Blue Beach Fossil Museum Project, Nova Scotia Canada

Blue Beach Receives Praise in Scientific Forums.... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ January, 19th 2007 To Whom It May Concern: I am writing today in recognition of Blue Beach (also known as Hortons Bluff), Nova Scotia, as one of the most important fossil localities in North America. As such, the conservation of its fossils, both found and waiting to be collected, is tantamount to ensure our better understanding of the animals that passed over the fish-tetrapod boundary. While dramatic, fully articulated skeletons haven’t (yet) been found, the vertebrate fossils of Blue Beach tell and interesting story. They represent the oldest fossils within the mysterious gap in the fossil record known as “Romer’s Gap”. Our emerging picture of the fauna from Blue Beach is one of transition; a Devonian-like form is present with classic Mississippian embolomeres, colosteids, and

~ A BIG DEAD FISH STORY ~ Dec 4, 2012 C. F. Mansky, Curator, Blue Beach Fossil Museum Every fisherman seems to have a good story about ‘the one that got away’. This all-too familiar scene has been repeated in books and art; in theatres and on film. The so-called ‘big fish story’ has, in short, become something of a North-American tradition. So by this point you’re probably already thinking “…just about heard them all”, and you could be forgiven for reacting sceptically to the above title. Trust me, this is a fish story you probably never heard before. For several years now my work at Blue Beach, Nova Scotia (Canada) has involved, among other things, uncovering a truly big fish that’s been extinct for hundreds of millions of years. Fossils of this giant fish, belonging to the family Rhizodontida, have grown into a ‘massive’ collection that has spilled out of the Blue Beach Fossil Museum near Hantsport; and now also happens to occupy the greater part of