Northern Sharks Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 On today's hunt, me favorite find might well be this piece. I don't know if this is the same as what Bill was stumped by here http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php/topic/17075-gamebridge-quarry-mystery-fossil/page__p__188769__hl__verulam__fromsearch__1#entry188769 but it was found in the same general area. It looks like a monoplacophoran (cap shell snail) with the beak being offset and symmetrical through it, but it has the plates. That would suggest echinoderm to me. Under hand lens magnification, I can't see any stem attachment mark. The "beak" is smooth, no evidence of a stem, and the plates there are different than those on top. It is 12mm wide, and from the ordovician Verulam formation. Any ideas???? There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pleecan Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 Nice find Kevin! No clue but looks like echinoderm of some sort.... How did the group make out at JD? Hope you found lots of fossils : ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archimedes Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 (edited) Looks real nice, can you see other shells attached to the gastropod like maybe many Petrocrania on a snail, or just a bumpy gastropod shell. I have seen Petrocrania covering a brachiopod shell like this before from the Ordovician in Tenn. Edited May 30, 2011 by Archimedes 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piranha Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 Looks real nice, can you see other shells attached to the gastropod like maybe many Petrocrania on a snail, or just a bumpy gastropod shell. I have seen Petrocrania covering a brachiopod shell like this before from the Ordovician in Tenn. Nice call on the ID Archimedes! Here is Petrocrania scabiosa as figured from Index Fossils of North America. Google searching reveals they are described as thin "scabby patches" that affix to a mixed variety of hosts that often show the underlying ornamentation of the object to which it is attached. Quite an appropriate name and a heckuva fun thing to learn about. I was convinced it had to be an echinoderm! Thanks again! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xonenine Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 very cool and unique fossil Kevin! great job on the ID, too! "Your serpent of Egypt is bred now of your mud by the operation of your sun; so is your crocodile." Lepidus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 Never heard of such a thing! What a wondrous world "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 Neat find, Northern! And thanks for the info Archimedes and Scott! I have never heard of Petrocrania scabiosa. I'm amazed by the wealth of knowledge here on the forum! I'm constantly learning something new. Regards, Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pleecan Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 Great discovery and great discussions every one! PL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted June 3, 2011 Share Posted June 3, 2011 An inarticulate brachiopod.... I would have never guessed. I'll have to keep an eye out for those. Awesome fossil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Sharks Posted June 7, 2011 Author Share Posted June 7, 2011 Just to follow up on this, it isn't as cut and dry as it seems. I asked a couple of members off the board who are veteran collectors of the same area. Crinus doesn't agree with Petrocrania, but doesn't have any other ideas Trilobitologist says echinoderm, possibly a paracrinoid. Not Petrocrania Shamalama, very knowledgable with devonian species(although this is ordovician) says definitely not Petrocrania (which also occur in the devonian) The ROM also suggests echinoderm, and again possibly a paracrinoid. There are only 2 described genuses of paracrinoid in the area, Amygdalocystites and Comarocystites, and this specimen is not the latter. The ROM does go on to say that there is a large number of Verulam species that remain undescribed The plot thickens....................... There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamalama Posted June 7, 2011 Share Posted June 7, 2011 Cue evil Laughter: Bwa-ha-ha-ha! :ph34r: -Dave __________________________________________________ Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPheeIf I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPheeCheck out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piranha Posted June 7, 2011 Share Posted June 7, 2011 Just to follow up on this, it isn't as cut and dry as it seems. I asked a couple of members off the board who are veteran collectors of the same area. Crinus doesn't agree with Petrocrania, but doesn't have any other ideas Trilobitologist says echinoderm, possibly a paracrinoid. Not Petrocrania Shamalama, very knowledgable with devonian species(although this is ordovician) says definitely not Petrocrania (which also occur in the devonian) The ROM also suggests echinoderm, and again possibly a paracrinoid. There are only 2 described genuses of paracrinoid in the area, Amygdalocystites and Comarocystites, and this specimen is not the latter. The ROM does go on to say that there is a large number of Verulam species that remain undescribed The plot thickens....................... That is a very crowded cluster of craziness! Still it was fun to learn about Petrocrania- better use a pencil for that ID card. Keep us posted Kevin! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trilobitologist Posted October 10, 2014 Share Posted October 10, 2014 Most likely a crinoid tegmen, rather than a paracrinoid. I've found a few of these now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamalama Posted October 10, 2014 Share Posted October 10, 2014 Now that I see it again, Maybe it could be a Monoplacophoran with lots of little tiny Petrocrania on the surface? Just never seen them that small before. Even in the Cincinnati area Petrocrania are fairly large. -Dave __________________________________________________ Geologists on the whole are inconsistent drivers. When a roadcut presents itself, they tend to lurch and weave. To them, the roadcut is a portal, a fragment of a regional story, a proscenium arch that leads their imaginations into the earth and through the surrounding terrain. - John McPheeIf I'm going to drive safely, I can't do geology. - John McPheeCheck out my Blog for more fossils I've found: http://viewsofthemahantango.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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