Page snapshot: Lists of supplemental and teaching resources for the geology of the western U.S., sorted by topic.
Topics covered on this page: General resources; Geologic history; Rocks; Fossils; Topography; Mineral resources; Energy; Climate; Earth hazards.
Credits: Most of the resources from this page come from the The Teacher-Friendly Guide to the Geology of the Western US, edited by Mark D. Lucas, Robert M. Ross, and Andrielle N. Swaby (published in 2014 by the Paleontological Research Institution; currently out of print). The book was adapted for the web by Elizabeth J. Hermsen and Jonathan R. Hendricks in 2022.
Updates: Page last updated July 29, 2022.
Image above: View of well known rock formations at Yosemite National Park, California, most famously Half Dome (at left). Photo by Adavyd (Wikimedia Commons, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported license, image cropped and resized).
Disclaimer: Links to commercial websites (internet retailers, rock and mineral shops, informational websites that include a shop, etc.) do not constitute endorsement of their products.
General resources
Websites
State of Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries: https://www.oregongeology.org/default.htm
Geologic history
Books, articles, and reports
The Alaska Range and Denali: Geology and Orogeny (Denali National Park & Preserve): https://www.nps.gov/articles/denali.htm
Convergent plate boundaries—subduction zones (National Park Service): https://www.nps.gov/subjects/geology/plate-tectonics-subduction-zones.htm
Transform plate boundaries (National Park Service): https://www.nps.gov/subjects/geology/plate-tectonics-transform-plate-boundaries.htm
Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. 2019. The Yellowstone hotspot and Columbia River Basalts. Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles, USGS, December 9, 2019. https://www.usgs.gov/news/yellowstone-hotspot-and-columbia-river-basalts
Maps
AAPG. 1968. Pacific Southwest Region Geological Highway Map (California, Nevada). AAPG, Tulsa, Oklahoma.
AAPG. 1995. Pacific Northwest Geological Highway Map (Washington, Oregon, Idaho in part). AAPG, Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Rocks
California
Brown, V., D. Allan, and J. Stark. 1987. Rocks and minerals of California, 3rd revised edition. Nautregraph Publishers, Happy Camp, California, 200 pp.
Stoffer, P. W., and L. C. Gordon, eds. 2001. Geology and natural history of the San Francisco Bay Area: A field-trip guidebook. U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 2188. https://pubs.usgs.gov/bul/b2188/
Fossils
General/multiple states
Blodgett, R. B., and G. D. Stanley, eds. 2008. The terrane puzzle: new perspectives on paleontology and stratigraphy from the North American Cordillera. Geological Society of America Special Paper 442: 326 pp. [Technical] https://doi.org/10.1130/SPE442
Johnson, K., and R. Troll. 2018. Cruisin’ the fossil coastline: The travels of an artist and a scientist along the shores of the prehistoric Pacific. Chicago Review Press - Fulcrum, 290 pp.
Mikanowski, J. 2017. The giant sea mammal that went extinct in less than three decades. The Atlantic, April 19, 2017. https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/04/pleistoseacow/522831/
Tidwell, W. D. 1998. Common fossil plants of western North America, second edition. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC. [Covers western states of contiguous U.S. and southern Alberta, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan in Canada.]
Alaska
Books, articles, and reports
Allison, R. C. 1978. Late Oligocene through Pleistocene molluscan faunas in the Gulf of Alaska region. The Veliger 21: 171–188. [Technical] Read online at the Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/biostor-132661
Denning, A. 2020. A new southeast Alaska dinosaur species has been given a Tlingit name. Alaska Public Media, February 6, 2020. https://www.alaskapublic.org/2020/02/06/a-new-southeast-alaska-dinosaur-species-has-been-given-a-tlingit-name/
Gangloff, R. A.. 2012. Dinosaurs under the Aurora. Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Indiana, 176 pp.
Hart, J. 2020. Reading the bones: A 43,000-year-old mystery is answering some question and prompting researchers to ask others. Our Stories Blog, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, July 10, 2020. https://www.blm.gov/blog/2020-07-10/reading-bones-43000-year-old-mystery-answering-some-questions-and-prompting
Websites
Alaska Paleontological Database: http://73.240.184.14/Paleoweb/Default.aspx
Blue Babe: Bon anniversaire, Blue Babe (University of Alaska Museum of the North): https://www.uaf.edu/museum/press/spotlight/blue-babe/
Denali National Park and Preserve fossils (3D models of fossils by Denali National Park and Preserve on Sketchfab): https://skfb.ly/oq9IF
Discovery of dinosaur tracks in Denali (National Park Service): https://www.nps.gov/articles/denali-dino-discovery.htm
California
Books, articles, and reports
Hilton, R. P. 2003. Dinosaurs and other Mesozoic reptiles of California. University of California Press, Berkeley, California, 356 pp.
Websites
La Brea Tarpits (Las Angeles, California): https://tarpits.org/
Pygmy mammoths: Life and times (Channel Islands National Park): https://www.nps.gov/chis/learn/photosmultimedia/life-and-times-of-the-pygmy-mammoth.htm (Videos about the pygmy mammoth.)
The pygmy mammoth (Channel Islands National Park): https://www.nps.gov/chis/learn/historyculture/pygmymammoth.htm
Nevada
Books, articles, and reports
Black, R. 2021. Shonisaurus gets a makeover. Hakai Magazine, 17 February 2021. https://hakaimagazine.com/news/shonisaurus-gets-a-makeover/
English, A. M., and L. E. Babcock. 2010. Census of the Indian Springs Lagerstätte, Poleta Formation (Cambrian), western Nevada, USA. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 295: 236–244. [Technical] https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2010.05.041
Springer, K. B., and J. S. Pigati. 2019. Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument - a Pleistocene treasure trove. Park Paleontology News 11(1). https://www.nps.gov/articles/park-paleo-spring-2019-tulesprings.htm
Springer, K. B., J. S. Pigati, and E. Scott. 2018. The geology and paleontology of Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument, Nevada. USGS Fact Sheet 2018-3038. http://doi.org/10.3133/fs20183038
Tanner, F. 2020. Fossil fishing for clues about a prehistoric invasion. University of California Museum of Paleontology News & Updates (blog post, May 22, 2020). https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/2020/05/stickleback-desert-oasis/
Tarte, N. H. 2019–2020. Digging into Nevada's prehistoric past. Tahoe Quarterly. https://tahoequarterly.com/winter-2019-2020/digging-into-nevadas-prehistoric-past
Oregon
Books, articles, and reports
Bishop, E. M. 2003. In search of ancient Oregon: A geological and natural history. Timber Press, Portland, Oregon, 288 pp. [Reprinted 2006.]
Manchester, S. R. 1987. Oligocene fossil plants of the John Day Formation, Fossil, Oregon. Oregon Geology 49: 115–127. [Somewhat technical.] PDF: https://www.oregongeology.org/pubs/og/OGv49n10.pdf
Manchester, S. R. 1994, Fruits and seeds of the Middle Eocene Nut Beds flora, Clarno Formation, Oregon. Palaeontographica Americana 58: 205 pp. [Technical.] PDF: https://biostor.org/reference/240376
Orr, E. L., and W. N. Orr. 1999. Oregon fossils. Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, Dubuque, Iowa, 381 pp.
Retallack, G. J., E. A. Bestland, and T. J. Fremd. 1996. Reconstructions of Eocene and Oligocene plants and animals of central Oregon. [Somewhat technical.] Oregon Geology 58: 51–69. PDF: https://www.oregongeology.org/pubs/og/OGv58n03.pdf
Websites
Fossils, Minerals & Gems (State of Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries): https://www.oregongeology.org/learnmore/fossilsmineralsgems.htm
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument (National Park Service): https://www.nps.gov/joda/index.htm
Oregon Paleo Lands Center: https://www.oregonpaleolandscenter.com/
Washington
Books, articles, and reports
Chappell, W. M., J. W. Durham, and D. E. Savage. 1951. Mold of a rhinoceros in basalt, Lower Grand Coulee, Washington. Geological Society of America Bulletin 62: 907–918. [Technical.] https://doi.org/10.1130/0016-7606(1951)62[907:MOARIB]2.0.CO;2
Mustoe, G. E., and W. L. Gannaway. 1997. Paleogeography and paleontology of the early Tertiary Chuckanut Formation, northwest Washington. Washington Geology 25(3): 3–18. PDF: https://www.dnr.wa.gov/publications/ger_washington_geology_1997_v25_no3.pdf
Wehr, W. C., and D. Q. Hopkins. 1994. The Eocene orchards and gardens of Republic, Washington. Washington Geology 22(3): 27–34. PDF: https://www.dnr.wa.gov/Publications/ger_washington_geology_1994_v22_no3.pdf
Websites
Evolving Earth Foundation Fossil Plant Image Collection (Fossils from the Eocene sites at Republic, Washington, and McAbee, British Columbia): https://www.evolvingearth.org/fossil-plant-image-collection/
Stonerose Interpretive Center & Eocene Fossil Site (Republic, Washington): https://stonerosefossil.org/
Topography
Books, articles, and reports
Sawyer, J. O. 2006. Northwest California: A natural history. University of California, Berkeley, California, 247 pp.
Websites
Northwest origins: An introduction to the geologic history of Washington state (Burke Museum): https://www.burkemuseum.org/geo_history_wa/
Mineral resources
Books, articles, and reports
Frank, D. G., A. R. Wallace, and J. L. Schneider. 2010. Western Mineral and Environmental Resources Science Center—providing comprehensive earth science for complex societal issues. US Geological Survey Circular 1363, 32 pp. PDF: https://doi.org/10.3133/cir1363
Hill, M. 1999. Gold: the California story. University of California Press, Berkeley, California, 306 pp.
Mendahl, K. H. 2008. Hard road West: History and geology along the Gold Rush Trail. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois, 329 pp.
Websites
California's minerals (California Department of Conservation): https://www.conservation.ca.gov/cgs/minerals
Fossils, Minerals & Gems (State of Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries): https://www.oregongeology.org/learnmore/fossilsmineralsgems.htm
Gold in Alaska (blog by The Gem Hunter): https://californiangold.blogspot.com/
Gold in California (blog by The Gem Hunter): https://californiangold.blogspot.com/
Glaciers
Books, articles, and reports
Books, articles, and reports from the Paleontological Research Institution:
Fountain, A. G., and E. Safran. 2010. Imperiled glaciers of the American West. American Paleontologist, 18(4): 10–14.
Other books, articles, and reports:
Guyton, B. 2001. Glaciers of California: Modern glaciers, Ice Age glaciers, origin of Yosemite Valley, and a glacier tour in the Sierra Nevada. University of California Press, Berkeley, 223 pp.
Rennick, P. (ed.). 1993. Alaska’s Glaciers, revised edition. Alaska Geographic Society, Anchorage, 144 pp.
Websites
Eureka Flat: How glacial outburst foods started the dust engine of the Pacific Northwest (M. Sweeney, University of South Dakota, Vignettes: Key Concepts in Geomorphology): https://serc.carleton.edu/vignettes/collection/25469.html
Glacier change in the upper Skagit River Basin (F. D. Granshaw and A. G. Fountain, Department of Geology, Portland State University): http://www.glaciers.pdx.edu/Projects/LearnAboutGlaciers/Skagit/
Glaciers of Mount Rainier (F. D. Granshaw and A. G. Fountain, Portland State University): http://www.glaciers.pdx.edu/Projects/LearnAboutGlaciers/MRNP/
Glaciers of the America West (Departments of Geology and Geography, Portland State University): https://glaciers.us/
Energy
Alaska
Books, articles, and reports
EIA. 2021. Oil production in Alaska reaches lowest level in more than 40 years. Today in Energy, April 26, 2021. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=47696
Hasemeyer, 2021. Trans-Alaska pipeline under threat from thawing permafrost. High Country News, July 14, 2021. https://www.hcn.org/articles/climate-change-trans-alaska-pipeline-under-threat-from-thawing-permafrost
Houseknecht, D. W., and K. J. Bird. 2005. Oil and gas resources of the Arctic Alaska Petroleum Province. US Geological Survey Professional Paper 1732–A. https://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/pp1732/pp1732a/
Nielsen, L. 2014. Geothermal energy in remote Alaska. Frontier Scientists, June 10, 2014. https://frontierscientists.com/2014/06/geothermal-energy-in-remote-alaska/
Smith, T. 2013. Alaska north slope: source rocks hold promise. GEoExPro 10(3). https://www.geoexpro.com/articles/2013/09/alaska-north-slope-source-rocks-hold-promise
Wight, P. 2017. How the Alaska pipeline is fueling the push to drill in the Arctic Refuge. Yale Environment 360, November 16, 2017. https://e360.yale.edu/features/trans-alaska-pipeline-is-fueling-the-push-to-drill-arctic-refuge
Websites
Alaska Hydropower Project Review (NOAA Fisheries): https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/alaska/habitat-conservation/alaska-hydropower-project-review
Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council: https://evostc.state.ak.us/
Lessons learned from the Exxon Valdez spill (NOAA Office of Response and Restoration): https://response.restoration.noaa.gov/oil-and-chemical-spills/significant-incidents/lessons-learned-exxon-valdez-spill
Podcasts
The Exxon Valdez, 25 years later, Making Waves episode 122 (NOAA, includes graphic and transcript): https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/podcast/mar14/mw122-exxonvaldez.html
California
Books, articles, and reports
Oaster, B. 2021. Will Klamath salmon outlast the dam removal process? High Country News, August 17, 2021. https://www.hcn.org/issues/53.9/indigenous-affairs-dams-will-klamath-salmon-outlast-the-dam-removal-process
Phelan, S. 2013. How the Monterey Shale came to be. Bay Nature, September 2, 2013. https://baynature.org/article/how-the-monterey-shale-came-to-be/
Rintoul, W. 1990. Drilling through time: 75 years with California's Division of Oil and Gas. California Department of Conservation, Division of Oil and Gas, Sacramento, 178 pp.
Thompson, B. 2021. The familial bond between the Klamath River and the Yurok people. High Country News, August 24, 2021. https://www.hcn.org/issues/53.9/indigenous-affairs-klamath-basin-the-familial-bond-between-the-klamath-river-and-the-yurok-people
Thulin, L. 2019. How an oil spill inspired the first Earth Day. Smithsonian Magazine, April 22, 2019. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-oil-spill-50-years-ago-inspired-first-earth-day-180972007/
Websites
Oil & gas (California State Lands Commision, State of California): https://www.slc.ca.gov/oil-gas/
Renewable Energy (California Energy Commission): https://www.energy.ca.gov/programs-and-topics/topics/renewable-energy
Nevada
Books, articles, and reports
Kutz, J. 2021. The fight for an equitable energy economy for the Navajo Nation. High Country News, February 1, 2021. https://www.hcn.org/issues/53.2/south-coal-the-fight-for-an-equitable-energy-economy-for-the-navajo-nation
Payne, B. 2020. Windy, but no windfall: Why Nevada lags behind in commercial wind power. KUNR Public Radio, May 20, 2020. https://www.kunr.org/energy-and-environment/2020-05-20/windy-but-no-windfall-why-nevada-lags-behind-in-commercial-wind-power
Websites
Geothermal (State of Nevada Commission of Mineral Resources, Division of Minerals): https://minerals.nv.gov/Programs/Geo/Geo/
Nevada Geothermal Energy (Bureau of Land Management): https://www.blm.gov/programs/energy-and-minerals/renewable-energy/geothermal-energy/regional-information/nevada
Oregon & Washington
Books, articles, and reports
EIA. 2014. The Columbia River Basin provides more than 40% of total U.S. hydroelectric generation. Today in Energy, June 27, 2014. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=16891
McDonnell, T. 2013. Washington Is outdoing California and Texas in renewable energy. Slate, May 17, 2013. http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/climate_desk/2013/05/renewable_energy_map_wind_solar_hydroelectric_power_use_by_state.html
Websites
Energy in Oregon (Oregon Department of Energy): https://www.oregon.gov/energy/energy-oregon/Pages/default.aspx
Climate
General/multiple states
Books, articles, and reports
2012. The Age of Western Wildfires. Climate Central, Princeton, New Jersey, and Palo Alto, California. PDF: https://www.climatecentral.org/wgts/wildfires/Wildfires2012.pdf
Zhong, R. 2022. Climate scientists warm of a 'Global Wildfire Crisis.' New York Times, February 23, 2022. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/23/climate/climate-change-un-wildfire-report.html
Websites
Western Regional Climate Center: https://wrcc.dri.edu/
The Climate Explorer: https://crt-climate-explorer.nemac.org/
4th National Climate Assessment (2018):
Alaska
Books, articles, and reports
2019. Unprecedented 2018 Bering Sea ice loss repeated in 2019. NOAA, August 14, 2019. https://www.noaa.gov/stories/unprecedented-2018-bering-sea-ice-loss-repeated-in-2019
Websites
Alaska PaleoGlacier Atlas: Pleistocene glacier extents in Alaska (D.S. Kaufman, N. E. Young, J. P. Briner, and W. F. Manley): http://akatlas.geology.buffalo.edu/
Climate change in Alaska (Division of Community and Regional Affairs, State of Alaska): https://www.commerce.alaska.gov/web/dcra/ClimateChange
Climate impacts in Alaska (United States Environmental Protection Agency): https://19january2017snapshot.epa.gov/climate-impacts/climate-impacts-alaska_.html
California & Nevada
Books, articles, and reports
Kauffman, E. Climate and Topography. Atlas of the Biodiversity of California. PDF: https://www.coastal.ca.gov/coastalvoices/resources/Biodiversity_Atlas_Climate_and_Topography.pdf
Websites
Climate impacts in the Southwest [includes California and Nevada] (United States Environmental Protection Agency): https://19january2017snapshot.epa.gov/climate-impacts/climate-impacts-southwest_.html
Oregon & Washington
Climate impacts in the Northwest [includes Oregon and Washington] (United States Environmental Protection Agency): https://19january2017snapshot.epa.gov/climate-impacts/climate-impacts-northwest_.html
National Climate Assessment 2014: Northwest. https://nca2014.globalchange.gov/highlights/regions/northwest#intro-section
Earth hazards
Earthquakes
Books, articles, and reports
Jones, L. M., and M. Benthien. 2007. Putting down roots in earthquake country: your handbook for the San Francisco Bay Region. USGS General Information Product 15. PDF: https://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/2005/15/gip-15.pdf
Oregon State University News and Communication Services. 2010. Odds are 1-in-3 that a huge quake will hit Northwest In Next 50 Years. http://web.archive.org/web/20100527090117/http:/oregonstate.edu/ua/ncs/node/13426
Thorsen, G. W. 1994. Earthquake preparedness—when you're not home. Washington Geology 22(3): 35–38. PDF: https://www.dnr.wa.gov/Publications/ger_washington_geology_1994_v22_no3.pdf
Websites
Alaska Earthquake Center (University of Alaska, Fairbanks): https://earthquake.alaska.edu/
Earthquakes in Oregon (State of Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries): https://www.oregongeology.org/earthquakes/earthquakehome.htm
Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC): https://www.scec.org/education
Landslides
Oregon Geology Factsheet: Landslide hazards in Oregon (Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries): https://www.oregongeology.org/pubs/fs/landslide-factsheet.pdf
Tsunamis
Oregon Tsunami Clearinghouse (State of Oregon Depart of Geology and Mineral Industries): https://www.oregongeology.org/tsuclearinghouse/default.htm
Recent and Historical Tsunami Events and Relevant Data (Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration): https://nctr.pmel.noaa.gov/database_devel.html
Tsunamis!: Tsunamis past and present (University of Washington): https://earthweb.ess.washington.edu/tsunami/index.html
Volcanoes
Books, articles, and reports
Brantley, S., and B. Myers. 2000. Mount St. Helens—from the 1980 eruption to 2000. US Geological Survey Fact Sheet 036-00. PDF: https://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2000/fs036-00/fs036-00.pdf
Websites
Volcanoes in Oregon (State of Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries): https://www.oregongeology.org/volcano/volcanoes.htm