HAYS — A grant to rehouse and preserve Sternberg Museum’s Miocene fossil mammal collection will soon ensure that fragile ancient remains receive much-needed attention.  

Dr. Laura Wilson, professor of geosciences and Sternberg’s chief curator, and Dr. Aly Baumgartner, Sternberg’s collections manager of paleontology, were recently awarded an Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant to support Sternberg’s paleontology collections.  The grant focuses on preserving Miocene-aged fossils (approximately 7 million years old) from Kansas that document the changing ecosystem as grasslands spread across central North America. 

With the grant of $134,274 from IMLS, the Miocene Minium Quarry Fossil Preservation Project will fund specimen care, undergraduate and graduate student employees, and the development of educational resources focusing on what these fossils tell us about past ecosystems and how that relates to changing ecosystems in the face of climate change.  

Sternberg Museum’s Miocene fossil mammal collection is key in documenting changing ecosystems across the great plains region over the last 25 million years. These fossils have been excavated by Sternberg staff and students from the Minium Quarry, a Graham County Kansas fossil site owned by FHSU and Sternberg Museum.  

“The fossils are very fragile and need special attention to ensure they don’t deteriorate,” Wilson said. “This grant gives us a fantastic opportunity to employ students and provide unique professional development opportunities they can take into the job market and graduate school.” 

In addition to the physical care and preservation of the fossils, the grant will be used to develop web pages to educate the public about the collection and what can be learned from the fossils regarding grassland evolution.  

“This grant allows us to further many of our goals and initiatives at the museum in general and the paleontology department specifically,” Wilson said.