Florida’s Natural History: An Exploration Through the Ages

When someone mentions the word “prehistory”, it’s hard to not think of the obvious: herds of triceratops grazing, Pteranodons soaring through the skies, a duckbill tending to her young.

Florida prehistory, however, tends to look a little different; while dinosaurs were walking the Earth, Florida was underwater up until about forty million years ago. Most of Florida’s prehistory exists in marine fossils—ancient mollusks, sharks, and whales, up until the sea levels dropped and terrestrial life exploded throughout the peninsula. Camels, giant sloths, and saber cats are just a few of the kinds of creatures that lived here before going extinct and leaving only their bones behind.

On Saturday, November 19 at 10:30 AM, join the Science Education and Training Support (SETS) Foundation at Lakes Region Library in Inverness for a two-part experience. The first part will be a reveal of the library’s brand-new natural history exhibit, a permanent display which explores Florida’s timeline from the mostly-marine all the way up to our own human history. Part two will be a once in a lifetime fossil program to learn about the now-extinct oreodont, a cud-chewing hog-like mammal closely related to the camel. Participants of all ages will prepare pieces of oreodont fossils that they will be able to take home.

Walk-ins are welcome for the reveal of the display cases but registration is required for the fossil preparation afterward. Library programs are free and available to everyone. To register for this program, visit attend.citruslibraries.org/events or call the Lakes Region Library at (352) 726-2357. For additional information about programming please call your local branch, follow @CitrusLibraries on Facebook or Instagram, or view the online calendar at citruslibraries.org.