GEOLOGICAL FIELD GUIDE TO THE CEDAR POINT BIOLOGICAL STATION, KEITH COUNTY, NEBRASKA

This field guide was produced by staff members of the Conservation and Survey Division of the University of Nebraska originally in 1979 at the request of Dr. Brent Nickol, former Director of the Cedar Point Biological Station. It is an introduction to the geologic history and paleoecology of the Cedar Point area intended for students, staff, and other persons using the camp. This revision has been made some 15 years after the first version to reflect changes in ideas resulting from new data collected during that time. Users of this guide should take care when studying the rock exposures described herein because traverses up the slopes and beneath overhanging ledges can be dangerous. Rattlesnakes, ticks and poison ivy are additional hazards encountered from time to time. Put yourself in the boots of a geologist during your participation in the field trip outlined on the following pages. Ask some of the questions that a geologist might ask as he studies the rocks and sediments both on the camp property and farther afield. Is there anything about the rocks and sediments that might indicate where their source was located? What mechanism brought them to the camp area (e.g. streams, wind)? What environmental conditions obtained here during and after their decomposition? Are there any fossils (remains of organisms that lived in the past) in these rocks and if there are, what organisms do they represent? How old are the rocks and sediments in the camp area? the answers to such questions will allow you to draw conclusions about the geologic history and paleoecology of the area