A new fossil find may give some the urge to examine their ornamental landscaping rocks a little more closely.
    A grounds technician at Olds College recently discovered fossil remains encased in a rock that was moved in a campus landscaping project. The jet black fossil protruding from the rock was photographed and the Royal Tyrrell Museum was notified of the find.
    “At first glance we thought it was a dried banana peel,” admitted Leona Megli, grounds technician at Olds College. “At closer glance we realized it was something much more valuable, but the last thing you think you’d find in your job is a 60-million-year-old fossil!”
    A senior technician was sent out to investigate and the fossil was brought back to the museum.
    The fossil has been identified as a Simoedosaurus, a crocodile-like reptile that lived in fresh water roughly 60 million years ago. The animal belongs to a group of reptiles called champsosaurs, which closely resembled crocodilians and lived alongside the dinosaurs, but survived the mass extinction 65 million years ago.
    “This is an exciting find,” said Dr. Donald Brinkman, Director of Preservation and Research at the Royal Tyrrell Museum. “Two kinds of champsosaurs lived during the Palaeocene Epoch in North America; Champsosaurus and Simoedosaurus. Only two specimens of Simoedosaurus have been reported previously in North America; one from Saskatchewan and one from North Dakota. This specimen discovered in Olds is the rare Simoedosaurus.”
    Other specimens of Simoedosaurus have been found in Europe, providing evidence there was an interchange between the two continents at some point.
    The fossil is currently a priority specimen at the Tyrrell Museum and is currently being prepared.

    The Village of Delia are already anticipating the arrival of their centennial in 2014. To help make the centennial celebrations as memorable as possible, planning has already begun.
    The next Delia centennial planning meeting will be held on November 28 at 7 p.m. in the Delia Community Hall.
    The first two meetings were held earlier this year.
    “We’ve started to get the group together. We had a meeting in the Spring and everybody went away with a few things. At this meeting we’ll hopefully set the program in place and finalize what we’ll be doing,” said Caroline Siverson, treasurer of the Delia Centennial Committee.
    There are a few events on the table so far, but with so much time left to plan for the centennial, not much else is concrete.
    “So far we’re thinking a community supper, pancake breakfast, and parade. I’m sure with the research and discussions we’ll have, we’ll come up with more,” said Siverson.
    Community members, past and present, are encouraged to get involved in the centennial.
    Part of the centennial is the History Project. Residents are encouraged to send in photographs of original or early buildings, street scenes, businesses, houses, schools, stockyard, and other historic photographs. In particular, organizers are looking for any photos of a train stopped at the station and the train collision that occurred in the 1950’s.
    The Village Office will help residents scan their photos if they don’t want to part with the originals.
    “Any photos, family history, or ideas, we’ll take them,” said Siverson. “It’s a big project, you need a lot of dedicated people. This community is close knit, it’ll be a great time.”
    The centennial in 2014 is still over a year away, but by starting early, organizers are hoping to secure grant funding and make the celebrations the best they can be.
    “We have to apply for our grants next year, so to do that, we have to have our budgets in place. To book things like caterers and entertainment, and get people on board, it takes time,” said Siverson. “It’s a lot of time and effort, but when things all go well, it’s great.”
    To learn more about the centennial or to get involved, attend the meeting on November 28 at 7 p.m. at the Delia Community Hall, visit www.delia.ab.ca, or visit the Village of Delia 2014  Centennial on Facebook.