Morocco is famous for its rich geological heritage. Particularly the southeastern part of Morocco has been known for decades for producing a remarkable variety of trilobites, ranging from the Cambrian to the Upper Devonian. Mainly in the Ma'der, Tafilalt and Tindouf basins, some of the mountain ranges are so rich in fossils, that the local fossil industry constitutes a significant part of a village economy. Here, trilobites have been excavated, prepared and traded for decades.
In the margin of the trilobite trade, replicas, fakes and forgeries also found their way to the markets, giving Moroccan trilobites somewhat of a bad reputation. This is largely unjustified as the Moroccan Devonian trilobite assemblages are arguably among the most spectacular in the world. And with a bit of experience, it is relatively easy to find high quality authentic specimens. And although the intensively mined layers near the villages are excavated and mostly depleted, remote locations continue to yield new surprises every year.
In the margin of the trilobite trade, replicas, fakes and forgeries also found their way to the markets, giving Moroccan trilobites somewhat of a bad reputation. This is largely unjustified as the Moroccan Devonian trilobite assemblages are arguably among the most spectacular in the world. And with a bit of experience, it is relatively easy to find high quality authentic specimens. And although the intensively mined layers near the villages are excavated and mostly depleted, remote locations continue to yield new surprises every year.
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Most of our fieldwork is focused on the Pragian to Eifelian strata of the Ma'der basin and surrounding regions. Here, different hill ranges and cuestas ('Jebels' or 'Jbels') provide excellent conditions to sample large sections. The commercially most interesting layers are locally referred to as 'couche' -french for layer- commonly named after a characteristic trilobite occurrence ('Ceratarges couche', 'Phacops couche'). The couches are often useful marker horizons with correlation potential over a larger area. However, the names are often also misleading. That is, the 'Ceratarges couche' may not be the same stratigraphic level in different areas; likewise, the 'Phacops couche' may contain many phacopids except a Phacops.
The conditions in the field are very different from Belgium. With the exception of oueds (temporary river beds) and lower flats, most of the geological layers are surfacing and can be sampled with relative ease. On the other hand, the environment is harsh. Conditions are usually optimal in early Spring or Autumn, when temperatures are relatively moderate. When collecting, one is very exposed, and dehydration and sunburn are real threats. Yet, these remote sites can be very beautiful. |
