Near Florissant in Teller County, Colorado — The American Mountains (Southwest)

Life in the Forest

Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., October 11, 2020

1. Life in the Forest Marker

Inscription.

The Abert's squirrel inhabits this forest. It eats ponderosa pine cones and the inner bark of the twigs. It's just one of many animals that depend on the ponderosa forest for food, nesting, and cover. The fossil record also shows animals and plant interdependencies 34 million years ago.

Life in the Eocene
Florissant contains one of the richest deposits of insect fossils in the world. Examples of a moth, beetle, and a caterpillar can be seen above and to the right. The larvae of some of these ancient insects were responsible for leaf damage seen in some of the plant fossils.

[Eocene fossil photo captions, clockwise from top, read]
• Moth (Lepidoptera)
• Weevil (Curculionidae)
• Caterpillar (Phylledestes vorax)
• This Eugenia leaf shows extensive "hole feeding" by an unknown insect.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Animals • Environment • Paleontology.

Location. 38° 54.775′ N, 105° 17.192′ W. Marker is near Florissant, Colorado, in Teller County. Marker is along the Ponderosa Loop Trail at Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 15807 County Road 1, Florissant CO 80816, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this

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marker. The Present Touches the Past (within shouting distance of this marker); Reading the Rings (within shouting distance of this marker); Dawn of the Recent Past (within shouting distance of this marker); Florissant Valley Today (within shouting distance of this marker); Delicate Impressions (within shouting distance of this marker); Ancient Clones (within shouting distance of this marker); The Role of Fire (within shouting distance of this marker); Layers of Time (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Florissant.

Also see . . .
1. Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument. (Submitted on October 23, 2020, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
2. Eocene Florissant. (Submitted on October 23, 2020, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
3. History of paleontology at the Florissant fossil beds, Colorado. (Submitted on October 23, 2020, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)

Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., October 11, 2020

2. Life in the Forest Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on October 23, 2020. It was originally submitted on October 23, 2020, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 115 times since then and 6 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 23, 2020, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.