April 15, 1997 Contact Ross West (541) 346-2060 Source: William Orr (541) 346-4577 EUGENE--Two amateur paleontologists have discovered a 40-million-year old fossil egg, the first ever discovered in Oregon, according to William Orr, director of the state museum of fossils, the Condon collection, housed at the University of Oregon. Jim Leary of Cottage Grove discovered the egg, slightly smaller than a hen's egg, while fossil collecting with his brother-in-law, Kevin Benson, near Vernonia west of Portland. Though the egg has a shell less than 1/32-inch thick, it remains nearly intact, with only minor deformation. Orr says his initial examination indicates it is probably an ancient bird egg. The prehistoric egg comes from what is known as the Keasey formation, a layer of sedimentary rock deposited during the Late Eocene epoch, about 40 million years ago. Keasey rocks of volcanic ash, formed from some of the earliest debris from the infant Cascade volcanic range, were laid down in marine continental slope waters far from shore, at depths exceeding 1,500 feet. "But this is quite mysterious," Orr explains. "Normally we would associate an egg with coastal environs. It is puzzling to find one so far from the shoreline in deep water volcanic clay stones." To identify the specimen, Orr and Mike Shaffer, research assistant in the UO Department of Geology, examined the eggshell using a scanning electron microscope. They found a typical porous surface and crystalline, layered cross-section. These micro-structures usually indicate a bird egg, possibly that of a pelican. "Fossil eggs are very rare," Orr says. "Egg structures are inherently fragile and designed to be broken after a few weeks or months. That any egg survives for the millions of years it takes to become a fossil is truly remarkable." Prehistoric eggs that do survive are rarely found, Orr notes. Because they appear similar to rounded stream pebbles, fossil eggs usually go unnoticed, even by seasoned fossil collectors. Still, many collectors think they have found fossil eggs. Hopeful collectors have presented Orr with hundreds of "egg" fossils for identification. All previous specimens have turned out to be non-organic stones or "concretions," he says. Having been generally categorized, the Leary egg next will be CAT scanned and X-rayed using the facilities of a local hospital. This will determine the extremely unlikely possibility that the shell bears an intact preserved embryo. Finally, if owner Jim Leary is willing, Orr will send the egg to get a more specific identification from a paleontologist who specializes in eggs. Orr and his wife Elizabeth, co-authors of a number of books on the pre-history of Oregon and the Northwest, are just completing a new book on the fossils and paleontologists of Oregon. He expects to make this newly discovered egg a centerpiece chapter. -30- #F-7241/OrSci, OrDailies, Local, PDX