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March 2020 - Finds of the Month Entries


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REMINDER: PLEASE carefully read ALL of the rules below.

Make sure you include all the required information, IN THE REQUESTED FORMAT (below) when you submit your fossil! 

If you have a question about a possible entry, please send me a PM.


Please pay special attention to Rule #5: 

Before and After Preparation Photos must be submitted for prepped specimens NOT  found during the Month of the Contest.

In addition to keeping the contest fair, this new qualification will encourage better documentation of our spectacular past finds.


Entries will be taken until 11:59:00 PM EDT on MARCH 31, 2020

Any fossil submitted after that time, even if the topic is still open, will be deemed ineligible! 

 

Only entries posted with CLEAR photos and that meet the other guidelines will be placed into the Poll. 

Photos of the winning specimens may be posted to TFF's Facebook page.

 

Please let us know if you have any questions, and thanks for sharing more of your fossils and research this month.

 

Shortly after the end of the Month, separate Polls will be created for the Vertebrate and Invertebrate/Plant Find of the Month.

 

In addition to the fun of a contest, we also want to learn more about the fossils. 

Tell us more about your fossil, and why you think it is worthy of the honor. 


To view the Winning Fossils from past contests visit the Find Of The Month Winner's Gallery.

 

Now, go find your fossil, do your research, and make an entry!
Best of success to all, and good hunting!

 

***********************************


Rules for The Fossil Forum's Vertebrate and Invertebrate/Plant Find of the Month Contests

  1. Find a great Vertebrate Fossil or Invertebrate/Plant Fossil! Only fossils found personally by you are allowed. NO PURCHASED FOSSILS.
  2. Post your entry in the Find of the Month topic. Use a separate post for each entry. (Only two entries per member per contest category.)
  3. Your fossil must have been found during the Month of the Contest, or Significant Preparation * of your fossil must have been completed during the Month of the Contest.
  4. You must include the Date of Discovery (when found in the contest month); or the Date of Preparation Completion and Date of Discovery (if not found in the contest month).
  5. Before and After Preparation photos must be submitted for prepped specimens not found during the Month of the Contest. Please make sure you arrange for photos if someone else is preparing your fossil find and completes the prep requirements in the contest month.
  6. You must include the Common and/or Scientific Name.
  7. You must include the Geologic Age or Geologic Formation where the fossil was found.
  8. You must include the State, Province, or region where the fossil was found.
  9. You must include CLEAR, cropped, well-lit images (maximum 4 images). If you are proud enough of your fossil to submit it for FOTM, spend some time to take good photos to show off your fossil.
  10. Play fair and honest. No bought fossils. No false claims.

 

* Significant Preparation = Substantial work to reveal and/or repair important diagnostic features, resulting in a dramatic change in the look of the fossil. The qualification of Significant Preparation is decided at the discretion of staff. Any doubts as to the eligibility of the entry will be discussed directly with the entrant.

 

******* Please use the following format for the required information: *******

Date of Discovery   (month, day , year) 

Scientific and/or Common Name

Geologic Age or Geologic Formation

State, Province, or Region Found

Photos of Find

 

 

(Please limit to 4 clear, cropped, and well-lit images.)

(If prepped, before and after photos are required, please.)

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

For your review, here is a specimen of Palmoxylon sp. (fossilized palm) found by me on March 7, 2020 in the San Juan Basin of San Juan County, New Mexico, U.S.A.  The area is within the Kirtland Formation, Upper Cretaceous Period.  

 

Scientific Classification:

Kingdom:      Plantae

(unranked):  Angiosperms

(unranked):  Monocots

(unranked):  Commelinids

Order:          Arecales

Family:         Arecaceae

Genus:         Palmoxylon

                   Schenik, 1882

Species:       Note: Since the exact species of the specimen is unknown the specimen is referred to by its genus.

 

My specimen has been cut to show several views of a transition zone in the root ball where adventitious roots, also known as Rhizopalmoxylon sp., emerge.  The first photograph has been diagrammed to show several features in the transition zone.  

Typically, one would expect to see a multitude of vascular bundles appearing as small dots across the interior surface of a horizontally cut piece of Palmoxylon, sp. trunk or root ball, consisting of vascular tissue/vessels joined to a larger bundle cap.  In the portion of the transition zone shown in the submitted photographs, however, the vascular tissue/vessels are found to have separated from the bundle caps in almost every instance.  Additionally, within the transition zone, one sees the bundle caps elongate as its fibrous tissue was possibly transformed into the emergent adventitious roots.

The remaining photographs provide different views of the same transition zone and also show how many of the adventitious roots virtually interlock.

 

 

 

  March 7, 2020

  Palmoxylon sp. (fossilized palm)

  Kirtland Formation, Upper Cretaceous Period

  San Juan County, New Mexico, U.S.A.  

 

5e668a6f46777_Zone2withdiagram.jpg.21e6693cf1fcde3b374a414efd5976fb.jpg

5e668a9954d10_Zone4.jpg.2a5703e2ae38a0aece0f97d9cf6e40a2.jpg

5e668ab102197_Zone3.jpg.9d8321cea98732711042479f2a34539d.jpg

5e668add5ac2c_Zone1.jpg.38c4266d5e28c8b861dc7e2662be9a44 (1).jpg

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And the March entries are off with a bang!

 

Thanks for a great submission with lots of great backing information. ;)

 

 

Cheers.

 

-Ken

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Beautiful specimen. Priceless information. Thank you.

 

 

Mark.

 

Fossil hunting is easy -- they don't run away when you shoot at them!

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2 hours ago, old bones said:

Excellent photos.

Something we both appreciate. ;)

 

Agreed that we are of to a strong start for March.

 

 

Cheers.

 

-Ken

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Here’s mine:

 

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Bivalvia
Subclass: Heterodonta
Order: Lucinida
Superfamily: Lucinoidea
Family: Lucinidae
Genus: Divaricella

 

 

 

 

 

Date found: Tuesday, March, 10th, 2020

Name: Divaricella sp. (shell)

Age: 1.3 million years ago, Quaternary period

Location: North East Punta Cana, Dominican Republic 

 

2845A3A7-B57B-44DB-BE93-9501530ECD55.thumb.jpeg.3d1390a8a52a2beafae404e2f130431f.jpeg  7C699D1C-BF76-45BA-B52A-66444621E19D.thumb.jpeg.bbbdc4181b387e6ad39cabdff783fe31.jpeg

 

C4823CC3-909A-4F88-89E7-E57D4B823057.thumb.jpeg.c1ada2d789e37388f9716db9e037ed00.jpeg   CEBD50A1-88A0-41C4-9FBF-F6FB482EA730.thumb.jpeg.76ba99bcd22c027b365169add614e1af.jpeg

 

 

 

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@dinosaur man

Hi Kaleb,  you will need much sharper focused photos for your entry to be considered.  Thanks.  ;) 

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The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true.  -  JJ

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5 minutes ago, JohnJ said:

@dinosaur man

Hi Kaleb,  you will need much sharper focused photos for your entry to be considered.  Thanks.  ;) 

Sorry, here’s some, it’s very tricky considering it’s small.

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9 minutes ago, dinosaur man said:

Sorry, here’s some, it’s very tricky considering it’s small.

 

Those are a bit better, sir.  You may want to run your ID by @MikeR , @Max-fossils, or another of our shell experts.  

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The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true.  -  JJ

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@dinosaur man 

On 3/15/2020 at 5:13 PM, dinosaur man said:

7C699D1C-BF76-45BA-B52A-66444621E19D.jpeg

Could you retake this picture and ensure it's sharp? Being able to clearly  see the hinge of the shell is essential when IDing.

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Max Derème

 

"I feel an echo of the lightning each time I find a fossil. [...] That is why I am a hunter: to feel that bolt of lightning every day."

   - Mary Anning >< Remarkable Creatures, Tracy Chevalier

 

Instagram: @world_of_fossils

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On 3/16/2020 at 6:51 AM, Max-fossils said:

@dinosaur man 

Could you retake this picture and ensure it's sharp? Being able to clearly  see the hinge of the shell is essential when IDing.

This is the best I can get, since it’s so small.

 

5E91E182-D48A-4141-8BD1-83002317F480.thumb.jpeg.35eaf7d23ceb50ebd0242e6638bf8d25.jpeg

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A rare rostroconch in just about every other formation but this one. Most of these appear mashed up, over-silicified, or broken. This one was clean and of slightly above average size for this location (~5 cm in length). More background on rostroconchs here

 

Date of Discovery: March 16, 2020

Scientific and/or Common Name: Conocardium cuneus (rostroconch)

Geologic Age or Geologic Formation: Devonian, Amherstburg Fm

State, Province, or Region Found: Ontario

IMG_7498.jpg

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...How to Philosophize with a Hammer

 

 

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25 minutes ago, Kane said:

More background on rostroconchs here

 

Very nice fossil! I would like to find one :wub:

Even considering Pojeta et al., (1972) paper, I believe the authority for Rostroconchia Class is Cox, 1960.

 

Cox, L.R. (1960). Thoughts on the classification of the Bivalvia. Journal of Molluscan Studies, 34 (2), 60-88.

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On 3/11/2020 at 5:47 PM, old bones said:

Gorgeous fossil! Excellent photos.

I could not agree more. Stunning.

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On 3/16/2020 at 9:40 AM, dinosaur man said:

This is the best I can get, since it’s so small.

Without a better picture I'm not gonna be able to say anything, sorry... 

Also, prepping the specimen a little bit would help uncover the hinge area and make it more visible. The matrix doesn't seem too hard, so if you carefully get it away with a metal pick it should come off without damaging the fossil. 

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Max Derème

 

"I feel an echo of the lightning each time I find a fossil. [...] That is why I am a hunter: to feel that bolt of lightning every day."

   - Mary Anning >< Remarkable Creatures, Tracy Chevalier

 

Instagram: @world_of_fossils

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For consideration here is my specimen of Syringopora (Tabulate Coral) found by myself on March 3rd, 2020 in Kansas City, Missouri. Retrieved from the Bethany Falls Limestone Member within the Swope Limestone of the Kansas City Group – Missourian Stage. Upper Pennsylvanian of the Carboniferous Period. Approximately 298.9-307.0 mya.

 

Scientific Classification:

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum:  Cnidaria

Class:  Anthozoa

Subclass: Tabulata

Order: Auloporida

Family: Syringoporidae

Genus:  Syringopora

            Goldfuss, 1826

Species: Syringopora multattenuata*

*The species identification is based on visual comparison and estimates of coral distributions for the geologic formation the specimen was found (1).

 

 

 

 March 3rd, 2020

 Syringopora (Tabulate Coral)

Bethany Falls Limestone Member within the Swope Limestone

 Kansas City, Missouri

1.thumb.jpg.21d401abd0ef961e4ee04d1b20b5227d.jpg

 

Geological evidence shows that the extinct tabulate corals preferred shallow, tropical environments and were an important inhabitant of the Pennsylvanian era seas. Syringopora is known to have formed rounding masses from three to six inches in diameter, with occasional larger expansions in excess of ten or more inches. Often the corallites are close enough together to resemble certain forms of Favosites.  However, such masses are seldom found intact making this specimen a unique and exciting discovery.

 

In this picture you can see the connecting walls of the corallites allowing them to share resources throughout the colony.

3.thumb.jpg.7bdb5c16ddece518ef6e916c811911a5.jpg

 

Here is a view of the corallites from the top of the colony (scale is in mm).4.thumb.jpg.f9579125cd1a531ced0d8cf0f59b2ace.jpg

Though broken apart and damaged over time, I was able to recover a substantial specimen (cataloged here). The pieces fit together rather like puzzle pieces, which is somehow still surprising considering their approximately 300 million year age. Even though it is a modest coral, I hope you enjoy viewing it as much as I did excavating its numerous pieces and fitting them together.

 

2.thumb.jpg.cb61a6cba655c355d352ee8de6f4570e.jpg

 

(1)   Russell M. Jeffords (1948) The Occurrence of Corals in Late Paleozoic Rocks of Kansas. 

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On 3/16/2020 at 9:40 AM, dinosaur man said:

This is the best I can get, since it’s so small.

 

Looks like a Venerid Link

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"A problem solved is a problem caused"--Karl Pilkington

"I was dead for millions of years before I was born and it never inconvenienced me a bit." -- Mark Twain

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Nicest find in some time for me. I love the druzy laced internals.

Found: March 8, 2020

Name: Spiriferid brachiopod with internal spiralia

Geologic age: Mississippian 

Find location: Henry County, Missouri

20200308_182227.jpg

20200319_231807.jpg

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Very nice! I wonder if I should put this in the Vertebrate, Invertebrate, or Mustache category. :P

 

I had no idea brachiopods had an internal structure that could be preserved. A quick inter-webber-net search turned up this page which explains (briefly) the Spiralia:

 

Spiralia:  Pair of spirally coiled lamellae composed of secondary shell and supporting lophophore.

 

Lamella (pl., lamellae)  Sheetlike extension of primary and even underlying secondary shell deposited by retractile mantle (prolongation of body wall, secretes shell) margin on external shell surface; also used for calcareous ribbon comprising spiralium and coiled extension of arm of jugum.

 

Jugum  Medially placed structure of secondary shell connecting two primary lamellae of spiralia.

 

https://trenton.mcz.harvard.edu/phylum-brachipopoda

 

Three new vocabulary words for the day. I do so enjoy learning new things here on the forum. :)

 

 

Cheers.

 

-Ken

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Or maybe?

 

grill.jpg

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Mark.

 

Fossil hunting is easy -- they don't run away when you shoot at them!

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Member's 2nd Entry

 

This is Rhizopalmoxylon, sp. (fossilized palm root) found by me on March 17, 2020 in the San Juan Basin of San Juan County, New Mexico.  The area is in the Kirtland Formation, Upper Cretaceous period.

 

What is unusual about this palm root is not the well-defined structure of the roots, as with my first entry, but rather the colors this single fossil specimen exhibits due to permineralization.  Though the specimen is just over 3 inches wide (7.8 cm to be exact), it transitions through three distinct color variations to both visible roots and the surrounding fossilized wood surface. 

 

The specimen has been diagrammed with the following sections:

 

Left: Roots have an almost black agate outer cortex with greenish inner cortex; greenish background

Middle: Roots have a blue agate outer cortex with lighter blue agate inner cortex; yellow & green background

Right: Roots have a whitish crystal outer cortex with a greenish inner cortex; yellow background.

 

March 17, 2020

Rhizopalmoxylon, sp.

Kirtland Formation, Upper Cretaceous period

San Juan County, New Mexico

tri-color palm diag.jpg

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Already some very nice entries!

 

I have nothing very special, just something rather typical. An oyster Ostrea digitalina growing on a Turritella. I have found several Ostrea digitalina growing on several different molluscs and I have already found some bi-valved Ostrea digitalina in this formation. But this is the first specimen that has the substrate still attached to it and that has both valves. It is neither complete nor something very appealing, but I like it.

I found the specimen during a very short visit at this site, just to check it out after about 3 years again. The specimen was lying nearly as-is in the debris; it was the only specimen I took.

And: The specimen is figured mostly upside down, of course :D.

Franz Bernhard

 

Found: 03/11/2020

Name: Ostrea digitalina growing on Turritella partschi

Age - Formation: Langhian/Badenian, Miocene - "Florianer Schichten", Eastern Alps, Austria

Site: Wetzelsdorfberg-3, St. Josef, Styria, Austria

OstreaDigitalina_auf_Turritella_Wetzelsdorfberg3_kompr.thumb.jpg.fd7af68e3f3aa64ff2c27c32788f9188.jpg

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