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Hey everyone, This year I've been somewhat less active on the forum, although I did check in regularly to make sure I didn't miss anything important. The main reason for this is because this was my last year in secondary school, and, unsurprisingly, that comes with more work than usual (including university application). Even with corona and home-schooling, my workload didn't exactly diminish. However that doesn't mean I haven't been active in the paleo-field! In fact I have gone hunting quite a few times on the Zandmotor and made some cool finds that I'll share soon, and more recently, during my annual trip to the south of France, did some more successful hunting. In July I also went to the east of the Netherlands to go hunting with my friend @Hunter0811 and we found some pretty nice stuff. (I'll make some trip reports with my finds soon.) This year I started playing around with my dad's camera while in France to take some pictures of different animals I came across (mainly butterflies), ID them and submit them to iNaturalist (an app where you can upload your nature observations and make potentially useful scientific contributions, check it out, it's quite nice!), so that's a fun new little hobby I picked up. So for my 18th birthday, which was 4 days ago, my parents got me a sweet new camera! Despite the cancellation of my final exams (due to corona), I did graduate successfully! And, more importantly, my university application went very well: In October, I will officially be starting my MSci Palaeontology & Evolution at the University of Bristol! I am incredibly excited to start getting into paleontology more professionally and spend the next 4 years of my life studying my lifelong passion. According to the Center for World University Rankings, they are currently the best university worldwide for Paleontology. The city itself also seems really nice and student-friendly. On top of that, the Aust Cliffs are very nearby and that seems like a really interesting location to hunt at (although very different to the Zandmotor!). All in all, I think, and hope, that I'm gonna have a really fun time there, and I couldn't be happier to start this new chapter in my life. And I am glad to now share this news with all my friends on The Fossil Forum, as you guys have definitely played a big role in not only maintaining, but also deepening, my passion for all these "dumb dead rocks", and it has clearly paid off. So a big thanks to all of you in this wonderful community! Love you all! Max

I've just visited this hill directly north of the Trump National Golf Course (yes, the president owned a golf course in my city ) which I was told by a museum docent had fossil fish scales. Here's what I found which could possibly be fish scale fossils, but I need a full confirmation on this. Some notes -All three rocks are associated- they were all part of a giant piece of shale rock which was broken into pieces when I found it. -The "fish scales" are a more darker or orange brown. -I think I was unable to capture the best possible detail due to the absence of natural lighting which made details more camouflaged. -Each "fish scale" lie on only one layer, throwing off the possibility of it being a crystal. -The black stuff are dendrites or a similar type. -Found in the Palos Verdes Hills, directly north of the Trump National Golf Course. Rock 1 Rock 2 Rock 3 Is this my first ever fossil find or another bust?

So today Ive went down to the bay that I was planning to find fossils in for awhile, only to come back empty handed (I couldnt reach any of the shale quarries and just decided that its layers are too flat to house fossils anyways). Being a Palos Verdean, There are small pockets of quarries which are generaly unprotected by preserves (usually alongside roads, sometimes beaches). Palos Verdes has a rich history of Miocene-Quarternary fossils, but much of the fossiliferous zones are protected by preserves. Because I cant really go far just to find fossils, I can only hunt in the small pockets I can find. Ive studied some geological maps and do know where the according-to-theory fossiliferous shale are, I just dont know how exactly to find fossils without destroying the place and getting under a legal flat. Are there any tips and tricks for this kind of fossiling?

I have made some posts but I didn't have time to introduce myself. I like fossil hunting, It's my passion. I have a big fossil collection which I study and learn things from. I have posted about fossils that I have found and bought. "Without fossils we wouldn'the ever had known that all those prehistoric creatures ever existed". Hope you'all like fossils as much as I do.

I recently moved to a rural location in northeast Oklahoma and have already found a number of fossils while working on the property. I look forward to everyone's help and expertise as I collect and learn about what I'm finding. Thanks to everyone in advance!

my husband and I are here until this Saturday and we are not having luck with finding sharks teeth on the shore.. any suggestions?! We've been to onslow quarry and castle hayne in th past but we're looking for something new! Please help!!! thanks!!!