Vietti to speak at museum meeting

The Hot Springs County Historical Society will hold a program by Laura Vietti called “Tropical Tapirs in Wyoming: The Origins, Evolutions, and Preservation of Wyoming’s Most Recent Fossil Tapir Discovery” following their May meeting on Saturday , May 14 at 2 p.m. at the Historical Museum. 

In the summer of 2016, a large mammal was recovered from Wyoming state lands in the approximately 53 million-year-old Fossil Lake strata near Kemmerer, Wyoming. The fossil is currently on display at the Wyoming State Museum. Initial investigations suggest that this mammal is likely a type of tapir, a hoofed mammal, loosely related to rhinoceros and horses, that is now extinct in North America. Dr. Vietti will speak about the origins of tapirs in North America, will touch on the significance of this newly discovered fossil, and will end on the unusual death and decay that lead it to be deposited in a tropical paleo-lake.

Vietti is a graduate of Hot Springs County High School and the daughter of John and Barbara Tomes Vietti of Thermopolis. She received a BS in Geology from the University of Wyoming and a Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota. She is currently the University of Wyoming Geological Museum and Collection Manager. Vietti has been with UW for almost eight years and is actively working to digitize Wyoming’s incredible fossil record, and research how microbes play a role in the fossilization of bone.

The meeting is free and open to everyone who is interested in the history of Thermopolis, Hot Springs County, and the State of Wyoming. Refreshments will be served. If you have any questions or comments, call 921-1551.