Fossilized Tortoise

March 27, 2015

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Photographer: James Ruddy
Summary AuthorJames Ruddy

Featured above is an almost complete shell body of a fossilized tortoise (Stylemys nebrascensis). It was found eroding out of a clay hillside in the White River Badlands of South Dakota -- in the Buffalo Gap National Grasslands. This is perhaps the most common fossil found in the White River Badlands and was first discovered and described in 1851. It's from the Oligocene Epoch or the Paleogene Period that extended from 33.9 to 23 million years before present. Photo taken on July 24, 2009.

Photo details: Camera Maker: NIKON; Camera Model: COOLPIX L11; Focal Length: 6.2mm (35mm equivalent: 37mm); Aperture: ƒ/2.8; Exposure Time: 0.023 s (1/44); ISO equiv: 64.