FROBISHER - Bob Steman was using rocks to build a drainage system in the backyard of his Frobisher residence when he made an interesting discovery: a fossil that he says is 75 million years old.
"I dug down to the clay and used the topsoil for my yard, and filled it full of rocks. I hauled 11 half-tonnes of rock out of a pasture," Steman recalled in an interview with the Mercury and SaskToday. "This spring, when I was cleaning up the rest of the pile that was left, I found this fossil that had broken open while I was hauling."
Right away, he knew he had found something different.
"I had a look at it, thought it was weird, and I was hoping it was gold," Steman said with a laugh. "I just threw it up on the bank … and finished doing what I was doing."
He asked his wife to take a look at it, and they thought it would be good to have the fossil examined by an expert.
Steman sent a picture of his discovery to the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, Alta., which is renowned for its research and knowledge of prehistoric. Their response was the fossil was over 65 million years old and it dated back to the days of the dinosaurs. Without further examination, the museum couldn't say exactly where it came from or how old it was, and they directed Steman to reach out to somebody in Saskatchewan.
He then sent the photo to the Royal Saskatchewan Museum, who said it was an ammonite that was "more or less" 75 million years old. Ammonites were marine animals that had a coiled external shell similar to that of the modern nautilus.
"They say we [Saskatchewan] used to be a shallow seabed, all the way from the Gulf of Mexico to the Artic Ocean," said Steman.
The fossil remains in Steman's possession. He was thinking of donating it to the Royal Saskatchewan Museum, but another person suggested it should be given to the Souris Valley Museum, where it would be a very unique display.
He's surprised at the reaction he has received since people first starting hearing about the discovery.
Steman said he has never heard of anything like this in the Frobisher area, and he was told that fossils in the province are typically located in the Eastend area or in central Saskatchewan.
Since he made his discovery, he has been looking outside and wondering what else is out there, and how the fossil came to be among the rocks that were part of the rocks he was using for a drainage project.
"They say it comes from the Bearpaw Formation, and I now have another great big rock that I picked while I was picking rocks, and it kind of looks like the same texture on the outside. I've been thinking of busting it open and taking a look."
