Al Tahan Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 Hey folks, I’m going to keep it short and sweet. I turned 31 yesterday (May 26th) so I had the day off from work. Still feeling inspired by my Lorraine group adventures I went out exploring again. I did lots of hiking...turns out so much so that I hiked out of the Whetstone Formation and into the Pulaski Shales. The Pulaski formation is just shales and sandstones (50/50 split pretty much) alternating....the upper whetstone grades into the Pulaski conformably so there isn’t an abrupt change. It just starts to have many more sandstone beds inter layered. So basically I thought I was in the upper whetstone and stumbled on a complete Flexicalymene granulosa just sitting in the stream already split open. I decided to stay close by and split a few pieces of shale and found 2 more!!! What!?! I thought I was in the Whetstone Formation and didn’t realize I was probably in the Pulaski shales till I got home. I had no clue the flexis could be found like that....or at all! Seems like if you find the right shales your gonna find one. I didn’t look through much shale at all so they seemed “somewhat” common. the Lorraine group gets weirder and weirder I tell you!! here are a couple photos This was the first one I found just sitting open already split. A nice prep would fix this guy up. The counterpart has the rest of the trilobite. This is the last one I found. Looks to be all there just mostly covered in shale. Saving best for last lol. Check this little guy out! This was the best Flexi. Scale in cm. It should come out great with a little air abrasion. Very lucky find for sure. Now I’m thinking I need to go back to the pulaski shale location I found last year! A happy accident (Hiked too far) on my birthday turned into a rare find! I have middle Ordovician calymenids now I have a late Ordovician example There is a Flexicalymene granulosa for sale on a well known fossil website that is labeled from the Pulaski shale so I made the connection there. If you google Flexicalymene granulosa it’s easy to find the listing. Flexicalymene granulosa isn’t even in the trilobites of New York book. To me that makes this find that much more special....totally under the radar and a total surprise to me. Thanks for reading Al 21 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 Congratulations, Al! A fitting gift for your Birthday. 1 Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilDAWG Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 You're really scoring big on those New York trilobites lately! Nicely done. One question though, are you sure of the Flexicalymene granulosa ID? As opposed to F. meeki for one alternative possibility. I don't see the "granulated" ornament, but maybe that just doesn't show up in the photos. Don 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 Nice. Very nice indeed! 1 Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffrey P Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 Happy Birthday Al and it looks like the Ordovician has gifted you. Congratulations on those finds. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nautiloid Posted May 28, 2020 Share Posted May 28, 2020 Happy Birthday! Congrats on the great trilo’s. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darktooth Posted May 28, 2020 Share Posted May 28, 2020 Happy Birthday Al! Great finds! You have definitely put in the effort lately. 1 I like Trilo-butts and I cannot lie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Tahan Posted May 28, 2020 Author Share Posted May 28, 2020 1 hour ago, FossilDAWG said: One question though, are you sure of the Flexicalymene granulosa ID? As opposed to F. meeki for one alternative possibility. I don't see the "granulated" ornament, but maybe that just doesn't show up in the photos. Don To be honest I’m not sure exactly. I’m going off of a website sale and friend who is a decently reputable source. This is the website sale that was also some help. I hope this isn’t breaking any rules. No www. posted or site name posted just the photo and description. This flexi is from the Pulaski shale. hope that helps... Just my best guess! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coco Posted May 28, 2020 Share Posted May 28, 2020 Hi, 8 hours ago, Al Tahan said: No www. posted or site name posted just the photo and description. I suppose in this cas you can add the URL of the page found about this article Coco 1 ---------------------- OUTIL POUR MESURER VOS FOSSILES : ici Ma bibliothèque PDF 1 (Poissons et sélaciens récents & fossiles) : ici Ma bibliothèque PDF 2 (Animaux vivants - sans poissons ni sélaciens) : ici Mâchoires sélaciennes récentes : ici Hétérodontiques et sélaciens : ici Oeufs sélaciens récents : ici Otolithes de poissons récents ! ici Un Greg... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilNerd Posted May 28, 2020 Share Posted May 28, 2020 What a birthday present! A good hike, and some new and exciting finds. Congrats and happy birthday! 1 The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it. -Neil deGrasse Tyson Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don't. -Bill Nye (The Science Guy) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted May 28, 2020 Share Posted May 28, 2020 13 hours ago, Al Tahan said: This is the website sale that was also some help. I hope this isn’t breaking any rules. No www. posted or site name posted just the photo and description. As you know, a seller's description of something they "acquired" is way down the list as a supportive identification resource. I'm sure one of our other members can cite some scientific references. Congrats on your discovery. @piranha @Kane 2 The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true. - JJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane Posted May 28, 2020 Share Posted May 28, 2020 As Don referenced above, there are two Flexicalymene species listed in the Lorraine Group: F. granulosa and F. meeki. See: Whitely, T.E., Kloc, G., and C. E. Brett (2002). Trilobites of New York: An Illustrated Guide. Cornell UP. One of the distinguishing features, apart from ornamentation, may be the presence or absence of a prominent anterior cephalic "lip" or "spathe." I'll let Scott confirm if this is the case; I am reminded of the issue in Quebec on where to taxonomically place their Ordovician "Gravicalymene" as there may be a need for some revision. Another source for distinguishing the two is provided in a dissertation: "Coarse, closely packed granules on the cephalon, thorax and pygidium also serves to distinguish Flexicalymene granulosa from the other Cincinnatian taxa, which are covered in a finer texture of granules. In addition, the strongly inclined anterior cephalic border away from the frontal glabellar lobe and the shallow preglabellar area of the next stratigraphically occurring species, Flexicalymene meeki, provides a natural morphological break upon which separation and distinction of these two species is possible." (Hanke 2004: 107). Hanke, B. (2004) Flexicalymene (Trilobita) from the Cincinnatian Series (Upper Ordovician) of Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky: A case study of microevolutionary pattern within a single species lineage in a sequence stratigraphic framework. 3 ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malcolmt Posted May 28, 2020 Share Posted May 28, 2020 Very nice... that one has lots of prep potential!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Tahan Posted May 28, 2020 Author Share Posted May 28, 2020 Thanks @FossilDAWG for bringing that to my attention and thank you @Kane for the extra information! I missed the mention in the “trilobites of New York book” in the descriptions. I think I went to quick. Not everything has pictures/plates in there. Ops. Now I’m not sure which Flexicalymene I have ha. I’ll admit I have struggled to find good information on the Pulaski shales and their fauna. I cannot access anything on research gate. In time I’ll have to get it prepared so I can 100% identify the species. Now I’m going to be Looking for new localities for the whetstone AND the Pulaski shales. Discovery awaits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Tahan Posted May 28, 2020 Author Share Posted May 28, 2020 These pictures are from the “Trilobites of New York” book. Here is a phot of the text that I missed. I should have double checked it’s been while since I’ve read through it. Kane posted the text above. maybe I can find enough clues on my specimens to find and ID...who knows Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taj Posted May 30, 2020 Share Posted May 30, 2020 Well done ! These pics look eerily similar to the finds I'm currently making in the same group. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilDAWG Posted May 30, 2020 Share Posted May 30, 2020 The actual ID of these specimens is of interest to me because I have collected calymenids from the Carlsbad Formation in Ottawa Ontario. This formation correlates with the Lorraine Group in Quebec and New York. I have seen calymenids from the Lorraine called Flexicalymene granulosa, Flexicalymene meeki, and Gravicalymene (undescribed species). I need to get my specimens out again and see if I can figure out what they actually are. Don 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monica Posted May 30, 2020 Share Posted May 30, 2020 You did it again, Al! Such stunning trilobites - congratulations! And happy belated birthday! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Tahan Posted June 2, 2020 Author Share Posted June 2, 2020 @FossilDAWG I will do some updates every few weeks or so on new finds. I may grow impatient and commission some prep work on a few trilobites. I’m very curious about several of my calymenid trilobite finds from the Ordovician. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taj Posted June 2, 2020 Share Posted June 2, 2020 On 5/29/2020 at 10:13 PM, FossilDAWG said: The actual ID of these specimens is of interest to me because I have collected calymenids from the Carlsbad Formation in Ottawa Ontario. This formation correlates with the Lorraine Group in Quebec and New York. I have seen calymenids from the Lorraine called Flexicalymene granulosa, Flexicalymene meeki, and Gravicalymene (undescribed species). I need to get my specimens out again and see if I can figure out what they actually are. Don I will certainly be interested in the results ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilNerd Posted June 2, 2020 Share Posted June 2, 2020 @Al Tahan and @FossilDAWG A while back, Scott @piranha sent me a thesis paper comparing specimens from the Calymenidae family. I remember specific comparisons of Flexicalymene species and Gravicalymene. I am away from my computer at the moment, but when I get back to it, I can send the link/paper. I think it may help! 3 The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it. -Neil deGrasse Tyson Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don't. -Bill Nye (The Science Guy) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taj Posted June 3, 2020 Share Posted June 3, 2020 will be interested too ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilNerd Posted June 4, 2020 Share Posted June 4, 2020 @Al Tahan @FossilDAWG @taj Sorry that it took me a a little longer than I expected to get a link to the paper posted. Busy busy. The paper has decent diagrams and comparisons of calymenid features. Below is a link to download a PDF. Hope it helps! Chestnut, A.J. 2009 Using Morphometrics, Phylogenetic Systematics and Parsimony Analysis to Gain Insight into the Evolutionary Affinities of the Calymenidae Trilobita. MSc Thesis, Wright State University. 93 pp. LINK 3 The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it. -Neil deGrasse Tyson Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don't. -Bill Nye (The Science Guy) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Tahan Posted June 4, 2020 Author Share Posted June 4, 2020 @FossilNerd thank you for the resource 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taj Posted June 4, 2020 Share Posted June 4, 2020 Miam ! 100 pages on Flexys ! Thanks @FossilNerd ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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