Fossils aren’t just the bones. The layers, the position, even the dirt around them matter. That’s how you learn about the ecosystem.

I was fortunate enough to grow up around places like @DinosaurNPS. This is before we became friends with ReBecca Hunt-Foster. It's amazing how much places like this, museums and exhibits, have influenced me.

Public land is where much of the fossil record sits. Protecting that land from development or vandalism is part of conserving the record.

If Josh Lively ever gets back on X, this is evidence I'm pure! #WarEagle

A tragic act of violence occurred today at a chapel of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc, Michigan. During Sunday worship services a gunman opened fire, and early reports indicate that multiple individuals were injured. We ask for cooperation with local authorities as details become available. The Church is in communication with local law enforcement as the investigation continues and as we receive updates on the condition of those affected. We offer thanks to the emergency responders who are assisting victims and families. We are deeply grateful for the outpouring of prayers and concern from so many people around the world. In moments of sorrow and uncertainty, we find strength and comfort through our faith in Jesus Christ. Places of worship are meant to be sanctuaries of peacemaking, prayer and connection. We pray for peace and healing for all involved. spr.ly/6005A5BK1

When people think of conservation, they picture forests or oceans. But the fossil record also needs protecting. Once a site is disturbed or looted, the scientific information it holds is gone forever.

I’m mourning President Nelson, who urged us to be peacemakers. And now there’s been a shooting at an LDS chapel in Michigan. It’s hard to put those side by side. I don’t have answers, but I want to keep trying to live with peace, even when it’s hard. #ldschurch

Utah’s Ice Age fossils include mammoths, ground sloths, and other large mammals that lived only tens of thousands of years ago.

If you're going to meet with a member of Congress, and you're 10, make sure you wear a dinosaur T-shirt so they take you seriously. @RobBishopUT was always great on dinosaurs! :)

When non-avian dinosaurs died out 66 million years ago, birds survived. The fossil record in Utah makes that link clear.

Utah has fossils from more than 100 dinosaur species. They range from small feathered animals to predators like Allosaurus and Utahraptor. Here, I'm looking for them when I was much younger, with @Paleojim. #FossilFriday

What's better than #FlatSharkFriday? Nothing.

Fossils aren’t renewable. Once a site is destroyed, there’s no way to replace it. That makes the paleo record one of the scarcest resources we have. @Paleojim

Cretaceous river plains once covered eastern Utah. Plant and animal fossils show the environment where dinosaurs lived before they went extinct.

I live not far from Tule Springs. The fossils there are Ice Age—mammoths, camels, sloths, bison. It’s strange to think those animals walked this ground not that long ago.

90 million years ago, parts of Utah were swamp. Other areas were under an inland sea. Ammonites are common fossils from that time.

At Waco Mammoth National Monument in Texas, a herd of Columbian mammoths was buried about 65,000 years ago. Over 20 animals in one place. You don’t see that often.

200 million years ago, dinosaurs walked across Utah. Their tracks are preserved in early Jurassic rocks around St. George. @AndrewTracks even discovered swim tracks.

There wasn’t just one kind of mammoth. Columbian in the south, the biggest. Woolly in the north, smaller. Others in Europe and Asia too. Different sizes, different ranges.

340 million years ago, shallow seas covered Utah. Fossils of horn corals, brachiopods, and crinoids come from that time.