Geology January 2026
*The event has already taken place on this date: Sat, 01/24/2026
Please help us keep this calendar up to date! If this activity is sold out, canceled, or otherwise needs alteration, email mindy@kidsoutandabout.com so we can update it immediately. If you have a question about the activity itself, please contact the organization administrator listed below.
Geology January 2026
January 3 - 24, 2026
Urban Ecology Center at Phil Hardberger Park
8400 NW Military Hwy
Programs
January 3
Opening Day Speaker: The Witte Museum and Dr. Adams: When San Antonio was an Ocean: The First Record of Mosasaurs from the Late Cretaceous of San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas, 1 - 2:30 p.m.
1st Saturday Nature Hike, 8 - 10 a.m.
Registration Required (Meet at Dog Park on Blanco Rd.)
January 8
Storytime Rocky & Wormy, 10 - 11 a.m.
Phil Hardberger Park West Nature Play Area
January 10
Speakers:
• Jean Hackett & Robert Wilkes: Geology of Barringer Hill, 10 - 11:30 a.m.
• John Moretti: The Saber-tooth Cats of Texas, 1 - 2:30 p.m.
January 15
Growing Up Wild, 10 - 11 a.m., Registration Required
January 17
Speakers:
• George Veni: How Geology Creates Endangered Cave Species & Controls Where They Live, 9 - 10 a.m.
• Alicia Luna: The Role of Research in Protecting the Ecology of San Antonio Natural Areas, 10 - 11 a.m.
January 22
Starting Out Wild, 10 - 11 a.m., Registration Required
January 24
Gary Poole presents: Climate Change, Saturday Nature Talk, 9 - 11 a.m.
Exhibitions
Come see the Zamora rock and fossil exhibition and collections from staff and volunteers.
Saturdays January 3, 10 & 17, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Weekdays January 7 - 9 & 14 - 16, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
*Pet Rock Adoptions will take place at exhibition viewing times, while supplies last.
Presenter Bios:
· Mr. Jesus Zamora: Born in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mr. Zamora admired and collected seashells on the beach as a child. On a hike as an adult, a chance discovery of a fossil within a rock reignited his curiosity. When he moved to San Antonio and explored the creeks, he began to use his knowledge as an engineer and geology enthusiast to learn more about the fossils of the greater San Antonio and Hill Country area. As his collection grew, he took the time to clean, study, and curate them developing this exhibition to share with the community and inspire curiosity in others.
· John Moretti: John Moretti is a PhD candidate in the Jackson School of Geosciences at The University of Texas at Austin where he studies fossils from the last ~3 million years in western North America as a way to better understand how animal communities change over time and how changes in the past led to the biodiversity of today. Learn More
· Dr. George Veni: Karst Hydrologist Dr. George Veni is an internationally renowned karst hydrogeologist and one of the leading experts on the karst of Texas. His findings on water flow and filtration has helped the public and regulators better understand how vulnerable karst systems are. https://gveniassociates.com/ , https://texaslegacy.org/narrator/george-veni/
· Alicia Luna: Alicia Luna is the Natural Areas Manager for the City of San Antonio and is passionate about preserving karst ecosystems. After graduating with her Bachelor's in Biology from The University of Texas at San Antonio she worked in retail leadership roles before moving into the natural resource field. She is currently working on her Master's in Environmental Science. Her thesis examines joint-management of endangered bird and cave invertebrate species in the Edwards Aquifer karst.
· Dr. Thomas L. Adams, PH.D., Chief Curator and Vice President of Research, The Witte Museum: Dr. Adams is a vertebrate paleontologist whose research is focused on Cretaceous ecosystems and faunal diversity within Texas and its implications on Early to Late Cretaceous transitions. As well as research on crocodyliform evolution and biodiversity, and dinosaur paleoichnology. He has conducted paleontological research in Alaska, Texas, Wyoming, and Mongolia and have been involved with additional expeditions in Colorado, Utah, and Southern China. Dr. Adams earned his M.S. and Ph.D. from the Roy M. Huffington Department of Earth Sciences at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.
· Rob Wilkes & Jean Hacket – Geology Enthusiasts and Alamo Area Master Naturalist will bring a presentation for adults on the morning of Saturday, January 3rd. Their presentation explores the geology of Barringer Hill. Below Lake Buchanan lies what the United States Geological Survey has described as one of the greatest deposits of rare-earth minerals in the world: Baringer Hill. On January 10 at 10:00 AM, come listen as Rob Wilkes and Jean Hackett explain how this exotic pegmatite encrusted with radioactive crystals formed in the Llano Uplift as well as its more modern history- including efforts by Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse to gain control of the forty-seven minerals found there.
· Gary Poole - Join us for a talk led by Alamo Area Master Naturalist, Educator, and Geologist: Gary Poole. In this program, Gary will talk about the science behind climate change and understanding the effects already occurring globally, and focus on Texas in particular. Following the talk, there will be an opportunity for questions. This talk is part of our monthly 4th Saturday Nature Walk series provided by our Alamo Area Master Naturalists and the Alamo Group of the Sierra Club, with the Native Plant Society of Texas, San Antonio.
*Times, dates, and prices of any activity posted to our calendars are subject to change. Please be sure to click through directly to the organization’s website to verify.