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Showing results for tags 'haslam'.
Found 15 results
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Almost 2 weeks ago I went with a small group from the rockhound club up to the Vancouver Island Paleontology Museum and the Courtenay & District Museum to see their fossils. Weather was too crummy to do an actual collecting field trip at any place! I guess it's OK to post pics here. I won't post anybody's face. The lighting and some of the display cases themselves presented problems for photography at both places, besides which it was kind of a whirlwind tour, so these shots are the best I could do. I'd say the poor lighting was the worst thing about both places, but we're dealing with small museums with small budgets here, so I figure that can be excused. First, Graham Beard gave us an informative tour of the VIPS in Qualicum Beach. It is a one-room fossil display, aimed primarily at educating the public, and Graham's tour was likewise, which suited us fine as most of the rockhounds know next to nothing about fossils. I think we all got more out of it than we would have if we'd been left to view it all on our own. He not only explained what was interesting about many of the pieces but also recounted the stories around how some of them were collected or acquired. He started at the 'types of preservation' showcase, which featured a piece from the Appian Way site up toward Campbell River which contains Eocene plants. It had been sliced and peeled to reveal fine cross-section detail of the plants. Several new species have been described from here. If you look closely at the slab leaning at an angle on the stand you can see a sheet partly peeled off: Heteromorphic ammonites from Hornby Island and V.I.: The big dark one in front, I have a piece of the same taxon from Mt Tzuhalem. Mine is missing the crook part but looks identical to the straight part. I thought it was from my mountain until Graham told me it was from up along the Inland Island Hwy near Courtenay. (Nothing to collect there now, as that was when the hwy was being built or widened). It didn't have a label and Graham couldn't remember so I'm still not sure what it's called!
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I found this one last month at my usual site, Upper Cretaceous Haslam Fm. (Nanaimo Group) Pretty sure it's plant as it's got that coaly carbonized look. A piece of it appears to be missing but the full outline is there. I'm seeing an oval shaped body (flattened but some thickness still left), surrounded by a flat membrane like an Elm samara. I don't really expect to come to any conclusions with this one, but thought it was interesting enough to post for ideas. I'd be happy if someone could tell what modern taxon has seeds resembling this one in any way. If nothing, it will end up in the museum for future paleobotanists to inspect. It's not the only seed- or nut-like thing I've found at this site. Forgot to include something for scale, but it's ~24mm long.
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Anyone recognize this thing? It spans about an inch (25mm) from thicker end to outer edge of curve. Probably less than 2mm thick. Not from my usual Mt Tzuhalem site, but same fauna in the Haslam Fm of the Cowichan Valley.
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(Not sure of the tags I should use.) This is the first instance I've found of any sort of 'bloom' on a fossil in my collection. Luckily it's not the best specimen but it is an echinoid and they are not as easy to find here as in some other places. Sandstone from the Haslam(?) Fm on Vancouver Island. Is this a calcitic bloom from some sort of acid or off-gassing from something in my storage media? I'm not sure how long this has been in this condition but I think it's happened within the last 10 years. I'm trying to keep things away from my collection that might cause this sort of thing. I've got wooden (not oak) cabinets, and the little white fold-up boxes with cotton or cloth substrate. I'm trying to get rid of plastics, foams or anything else questionable, and I can't think of what else there might be that could be a problem, unless simple humidity in the Summertime will do it. (This is indoors)
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I'd like to put this up for opinions... A thin limy layer interrupting the usual black shales from my usual Upper Cretaceous site (there are bits of the shale still stuck on top here and there). To me it screams of something like a bacterial mat, but I don't know. I can't imagine any non-biological process of formation, but maybe there is one that I haven't considered? The last pic shows an edge to give an idea of the thin lighter-colored layer. These pieces were all from one contiguous surface a couple feet square or so on a chunk of shale - the only one I have found up there so far with this particular pattern, but in other spots at this site and other sites, I have found similar calcareous(?) 'blobs' of all sizes that seem to have something to do with life, sometimes associated with obvious fossils such as Ino- and Sphenoceramus shells (no fossils were evident on this surface, though).
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This is not a great photo, it was taken after sunset at the site of discovery, and it's a bit dirty. I still need to trim the huge chunk and wash it off, and it now sits in a spot with poor lighting, so this is the best I can do for now, but maybe someone who knows Cretaceous flora can suggest an ID for these leaves based on the general outline? The one on the right especially has 3 clear lobes, and note the stems. Platanus? I have never found this type before, in 9 years of collecting up there.
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It's just an impression, but I find so few like this I had to keep it. Looked all over for the positive but could not find it. It seems so long and narrow for a Bostrychoceras, or is that just an aspect of the impression? 5 whorls visible.
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I know next to nothing about shark teeth but I take it this is a cow shark? I know some of you are shark tooth fanatics who I hope can narrow down the possibilities for me. I have difficulty getting good pics of this little thing... I could try for some better ones if necessary. The tooth itself is split between both parts of the matrix. Haslam Formation (Nanaimo Group), Cowichan Valley Vancouver Isl. (my usual collecting site, up the mtn.) This is only the 3rd shark tooth I've ever found, only two of which I still have, and the only one from Mt Tzuhalem so far.
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Went up the mountain on Sunday, mainly to look for trading material for a couple other members... The workers have been moving more rock around since I went up last week. I've been wishing for years that this stuff could be turned over so that fresh fossils could be exposed, but the now-crushed and dirty rock is harder to find stuff in, so I focused on the old stuff, which has always been weathering and slowly releasing new fossils anyway. Splitting chunks... Anyone recognize this little ammonite? Maybe not enough there to get an ID.. There's @aerogrower's 2cm cube for scale:
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Most common bivalve on the mountain. Length is of one valve. Day of collection approximate.
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The circular variety - in form of overlapping circular loops (see also my other entry for this taxon)
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The 9-shaped variety. The other variety is overlapping circular loops (see my other entry for this taxon). From the 'sponge site'.
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Same info as for other one I have posted. All the sponges I have collected there come from one very localized spot on the mountain. Exact date is not exact. Nor are measurements due to uncertain boundaries of sponge.
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This specimen was part of a larger crumbling piece with a few more of the same on it. Tried to collect and reassemble but have not gotten very far.. Length is of visible portion of sponge in middle of piece. Date approximate. Rigby's description was of a similar item from same-aged sediments of California. Thanks to 'piranha' Scott for the ID.
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Hard to say what diameter is, as anterior end is squashed (about 9x15mm).
