Rare 75-Million-Year-Old Ammonite Fossil Unearthed in Saskatchewan Village
Recently, a rare ammonite fossil, estimated to be about 75 million years old, was discovered in the province. A resident of the Village of Frobisher, Bob Steman, found the ancient remains while building a drainage system with rocks in his backyard.
Steman shared the rock was already cracked open when he found it. He looked for the other half but couldn’t locate it. Initially, he threw it aside and thought nothing of it. Four days later, he asked his wife to take a look at it, and she suspected it might be a fossil. This led them to seek further information.
After contacting the Royal Alberta Museum, Steman was surprised to learn about the potential age of the object. He then reached out to the provincial museum, given that the fossil was found on Saskatchewan land. Ryan McKellar, curator of Paleontology at the Royal Saskatchewan Museum (RSM), confirmed the significance of the discovery. He explained that the fossil belonged to a group called ammonites, squid-like animals with coiled or straight shells, akin to modern-day nautiluses.
McKellar shared that the fossil is a shell of a marine species that became extinct at the end of the Cretaceous period. While shells are relatively common finds, this particular type is rare for Saskatchewan. The RSM has hundreds of ammonite specimens but only 19 from this specific group, making Steman’s discovery a unique addition to their collection.
Most of the museum’s ammonite collection dates back to the 1920s to 1950s, so Steman’s find, which he plans to donate to the RSM, is a great addition.
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