Fossils of Bayside Incursion/Excursion

Year 9 & 10 DNA to Dinosaurs (BEST)

The Year 9 & 10 DNA to Dinosaur class recently participated in a ‘Fossils of Bayside’ Incursion and Excursion where we were very lucky to have Ben Francishelli, a Vertebrate Palaeontologist, present to our students on his current research into the fossils found at Beaumaris Bay. This included: Livyatan (giant predatory sperm whales), Pelagornis (giant pelicans), Diprotodon (cow sized marsupials) and Megladon (mega-shark). These are all fossils that existed in Beaumaris 5 million years ago!

If you are interested in finding out more about the fossils of Bayside

You might also like to follow the work of Ben Francischelli (Vertebrate Palaeontologist) on social media – Lost World of Bayside Fossils. His Instagram and Facebook posts are a great way to keep up to date with the local fossil discoveries.

On Friday, May 20 our DNA to dinosaurs class went out to the Beaumaris Fossil site with paleontologist, Ben Francischelli who taught us how fossils were formed and where to find them. We searched for different fossils, like shark teeth, bone and heart urchins, which we were successful in attaining. He also presented to us at school and showed all the fossils he had found and told us what animals they were formed from. He gave us an opportunity to complete a drawing activity using our imagination to create what we thought past animals looked like based on their fossilised bones. We all had a great time and learnt so much about paleontology from Ben.

By Lucy M, Kate A and James M (Year10 students)

Mr Steve Seddon

Teacher