Dienstag, 28. September 2010

Montag, 27. September 2010

Joggings Fossil Cliffs and Fort Beausejour

Today we visited Joggings Fossil Cliffs, the best place in the world to see how life was 315 million years ago in the Carboniferous Period. Joggings Fossil cliffs are about 15 kilometers long and have fossils which are between 325 and 310 million years old. The fossil cliffs are located in the Bay of Fundy which is known for its huge tides - 100 billion tons of water rush in and out of the bay per tidal cycle.

The fossils which were found at the Joggings Fossil Cliffs are characterized by their great diversity - in total more than 200 different species were found. It is worth mentioning that most of the fossils were found inside of trees. Two years ago Joggings Fossil Cliffs were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Visitor Center is brand new and won several prizes for its green design.

Tree Fossils









Trace of Rex


Coal


Traces of roots


More Fossils














The fossil cliffs




The cliff is quickly eroding - one meter a year at certain places - and constantly new fossils appear.




The Visitor Center



After our visit to the fossil cliffs, we drove to Fort Beausejour, a National Historic Site of Canada. The fort was build in 1751 by the French to defend themselves against the British. It fell just a few years later in 1756.















Overnight we stayed in Saint John, which is know for its Reversing Falls. At high tide the water flow coming from the sea is so strong that the falls reverse.


















Sonntag, 26. September 2010

Lunenburg

Lunenburg is UNESCO Wold Heritage Site and well known for fishery and ship building.

First, we visited the Fisheries Museum in Lunenburg. In an interesting talk we learned a lot of details about lobsters. The heaviest ones found were about 20 kg. Depending on its size a female lobsters has between 60.000 and 80.000 eggs from which about 1% survive. Having reached a certain size lobsters don't have many predators anymore. Lobsters have a strong sense for territory and thus attack other lobsters (e.g., in a restaurant's aquarium). In the summer month they get rid of their hard shells, which they then eat. This is also the time when females are ready to mate.










Time Recorder - Even a 100 years ago working time was recorded precisely.







Werner trapped at the Fisheries Museum





Lunenburg is well known for building schooners. In particular it is famous for a schooner called Bluenose, which dominated schooner racing between 1920 and 1930. Outside the museum is a schooner on display.













The Fisheries Museum



The Old City of Lunenburg





























































































Mahone Bay