John Day Fossil Beds National Monument22쪽 중 7쪽
NPS Geodiversity Atlas—John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Oregon
Geodiversity refers to the full variety of natural geologic (rocks, minerals, sediments, fossils, landforms, and physical processes) and soil resources and processes that occur in the park. A product of the Geologic Resources Inventory, the NPS Geodiversity Atlas delivers information in support of education, Geoconservation, and integrated management of living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic) components of the ecosystem.
In-depth geologic information is contained in the baseline inventory products of the Geologic Resources Inventory, see table below.
Introduction
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument (JODA) is located within the John Day River valley in Grant and Wheeler Counties, north-central Oregon. Authorized on October 26, 1974, JODA encompasses approximately 5,690 hectares (14,062 acres) and preserves a remarkably complete fossil record spanning nearly 50 million years of the “Age of Mammals and Flowering Plants”, from ~50 million to 7.5 million years ago (Albright et al. 2008; National Park Service 2016a). John Day Fossil Beds National Monument and the surrounding badlands contain a diverse assemblage of fossil plants and vertebrates. The notable fossil species from JODA include early horses, rhinoceroses, canids, and members of more than 30 other mammalian families entombed in reworked volcanic sediments. The monument is geographically dispersed among three widely separated units (Sheep Rock, Painted Hills, and Clarno units) and includes significant natural features such as the towering Clarno Palisades, Picture Gorge, Sheep Rock, Goose Rock, Blue Basin, and Cathedral Rock.
Geologic Setting
The geology of John Day Fossil Beds National Monument include lava flows, lahars, ash beds, tuff layers, and interbedded sedimentary rocks that record ancient depositional environments that include alluvial fan, floodplain, stream, and lacustrine ecosystems. Rock units within JODA are primarily Paleogene–Neogene in age and include the Clarno Formation, John Day Formation, igneous units associated with the Columbia River Basalt Group, Mascall Formation, and Rattlesnake Formation. Some of the oldest rocks mapped within the monument are conglomerates and sandstone lenses of the Cretaceous Mitchell Group (Gable Creek Formation) found in the Sheep Rock Unit. The greatest diversity and abundance of fossil specimens are found in the John Day Formation. Museum collections from JODA include nearly 54,000 specimens of plant and animal fossils that encompass most of the Cenozoic Era (Graham 2014a; N. Famoso, JODA Paleontology Program Manager and Museum Curator, pers. comm., 2022). These well-preserved fossil collections document evolutionary change and extinction through time and provide evidence of complex biological responses to changing climate and geologic events (Graham 2014a).
Regional Geology
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is a part of the Columbia Plateau Physiographic Province and shares its geologic history and some characteristic geologic formations with a region that extends well beyond park boundaries.
Maps and Reports
Geologic Resources Inventory
The Geologic Resources Inventory produces digital geologic maps and reports for more than 270 natural resource parks. The products listed below are currently available for this park, check back often for updates as many maps, reports, and posters are still in progress.
Scoping summaries are records of scoping meetings where NPS staff and local geologists determined the park’s geologic mapping plan and what content should be included in the report.
- Digital geologic maps include files for viewing in GIS software, a guide to using the data, and a document with ancillary map information. Newer products also include data viewable in Google Earth and online map services.
- Reports use the maps to discuss the park’s setting and significance, notable geologic features and processes, geologic resource management issues, and geologic history.
- Posters are a static view of the GIS data in PDF format. Newer posters include aerial imagery or shaded relief and other park information. They are also included with the reports.
- Projects list basic information about the program and all products available for a park.
Source: NPS DataStore Saved Search 2909
. To search for additional information, visit the
NPS DataStore.
Soil Resources inventory
A NPS Soil Resources Inventory project has been completed for John Day Fossil Beds National Monument and can be found on the NPS Data Store.
Source: NPS DataStore Saved Search 2981
. To search for additional information, visit the
NPS DataStore.
Painted Hills. John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Oregon.
Related Links
John Day Fossil Beds—Natural Features and Ecosystems
John Day Fossil Beds—Geologic Formations
John Day Fossil Beds—Rivers and Streams
John Day Fossil Beds—Park Home
Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries
Related Articles
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
- Series: Park Paleontology News—Vol. 18, No. 1, Spring 2026 — All across the park system, scientists, rangers, and interpreters are engaged in the important work of studying, protecting, and sharing our rich fossil heritage. Park Paleontology news provides a close up look at the important work of caring for these irreplaceable resources.
- Fossil Crocodylomorphs Across the National Park Service — Crocodylomorphs, including crocodylians and their extinct relatives, are known from body and trace fossils found in more than a dozen units of the National Park Service. The records range in age from the Late Triassic to the Pleistocene and include type specimens for five species, among them the giant Deinosuchus riograndensis from the Cretaceous of Big Bend National Park.
- Series: Park Paleontology News—Vol. 17, No. 2, Fall 2025 — All across the park system, scientists, rangers, and interpreters are engaged in the important work of studying, protecting, and sharing our rich fossil heritage.
Park Paleontology news provides a close up look at the important work of caring for these irreplaceable resources.
- Series: Park Paleontology News - Vol. 17, No. 2, Fall 2025 — All across the park system, scientists, rangers, and interpreters are engaged in the important work of studying, protecting, and sharing our rich fossil heritage.
Park Paleontology news provides a close up look at the important work of caring for these irreplaceable resources. - Preparation of Marine Mammal Fossils from Point Reyes National Seashore: A Collaboration with John Day Fossil Beds National Monument — The discovery of new specimens of marine mammals from Point Reyes National Seashore (PORE) led to a collaboration between Pacific West Region (PWR) parks to facilitate future studies.
- Lost, then Found…then Lost Again?: The Importance of Fossil Locality Documentation in National Parks — The likelihood of discovering a fossil before it’s lost to erosion is incredibly small – which is why it’s so alarming that even once discovered, a fossil can be lost again through the disappearance of the information that makes it scientifically valuable. Thankfully, the National Park Service has come up with a way to help keep its fossils found!
- Fossils of the 2025 National Fossil Day Artwork — The 2025 National Fossil Day Artwork features a 29-million-year-old Oligocene assemblage of plants and animals from the Turtle Cove Member of the John Day Formation, inspired by new and old discoveries made at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Oregon.
- Cenozoic Era — The Cenozoic Era (66 million years ago [MYA] through today) is the "Age of Mammals." North America’s characteristic landscapes began to develop during the Cenozoic. Birds and mammals rose in prominence after the extinction of giant reptiles. Common Cenozoic fossils include cat-like carnivores and early horses, as well as ice age woolly mammoths.
- Jennifer Cavin, Fossil Preparator at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument — Jennifer Cavin has been the fossil preparator at John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Oregon, since 2008. Her work involves exposing collected fossils from the surrounding rock, repairing damage to specimens, and other tasks that are intended to preserve and protect fossils for future study and display.
- Studying the Past and Predicting the Future Using Rat Nests — In the western United States, packrat middens are one of the best tools for reconstructing recent environments and climates. These accumulations of plant fragments, small vertebrate remains, rodent droppings, and other fossils can be preserved for more than 50,000 years. Packrat middens have been found in at least 41 National Park Service units.
National Park Service Geodiversity Atlas
The servicewide Geodiversity Atlas provides information on geoheritage and geodiversity resources and values within the National Park System. This information supports science-based geoconservation and interpretation in the NPS, as well as STEM education in schools, museums, and field camps. The NPS Geologic Resources Division and many parks work with National and International geoconservation communities to ensure that NPS abiotic resources are managed using the highest standards and best practices available.
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