January 2025 - 32

Fossil Butte is about 15 miles west of Kemmerer in southwest Wyoming.
yoming is often celebrated for its rich
wildlife. Whether it's herds of majestic elk
traversing the slopes, bison roaming the
plains, a bear scavenging for food to fatten up before
winter or a cutthroat trout at the end of a perfectly cast
line, people travel from around the world to see the
iconic wildlife that call Wyoming home.
The state's diverse landscapes - from the wideopen
prairies to the rugged peaks of the state's
many mountain ranges - provide a habitat for
an impressive array of animals today. However, to
truly understand Wyoming's place in the story of
life on Earth, we must look back millions of years
to a time when the animals that once called this
land home were very different.
One window into this ancient world is near Kemmerer
in southwest Wyoming. The area is known
for remarkably well-preserved fossils and offers an
opportunity to explore the prehistoric life that flourished
around 52 million years ago. The rocks are
32 | January 2025
W
famous for their abundant and diverse assemblage of
fossils, including fish, birds, mammals, insects and
plants. These rocks provide a deeper understanding
of Wyoming's ancient ecosystems and the wildlife
that once inhabited the area. Through these fossils,
we gain a unique view of the animals that once
flourished in Wyoming long before the state was a
haven for modern wildlife.
ABOUT FOSSIL BUTTE
NATIONAL MONUMENT
Fossil Butte is situated in Lincoln County, about
15 miles west of Kemmerer. The butte and surrounding
flat-topped ridges arise from a sagebrush
sea. This desert makes it an unexpected location to
find evidence of ancient fish and aquatic animals.
The area was once home to a large freshwater lake
- now appropriately called Fossil Lake. It was one
of three large lakes that covered parts of Colorado,
Utah and Wyoming and now make up the Green
River Formation. The unique conditions of Fossil
Lake made it a prime area for fossils to form, preserving
creatures and plants that lived during the
early Eocene Epoch about 52 million years ago.
" Fossil Lake had several factors that made for

January 2025

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https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/january-2025
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/december-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/october-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/september-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/august-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/july-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/june-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/wyoming-wildlife-may-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/april-2024-e-edition
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/march-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/february-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/january-2024
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/december-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/october-2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/september-2023
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https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/december-2022
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https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/january-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/dec-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/october-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/september-2021
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https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/January2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/wyominggame/WyomingWildlife/December2020
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