SUNY Fredonia Department of Geology and Environmental Sciences
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sunyfredgeoesci.bsky.social
SUNY Fredonia Department of Geology and Environmental Sciences
@sunyfredgeoesci.bsky.social
Cultivating geologists and environmental scientists in western New York since 1963.
Last Friday was the Science Bowl on the SUNY Fredonia Campus. Two of our students ran the Earth Science portion and rocked it (no pun intended). Nice work Emma Johnson and Isaac Tripp!
October 6, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Dr. Hegna's class had a new student today. #eurypterid #paleozoicpals #sunyfredonia #paleontology
September 29, 2025 at 11:47 PM
More pictures from measuring stratigraphy with Dr. Hegna's class out at the Sheridan Bay Park. Included is some meta-photography with SUNY Fredonia's Roger Coda (marketing and communications). #geology #stratigraphy #fredonia #lakeerie #sunyfredonia
September 27, 2025 at 8:01 PM
A beautiful day to measure the Hanover Shale. Found a crinoid-filled lens amongst the layers. #Fredonia #geology #stratigraphy
September 8, 2025 at 11:52 PM
The Trilo-bot is now fully operational!
August 26, 2025 at 4:48 PM
Proper signage is key in an academic building.
May 23, 2025 at 8:11 PM
Whatzit Wednesday! Today we have a rock that was probably once purchased as part of a Ward’s Scientific collection, and probably originally came from New York. What is it? #geology #sunyfredonia #stuffthatishiddeninthebasementandneversseesthelightofday
May 14, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Specimens in the collection go back to the 1800s. In the collection, there are eggs from extinct passenger pigeons and Carolina parakeets. The collection contains a lot of historical bird taxidermy, a sizable egg collection, shell collection, and pinned insects. 3/3
May 12, 2025 at 7:36 PM
The goal is to once again have the Stanley Museum open to the public. The core of this collection was the work of former SUNY Fredonia biology professor, Willard Stanley. 2/3
May 12, 2025 at 7:36 PM
The newly relocated Stanley Museum has been busy. Formerly in Jewett Hall, the new location on the second floor of Houghton has people organizing and cataloging specimens to put on display. 1/3
#sunyfredonia #newyork #fredonia #museum #naturalhistory
May 12, 2025 at 7:35 PM
When making precise measurements in lab, students sometimes ask, "When are we going to actually use this?" Sometimes, you'd be surprised. Houghton Hall, 1973. #geology #prank #sunyfredonia #fredonia #VWbeetle
April 17, 2025 at 7:14 PM
She used x-ray fluorescence to analyze the elemental composition at nearly two dozen intervals. This complemented work by Penn State geologists, who concluded that the rare earth elements were not hosted by the sand and silt-size siliciclastic grains. 3/4
#criticalminerals #sedimentarypetrology
April 15, 2025 at 11:02 PM
At the recent NE-NC GSA conference, Syd Lamberton, a senior at SUNY Fredonia, displayed her poster, titled Looking for Critical Minerals in Carboniferous Clays Beneath Coal Deposits in Pennsylvania: A Multipronged Approach. 1/4
#SUNYFredonia #geology #undergraduateresearch #gsaconnects
April 15, 2025 at 11:01 PM
This Friday, Dr. Sarah Sheffield from SUNY Binghamton will give a lecture at SUNY Fredonia, (3pm in room 105 in the Science Center). The title is “Untangling the evolutionary patterns of ancient animals" featuring a group of animals with unusual symmetry. 1/3 #echinoderms #paleontology #scicom
April 1, 2025 at 11:35 PM
Rachel is grateful for Dr. Hegna’s guidance and is excited to present her findings at the conference. Even though this research may seem small, it has uncovered an entirely new world of discoveries. 4/4
April 1, 2025 at 12:58 AM
In collaboration with Dr. Hegna, Rachel's research uses SEM imaging to study developmental changes in the shrimp, particularly the differences in the labrum structure, which could impact the species' classification. 2/4
#crustacea #branchiopoda #spinicaudata #SUNYFredonia #newyork
April 1, 2025 at 12:56 AM
Rachel Echevarria, a senior double majoring in environmental science and earth science at SUNY Fredonia, presented a research poster at the GSA conference on a newly discovered population of Cyzicus gynecius (clam shrimp), from near Mud Lake in Cassadaga, NY. 1/4
#undergraduateresearch #fredonia
April 1, 2025 at 12:53 AM
These samples were discovered in the 1950s by Copeland McClintock during his thesis fieldwork but no research has been done on them since. Salisbury and Hegna have been using McClintock's thesis to understand the depositional environment. 2/6 #peabodymuseum #crustacea #branchiopoda #wyoming
March 29, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Jacob Salisbury, a senior at Fredonia High School and future SUNY Fredonia student, is researching a newly identified clam shrimp species through an internship with Dr. Hegna. These fossils from the Jurassic Morrison Formation in Wyoming were found in an unusual green chert matrix. 1/6 #gsaconnects
March 29, 2025 at 7:24 PM
The stream table was a huge hit! It demonstrated how water interacts with different sized sediments to shape the landscape over time. Many kids eagerly gathered around to experiment and learn how erosion and deposition work in real-time. 2/4
#erosion #geology #geomorphology #newyork #outreach
March 19, 2025 at 1:55 AM
She’s also gaining valuable fieldwork skills and hands-on lab experience, all of which will support her future career in environmental science. As for the conference, Bea says she is looking forward to sharing her findings and can’t wait to see what her peers from Fredonia will be presenting! 5/5
March 17, 2025 at 4:17 PM
She carefully sorted through the samples under a light microscope, picking out & identifying each individual crustacean member of the zooplankton while removing debris & phytoplankton. Then, she used critical point drying to prepare them for Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) examination. 2/5
March 17, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Bea Roof, a 4th-year Environmental Sciences major, is ready to present her research on the zooplankton in Fredonia's reservoir at the GSA Conference later this month! To collect her samples, Bea used a plankton net from the shore, gathering over 3,600 individual zooplankton preserved in alcohol. 1/5
March 17, 2025 at 4:12 PM
In a few weeks, Cecelia Young, a senior Geology major at SUNY Fredonia, will present her research at the Geological Society of America conference. She’ll be sharing her findings on the stratigraphy of the Northeast Shale from Canadaway Creek, a local outcrop near Fredonia! 1/5
March 14, 2025 at 5:42 PM
A late Whatzit Wednesday! This hefty specimen (roughly basketball sized) can be found in Kim Weborg-Benson's office as a decor piece, paperweight, and potential cannonball. It, like Kim, is a New York native. This mineral comes in many colors though deep red is most common. 1/2
March 13, 2025 at 3:16 PM