October 4, 2009

The Central Texas weather forecast for the day was a wet one. However, a quick check of the radar revealed I had a few hours before dealing with any storms. My wife just smiled as I mentioned going out for a few hours. I told her that maybe all the recent rain had washed out some tiny jewels at my best Eagle Ford Formation site. She knew, at the very least, I would return with some dazzling, pyrite studded, Prionocyclus sp. ammonites and other late Turonian fauna.

Drizzle and overcast skies shadowed me on the drive to the site. Yet, when I arrived it had temporarily ceased. I geared up lightly and slid along in the fresh mud. In a short time, half a dozen micro ammonites were in my plastic container, and my knee pads had begun to accumulate a load of the gray clay. I alternated between macro scanning (without a magnifying visor) and micro scanning (with the visor). No, wearing the visor doesn't look cool; but I prefer the results. Besides, it's not as bad as having an empty fossil container.

There are all kinds of surprises that occur when you are near ground level and looking at a magnified world. The detail is fascinating and absorbing. Small, 5 mm ammonites are sanded with reflective pyrite prisms. After a few minutes, you forget the scale of things before you. ...That's when you innocently lock eyes with a 2 inch praying mantis! Using a 4X visor...well, you do the math! After the danger signal flashes through your brain and your vision has not quite focused, it tilts its head a few degrees to the side and slightly, but abruptly, flexes a ninja move with its front legs. From a third party perspective, (and I'm relieved there wasn't one) the scene probably resembled someone getting electrocuted off their hands and knees. It's amazing how fast the mind works – before my muddy slide ended, I completely recognized what I had seen. After gathering my fossil container, visor and my thoughts, I crawled back and saw the small insect running for its life.

I thought about getting the camera out to photograph the mantis, but a few drops of rain alerted me to the weather. To the northwest, the overcast darkened into very heavy rain clouds. They would miss me on their northeast track; however, their trailing edge would probably build to inundate me soon. I figured I had about 15 minutes before the rain, so the visor lowered for some quick scanning. It was just a few feet further when I saw my prize! Nestled at the edge of eroded matrix, I found my third rare Saleniid echinoid from this Upper Cretaceous formation. Even though it was partially coated in the matrix, I could see that it was the most inflated specimen I had found.

A quick series of 5 or 10 raindrops hit me in the back. I scrambled with the camera and took a few in situ photos. Then, I carefully packed away my tiny treasure and made my way to the vehicle. Muddy shoes off, sandals on, gear inside, I closed the door and the rain began to pour…ahhh! Success! This was what I had hoped for….

Late October

A few weeks pass, bringing erosive, periodic thunderstorms. Other locations have my attention during this time…places where you don't need a magnifier to see mammoth and mosasaur fossils. While my attention was diverted, the rains did what they have done for millennia.

Then, on the 25th of October, I met a friend and his son for a quick, impromptu hunt while on their way back home. It wasn't long before they had to leave the Lower Cretaceous location we were scanning; so, I decided to drive to the Eagle Ford site. Miles later, I found it completely refreshed! The rain had washed away all my tracks from the previous trip. Since my time was also limited, I headed to the area that had produced the unknown Saleniid echinoids.

Soon, Prionocyclus, Worthoceras, and Scaphites micro ammonites along with the occasional Ptychodus shark tooth were coming into view of my 4X visor. I picked up a few exquisite, pyrite/marcasite dusted specimens, but no Saleniids. Still, I hoped to add to my small collection of rare echinoids. I stood up and stretched...crawling around the rubble of this site searching for 5 – 7 mm sea urchins is an unintentional yoga routine. The higher view gave me a chance to change my vantage point, and I noticed an area that I had not hunted in a few trips.

Prionocyclus sp.

cf. Worthoceras sp.

cf. Scaphites sp.

cf. Worthoceras sp.

Being careful to look for the resident rattlesnakes, I pulled up some dead vegetation at the new spot and began scanning. It took just 5 minutes to find what I had been searching for...another little echinoid gem! My wife describes these moments of discovery like a cartoon where your eyes go rubber-banding in and out of your face. I could see it was a fantastic little urchin!

(apologies for the video quality, but you'll get the idea)

Since finding the first of these unknown echinoids in July of this year, I have been on a steady quest to find an identification. However, through my research, members of the Fossil Forum, and others, I soon realized these may represent a new species. Initial research seems to indicate they are new to the known Texas species, and it is probable they are Bathysalenia echinoids. I would certainly welcome any knowledgeable assistance in keying out a more specific ID.

But that was not all this "new" area had to offer, because I soon found the 3rd and 4th partial specimens of a different species of regular echinoid I had been chasing at this site! The 3rd one was embedded in the matrix of what might be a fragmented burrow cast. This species is a completely different puzzle…and yet to be identified by me.

Oh, and after I picked up this echinoid, I saw a small fish tooth where the urchin had been. Later, in the photos, I saw it was in plain sight next to the echinoid. Sometimes, it's really just a matter of perspective.


June 27th, 2014 UPDATE: A New Texas Echinoid Species