John Foster: A Career Dedicated to Unearthing the Past
John Russell Foster is an American paleontologist whose career has been dedicated to excavating fossils and expanding our understanding of prehistoric life. His work spans a vast timeline, from the Cambrian period to the Cretaceous, with a particular focus on the Late Jurassic.
Education and Early Career
Foster's academic journey began at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, California. He then pursued higher education, earning an A.B. in Geology from Occidental College in Los Angeles, California. His passion for paleontology led him to the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology in Rapid City, South Dakota, where he obtained an M.S. in Paleontology. He later earned a Ph.D. from the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado.
Before focusing on the Late Jurassic, he gained experience at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, the Utah Geological Survey, and the University of Wyoming.
Curator and Director Roles
From 2001 to 2014, Foster served as the Curator of Paleontology at the Museum of Western Colorado, a position he held for thirteen years. During much of his time at the Museum of Western Colorado, he was also adjunct faculty of geology at Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction, Colorado. Following his tenure at the Museum of Western Colorado, he became the Director of the Museum of Moab from 2014 to 2018.
Expertise in the Late Jurassic
Foster is an expert on the Late Jurassic period. His research focuses on the geographic and environmental distributions of microvertebrates and dinosaurs. He has dedicated over thirty years to excavating fossils across the western United States. His work includes the Late Jurassic of the Colorado Plateau and Rocky Mountains.
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He served as the lead researcher at the Mygatt-Moore Quarry in western Colorado for 14 years. He continues to work in the Late Jurassic of eastern Utah and western Colorado.
Contributions to Paleontology
He has made significant contributions to the field. He has authored and coauthored more than 90 professional papers. These papers cover topics ranging from the Triassic to Cretaceous in age, with a few Cambrian and Cenozoic studies appearing as well. His publications demonstrate a broad understanding of paleontology and a commitment to sharing his findings with the scientific community.
Selected Publications and Research
Foster's extensive body of work includes numerous publications that have advanced our knowledge of paleontology. Some notable examples include:
Jurassic West: The Dinosaurs of the Morrison Formation and Their World: This book, originally published in 2007 and followed by a second edition in 2020, explores the dinosaurs of the Morrison Formation and their environment. It has been praised for its comprehensive coverage and accessibility.
Cambrian trilobites and associated fossils from the Uinta Mountains of Utah (USA): Co-authored with J.R. Sundberg and J.W. Hagadorn, this 2024 paper examines Cambrian trilobites found in the Uinta Mountains.
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Continuous character variation within the Glossopleura-Anoria-Sonoraspis plexus: dolichometopid trilobites from the Cadiz Formation (Cambrian: Miaolingian, Wuliuan), California: Published in 2022, this study focuses on trilobites from the Cadiz Formation in California.
Cambrian trilobites and biostratigraphy of the Grand Canyon and vicinity, USA: This 2025 paper, co-authored with F. Sundberg, M. Webster, A. Miller, and J. Hagadorn, examines Cambrian trilobites in the Grand Canyon region.
Probable crocodilian tracks and traces from the Morrison Formation (Upper Jurassic) of eastern Utah: This 1997 paper, co-authored with Martin Lockley, identifies crocodilian tracks and traces in the Morrison Formation.
Theropod dinosaur ichnogenus Hispanosauropus identified from the Morrison Formation (Upper Jurassic), western North America: This 2015 paper identifies the theropod dinosaur ichnogenus Hispanosauropus in the Morrison Formation.
Descendants of the Jurassic turiasaurs from Iberia found refuge in the Early Cretaceous of Western USA: This 2017 paper, co-authored with R. Royo-Torres, P. Upchurch, J.I. Kirkland, D.D. DeBlieux, A. Cobos, and L. Alcala, discusses the discovery of descendants of Jurassic turiasaurs in the Early Cretaceous of Western USA.
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First unambiguous dinosaur specimen from the Upper Triassic Chinle formation in Utah: This 2017 paper, co-authored with Xavier A. Jenkins and Robert J. Gay, reports the first unambiguous dinosaur specimen from the Upper Triassic Chinle formation in Utah.
Preliminary observations on the Jurassic Salad Bar, a new ginkgophyte-dominated flora from the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation in southeastern Utah, USA: This 2023 paper, co-authored with C.T. Gee, S.R. Ash, and J.I. Kirkland, presents preliminary observations on a new ginkgophyte-dominated flora from the Morrison Formation.
Beast Companions: The Unsung Animals of the Dinosaurs' World: Published in 2024, this book explores the lesser-known animals that coexisted with dinosaurs.
Additional research includes:
- New dinosaur track occurrences from the Upper Jurassic Salt Wash Member (Morrison Formation) of southeastern Utah: Implications for thyreophoran trackmaker distribution and diversity.
- First report of Apatosaurus (Diplodocidae: Apatosaurinae) from the Cleveland-Lloyd Quarry in the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation of Utah: Abundance, distribution, paleoecology, and taphonomy of an endemic North American sauropod clade.
- Taphonomy and paleoecology of the “Middle” Cambrian (Series 3) formations in Utah's West Desert: Recent finds and new data.
- Major bonebeds in mudrocks of the Morrison Formation (Upper Jurassic), northern Colorado Plateau of Utah and Colorado.
- The oldest Cretaceous North American sauropod dinosaur.
- Tracking dinosaurs in BLM Canyon Country, Utah.
- First report of a giant neosuchian (Crocodyliformes) in the Williams Fork Formation (Upper Cretaceous: Campanian) of Colorado.
- Summary of vertebrate fossils from the Morrison Formation (Upper Jurassic) at Curecanti National Recreation Area, central Colorado.
- Haplocanthosaurus (Saurischia: Sauropoda) from the lower Morrison Formation (Upper Jurassic) near Snowmass, Colorado.
- The fragile legacy of Amphicoelias fragillimus (Dinosauria: Sauropoda; Morrison Formation - latest Jurassic).
- A U/Pb age for the Mygatt-Moore Quarry, Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation, Mesa County, Colorado.
- First report of bird tracks (Aquatilavipes) from the Cedar Mountain Formation (Lower Cretaceous), eastern Utah.
- Early Jurassic track assemblages from the Granite Creek area of eastern Utah.
- Ecological segregation of the Late Jurassic stegosaurian and iguanodontian dinosaurs of the Morrison Formation in North America: pronounced or subtle?
- Trilobite taphonomy of the Latham Shale (Lower Cambrian; Dyeran), Mojave Desert, California: an inner detrital belt Burgess Shale-type deposit of western Laurentia.
- Bonnima sp. (Trilobita; Corynexochida) from the Chambless Limestone (Lower Cambrian) of the Marble Mountains, California: first Dorypygidae in a cratonic region of the southern Cordillera.
- Trilobites and other fauna from two quarries in the Bright Angel Shale (Middle Cambrian, Series 3; Delamaran), Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona.
- Trilobite taphonomy in the lower Pioche Formation (Dyeran; Global Stage 4) at Frenchman Mountain, Nevada.
- Ichthyoliths and other microvertebrate remains from the Morrison Formation (Upper Jurassic) of northeastern Wyoming: a screen-washed sample indicates a significant aquatic component to the fauna.
- New occurrences of dinosaur skin of two types (Sauropoda? and Dinosauria indet.) from the Late Jurassic of North America (Mygatt-Moore Quarry, Morrison Formation).
- An assemblage of probable crocodylian traces and associated dinosaur tracks from the lower Morrison Formation (Upper Jurassic) of eastern Utah.
- Giants on the landscape: modeling the abundance of megaherbivorous dinosaurs of the Morrison Formation (Late Jurassic, western USA).
- Preliminary body mass estimates for mammalian genera of the Morrison Formation (Upper Jurassic, North America).
- Taphonomic characteristics of a quarry in the Bright Angel Shale (Middle Cambrian), Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona: a preliminary look.
- Hindlimb allometry in the Late Jurassic theropod dinosaur Allosaurus, with comments on its abundance and distribution.
Cambrian Ocean World: Ancient Sea Life of North America
In addition to his work on the Jurassic period, Foster is also the author of "Cambrian Ocean World: Ancient Sea Life of North America." This book explores the ancient sea life of North America during the Cambrian period.
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