Significant rain in many parts of western Queensland has been the cause of great celebration for graziers … and for fossil-hunting grey nomads.
The curator and palaeontologist at Richmond’s Kronosaurus Korner fossil museum, Michelle Johnston, says the heavy falls would make it more likely that fossils would be unearthed in the region.
“From our perspective the rain’s really great because it washes away sediment or dirt that can help us expose some fossils,” she told the ABC. “To see the amount of water that was, and still is, out at the dig pits was just phenomenal — I’ve never seen like that before.”
Ms Johnston told the ABC that the unique black soil allowed the fossils to push to the surface once the ground had softened.
“When dry you can get these really big cracks in the black soil that are quite deep, and then with moisture or with rain going into the soil, the soil swells,” she said. “So with water you get this movement in the black soil and it and it helps push these limestone nodules up towards the surface.”
Ms Johnston said the clearing out fossils, and the green paddocks was going to contribute to a bumper season.
“I think it’s going be a huge tourist season the north west,” she said. “It’s a great time to come out particularly if it’s been a little while since you’ve been out — it’s beautiful to see the contrast.”
