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25-595: The Messel pit (German: Grube Messel ) is a disused quarry near the village of Messel ( Landkreis Darmstadt-Dieburg , Hesse) about 35 km (22 mi) southeast of Frankfurt am Main , Germany. Bituminous shale was mined there. Because of its abundance of well-preserved fossils of the Messel Formation dating from the middle of the Eocene , it has significant geological and scientific importance. Over 1000 species of plants and animals have been found at

50-664: A Cyanobacteria bloom origin resulting in the poisoning of the animals. This last one was considered to be necessary in order to explain the occurrence of excellent fossils throughout the entire sedimentary sequence (Koenigswald & others, 2004). Exhibits from the pit may be seen in the Messel town, the fossil Museum in Messel, the Hessisches Landesmuseum in Darmstadt (5 km (3.1 mi) from Messel) and also

75-557: A depth of 190 m (620 ft). 47 million years ago in the Eocene when the Messel deposits formed, the area was 10° further south than it is now. The period was very close to the Early Eocene Climatic Optimum and the climate and ecology of the site were very different, characterised by a mean annual temperature of 22°C and a large series of maar lakes surrounded by lush sub-tropical forests that supported an incredible diversity of life. The Messel lake bed

100-511: A favourable location; it is the earliest concrete sample of fungal behavioural manipulation. The diversity of species is remarkable partly as a result of the hypothesized periodic gas releases. A brief summary of some of the fossils found at the site follows: The following is only a partial list: Family Formicidae (ants) Family Apidae Family Megachilidae Describing the Messel Pit Fossil Site as 'richest geosite in

125-474: A reference, and/or with a substantial contribution to the development of geological sciences through history.' Quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone , rock , construction aggregate , riprap , sand , gravel , or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to manage their safety risks and reduce their environmental impact. The word quarry can also include

150-715: Is a municipality in the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg in Hesse near Frankfurt am Main in Germany . The village is first mentioned, as Masilla , in the Lorsch codex . Messel was the property of the lords of Groschlag from ca. 1400 to 1799. After the extinction of the Groschlag male lineage, the village would have passed to the Archbishopric of Mainz but the population refused to accept this transition and paid homage to

175-638: Is generally not recommended. Unexpectedly cold water can cause a swimmer's muscles to suddenly weaken; it can also cause shock and even hypothermia . Though quarry water is often very clear, submerged quarry stones, abandoned equipment, dead animals and strong currents make diving into these quarries extremely dangerous. Several people drown in quarries each year. However, many inactive quarries are converted into safe swimming sites. Such lakes, even lakes within active quarries, can provide important habitat for animals. S.K Duggal "Building Materials" (2003) 3rd revised edition Quarries Messel Messel

200-405: Is pollution of roads from trucks leaving the quarries. To control and restrain the pollution of public roads, wheel washing systems are becoming more common. Many quarries naturally fill with water after abandonment and become lakes . Others are made into landfills . Water-filled quarries can be very deep, often 50 ft (15 m) or more, and surprisingly cold, so swimming in quarry lakes

225-477: The Hessian state bought the site in 1991 to secure scientific access. In the few years between the end of mining and 1974, when the state began preparing the site for garbage disposal, amateur collectors were allowed to collect fossils. The amateurs developed the " transfer technique " that enabled them to preserve the fine details of small fossils, the method still employed in preserving the fossils today. Many of

250-718: The Senckenberg Museum in Frankfurt am Main (some 30 km (19 mi) from Messel). Casual visitors can park close to the pit and walk around 300 m (0.19 mi) to a viewing platform overlooking the pit. Entrance to the pit is only possible as part of a specially organized tour. The Messel Pit provides the best preserved evidence of Geiseltalian flora and fauna so far discovered, with over 1000 species identified. Most other sites are lucky to contain partial skeletons , but Messel boasts extensive preservation of structural integrity, even going so far as to preserve

275-538: The Eocene. Leading scientists hypothesize that events much like the 1986 volcanic gas releases at Lake Nyos , Cameroon , could account for the large deposition of non-aquatic species (Franzen & Koster, 1994). Periodic subsurface shifts possibly released large concentrations of reactive gases (such as carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide) into the lake and adjoining ecosystems, killing susceptible organisms. During these releases, birds and bats might have fallen in if near

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300-449: The fur, feathers and "skin shadows" of some species. Unusual preservation has sparked some closely reasoned interpretations. The symptomatic "dumb-bell"-shaped bite marks on either side of the leaf vein on a fossilised leaf have been identified as the death-grip of a carpenter ant terminally parasitized by the fungus Ophiocordyceps unilateralis , that, apparently then as today, commandeered its behavior, in order to release its spores from

325-440: The known specimens from the site have come from amateur collectors and in 1996, an amnesty on previously collected fossils was put in effect, in the hope of getting privately owned collections back into public ownership and available to science. The current surface of the Messel pit is roughly 60 m (200 ft) below the local land and is about 0.7 km (0.27 sq mi) in area. The oil-shale bed originally extended to

350-473: The lake surface and terrestrials could be overwhelmed when near the lake shore. Since the lake was very deep, animals that fell in it drifted downwards into oxygen- and bacteria-poor water, where they were preserved remarkably well, being overlaid by successive layers of mud that petrified later, thus producing an aggregation of fossils of exceptional quality, quantity, integrity, and variety. However, other hypotheses have been postulated as well, and have suggested

375-512: The quarry. The surfaces are polished and finished with varying degrees of sheen or luster . Polished slabs are often cut into tiles or countertops and installed in many kinds of residential and commercial properties. Natural stone quarried from the earth is often considered a luxury and tends to be a highly durable surface, thus highly desirable. Quarries in level areas with shallow groundwater or which are located close to surface water often have engineering problems with drainage . Generally

400-455: The shale show a remarkable clarity and preservation due to the unique depositional characteristics of the lake and so the Messel pit represents a Konservat-Lagerstätte . The upper stratifications of the lake most certainly supported a variety of organisms, but the bottom was subject to little disturbance by current, spawning a very anoxic environment. This prevented many epifaunal and infaunal species from inhabiting this niche and thus bioturbation

425-400: The site. After almost becoming a landfill, strong local resistance eventually stopped these plans and the Messel pit was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site on 9 December 1995. Significant scientific discoveries about the early evolution of mammals and birds are still being made at the Messel pit, and the site has increasingly become a tourist site as well. Brown coal and later oil shale

450-416: The underground quarrying for stone, such as Bath stone . Types of rock extracted from quarries include: Stone quarry is an outdated term for mining construction rocks (limestone, marble, granite, sandstone, etc.). There are open types (called quarries, or open-pit mines) and closed types ( mines and caves). For thousands of years, only hand tools had been used in quarries. In the eighteenth century,

475-497: The use of drilling and blasting operations was mastered. The term remains used to describe a method of cutting into a certain shape, such as for glass and tile, as a "quarry cut". The method of removal of stones from their natural bed by using different operations is called quarrying. Methods of quarrying include: Following steps are used in the blasting process; Many quarry stones such as marble , granite , limestone , and sandstone are cut into larger slabs and removed from

500-535: The water higher during removal; this can become the limiting factor in quarry depth. Some water-filled quarries are worked from beneath the water, by dredging. Many people and municipalities consider quarries to be eyesores and require various abatement methods to address problems with noise, dust, and appearance. One of the more effective and famous examples of successful quarry restoration is Butchart Gardens in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. A further problem

525-538: The water is removed by pumping while the quarry is operational, but for high inflows more complex approaches may be required. For example, the Coquina quarry is excavated to more than 60 feet (18 m) below sea level. To reduce surface leakage, a moat lined with clay was constructed around the entire quarry. Groundwater entering the pit is pumped up into the moat. As a quarry becomes deeper, water inflows generally increase and it also becomes more expensive to lift

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550-572: The world for understanding the living environment of the Eocene, as it includes exceptionally well-preserved fossils', the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) included the site's Eocene record in its list of 100 'geological heritage sites', published in October 2022. The organisation defines an IUGS Geological Heritage Site as 'a key place with geological elements and/or processes of international scientific relevance, used as

575-415: Was actively mined from 1859. The pit first became known for its wealth of fossils around 1900, but serious scientific excavation only started around the 1970s, when falling oil prices made mining the quarry uneconomical. Commercial oil shale mining ceased in 1971 and a cement factory built in the quarry failed the following year. The land was slotted for use as a landfill , but the plans came to nought and

600-500: Was kept at a minimum. Overturn of the lake layers (caused by seasonal variations) lowered oxygen content near the surface and led to a periodic "die-off" of aquatic species. Combined with a relatively low rate of deposition, 0.1 mm (0.0039 in) per year, this provided a prime environment for the preservation of fauna and flora. The area around the Messel Pit is believed to have been geologically and tectonically active during

625-622: Was probably a center point for drainage from nearby rivers and creeks. The pit deposits were formed during the Eocene Epoch of the Paleogene Period about 47 million years ago, based on dating of basalt fragments underlying fossilbearing strata. Oil shale , formed by the slow anoxic deposition of mud and dead vegetation on the lake bed, is the primary rock at the site. Its sediments extend 13 m (43 ft) downward and lie atop an older sandstone foundation. The fossils within

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