Who are the People Behind National Park Paleontology?

Emily Thorpe, Paleontology Intern
Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument, Idaho

When we think of the title “Paleontologist”, the image of Dr. Alan Grant from Jurassic Park often comes to the forefront of our minds. We think of professors and curators, people who have PhDs and spend their summers in the hot sun digging up dinosaurs. While there are plenty of paleontologists who do valuable work as professors and the field season is an important part of the practice, paleontologists do so much more than what is depicted in movies. There may only be a handful of people in the National Park Service whose job title is “Paleontologist”, but there are many who work with the paleontological resources that our National Parks preserve. Interpreters, preparators, museum collections staff, and interns are not just collecting, but managing, maintaining, displaying, educating, researching, and preserving a history of life on Earth that extends far beyond just the dinosaurs.

In order to showcase not only the very different paleontology jobs within the NPS, but also the amazing and diverse paleontology staff, I sat down (virtually) with 9 different people who have worked with park paleontological resources.

Klara Widrig has been an intern for three different parks: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, and Grand Canyon National Park. They are currently pursuing a PhD focusing on paleontology with the University of Cambridge, the opportunity for which they credit to their experience with the NPS. Their work with the parks has only fueled their passion for understanding the creatures that called this planet home long before humans. Klara enjoys being outdoors, creating art, and has a bright future in paleontology.

For the last thirty years Jeff Wolin has been able to share his passion for education with visitors to the National Parks. As the Lead Interpreter for Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, he is in the perfect position to promote all of Florissant’s amazing resources with astounding creativity. His favorite hobby is music, which he has utilized in his interpretation to create the Junior Ranger Radio, featuring hits such as “Stumps Y’all” and “National Fossil Day”. As someone who is so often face-to-face with visitors, Jeff is often asked what his favorite park is. His favorite answer came from the wisdom of a kid who said, “whatever park I’m in right now.”

Justin Tweet takes on much more of a behind-the-scenes role in his work with park paleontology. As an Associate with the NPS Justin works with parks all over the country helping them determine the extent of the paleontological resources within their boundaries. He examines park histories and writes reports detailing resource locations and best management practices for parks like George Washington Birthplace National Monument, Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument, Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, and more. These parks can now more fully understand the extent of their paleontological resources and share them with their visitors moving forward.

Emily Thorpe conducting a virtual interview with Phil Varela, Physical Science Technician at Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona.

NPS photo.

Phil Varela’s job title is Physical Science Technician working with the paleontology of Petrified Forest National Park. More specifically, he is a paleontologist and fossil preparator. He loves exploring all National Parks and is excited to see the journey of a fossil from discovery to display. Preparation takes a lot of time and work, getting the fossil out of the surrounding rock. Being the one to share with the public that moment when a fossil sees the light of day for the first time in millions of years is one of his favorite parts of his job.

Waco Mammoth National Monument is a relatively new park and Dr. Lindsey Yann is the first Paleontologist that they have had on staff. Like many women in paleontology, Lindsey was told that she wouldn’t succeed. But with the support of her family and her passion for earth history, she has been able to achieve her dream job. Now she gets to build the paleontology program at Waco Mammoth essentially from the ground up and, despite starting out in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic, she is excited to explore all the possibilities the future holds.

Conni O’Connor is not someone who followed the traditional path from high school to college to a job. Rather, she found herself in the right place at the right time: when Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument needed a Museum Technician, she was ready and willing. Since then, she has been a part of the Pathways Program within the NPS and graduated with a degree in biology and a minor in museum studies. With her passion for organization, Conni has completely redone the collections in the eleven years she has been with the Park Service. She also works closely with interpretive staff and is a Co-Chair of the Annual Meeting Committee for the Association for Materials and Methods in Paleontology.

When Mary Carpenter was growing up, paleontology was almost an unreachable dream. With a degree in graphic arts, a trip on her Harley to Sturgis, South Dakota was all she needed to get back on a path she was passionate about. She volunteered at the Mammoth Site in Hot Springs, South Dakota and decided to go back to school as a non-traditional student. Since then, she has worked as a fossil preparator for the National Parks and is currently the Lead Fossil Preparator and Lab Supervisor at Badlands National Park, proving that if you really want something in life, you are never too old to pursue it.

With more than thirty years in the National Park Service, Vincent Santucci seems to have done it all. He has worked as a law enforcement and interpretive park ranger, a park resource manager, scientist, paleontologist, and more. Now, as the Senior Paleontologist for the NPS, his favorite part of the job is National Fossil Day and working to share with the public the amazing paleontological discoveries that have been found on NPS land. He has spent his career working to better preserve and protect these resources and has found sharing knowledge and education to be the most rewarding aspects of his work.

Emily Thorpe conducting a virtual interview with Dr. Kari Prassack, Paleontologist at Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument, Idaho.

NPS photo.

Dr. Kari Prassack has spent the last nine years as a geologist/paleontologist with Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument and has made some impressive discoveries. New species and greater understanding of the time period are only the start. With her love of the outdoors, having her field sites in her backyard make Hagerman the ideal place to be. As a first-generation college student she has proven that with a bit of ambition and curiosity, you can contribute so much valuable scientific information to our understanding of past life on this planet.

These are just a few of the people working to further our understanding of paleontology within the National Parks. These people have widely varied positions and interests, diverse backgrounds and experiences that work together to enhance park paleontology as a whole. Paleontologists are not just people who look like Dr. Alan Grant from Jurassic Park; they are so much more.

Related Links

• Badlands National Park, South Dakota—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
• Dinosaur National Monument, Colorado and Utah—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
• Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, Colorado—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
• Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Arizona and Utah—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
• Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, —[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
• Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument, Idaho—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
• John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, —[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
• Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
• Waco Mammoth National Monument, Texas—[Geodiversity Atlas] [Park Home]
• NPS—Fossils Through Geologic Time
• NPS—Fossils and Paleontology
• NPS—Geology