March: Rockhound Days

rockhound
rock hunting tools

Rockhound Days are held in many places and at different times of the year. Both Oklahoma and Mexico have Rockhound Days in March. A rockhound is an amateur geologist, who collects rocks and minerals as a hobby. Collectors try to identify the type of rock and its elements they have found. For example, a red color may indicate the presence of iron, while green or blue often denotes the presents of copper. White may suggest feldspar or quartz.

There are three categories of rocks:

  • igneous rocks:  formed when hot magma is cooled rapidly
  • sedimentary rocks:  formed by layers of earth being mixed and compressed together over extended periods of time
  • metamorphic rocks: a combination of rock types

Rockhounds often find fossils such as ammonites and trilobites. There are many laws regarding rock and mineral collecting from public areas, so always check with the local authorities. Collecting rocks and mineral or anything from a US national park is prohibited, with one or two exceptions.

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⇴ image from Hannes Grobe, AWI, wikipedia, (CC BY 3.0)

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