Petrified Forest National Park

As a popular destination for Americans for generations, it may come as a surprise that not all of the land in and around the park is saved for public enjoyment. The Conservation Fund has helped expand Petrified Forest National Park (PFNP) by 25 percent – and we’re not stopping there.

Our Efforts

Paleo dig at Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona. Photo courtesy National Park Service. In 2011 we helped the National Park Service add 26,000 acres to the park. The lands were previously privately owned and managed as ranchland by the Hatch Family Partnership. These lands now connect areas already managed by the state of Arizona and the National Park Service.

Working with the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), we purchased 4,200 acres in January 2013. The National Park Service then utilized the federal Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF)—America’s premier conservation program—to acquire the property at the end of the year. Known as the McCauley Ranch, the property lies east of the historic remains of Puerco Pueblo and will connect lands already protected within PFNP.

During the summer of 2013, researchers unearthed a well preserved, two-foot- long phytosaur skull, a distant ancestor of the modern crocodile, on the McCauley Ranch property. They also uncovered a new find for Petrified Forest National Park, a Doswellia, which is a close relative to the phytosaur. A rich layer of fossil material was identified below the bones that could be the bottom of an ancient pond. Continued excavation will help to determine the pond’s ecosystem and identify the kinds of prehistoric fish, amphibians, reptiles and plants that once lived there.

Why This Project Matters

Our work at Petrified Forest National Park helps ensure that the park continues to provide significant economic benefits to local communities and businesses through tourism. It also secures many fossil-producing sites that have already shown to be ideal locations for exciting new paleontological discoveries. Since these lands had been privately owned they were off-limits to collecting until their addition to the park.

Petrified Forest Expansion Lands
Photo courtesy National Park Service/Flickr

The 26,000 acres added to the Petrified Forest National Park consists of small tracts of land that together connect larger sections already managed by the National Park Service and state of Arizona. The new property includes the valley of the Puerco River, which means that the soil layers are exposed, making it good for finding fossils. Since the land had been privately owned, researchers couldn’t actually collect fossils here because the fossils were technically the property of the landowner.
Petrified Forest National Park History
Photo courtesy National Park Service

Although the Petrified Forest National Park wasn't officially established until 1962, the region has been a popular destination for visitors for more than a century. In order to protect its treasures from vandalism and theft, Teddy Roosevelt established Petrified Forest National Monument, one of America’s first national monuments, in 1906. This image is dated to 1911.
Petrified Forest Landscape
Photo by Amy Fry/Flickr

During the Triassic Period, more than 200 million years ago, this region was anything but a desert. It was hot, humid and tropical with a river system larger than anything on Earth today.
A Natural Laboratory
Photo by DrLandscape/Flickr

The original national monument was founded in the area with the highest concentration of petrified wood. But the park has come to be known as a Late Triassic treasure trove, where paleontologists have unearthed thousands of fossils, including the 225-million-year-ols “Gertie,” an ancient Staurikosaur. “We’re basically a laboratory, where it’s easy to do research. We have the exposed rock layers, we have the fossils, and we have the logistical support that scientists need to do their work successfully," says paleontologist Bill Parker.
Petrified Log
Photo by Amy Watson/Flickr

Where did the petrified wood come from? Hundreds of millions of years ago, when this was a tropical landscape, lush forests covered the land. As the trees died, some floated downstream to form log jams. This explains why the petrified wood is found on its side rather than standing upright. Many of the logs are quite large, some measure more than 190 feet.
Petroglyphs At Petrified Forest National Park
Photo courtesy National Park Service

Over 13,000 years of human history and culture can be found at Petrified Forest National Park. The petroglyphs found throughout the park generally are attributed to the "Basketmakers" who lived in the area between 500 B.C. and A.D. 650. Over the course of this time period, they progressively moved down from the mesa tops to the slopes to farm land. These people were less nomadic, occupying stone-lined pit houses and growing crops including corn, squash and beans. In addition to petroglyphs, archaeologists have also found evidence of baskets and Adamana Brown pottery.

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