The second expedition of the Frida and Alex Fossil Summer was nearly canceled due to hazardous air quality. However we had a temporary reprieve and the air wasn’t terrible in the morning, so it proceeded, though we chose a location closer to home.
Baird’s Creek Greenway (the crown jewel of the Green Bay park system), follows the path of the eponymous creek as it cuts through the escarpment, revealing layers of mudstone shale beneath. As at Wequiock Falls, brachiopods and corals were prevalent in the shale. However, we did find plenty of fossils, particularly corals evident in Ordovician dolomite.
Baird’s Creek Greenway
Wearing our new, official “Frida and Alex Fossil Summer 2026” shirts, we parked at the western edge of the park and explored the riparian zones of the creek near the foot bridge. Investigations of the area yielded the following samples:
The final sample, FAFS26-02-04, was the most controversial. Personally, I’m not convinced that it’s a fossil.
Our expedition along the banks of the creek also yielded some wildlife observation. Like this green frog (that’s its name):
Didn’t see it? Try this:
Questions
- The granite (?) that we found along the banks of the creek, where does it fit into our geological history? Glacial till? Volcanism?
- There are locations here where we found mudstone shale above dolomitic limestone, the opposite of what we saw at Wequiock Falls. How should we understand that?
If you have answers, please place them in the comments. Otherwise, we’ll just look them up.
Neville Museum’s Ice Age Exhibition
Towards the end of the excursion, we could sense (with our noses!) that the AQI was getting worse. So, we took refuge in the climate controlled Neville Museum. This Brown County institution is currently presenting two exhibitions that are worth viewing: “Art and the Ice Age,” which brings paleontological art and Ice Age fossils together, and “A Place at the Table,” which is an exploration of Northeast Wisconsin’s food cultures. Both were excellent.
Tinned Fish Review: Sardines à la Niçoise, La Bonne Mer
These were lovely. A tad saltier and “fishier” than Fishwife’s sardines, these were nice, firm, flaky sardines in a delicate pepper and onion sauce. Frida and I both expected these to be spicy, so their lack of heat was a little disappointing. They’re described on the label as having ‘chili,’ but it felt more like red bell pepper. I have seen other reviews that describe them as ‘spicy.’ A difference in sensitivity to spice? Differences in batch? There may be some inconsistency here. Yet, they were definitely tasty and I would purchase them again.