Christian Sidor spent yesterday afternoon unwrapping several-hundred pounds of fossils he collected during a recent trip to Niger.

The fossils were collected by his team during a month-long expedition in Niger, and have produced some important discoveries.

Sidor is curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Burke Museum.

Important finds include fossils of two new reptiles, the first plant fossils from the area and fossils of animal footprints and track ways.

The fossils date from the late Permian period, which translates into approximately 260 million years old. These fossils are about 40 million years older than the first dinosaurs.

Sidor and his team set out to north central Niger to "investigate the relationship between climate and the distribution of animal and plant life in the distant past," according to a Burke Museum news release.

The fossils are important to understanding the influence of climate on evolution and also for testing climate models of the area during the Permian period, Sidor said.

During the Permian period, all of the continents were fused together in one giant land mass called Pangea, he said.

The fossils found in Niger, which would have been at the middle of the landmass, look nothing like other fossils from this time period, Sidor said.

The impetus for Sidor's research is to find out more about "how these amphibians and reptiles could be unique but still living on the same super-continent."

One of the most significant finds is a nearly complete vertebral column of a pareiasaur, which was a large, plant-eating reptile.

"It's beautiful — and almost as tall as me," said undergraduate expedition member Tara Smiley.

The team also collected the first fossils of plants from the Permian time period.

Most of the fossils were of conifer plants, including a 75-foot long tree trunk. Scientists have already identified four different plant species from the fossils.

To transport the fossils from Niger back to the Burke, they were wrapped in tinfoil and then covered with plaster, which will be removed with the same type of orthopedic saw used to remove casts.

Most of the fossils were packed in the team members' baggage, and a few pieces were transported via air cargo.

What most people may not realize about such expeditions is that most of the paleontologist's work takes place in the lab rather than out in the field, Sidor said.

"One day of collecting samples out in the field can equal one week in the lab," Sidor said.

Although this past trip was Sidor's fourth expedition to the area, he plans to return to the site in 2008 to continue collecting samples.

"Paleontologists are always looking for new animals," he said.

Reach reporter Sonia McBride at soniamcbride@thedaily.washington.edu