Audio
ETE - Reading The Rocks audio description
Transcript
Text: Reading the Rocks. The towering sandstone cliffs and sweeping plateaus of Zion National Park hold stories of the past. These stories help us understand the plants, animals, and ecosystems of the past, which can help us understand the present and plant for the future.
Description: Underneath the title and caption is a photo of orange and red sandstone cliffs. Beneath the cliffs, there are rolling foothills dotted with green vegetation. To the right of this photo is a colorful stratigraphy (struh-tig-ruh-fee) column, which shows the rock layers of Zion and the fossils that have been found in each layer.
Starting at the bottom of the column, there is a light purple section labeled, “Chinle” (chin-lay), which includes, “Shinarump (shin-uh-rump) Conglomerate”. There are six drawings next to this layer, including a fish;
Text: Osteichthyes indet. (pronounced: aus-tee-ick-thees)
Description: A log of petrified wood;
Text: Plantae spp.
Description: a four-legged animal with a long tail and flat head;
Text: Metoposauridae indet. DeBlieux et. al, 2006 (pronounced: met-oh-poh-sar-ih-day)
Description: a four-legged animal with 2 ridges of spikes along its long body and tail;
Text: Aetosaria indet. DeBlieux et. al, 2005. (pronounced: eight-oh-sore-ee-uh)
Description: A four-legged animal with a tail the same length as its body and a rounded face with a large, open jaw;
Text: Ruvueltosaurus aff. R. callenderi. Heckert et al, 2006. (pronounced: roo-velt-oh-sore-us)
Description: An alligator-like animal with a flat body, long tail, and a long mouth of sharp teeth.
Text: Phytosauria indet. DeBlieux et al 2006. (pronounced: fight-oh-sore-ee-uh)
Description: Above the purple Chinle rock layer is a thin red layer labeled “Moenave,” (mo-uh-nah-vay) which includes “Dinosaur Canyon.” A red line crosses through the rock layer to indicate the “Extinction Event.”
Above the Moenave layer is a light blue section labeled, “Whitmore Point”. To the right of this layer are five light blue drawings, including two fish;
Text: New coelacanth 2023 (pronounced: see-low-canth)
Description: A plant with leaves arranged in a “V” shape from a central point;
Text: Sanmiguelia lewisii (pronounced: san-miguel-ee-uh lewis-ee-eye)
Description: Two animal footprints, the first with three toes at the front of the foot and one toe towards the rear. The second print has three pointed toes and a rounded heel.
Text: Eubrontes or Anomoepus. DeBlieux et al 2006. (pronounced: you-brawn-tees or ann-oh-mow-pus)
Description: The next rock layer is labeled, “Kayenta” (kai-en-tuh), which includes “Springdale Sandstone, Main body, Lamb Point, and Tenney (ten-ay?) Canyon”. This layer is colored orange and includes four drawings, showing a fish
Text: Semionotus kanabensis (pronounced: sem-eon-oh-tuss can-ab-en-sis)
Description: a small footprint with four toes;
Text: Four-toed track DeBlieux et al 2005
Description: Two footprints with pointed toes
Text: Eubrontes (pronounced: you-brawn-tees)
Description: Four thin footprints with three toes. The middle toe is longer than the toes on either side.
Text: Grallator (pronounced: gr-ow-later)
Description: At the very top, the thickest rock layer is colored light yellow, labeled “Navajo Sandstone”. There are four yellow drawings to its right, beginning with a sketch of a variety of footprints,
Text: Diverse track block. DeBlieux et al. 2006
Description: A furry, four-legged animal with long whiskers and a pointed tail.
Text: Possible trackmaker. Kayentatherium. (pronounced: k-eye-ent-uh-there-ee-um)
Description: A large dinosaur standing on two legs with a long tail, furry back, and two ridges on its face.
Text: Possible Eubrontes trackmaker. Dilophosaurus. (pronounced: you-brawn-tees and die-lof-o-sore-us)
Description: a smaller, furry dinosaur with a long face and neck.
Text: possible grallator trackmaker. Coelophysis. (pronounced: growl-later and see-lo-f-eye-sis)
Description: The lower left corner of the exhibit panel has two photos. The top is of a woman sitting on a red, rocky slope writing notes in a notebook. The bottom photo shows the same woman now sitting indoors looking through a microscope.
Text: Geologists are scientists who study the Earth’s rocks. Geologists can look at a variety of things in the rocks to tell us about the past. Some of the things they look at are patterns and structures in the rock, the rock’s chemistry and mineral content, and the fossil remains of living things preserved in the layers.
Geologists refer to sets of similar rocks that can be mapped on the landscape as “geologic formations”. It is important to map out where fossils are deposited, and study the rock layers they are buried in to determine what environments they were deposited in. Fossils may be preserved anywhere that sediments such as clay, sand, or volcanic ash might settle and bury evidence of ancient living things.
Dr. Celina Suarez is a geologist who is researching rocks in Blacks Canyon in Zion National Park. She and her team of researchers chose this area because of a significant story hidden in these layers: the End Triassic Extinction. The Triassic Period was the first in the age of dinosaurs. These early dinosaurs were small and not very abundant.
Description: A photo of two smiling geologists in sunglasses and hats. The geologists point to a red rock on a steep slope.
Text: The End Triassic Extinction. Study of the fossil record has revealed that around201 million years ago, 75% of all life on Earth went extinct, from large animals to small aquatic corals. This is known as the End Triassic Extinction, and it cleared the way for dinosaurs to diversify into a wide variety of habitats left vacant by so many other animals going extinct.
Dr. Suarez and her team have identified evidence of this important extinction event by looking at chemical markers preserved in the rocks in Zion National Park.
By studying this event, we can learn more about what happened, what caused it, and what lessons we can learn from it. Improving our understanding of past events can help us make better informed decisions today.
Description: The panel ends with three red dinosaur tracks.
Description
Audio description of panel 1 of the End Triassic Extinction exhibit.
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