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Become a National Park Service Junior Park Ranger at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument.
To become a Junior Park Ranger at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument you must successfully complete either PART ONE or PART TWO below.
PART ONE is designed for those people who visit the fossil beds.
PART TWO may be completed by those who do not visit the park, simply by using this website and library books to gather answers to questions. Park facilities that display answers to the questions below are accessible to people in wheelchairs.
We have made your quest for answers somewhat challenging. Remember there is no deadline for completion, and the rewards are significant. As a Junior Park Ranger you will receive a Junior Park Ranger Badge, a certificate of achievement, and, with your permission, your photo will be displayed at the visitor center, along with the photos of other Junior Park Rangers. The address for submitting your answers is at the end.
PART ONE:
A Park-Wide Quest For Answers: The monument is divided into three widely separated units.You will need to find the answers at just one of the three units. It is your choice which one of units you will visit.
The Sheep Rock Unit Quest: The Thomas Condon Paleontology center at the Sheep Rock Unit is located two miles north of the intersection of Routes 26 and 19, along Route 19. The Thomas Condon Paleontology Center provides wonderful displays about the fossils and geology found within the John Day Fossil Beds area.
1. Name three different animals found in the Turtle Cove section of the Paleontology Center's "walk through time" museum.
2. Which plant or animal that used to live in oregon long ago was the most surprising to you and why?
3. What is a nimravid?
4. Who was Thomas Condon and why did we name the paleontology center after him?
Located at the Foree Picnic Area of the Sheep Rock Unit (eight miles north of the visitor center along Route 19) is the Story In Stone Trail. Answers to the following questions are found along this trail.
1. On the first touch exhibit, what type of rock is located on the upper right of the exhibit face?
2. On the last touch exhibit, what animal skull is displayed on the lower right of the exhibit face? Write its common name and its Latin name here:
The Clarno Unit Quest: The Clarno Unit is located 18 miles west of the town of Fossil, Oregon, along State Route 218. There are a couple of short trails that begin near the picnic area. One trail will allow you to see thousands of plant fossils in the nearby boulders. You can find the answers to these multiple-choice questions at the picnic area exhibits.
1. In the picnic area are three exhibits placed side-by-side. On one of the wayside exhibits, a "creodont" is described as being like which of the following? (circle one of the choices below)
a. "horse-like" b. "predator" c. "browser" d. "the size of elephants"
2. Looking at the text on the same three wayside exhibits, what is the four word definition given for the word Paleontologists? (circle one answer)
a. Students of Prehistoric Animals b. A Scientists Who Study Bones c. Students of Ancient Life
3. What are the two-hundred-foot cliffs, known as the palisades, made of? (circle one)
a. lava b. lake-bottom sediments c. lahars d. ocean-bottom sediments
4. The word "Eocene" means which of the following? (circle one)
a. "Dawn Age" b. "First Act" c. "Horse Age" d. "Recent Age"
The Painted Hills Unit Quest:The Painted Hills Unit is located about ten miles west of the town of Mitchell, Oregon, off of State Route 26. There is a picnic area with information, overlooks, and several interesting trails with exhibits. Determine if the statements that follow are true or false.
1. From the picnic area exhibits, the date printed on the The Dalles - Canyon City Military Road map is 1897" (circle one) TRUE FALSE
2. From the picnic area exhibits, fossilized mammal bones are found in the Haystack Valley strata. (circle one) TRUE FALSE
3. At the Painted Hills overlook, the exhibit states that the world-famous Bridge Creek Flora fossils reveal many species of an ancient, hardwood forest. (circle one)TRUE FALSE
4. According to one of the Painted Hills overlook exhibits, ash and pumice from the ancestral Cascades and local volcanoes buried this area layer by layer. (circle one)TRUE FALSE
5. Along the Leaf Hill Trail are several exhibits. Ralph W. Chancy was a famous paleobotanist ( a paleontologist who studies plants) who studied the Leaf Hill site in the 1930's.One exhibit states he discovered 1,237 plant fossil specimens in a 98 cubic feet of rock? (circle one) TRUE FALSE
6. The fossil specimens from the Leaf Hill site were found in a rock called shale. (circle one)TRUE FALSE
A question for you to answer Based on your observations and what you learned during your travels through the park, and what seems logical to you, please answer the following question. Your answer should be at least 50 words, and may be typed or written legibly.
The law says that people may not collect fossils in the park without permission from the parks paleontologist ... WHY? (Give several reasons)
On your travels through John Day Fossil Beds you have probably seen, or read about, many examples of plant and animal fossils of ancient life.
What is your favorite fossil? Write the scientific name, and then the common name, of your one favorite fossil found in the John Day Fossil Beds.
Scientific Name:
Common Name:
Why is it your favorite?
END OF PART ONE - Successful completion of PART ONE is enough to become a Junior
Park Ranger.
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PART TWO: For those who cannot visit the park and complete part one above,
you may complete PART TWO.
Section A … Essays
Submit a typed, or legibly written, paper answering the following two questions.
Question One: Can you describe at least three different ways fossils were formed? (an example of one way is petrification, but you need to describe how petrification
occurs in nature)
Question Two: What are sedimentary rocks, and why do these rocks contain nearly all of the fossils that are found?
You also need to add a list at the end of your paper naming at least two books (with author's name) that you studied to get an answer. Please do not copy answers directly from a source. Write your answer in your own words. If you are in school, you should have your science teacher review your paper (Hopefully, you may receive credit in class for your work!).
Section B ... Our Homepage Quest: Take a tour of our homepage at www.nps.gov/joda and find the answers to the following questions. Write your answer after each question.
- How old are the Picture Gorge Basalts?
- Was the "Beast of Frank's Creek" a fossil or pseudofossil?
- In which unit is the Carroll Rim Trail?
- What were the two motives for Charles Sternberg to prospect for fossils in the late 1800's?
- What kind of animal is Ekgmowechashala and why was the dicovery of one at the fossil beds so significant?
END OF PART TWO - Successful completion of PART TWO is enough to become a Junior Park Ranger.
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FOR ALL APPLICANTS… This section should be filled out by the person who completed this form,either part one or part two, and wants to become a Junior Park Ranger:
I, the applicant, know park rangers and students are responsible for their own work. With my submittal of this form, I hereby affirm that the my answers are the produc tof my own efforts, and that my answers will not be shared with others attempting to become a Junior Park Ranger at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument.
Print Your Full Name:
What is Your Date of Birth:
The Date You Completed This Form:
Your Address:
HOW TO SUBMIT: Please either mail this completed form (and attachments), or e-mail the document in WORD format to us.
We thank you for your participation and your desire to become a Junior Park Ranger. One of the most important things about a ranger's job is to understand the story of the park, monument, or forest they protect and serve. We will review this form and your answers for accuracy and then contact you as soon as possible about your success in becoming a Junior Park Ranger.
Should you have any questions please do call us at (541)987-2333.
Mailing Address:
Education Program Manager John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
32651 Highway 19
Kimberly, Oregon 97848
E-mail Address: joda_interpretation@nps.gov
Fax Number: (541) 987-2336
JODA/ 01-08
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