Prehistoric Island Tours

25/08/2024

Ever seen pure, white sandstone on PEI?

The tour site preserves this unusual sandstone layer you can see for yourself on a 2.5 hour tour! As an Islander I can't say I've seen this before on other Island beaches, and why that is, I have no idea. Some might say it looks like green glauconitic (low oxygen) sandstone which is common on PEI but this is..... quite different. This layer lacks the iron oxide mineral, hematite, that makes our bedrock red. Usually hematite coats our bedrock's lithified sand and silt grains like a fine dust.

What I find so intriguing about geological sites like this is they are mysteries just waiting to be solved.

On that note, if you know of any sedimentary geologists looking for topics to research send them my way! I would study them myself but I prefer the educational side over writing papers 😬 😆

There is one 2.5-hour tour left this season on Sunday, September 8th @ 9:00am! Book online at www.prehistoricislandtours.ca

20/08/2024

Fossil Day was so much fun today! Thanks so much to the PEI Museum and Heritage Foundation for having me!

19/08/2024

Tomorrow is Fossil Day at the Beaconsfield Carriage House! Come stop by to see some of PEI's amazing fossil collection, partake in fun children's activities and experience our prehistoric past! 🙂 See you there!

Join us for Fossils Day on Tuesday, August 20, from 1 pm to 3:30 pm at Beaconsfield Carriage House!

Dive into the natural history of the Island with a special focus on geological history and the Island’s rich fossil record 🪨

This educational event aims to raise awareness of PEI’s natural heritage with family-friendly activities such as a “Find a Fossil” hunt, a display of some of PEI's most significant fossils and casts, a selfie station with PEI’s very own Dimetrodon, a colouring station, and an interpretive talk by Laura MacNeil, Founder of Prehistoric Island Tours 🦖

Beaconsfield Historic House

13/08/2024

Stop on by for some fossil family fun next Tuesday, Aug. 20th at 1:00pm!

Join us for Fossils Day on Tuesday, August 20, from 1 pm to 3:30 pm at Beaconsfield Carriage House!

Dive into the natural history of the Island with a special focus on geological history and the Island’s rich fossil record 🪨

This educational event aims to raise awareness of PEI’s natural heritage with family-friendly activities such as a “Find a Fossil” hunt, a display of some of PEI's most significant fossils and casts, a selfie station with PEI’s very own Dimetrodon, a colouring station, and an interpretive talk by Laura MacNeil, Founder of Prehistoric Island Tours 🦖

Beaconsfield Historic House

10/08/2024

Fiona, an Islander, showcasing her love for her home province's geologic history! Such a cool feature by Canada's Dinosaur Museum. Way to go Fiona!

28/07/2024

What a great 2.5-hour tour we had today! I got to meet some fantastic people, and they found some really beautiful fossils!

Photo 1: tree fern with barite mineralization
Photo 2: large tree fern
Photo 3: Walchia leaves discovered by Steven Coombs
Photo 4: Walchia frond discovered by Joann Tyrie
Photo 5: Walchia frond from photo 4 with fossilized wood fragment covered in yellow mineralization

26/07/2024

Two days ago Xavier Labelle discovered a beautifully-preserved piece of tree fern on our tour! I couldn't believe how quick he spotted it and his attention to detail, to say I am impressed is an understatement! Way to go Xavier!

If you'd like to come see Xavier's fossil, it is now a part of our fossil pass-around!

Book online at www.prehistoricislandtours.ca

22/07/2024

I had some wonderful outings this past weekend with the Young Millionaires Program ! Thank you to all that attended!

18/07/2024

There will be a tour running this Saturday, July 20th at 1:00pm! The weather looks fantastic with sun and 25 degrees.

Come walk on a 290-million-year-old forest floor that existed 60 million years before dinosaurs, learn about the ancient creatures that roamed our prehistoric landscapes, and transport yourself to life and land at the centre of the Pangea supercontinent!

Book online at

prehistoric island touRSExperience the 300 million-year-old history of Prince Edward Island Tours this week:1.5-hour Tour: Saturday, July 13th @ 10:00am2.5-hour Paleo-Enthusiast Tour: Sunday, July 14th @ 10:00am BOOK NOW book a guided tour Prehistoric Island Tours offers 90-minute, 1 km-long shoreli...

11/07/2024

There are two tours running this weekend:

Saturday, July 13 @10:00am (1.5 hours)
Sunday, July 14 @ 10:00am (2.5 hour paleo-enthusiast experience)

Come join in on the fossil fun! The weather looks great both days.

Book online at
Www.prehistoricislandtours.ca

01/07/2024

This Wednesday's July 3rd tour @ 12:00pm is almost full with 25/30 spots gone, book quick while you can! The weather looks fantastic with sun and 23 degrees.

Big groups are such a blast, and by the looks of it you'll meet visitors from across North America! I am super excited. Come join the fossil fun!

Visit www.prehistoricislandtours.ca to book

14/06/2024

The tour tomorrow (Saturday) at 11:00am has been changed to Sunday at 11:00am since we are expecting some rain tomorrow. Are you free on Sunday and looking for a fun family activity? Come join us! For those wanting to experience a tour with others present there are currently three groups signed up!

A great time to book before it gets very hot, and it looks like it'll be that kind of Summer ☀️🌞

Book online at www.prehistoricislandtours.ca

23/05/2024

The first tour of the season will be running this Saturday at 3:30pm! Weather looks great with sun and cloud and 15 degrees.

Book online here:
https://prehistoricislandtours.ticketspice.com/prehistoricislandtours

A great time to book before the hot temperatures arrive and seaweed starts rolling in! Great conditions for fossil hunting.
Prince Edward Island Tourism

19/05/2024

Out for a fossil hunt on the western shore before tours start next weekend! Pictured are some beautiful ferns and a millepede trackway

05/05/2024

Check out this awesome Tiktok by on Anne MacFadyen's recent fossil find! Her page reaches hundreds of thousands of viewers which means PEI's fossil record is getting social media attention worldwide, how cool is that?!

If you're into fossils I highly recommend you give Joanna's page a follow! She's an encyclopedia of paleontology knowledge and just a super awesome person, what can I say. Her following proves so!

Joanna Northover

404 likes, 14 comments. “Yet another cool fossil 🦴🪨 discovery was made in a beach on PEI 🇨🇦🥔”

28/04/2024

PREHISTORIC CREATURES OF PEI

COTYLORHYNCHUS
(COAT-IL-OH-RINK-US)

Let’s check out a prehistoric creature that has yet to be found on PEI, but could very well be discovered here one day in the future!

Meet my all-time favorite prehistoric animal: Cotylorhynchus.

Fossils of this bizarre-looking creature have been found in Texas and Oklahoma in Early Permian sedimentary rock, which is the same age as our Island’s red beds. Considering PEI was connected to the rest of the Pangea supercontinent back then it is very possible that this creature’s geographical distribution occurred as far East as prehistoric PEI.

Cotylorhynchus is known for its disproportionately small head compared to its large body. Why this creature became evolution’s cruel experiment is not 100% known, but we do know that it was herbivorous with very little predators, both of which would not require a very large brain. Many Permian herbivores also had very stocky bodies as they were better for holding the massive quantity of intestines needed for digesting the tough plant matter they ate. Maybe it should be looked at that its body was too big for its head and not the other way around!

Wouldn’t it be neat to find evidence that this creature roamed P.E.I.’s prehistoric landscapes?

26/04/2024

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-fossil-reptile-foot-1.7186305

A woman in P.E.I. has found a rare fossil likely from the early Permian period — roughly 290 million years ago.

20/04/2024

An early visit to the tour site today has me excited for tours in just over a month! Don't forget to book yours this Summer! Visit www.prehistoricislandtours.ca to book.

These three fossils have just been unveiled with this past winter's erosion, to be seen for the first time in 300 million years 😯

Descriptions for each fossil are given in the picture captions.

P.S. The "Prehistoric Creatures of PEI" series will resume shortly, after a busy last three weeks!

02/04/2024

Teachers, it’s that time of year again to book your class for a school program! Not only do students get hands on with real PEI fossils, we will do some fun interactive activities all about dinosaurs and the ancient plants and animals that lived on P.E.I. 300 million years ago!

I am also excited to announce a brand new program called Dino-Mania for Pre-K to grade 2 that will give your students the dinosaur fix they’ve always wanted! Shoreline tours will also be available for grades 7-12. There is a program for every age group!

For more information on available programs and how to book visit:

www.prehistoricislandtours.ca/school-programs

Looking for more feedback on what to expect with a program before booking? There could be a teacher at your school that has participated in one! The following schools have had programs delivered:

Stratford Elementary
Glen Stewart Primary
Spring Park Elementary
Sherwood Elementary
Gulf Shore Consolidated
Montague Consolidated
Georgetown Elementary
Eliot River Elementary
West Royalty Elementary
Queen Elizabeth Elementary
Montague Intermediate
Mount Academy
Ecole Sur Mer
Souris Regional
Little Ducklings Childcare Centre
CHANCES childcare
Girl Guides Cornwall
Boy Scouts East Royalty

21/03/2024

The 2024 tour schedule is now available and you can book your tour now!

Click here to book:
https://www.prehistoricislandtours.ca/book-now

See you this Summer! 🦎

06/03/2024

Teachers, homeschool groups and girl guides/scout leaders that have participated in my school program or tours with your classes, I would love to hear from you!

If you enjoyed it I would be so appreciative if you could provide a comment/quote that I could post on my website to let teachers know what to expect when booking the Prehistoric PEI program. Feel free to post your comment below, or send me an email to [email protected].

Thank you in advance! :)

26/02/2024

MYCTEROSAURUS (translation: snout-lizard)
MICK-TER-OH-SORE-US

Our next prehistoric Islander is Mycterosaurus! A small carnivorous synapsid that grew up to 60 cm in length.

One might look at this creature and say it's just like a regular lizard we might find on Earth today, but it's unfortunately not that simple.....

Just like Mycterosaurus all mammals, including humans, are what we call SYNAPSIDS. On the contrary all reptiles, including dinosaurs, birds, lizards, crocodiles, etc, are what we call DIAPSIDS.

Synapsids have ONE hole in their skull behind their eye socket for jaw muscle attachment.

Diapsids on the other hand have TWO holes in their skull for jaw muscle attachment. Over time they evolved a second hole to allow for more powerful jaw strength.

Synapsids first evolved about 320 million years ago which is about 100 million years before the existence of dinosaurs. These creatures were not mammals (in fact we call them non-mammalian synapsids) and had a reptilian look to them. They would, however, eventually give way to the evolution of the furry mammals we know and love today, 115 million years later in the Jurassic Period in the form of small, burrowing rodent-like creatures.

The moral of the story is Mycterosaurus is a synapsid, just like us humans! But not a mammal.......All mammals are synapsids, but not all synapsids are mammals!

At least we can thank our existence to the same creatures that once roamed our Island landscapes 300 million years ago!

Mycterosaurus living in Permian PEI is known from a single jaw fragment discovered by American paleontologist Dr. Wann Langston Jr. in the 1960’s. He discovered this beautiful specimen in the Spring Valley area.

Photo 1: (Brink et al., 2013) Mycterosaurus jaw fragment discovered by Dr. Langston
Photo 2: (University of Texas) American paleontologist Dr. Wann Langston Jr.
Photo 3: (https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5537149) Mycterosaurus reconstruction
Photo 4: Synapsid vs. Diapsid skull

21/02/2024

Some amazing ice sculpture artwork by PEI fossil hunter Patrick Brunet!

19/02/2024

DIADECTES (translation: crosswise-biter)
(DYE-AH-DECK-TEES)

Another one of my favorites! Diadectes (Early Permian; 290-272 million years ago) was a large and heavily built reptiliomorph that called PEI home 290 million years ago, spending its days lumbering around the Permian swamps and rivers now preserved in our beautiful sandstone cliffs.

While Diadectes was a hearty plant eater, its meaty physique would have made a delicious meal for the apex predator at the time, Dimetrodon.

Reptiliomorphs are an extinct genus of amphibians that were well-adapted to live longer periods of time on land compared to your average amphibian.

Fossil evidence of Diadectes found on PEI includes trackways discovered in Eldon and Cavendish, PEI. What's neat about these finds is that they are some of the largest ever found!

12/02/2024

DIMETRODON BOREALIS (translation – Northern two measures of teeth)

Dimetrodon (Early Permian; 295-272 million years ago) is probably Prince Edward Island’s most famous prehistoric resident, and for good reason! It was at the top of the food chain and boasted an extremely powerful jaw with sharp, serrated teeth. Dimetrodon is known as a non-mammalian synapsid, meaning its relatives eventually led way to the evolution of mammals.

Its characteristic sail was likely used for two purposes: body thermoregulation and to attract mates.

Dimetrodon’s presence in Permian PEI is known from two specimens: a partial jaw fragment discovered in 1845 and a trackway in 2018.

Photo 1 (illustrated by Danielle Dufault): Dimetrodon borealis
Photo 2 (taken by Carleton University/University of Toronto Mississauga): Dimetrodon upper jaw fragment discovered by Don MacLeod in French River, 1845.
Photo 3: Dimetrodon footprint discovered by Laura MacNeil in Cavendish, 2018.
Photo 4: Dimetrodon trackway discovered by Laura MacNeil, 2018.

05/02/2024

SEYMOURIA
(SEE-MORE-EE-AH or SEH-MORE-EE-AH)

Let me introduce you to Seymouria (Early Permian; 300-270 million years ago), a reptiliomorph that roamed our landscapes 300 million years ago. Back then PEI was not an Island but rather hundreds of kilometres away from the ocean in the centre of the Pangea supercontinent. Seymouria lived amongst swamps and massive river systems that would eventually deposit the sand, silt and mud that make up our Island's iron-rich bedrock today.

Reptiliomorphs were essentially amphibians that had adapted to live on land for longer periods of time and are completely extinct today. Fossil evidence for this creature living on PEI may exist in the form of several trackways.

Trackways can sometimes be tricky; many animals of the past left behind very similar-looking footprints. The trackways shown below have all been found on PEI and may represent some left behind by Seymouria.

Photo 2 (taken by Matt Stimson): Trackway discovered by Matt Stimson and Danielle Horne in Belfast, 2012.
Photo 3 (taken by Patrick Brunet): Trackways discovered by Patrick Brunet in Cavendish, 2020.
Photo 4: Footprints discovered by Laura MacNeil in Souris, 2018.
Photo 5 (Marchetti et al., 2016): Complete articulated skeletons of Seymouria sanjuarensis from the Bromacker locality, Germany.

29/01/2024

PREHISTORIC CREATURES OF PEI – PART 1

This is the first post of a series where I will introduce you to the prehistoric animals of whom there is fossil evidence for on Prince Edward Island! We will even discuss some creatures we haven't yet found fossils of, but have potential to be found in the future.

OPHIACODON (translation: Snake Tooth)
(Oh-Fee-Ah-Ko-Don)

This prehistoric resident of PEI is one of my favorites. Ophiacodon (Late Carboniferous – Early Permian; 310-290 million years ago) is one of the most basal synapsids in the evolutionary tree, meaning its relatives would eventually give way to the evolution of mammals 100 million years later.

Not only was it a ferocious-looking creature but it had a humongous head, measuring up to half a metre long! Despite its large jaw Ophiacodon had very small teeth which suggests it ate little lizards and amphibians rather than large prey.

Fossil evidence for Ophiacodon residing in Permian PEI comes from a single specimen discovered by American paleontologist Dr. Wann Langston Jr. in the 1960's in the Alexandra/Pownal region.

14/01/2024

A nice feature on PEI's famous Dimetrodon skull by 'Canada's Dinosaur Museum'!

Don MacLeod's 1845 skull find was incredibly important to paleontology, and for 160 years this fossil was more well-known worldwide than by Islanders. We didn't discuss our fossil record much here, strange eh!

Luckily that is slowly changing as education, social media and news outlets spread the word that we can, in fact, find scientifically-important fossils on PEI :)

the first Dimetrodon fossil was found in 1845? A Prince Edward Island farmer found an upper jawbone 21 feet below the surface while digging a well.

Dimetrodon was the dominant terrestrial carnivore in the Early Permian, 295 – 272 million years ago. Although it resembles a dinosaur, Dimetrodon is actually more closely related to mammals than reptiles.

14/01/2024

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/fossilized-animal-tracks-320-million-years-old-cape-breton-1.7080979

Geologists from Cape Breton University have discovered the rare toe imprints of a large crocodile-like swamp animal — possibly an anthracosaur — that lived 320 million years ago in what is now Creignish, N.S.