H. Pettijohn
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punkpaleo.bsky.social
H. Pettijohn
@punkpaleo.bsky.social
2.3K followers 320 following 1.2K posts
Fossil illustrator, TTRPG lover, and Psittacosaurus enjoyer. 27, she/they.

Check out my #FossilFriday posts every other week!
Look under the #paleoart tag on my profile for (mostly) my paleoart!

Anti-AI, Anti-NFT.
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punkpaleo.bsky.social
Sorry for the lack of activity on here, I get into periods where I forget that social media exists LOL

WIP sketch of lesbian monkeys be upon ye (featuring a young Crumbs!)
A cropped image of a digital sketch of two monkey-like humanoids leaning close to each other. The girl on the left is sticking her tongue out, and she has black sclerae and a side ponytail. The girl on the right is grinning, and she has short, wild hair and prominent sideburns.
July 9, 2025 at 2:01 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Stormguide. As this peregrine falcon streaks across the skies, it generates powerful thunderstorms in its wake.
A digital illustration of a peregrine falcon diving through grayscale clouds on its back. The falcon is mostly white, and it has a yellow beak and feet, blueish wingtips with brown bands, and a brown cap on its head. It also has a blue eye that glows. To the right of the image is a color palette, and the name Stormguide underlined and in all caps.
June 24, 2025 at 1:00 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Crumbs is getting real close to blasting a few holes in this dirty stinkin' robot if it keeps up this nonsense.

#DungeonsAndDragons #DND
A two-panel comic of a monkey-like humanoid yelling and brandishing a gun at a panicked robot. In the first panel, a blue chrome robot holds its arms up in a defensive pose as it hunches over. A caption at the bottom of the panel reads, in all caps: "Why won't you love me, Crumbs? I'll be anything you want me to be!" In the second panel, a monkey-like humanoid with reddish-orange skin and blonde hair wears an angry expression and holds one hand in the air; her hand notably has paw pads on the fingertips and palm. Wing-like flaps extend from both of her wrists, and she holds a silver handmade gun in her other hand. A caption at the bottom of the panel reads: "I want you to be dead!"
June 21, 2025 at 1:30 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Happy #FossilFriday, check out the skull of Eryops! This inarguably adorable face was filled sharp teeth, perfect for holding onto slippery, wet prey. Often erroneously called an amphibian, this animal is instead a member of an order known as temnospondyls. (1/2)
#paleontology
A brown skull of an Eryops lays in a white archival jacket. The skull is overall ovular in shape, with the back of the skull being relatively flat. Two rounded orbits peek out from near the back of the skull, and a large section of bone is missing from the left side of the snout. The bones of the skull are heavily textured, filled with pits and ridges.
June 20, 2025 at 1:24 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
internet is busted so y'all get a picture of a computer screen but LOOK at this WIP of Crumbs. so happy with how she looks, that's MY angry monkey
A cropped image of a digital illustration. A monkey-like humanoid yells while raising her right hand. She has long hair oulled back in a ponytail, and she's wearing a leather vest. The top of a handmade gun is in the bottom right corner.
June 20, 2025 at 12:09 AM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Wherever Suncatcher goes, the denizens of the Reach follow. His massive size makes him the perfect lookout for grazing herds.
A digital grayscale sketch of an oversized Megaloceros walking across grassy hills. The Megaloceros has a dark body with light piebald patterns across its legs, stomach, and chest. Around its feet are multiple species of deer frolicking. In the background, douglas firs dot rolling hills, and a rectangular obelisk stands tall on one hill. In the background, thick clouds curl around a bright sun.
June 19, 2025 at 1:37 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
M1 accosts Crumbs during a shift change. Loosely based on an RP scene from my latest DND session!

#DND #DungeonsAndDragons
A digital grayscale comic of a robot handing a monkey-like humanoid a piece of paper that asks if she likes it. In the first panel, a bust of a robot with many plates covering its body is in 3/4 profile facing right. Speech bubbles coming from its left read, in all capital letters: "Exclaimation: This unit has a very important question." and "Demand: Please read the paper and follow the instruction." In the second panel, a close-up view of the piece of paper reads, in all capital letters: "Do you like this unit? Please circle one. Affirmative. Negative." In the third panel, the robot is viewed from behind as it looks down at a monkey-like humanoid with tan skin and light hair pulled in a ponytail. She squints at a piece of paper she holds in her left hand, clearly unimpressed.
June 18, 2025 at 1:28 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
As a crew member's unbridled grief begins to string them through the Deep Astral, the party finds their spelljammer, The Blue Susan, unwillingly pulled toward a cosmic graveyard.

#DungeonsAndDragons #DND
A digital grayscale sketch of a dragonfly-like spaceship flying past a large crystal and several floating islands. In the foreground, the spaceship has six legs folded up against the front of its body and four translucent wings. In the background, smaller crystals and rocky islands topped with mausoleums float around a huge, jagged crystal.
June 16, 2025 at 1:20 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Happy #FossilFriday, check out the skull of Protoreodon! While the top of the skull is somewhat crushed, the teeth are overall well-preserved; take a look those cute little canines! This little animal is an ancient and distant relative to modern artiodactyls, such as deer and cattle.
#paleontology
The upper half of a brown skull of Protoreodon sits against a pale yellow background, facing left. The skull has been slightly rotated in order to show both sets of teeth in the upper jaw. The molars are covered in sharp cusps.
May 16, 2025 at 1:00 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Grayscale sketch of Belly-of-Stars and The Crowned in a chance encounter
A digital grayscale sketchy illustration of two animals circling each other in a forest clearing. In the foreground, a chimera with a bear-like body and a long, fluffy tail steps to the left. Its body is mostly black and covered in eye markings. In the back, a large bull moose steps to the right. He has a dark body, and there's a mark across his eyes and forehead on his light-colored face.
May 10, 2025 at 1:50 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Happy #FossilFriday! Excavations are officially over at the Substation Quarry until next fall, so I wanted to show off some of my favorite fossils that have been found! From dinosaurs to fish to plants, this ancient lake truly supported a grand and diverse amount of life. (1/2)
#paleontology
A small theropod tooth embedded in a green halo in brown mudstone. A scale bar to the left of the tooth indicates it's roughly a centimeter and a half long. Photo Credit: Andrew Milner. The faint orange impression of a section of a conifer branch in crumbly green mudstone. The branch still looks fluffy and has several off-shoots. Multiple natural casts of theropod swim tracks stick out of tan sandstone. Each swim track appears as a thin and slightly wavy or curved line. A huge trench has been dug in green-gray mudstones around multiple fish fossils encased in red iron concretions. One of the fish fossils is roughly the size of a rockhammer.
May 2, 2025 at 1:31 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Check out how much the Substation Quarry has changed since excavations started! Each picture is roughly two weeks apart.
#paleontology
A yellow backhoe and excavator work over the top of brown rock in a quarry. In the bottom right of the image, a small patch of grayish-green ground has been cleared, and two people are digging on the surface with hand tools. A grayish-green layer of rock has been heavily exposed and worked, and a several people sit on a shelf of brown rock. Multiple tools, like brooms, a wheelbarrow, and buckets, are scattered around. A heavily excavated quarry with a flat surface of grayish-green rock and a shelf of brown rock. In the background, a paleontologist cuts into the ground with a rocksaw, generating a huge plume of dust. Multiple shade tarps are set up along the brown rock shelf. A large swathe of grayish-green rock is exposed in a quarry, and shade tarp frames sit over a heavily worked shelf of brown rock. Huge rocks sit on the side of the quarry, waiting to be cracked, and multiple tools are scattered about.
April 29, 2025 at 2:06 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Tobias does his best to whip up a good meal with the 'help' of his son.

#DungeonsAndDragons #DND
A grayscale illustration of a human man holding a human baby. The man has shirt dark hair and a beard, and he wears a loose, light shirt. He's attempting to stir a bowl with a spoon in his right hand, and he holds his son in his left arm. His son has short curly hair and sticks his tongue out as he stares down at the bowl. Conversation bubbles above the two read: Tobias: Jackie, did you know it's real hard t' stir while holdin' ya? Jackie: Pthhppbb! (sound of blowing raspberries) Tobaa: ... 'N' I ain't bothered none.
April 27, 2025 at 1:24 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Happy #FossilFriday, check out these Lissodus teeth from the Substation Quarry! An array of blunt teeth would have helped these little sharks crush up crunchy crustaceans as they swam through a grand, ancient lake. These teeth almost certainly represent a new species! (1/2)
#paleontology
A light tan Lissodus tooth embedded in green-gray mudstone. The tooth has little ridges on its surface that radiate from the tooth's top center. A light tan Lissodus tooth embedded in a green halo in crumbly brown mudstone. The tooth has deep ridges all along its surface. Photo credit: Hunter Carter. A dark brown Lissodus tooth embedded in a green halo in brown mudstone. The tooth has a tiny point near its center. A tan Lissodus tooth embedded in mottled brown and green mudstone. The tooth's surface is largely smooth.
April 18, 2025 at 1:00 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Happy #FossilFriday, check out some tiny tracks from the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site! These darling little traces were likely made by very young coelophysid theropods, perhaps making their first romp around the ancient lake they called home. (1/2)
#paleontology #ichnology
A tiny, three-toed theropod track impressed into orange-brown sandstone. A blue arrow with white text that reads "Baby Dino" points to the track from the left of the image. A faint four-toed crocodylomorph track is in the bottom right of the image. A tiny, three-toed theropod track impressed into a small block of red sandstone. Slightly rounded impressions on the middle toe indicate where little toe pads would have been present.
April 4, 2025 at 1:24 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Semionotid premaxilla just pulled from the Substation Quarry in St. George, Utah! This thing is TINY
#paleontology
A red and tan semionotid premaxilla preserved in green and red mudstone. Small, somewhat rectangular teeth are preserved in the very tip.
March 25, 2025 at 10:09 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Happy #FossilFriday, I'm showing off some of the smallest finds from the Substation Quarry in St. George, Utah! While dinosaur teeth and articulated fish are exciting, small fossils from plants and invertebrates can offer us a unique and diverse view of this ancient ecosystem. (1/2)
#paleontology
A single diamond-shaped semionotid fish scale embedded in orange-purple sandstone. The scale is a rich brown color and has a shiny surface. Orange plant hash impressed into crumbly green mudstones. These are 200 million year old pieces of conifers and ferns. The author pinches a small piece of sandstone with three tiny conchostracan fossils inside of it. The conchostracans are slightly oblong and rounded. An unusual orange-purple concretion in green mudstone. The concretion, which likely contains fish material, has an unusual paired pattern, similar to a hopping trackway.
March 21, 2025 at 1:04 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Apologies for not being very active on here--I've been busy with field work! As recompense, enjoy some beautifully articulated semionotid fish scales from the Substation Quarry, found by a volunteer!
#paleontology
In green mudstone, several impressions of red, diamond-shaped scales interlock together, forming the side of a semionotid fish's body. The positive, or other side, of the scales sits above the broken rock, and several near-purple scales are preserved within the positive.
March 20, 2025 at 1:42 AM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
A mute swan enjoying a grooming session on the water
A mute swan sits on the near-black surface of a pond, its white feathers in high contrast. A few droplets of water drips from its orange bill. In the background, a female mallard is cast in dark shadows. A mute swan grooms the side of its body, its orange bill disappearing into silky white feathers. Its reflection on the dark water is slightly disturbed by ripples.
March 17, 2025 at 1:26 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
The Substation Quarry dig by the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site is going swimmingly! Great finds are popping up, and it's incredible how the community has come together to help with such a unique site.
#paleontology
A white plaster jacket sits in a dug-out hole in green mudstone. Various tools used to make the jacket surround it: plaster, burlap, and toilet paper. Surrounded by a trench, a red fossil looks like a smear against green mudstone. A trowel, gloves, awl, and knee pad sit off to the side, evidence of a volunteer's hard work. A wide view of an extensively dug quarry. In the background, a yellow backhoe and excavator move huge amounts of rock and dirt. In the foreground, two people brush away at an exposed green mudstone surface. A yellow excavator pulls up huge chunks of red rock in a quarry. A large plume of dust comes from the excavator's working end.
March 13, 2025 at 3:19 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
These fossils are housed and on display at the St. George Discovery Site--they're quite literally part of the ground the building is built over! The SGDS is currently working in more excavations nearby, and if you'd like to help, check out the image below for how you can do so! (2/2)
A flyer from the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site and the Utah Friends of Paleontology that invites people to either volunteer or donate. The text reads as follows: "Help us dig for fossils. Spring 2025, Dinosaur Discovery paleontologists and volunteers will begin excavating bone-beds across the street from the existing site, we need your help! Volunteer Become a volunteer and help find and catalog. fossils at an active dig site! Email Jaleesa Buchwitz at deputycurator@utahdinosaurs.org for details. Donate Help support our efforts to discover, collect, protect, and interpret fossils found during our excavation efforts. Please donate here or scan the QR codes below. Learn More 2180 E Riverside Dr St. George, Ut 84790 435-574-3466 www.utahdinosaurs.org & www.utahpaleo.org Venmo: Dinosaur Ah Torium @Dinosaur-AhTorium"
March 7, 2025 at 2:16 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Happy #FossilFriday, check out some darling crocodylomorph tracks! 200 million years ago, small and snappy distant-croc-relatives, like Protosuchus, darted and splashed along a ripple-marked lakeshore and through silty riverbeds, leaving behind their traces. (1/2)
#paleontology #ichnology
A four-toed crocodylomorph track impressed into orange-brown sandstone. The toes are wide and slightly splayed. A four-toed crocodylomorph track preserved in orange-brown sandstone. Three of the thin toes are in sharp relief, and a smudge of a toe print has been smeared below the rest of the toes on the right.
March 7, 2025 at 2:16 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Spotted some intense beaver activity yesterday!
A log that has been chewed by a beaver lays in leaf litter, its chewed edge slightly pointed to the ground. A scale bar to the left of the log indicates the diameter of the log is at least four inches, likely more. A tree that has been felled by a beaver, with a surprisingly smooth stump. The tree has snapped off to the left, but it's still slightly connected to its stump. A scale bar in the center of the stump indicates the tree has at least a four-inch diameter, likely much more. A tree felled by a beaver, still connected to its stump by a strip of wood. A scale bar to the left of the tree indicates the tree's diameter is roughly six inches. A close up image of tooth marks on the inner wood of a tree. The tooth marks range from wide, rectangular scores to little scratches.
March 3, 2025 at 2:03 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
Steadily working on our party's spelljammer/spaceship design!
#DungeonsAndDragons #DND
A cropped image of an information sheet for a dragonfly-shaped spelljammer, or spaceship, called the Blue Susan. Clockwise, starting from the top left: a sketchy top-down view of the spelljammer that shows off its top deck; a lined interior view of the Blue Susan showing the helm, crew's quarters, and a cargo hold, and a sketchy exterior view showing the big, eye-like windows at the helm, six folded legs, and a wide body covered in an armored carapace; and a sketchy silhouette of the spelljammer with two massive spectral wings. Each image has a tech-inspired frame surrounding it.
February 27, 2025 at 6:32 PM
punkpaleo.bsky.social
I do vaguely remember the Vikings exhibit--didn't they have a bunch of nails hanging in the shape of the ship they would have been from? I HIGHLY recommend the orca exhibit; here's a really neat hat from it!
A woven hat with a high, flat top and a wide brim with stylized orcas painted on its surface. The orcas are black and red, with large eyes and both sharp and blunt teeth. A cropped image of two painted orcas from a woven hat. The orcas are symmetrically mirrored, their noses close together. Diamond-shaped details stand in the woven design.
February 26, 2025 at 4:57 PM