FOSSIL TRACKS AT THE RAYMOND ALF MUSEUM OF PALEONTOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT OF TRACKS ON PUBLIC LANDS

The Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology houses one of the greatest fossil footprint collections in the world. This collection is a testament to the work of Raymond Alf, whose interest in trace fossils translated into a decades-long search for tracks throughout the western United States. The Alf Museum track collection consists of about 800 specimens from the Coconino, Moenkopi, Moenave, Wasatch, Barstow, Avawatz, Tecopa and Muddy Creek formations including 22 holotype, syntype or paratype specimens representing 14 ichnotaxa. The stratigraphic utility of the collection is limited by the lack of precise locality data for many specimens. However, excellent photographs of Alf's collecting sites in the museum archives have been used in many cases to relocate sites, work that needs to be extended to all Alf Museum track sites. Many important fossil track-trackway sites are located on public lands. Float tracks should be collected. Exposed in situ trackways should be excavated if they cannot be protected from erosion and theft or vandalism. Protection of sites is critical as the paleontological information each site yields is usually unique. Removal of trackways should be done with care as each site poses particular challenges because of variation in track preservation, rock type, geographic setting and other factors. Trackways from the Barstow and Coconino formations housed at the Alf Museum demonstrate that an excellent way to preserve trackways is to collect and reassemble them for exhibit so they are accessible to the public and the scientific community.