On a Mission to find an Ichthyosaur Vertebra

Yesterday my eldest son was on a mission - to return to a beach we had explored a few days earlier, this time clutching his fossil hunting kit put together by his geologist grandpa. In his wonderfully convincing 9 year old opinion, he had discovered an ichthyosaur vertebra and was determined to dig it out of the surrounding rock. My younger son got involved in the expedition as chief 'brusher' dusting away the chipped rock to keep the area clear for the task in hand. The banter between the two of them was wonderful - such enthusiasm and anticipation. Where was the rest of the sea monster? How old were the rocks? All the rocks are 'tipped' up....Eventually the cylindrical mass was successfully removed and the vertebrae theory confirmed by the two boys. Their sense of wonder was absolute, feeding each other with possibilities of more fossils to be found. The expedition continued for a while longer until they had enough sample bags filled to study further under a magnifying glass.

We headed home with our spring break promising a paleontological theme - outdoors and curious.....