
$59,145,629
$75,513,969
$27,846,944
17,243,981
11,511,619
3,638,886
1,247,603
716,602
8,559,100
505,000
1,394,360
1,569,791
$74,233,886
FINANCIAL SUMMARY - REQUIREMENTS AND FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT
EMPLOYEES (FTE) BY FUNCTION
1000 Instruction
$32,065,304
$37,236,397
FTE
315.11
319.62
2000 Support Services
18,849,988
22,871,893
FTE
127.24
130.41
3000 Enterprise & Community Service
1,073,309
1,608,200
FTE
11.50
11.50
4000 Facility Acquisition & Construction
545,516
1,192,270
FTE
0.00
0.00
5000 Other Uses
5100 Debt Service*
6,276,513
8,445,000
5200 Interfund Transfers*
335,000
480,000
0
1,328,216
6000 Contingency
0
2,351,993
7000 Unappropriated Ending Fund Balance
Total Requirements
$59,145,629
$75,513,969
Total FTE
453.85
461.53
$36,077,309
331.77
23,343,026
133.18
1,625,300
12.00
1,160,000
0.00
8,559,100
505,000
1,394,360
1,569,791
$74,233,886
476.95
* not included in total 5000 Other Uses. To be appropriated separately from other 5000 expenditures.
Permanent Rate Levy (Rate Limit $4.5458 per $1,000)
Local Option Levy
Levy For General Obligation Bonds
LONG TERM DEBT
General Obligation Bonds
Other Bonds
Other Borrowings
Total
PROPERTY TAX LEVIES
Rate or Amount Imposed
$4.5458
Rate or Amount Imposed
$4.5458
Rate or Amount Approved
$4.5458
$4,217,938
$4,309,278
$4,457,176
STATEMENT OF INDEBTEDNESS
Estimated Debt Outstanding
on July 1
$21,515,000
$43,626,412
$2,610,102
$67,751,514
Estimated Debt Authorized, But
Not Incurred on July 1
OR-GCI0894281-01
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Carnivores, though not as abundant
as herbivores, were diverse 29-million-
years-ago. At any given time, there
would have been up to 10 species of
dogs, each with their own role to play in
the ecosystem.
Now, there are few dog species, or ca-
nids, in Oregon. And many older linea-
ges have gone extinct as other groups,
like weasels, began to dominate and
take on the role of some of these dog
species.
“Depending on what is going on and
the evolutionary process,” said Nick,
“the pendulum swings” and dominant
groups die off. Nick described these
shifts as “the evolution see-saw.”
Though Nick was quick to clarify that
a decline in dog species, doesn’t mean
that dogs are less evolved than say wea-
sels. There is no hierarchy to life.
“No animal or plant that is alive today
is no more or less evolved than anything
else alive today,” said Nick. It just
doesn’t work that way."
Survival of the fittest
Nick and I were now deep into the
badlands — walls of rock towering over
us. Off a short spur, we reached an in-
formational sign and an encased replica
of a tortoise fossil from the genus Style-
mys — the belly of the beast protruded
from the rock.
Stylemys were lands tortoises — their
physiology not all that different from
turtles today. Nick pointed out how the
two plates, known as plastrons, of the
fossil were tilted inward — "a male,”
Nick noted, “ concave so he doesn’t roll
off.”
Modern male turtles today still have
concave plastrons for mating. Traits like
this, that provide a reproductive advan-
tage, tend to persist in the fossil record.
After all, survival of the fittest requires
the ability to replicate.
Extinction
A short while later, we reached an-
other short spur and signed fossil repli-
ca — this time of a sheep-like creature,
known as an Oreodont. Contorted and
missing limbs, the fossil replica of the
Oreodont lay awkwardly under the cas-
ing. The contortion is a clue to its life as
a prey species.
Nick pointed out other features. The
Oreodont’s fang-like canines used for
snapping branches, depressions above
the cheekbones providing space for
large chewing muscles — both clues
that Oreodont’s were herbivores.
He also pointed out a small depres-
sion on the face — the location of a scent
gland, present in some ungulates today.
Today, despite their long history in
North America, the entire diverse group
of Oreodonts are all extinct. A reality
that gives one pause — most of the
branches of the tree of life end in a dead
end.
Small things
Next to the Oreodont fossil replica
was a thick layer of sandstone jettying
out toward us.
“This is a channel or river deposit,”
Nick said pointing at the layer of rock.
He explained that river deposits are
unique in that they produce a lot of
small fossils, like rodents, that have
small home ranges — telling us a lot
about local conditions.
As Nick puts it, “smaller things tell us
a lot more about the environment than
bigger things.”
Nick elaborated, “Rodents are
uniquely adapted to their environ-
ments.” Thus, when a species disap-
pears in a region, for example, that can
indicate a local environmental change.
Nick used the example of a small
deer-like mammal, Hypertragulus, that
disappeared from the Great Plans of
North America, but persisted in the
west for several millions of years more.
A specialist
Nick and I continued down the trail
until we reached a final fossil replica.
The replica was of a false saber-toothed
cat — a nimravid.
Twenty-nine million years ago, three
or four species of nimravid coexisted as
specialized carnivores, each relying on a
different food source for survival. This
worked great for a time, as it reduced
competition between species.
However, as the environment
changed and food sources became
scarce, being a specialist was not such a
great thing. And eventually the entire
nimravid family went extinct.
According to Nick, being a specialist
was not easy in Oregon’s changing envi-
ronment.
“Unless you are a bone crusher. There
always seems to be enough bones…,” he
smirked.
Amphitheater
Eventually, Nick and I reached the
very end of the hike — a place known as
the amphitheater. Here it is easy to see
the many layers of colorful rock reach-
ing back into the ages. The “pages of
time” literally surround you.
Nick called out each layer: lower
green is unit C, browns unit D, the ledge
layers E1-E3, followed by the Blue Basin
Tuff and unit F, with dark Picture Gorge
ignimbrite capping it all.
Layers and layers of rock containing
fossils of past life, telling a 29-million-
year-old story.
Storytelling
After a few minutes taking in the am-
phitheater, Nick and I made our way
back to the trailhead. As we walked, he
said something that struck me:
“I tell students all the time that the
most important thing, as a scientist, is
that you have to be able to communicate
what you have done to somebody else.
Because if you can’t, what is the point of
doing it in the first place?”
Paleontologists are storytellers. They
take us back in time to better under-
stand the future. Oregon’s story is dra-
matic—punctuated by fiery volcanic
eruptions, changing climates, and a se-
rious of unique life forms — but it is also
a lesson in understanding occurrences
of change.
Life is a state of flux. And you don’t
need a Flux Capacitor to see that.
The Hike
Trailhead: Blue Basin Parking Lot/
Island in Time Trail
Distance: 1.2 miles
Elevation Gain: approximately 250
feet
Details: Restrooms at the trailhead.
Plenty of parking available. No passes
required for entry. Hike the 3.25-mile
(750 elevation gain) trail for a birds-eye
view of Blue Basin from the same park-
ing lot.
Emily Parent is a science educator,
freelance writer, self-professed nature
nerd, and avid hiker. To read more of her
writing about science and nature in the
outdoors visitwww.trailscholar.com
Nicholas Famoso (Nick) is the Paleon-
tology Program Manager and Museum
Curator for John Day Fossil Beds Na-
tional Monument. Nick got his bache-
lor’s degree from South Dakota School of
Mines and Technology where he studied
fossil mammals and marine reptiles. He
later went on to earn his master’s degree
and Ph.D. from the University of Oregon
in geological and earth sciences.