As you can see from the pics above it was not hard to find fossils over there. Amonites and corals are everywhere but that enormous rock I’m kneeling in front of was the biggest thing I’ve ever found; some kind of plant life. But this thing stuck out of the ground just as you see it in the photo. Various types of coral fossils make up entire hillsides. It is amazing!

In all of my travels I have never encountered fossil beds as rich and abundant as those in Saudi Arabia.  There is no need to dig or even search very hard; artifacts of ancient animals litter the ground.  I have actually stumbled over remains of ancient coral.  Entire hillsides and cliffs there are composed of fossils.  The Riyadh Escarpment where I spent the bulk of my time is especially rich in pre-historic remains of sea life.  I’ve seen thousands of acres of the desert floor covered with fossils; these ancient coral beds must have been an astounding site!  The Arabian Peninsula was, obviously, at one time submerged beneath the sea.  As the land mass broke away from the African continent it rose above the water.  In the Riyadh area life fossils predominate, but elsewhere on the peninsula an array of fossils have been found that range from ancient mammals to early hominids. Go here for a lot more of Saudi Fossils.

From left to right: A fine example of a bolete; note the solidity of the organism and the pores underneath; a member of the coral fungi; a jelly fungi called “Witch’s Butter;” a familiar agaric showing the characteristic gills underneath an umbrella shaped cap; a “shelf” fungus called polypore; the small yellow orange sprouts coming out of the tree are possible “teeth” fungi; and finally another example of a polypore shelf fungus.

By and large (very large) I’m an animal wildlife guy. Animals are my muse, passion, primary trigger, etc, etc, etc…  But there is a particular non-animal form of wildlife that I find uniquely fascinating. I’m talking about those exotically beautiful fungi called mushrooms.  If you’re one of those hard core mushroom folks you know what I’m talking about. Life the Northwest is a shroom lovers paradise, of course, and as the saying goes “even the most casual observer” will notice our overwhelming wealth of fungi. They cover our forest grounds, scale halfway up our trees, and sprout overnight in our lawns. Mushrooms display an enormous variety of shapes and sizes, plus a surprising rainbow of colors. Pictured above are some of the more familiar types in our area. Orson K. Miller’s great book, “Mushrooms of North America” lists 13 major groups and hundreds of different kinds. I highly recommend this as a reference to anyone interested in these unique organisms.

Next time you see an ordinary fallen log in the forest turn it over and take a closer look. There’s hidden beauty and mystery just beyond your imagination – the delicate gills of a mushroom, little fanged dragons, colorful beetles, see through worms, underground grasshoppers – they’re waiting for you.

HOOAH

Jack