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Showing results for tags 'Montana'.
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Last summer I found this tooth on the Boulder River in Montana, any help identifying it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for looking!
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Here is a small tooth collected from the Hell Creek formation, Garfield Montana, likely a juvenile. I think from its properties that it is a Nanotryannus. I would appreciate your thoughts.
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- garfield county
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Hi, I recently got this cretaceous mammal tooth from the Hell Creek formation, and I was wondering if you may help me find the scientific name of the species that it belonged to. I've done some research and learned that it was the premolar of a Multituberculate mammal. This order of mammals was diverse and there were many species. I think it might be one of the members of the Genus, Mesodma, Yet I could be wrong. I tried to narrow it down to the exact species, yet there are few examples to help me pinpoint to a certain Id. This tiny tooth is from Garfield County, Montana. it is from the late cretaceous period (~67 - 66 Ma). It measures approximately at 3/16" long by 3/16" wide (5 mm x 5 mm). It is thin and blade-like towards the top of the crown. The enamel has a grooved texture on the surface. The overall shape of crown resembles a saw blade. Hopefully I would be able to id. this specimen and to learn more about it. Feel free to ask me for better images.
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Hi everyone, I wanted to get some opinions on this piece I found in Montana's Hell Creek formation this past summer. My initial thoughts were that it was a ceratopsid skull fragment. It was a fossil I was planning on selling, but before I do I wanted to rule out the possibility that it was a piece of ankylosaur osteoderm as I have significantly less material from that clade of dinosaurs. The dimensions are about 8 cm by 7 cm.
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Hi everyone, About a week ago I posted pictures of a tiny carnivorous dinosaur tooth from Hell Creek thinking it was raptor and it wound up being Tyrannosaur. Since then I've been taking a closer look at my other tiny teeth and this one which I thought was Acheroraptor stuck out to me when I took a closer look at the serrations. It also occurred to me that there are serrations (although very worn that I for the life of me could not get a decent shot of but are present) on the anterior carina which you don't see on Acheroraptor teeth so now I'm leaning more towards a tiny Tyrannosaur, but I'm still learning so I was hoping for a second opinion. Thanks as always!
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Hi all. I know it's been a long time since I've posted anything on the forum, but now that I'm back from college I'm planning on being more active. Today I wanted to post this odd fossil I found this past summer at a Hell Creek formation microsite in eastern Montana. I've never seen anything quite like it before, but my guess is that it's some odd denticle from a cartilaginous fish of some variety OR alternatively it could just be an odd fish tooth (maybe pharyngeal?). It measures about 4 mm from base to tip and a little bit over 1 mm at its widest. Any input would be appreciated. -Noel
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Hi everyone, Recently acquired some vertebrae from Hell Creek, I think the first one (1.4 x 1.1 x 1 inches) is a small Edmontosaurus caudal and the second (1,375 x 1 x .8 inches) is a Thescelosaurus Caudal. I'm still learning though so I wanted to confirm the id. Any feedback is appreciated as always!
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I found this turtle in Hell Creek formation outside Glendive MT last summer, well below KT junction (image 2670). I can't find textbooks or images similar. 43 cm x21 cm (2677). Carapace relatively good markings (image 3127) though lots of cracks. What I can't find is a group of turtles having a carapace without the pygal/supracaudal scutes ( image 3126- i.e. it's indented, definitely not fractured. It is quite fragmented and I'd love to find an anatomy book to aid in gluing it back together right.
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- carapace i.d.
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Hi everyone! I've got one more tiny hell creek tooth that I need help on. I didn't even think there was any mystery to it until I took a really close look at it. I acquired it as part of a set of Paronychodon teeth which are pretty distinctive looking and at first glance I though that's what this was since it's a small theropod tooth with the prominent lines going up the side (I forget what they're called) and with really nice serrations and wait..... Paronychodon doesn't have serrations. At least I don't think it does. I looked around to see if there have been any documented serrated Paronychodon teeth and the only place I found that said it had serrations also claimed that Paronychodon is three feet long and ninety feet tall so I don't think I can rely on that site. My money is on Acheroraptor at the moment but I'm terrible at identifying Dromaeosaur material so I'd like a second opinion. Tooth is 1 cm long straight line measurement.
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Here in south-central Montana we have remnants of the seabed from the Western Interior Seaway. Many impressions of what I can only describe as an S-shaped, fossilized sandworm exist. Recently a spalled piece of sandstone revealed this fossil (see photo) and I am curious to know exactly what creatures existed in the Cretaceous era that could be correctly identified as the one that made these impressions. Thanks for any help! I retrieved the loose half, the concave portion (seen lying on the ground below the fossil), for interpretive, educational use and wonder if I should or need to apply any type of hardening agent to this very crumbly rock.
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Hello, I recently acquired a small box of fossils from someone who had passed away recently. Inside were many fossils including those pictured. The only indicator of where they are from is that the box says "MONTANA". I can tell there are dromeosaur teeth, hadrosaur teeth, ankylosaur teeth and such. I know the man I got them from would routinely dig in the hell creek formation but I just wanted to make sure there wasn't anything obvious that I'm missing that would indicate that these fossils were collected elsewhere. My guess is that they are from the hell creek formation however. Any feedback is appreciated!!
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Decided to attempt some DIY Dino displays today. Happy with how they turned out - as long as my three year old doesn’t get ahold of them. I’m going to try the claw mount with some natural wood, maybe beach wood, in the future and spend a bit more time on it - but the first try worked out somewhat. All personal Montana finds with my buddy and my 12 year old daughter. All teeth are 100% natural except the largest brown one which has some minor repair, and the claws which have tip repair. also - I get that the tarsal bone (?) doesn’t fit the claw, but I’m no purist - and not that smart, and for display purposes in my daughters room it looks cool enough. Maybe if @Troodon wants to donate a proper bone to fit the claw I’ll fix it
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Hi everyone! I've got another hell creek phalange I could use some help on. There's some damage on the front which exposes the inside showing it's hallow, so my first though was theropod, but I don't know for sure. dimensions are about 1.25 x .625 x .55 inches. Any feedback is greatly appreciated as always. Also Happy Thanksgiving!
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Hi everyone! I recently acquired some hell creek dino phalanges and could use some help identifying them further if possible. This one was advertised as theropod and I'm thinking it might be Tyrannosaur since it seems to robust to be any of the little guys like the raptors or whatever Richardoestesia and Paronychodon are but I wanted to make sure. measurements are about 1.5 x 1 x 1 inches. Any feedback is appreciated as always!
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Hi everyone! A little while a go I bought some Tyrannosaur tooth fragments from the Judith Hill formation. They all looked correctly identified but this one looks a little funny to me. It's definitely a partial theropod tooth from Judith Hill formation of Montana. I just would like another look at it. It's a little less than an inch long.
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I messaged seller a week ago for extra photos and haven't heard anything back, unfortunately, so this is all there is. Sold as a Tyrannosaur vertebrae and Optical Condyle bone. Found in Baker, Montana. That's literally all the info there is--not even measurements, and there's been zero response from the seller unfortunately. So, sorry about that. If anyone can suss anything out from the dodgy photos, that would be great.
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Hey everyone, Got the chance to explore the Hell Creek this summer and I've got a few questions on what I've found. The first is this tooth. I found it at a microsite in the Hell Creek Formation of Montana. It's about 1/2 inch long. I tried getting some up close shots of it, but if y'all need any better photos, just let me know. Thanks for you help in advance!
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Taxonomy according to Mickle et al., 2009. The University of Montana, UM Paleontology Center website (Browse Collections - College of Humanities and Sciences / UM Paleontology Center - University Of Montana (umt.edu)) lists "Yogoniscus gulo" as an old taxon on some specimens (but not on all specimens) of Beagiascus pulcherrimus. Obviously, confusion has occurred. Diagnosis from Mickle et al., p. 639: “A lower actinopterygian fish defined by the following combination of characters: elongate fusiform body, narrow in cross section; premaxillae narrowly sutured in midline; nasal notched anteriorly and posteriorly; posterodorsal process of antorbital forms base of posterior nasal notch; frontal with a sinuous sagittal suture; crescent-shaped dermosphenotic; large dermopterotic with a wide posterior plate, laterally spurred, anteromedial process situated within a notch in the frontal; three large suborbitals situated within curve of preoperculum, small fourth suborbital overlapping large suborbital, suborbital between posteroventral infraorbital and maxilla; four infraorbitals – narrow infraorbital ventral to orbit, crescent-shaped posteroventral infraorbital, an intervening element, and T-shaped posterodorsal infraorbital, tapered anterior end of posterodorsal infraorbital comes in contact with tapered posterior end of nasal; mosaic of several small bones in curve of posterodorsal infraorbital for spiracular bone; long maxillary plate; two rows of pointed, posteriorly inclined teeth down length of maxilla; prominent posteroventral process of maxilla; anteriorly inclined hatchet shaped preoperculum; one row of 5 or 6 anteopercular bones along anterior margin of operculum – ventral-most anteopercular bone wider and longer than the others; rectangular, anteriorly inclined operculum with transverse ganoine ridges; rhombic suboperculum with vertical ganoine ridges; total of 14 or 15 branchiostegal rays – five above mandibular corner, 9 or 10 at and below mandibular corner, first branchiostegal twice as high as second; anterior and posterior extrascapular rows sharing median extrascapular (anterior row – three lateral bones, posterior-single bone bearing supratemporal commissure); unsutured postspiracular; one row of rhombic postcleithral scales; narrow ventrolateral flank scales; f ank scales finely pectinated; fan-like pectoral fin; triangular pelvic fin, triangular dorsal and anal fins with posterior edges tapering off gradually; heterocercal caudal fin deeply forked, accessory flap on epicaudal lobe; all fins bear long, stout, overlapping fringing fulcra on leading edges; precaudal ridge scales continuous between the anal and caudal, and dorsal and caudal fins. Meristic, morphometric, and cranial measurements are presented in Tables 9 to 12.” Line drawing from Mickle et al., 2009, p. 642: ID by oilshale using Mickle et al., 2009. Reference: Mickle, K. E., Lund, R. and Grogan. E. D. (2009): Three new palaeoniscoid fishes from the Bear Gulch limestone (Serpukhovian, Mississippian) of Montana (USA) and the relationships of lower actinopterygians. Geodiversitas 31(3):623-668. DOI: 10.5252/g2009n3a6
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- beagiascus
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Found in the Judith river formation along the milk river. They seem to be a few claws, but unsure about the dark one that’s super hollow as well as the first one that seems to be a bit more uniquely shaped than I’m used to finding. I thought croc claw at first based off what we were finding in the area - but who knows. All three are about an inch long. thanks for the help. Deciding if they’d be worth restoring or not. sorry for the slight mix and match on the photo order
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The tooth below is listed for sale as Cretodus crassidens from the Carlisle Shale in Montana. While there might be some very slight wrinkles on the labial side of this tooth, this doesn't look like the typical lingual or labial enamel folds that I would expect from Cretodus, so I'm wondering if it might be from Cretalamna or something else instead. @siteseer, @ThePhysicist, @Anomotodon, any thoughts on this one? The slant length of the tooth is 22 mm. Photos are from the seller, slightly cleaned up by me.
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Sorry I don't have better info or more pics, but my friend found this on the Blackfoot rez in Montana this summer. He said it was "about the size of him", he's around 5' 10". I'm thinking coral or crinoids, but I'm not very knowledgeable about inverts. Any insight is appreciated!
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Upon doing some research on exposures near Great Falls, and from a tip I received from a fellow member of my local prospector's group, I found an exposure just outside of Belt that is somewhat known for its plant fossils. Roadside Geology of Montana has this area of the state marked as early Cretaceous, but the large Jurassic coal seam cutting through the middle of this exposure was apparent as soon as I parked. I scrambled up the loose shale and sandstone to the seam, where I almost immediately began to spot small impressions in the dark-gray shale. The shale was incredibly fragile and would often crumble at a slight touch, and it was a new experience for me in handling rock that didn't need a hammer and chisel to split. I spent most of the trip sifting through the loose shale that had slid from the exposure and gently prying open larger pieces with my fingers or a small, thin chisel. This was definitely an exercise in patience, as I had to really slow down and be gentle with the shale as to not shatter the pieces in my hands. After about 2 hours, my husband and the dog were incredibly bored, as their adventure down to Belt Creek was unexciting, and the heat was getting to them. So, as is often the case with my hunts, I had to leave earlier than I wanted. But I am incredibly happy with my finds, small as they may be, and I plan on returning to this little spot soon. I'm not too familiar with plants in this area, as most of this part of the state is Cretaceous or Mississippian marine, so if anyone would like to offer some IDs, I would love them! I'm trying to be diligent in cataloguing all my finds, so anything helps! Some of them really shine when wet, as I found when I was cleaning them up. The dark-gray of the shale is also much more apparent. I know they're small and not particularly impressive or rare, but I am incredibly happy with my little haul. Thanks for stopping by on my adventure; I hope you have a great day!
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11 Sep 2021: Mississippian brachiopods at Crystal Lake, MT
kehaz posted a topic in Fossil Hunting Trips
The weather was promising, the husband wanted a good place to hike, and the dog had cabin fever. So I loaded them, along with my gear, into the truck and drove down to Crystal Lake to hunt around in the Madison limestone while the husband and the dog went for a romp in the Big Snowy Mountains. On the dirt road to the area, we drove past a mama black bear and her cub, hanging out only about 30 feet from the road. To avoid aggravating either, we didn't slow down to take pictures, but my husband was pretty "bear"-anoid about running into them again Well, the mountains weren't snowy and the lake wasn't much of a lake, but the weather was great and the shoreline looked promising, so I set off to start combing through the countless dead snail shells to find myself some brachiopods. Most of the shoreline was water-worn limestone chunks, but the outcrops of layered stone jutting from the shore harbored some wonderful fossils. My first find of the day! Can you spot it? After my first little brach, I started seeing a lot of crinoid and coral hash plates. This plate was several feet across and still half-buried. I had been finding some nice little brachiopods that I suspected were some sort of spirifer, and decided to start splitting some limestone to see what else I might be able to find. After a few hours, the husband and dog came back and started smothering me with their boredom. So, in an attempt to appease them, and perhaps scout out another good spot or two, we started off on the trail that circled the lake. There wasn't much in the way of good exposures, but the dog ran most of her energy out on the little trail. We picked along the opposite shore on the way back to the truck, finding a few more small brachs and crinoid bits, but I didn't want to go home yet. I talked my husband into letting me stop at a few roadcuts on the way back to the highway, and he agreed as long as he could nap in the truck while I hunted. Perfect: now I don't have to entertain him. The dog was pretty pooped out too, so it was a nice stress-free hunt-and-peck down Crystal Lake Road. Until my angry bowels could not hold out any longer. We swung over to Cascade Falls Trailhead to use the outhouse, and there was a tiny little exposure near the parking area of the trailhead. I couldn't help it. I had to check it out. A whitetail doe hanging out on the right side of the hill played peek-a-boo with me as I scoured the well-split limestone. My last find of the day is probably my most favorite. After researching these a bit more, I believe these are a type of Cyrtospirifer, lower Mississippian and common in this area. I believe that there are at least two different species present in this plate and need to do some more research to find the species of each. I believe I found the impression of a Schizophoria on this piece. Bryozoa? I have a fair bit of homework to do, and as always, I am extremely happy with my finds. Thanks for stopping by; have a great day!
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A recent trip to the Madison Group near Yogo, MT turned up a small exposure for Mississippian fossils, mostly small crinoid hash plates but with a few little surprises. I'm still learning about different types of fossiliferous rocks; I believe this was an outcropping of limestone. I tried to locate these fossils in the National Audubon Society's Field Guide to Fossils, but I'd like to get an opinion from someone who knows much more than I do (which, let's be honest, isn't very much ) 01: These were the largest brachiopods I recovered from the site. Perhaps schuchertella? 02: This one straight-up stumped me. At first I thought it was some sort of aquatic plant or coral, but my reference book is pretty limited in plants, and it looks like no corals I've seen. 03: These are very small, but the coloration of this tiny group is what caught my eye. I'm sure the small segments are crinoid, but please correct me if I'm wrong. I have sectioned off a few small fossils in the plate that I'd like to know more about. 03-1 looks plantish, but I had the same issue with this one that I had with 02. 03-2 are so small that I'm not really able to differentiate one mollusc from another. 03-3 is straight-up weird and I have no idea what to make of it. I won't even venture a guess; I just have no clue. A picture of the outcrop. It was small but kept me busy for several hours. Please let me know if I need to upload more pictures. I'm pretty sure I did everything that the multitude of "how-to" posts said to do... Thank you!
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So, this bone was collected by me earlier in the summer from the Hell Creek Formation in Montana. Upon collecting this bone I had thought that it was a Triceratops (or other Ceratopsid, I suppose) phalanx based on the shape and my memory of seeing pictures online. I was pretty confident in this ID up until a few days ago, and the following are throwing me: 1. This bone seems really big for a Triceratops phalanx. The other examples I can find online are not this large, but then again Triceratops was a pretty big animal and I’ve underestimated its size before. 2. It’s hard to tell because it is very weathered, but the shape isn’t quite a good of a fit as for a trike phalanx as I had initially thought. Also, the underside of the bone is heavily eroded, which I hadn’t noticed before as I had yet to clean all the mud/matrix off of it. So, I’m posting this here in the hope of getting a few more looks from some other people. Let me know what your thoughts are, and thank you in advance! Obligatory tag of @Troodon Thanks for looking!
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