Unknown Humerus

[GPayton]

I found this distal end of a mammalian humerus several weeks ago on the Brazos River southwest of Houston. After hours of searching, it doesn't seem to exactly match any of the common suspects: deer, camel, horse, or bison. Deer or camel is more likely than horse or bison, as the bone is relatively slender and the end of it isn't as bulky as either of those animals. It is possible that I have incorrectly ruled out deer and camels as the trochlea and capitulum on the end are very worn down. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm more than willing to hear them. Thanks! 

[Brandy Cole]

Hey @GPayton, I found this older thread while looking up one of my own unidentified humerus bones.  Did you ever get yours identified?

 

I could be wrong, but I think yours is a juvenile bone missing the epiphysis.  That makes it tougher.

 

I'm having a similar problem. 

 

I've included pictures of some I've found for comparison.  I've tentatively identified the top two as bison (top left), horse (top right), and the one that I'm having trouble with is on the bottom.  

To me, it looks generally similar to yours in shape but wider/more robust.

 

My thought would be that yours could be a juvenile camelid (maybe paleollama) and mine could be an example of juvenile bison.  But I've had a hard time nailing down differences between camelid and bison.

 

Maybe someone with more experience can give yours another look.  

@JohnJ

@Harry Pristis @Shellseeker

[Brandy Cole]

Forgot to add the pictures.  

[Brandy Cole]

Here are pictures for what I think would be the bison comparison.

[Shellseeker]

21 hours ago, Brandy Cole said:

My thought would be that yours could be a juvenile camelid (maybe paleollama) and mine could be an example of juvenile bison.  But I've had a hard time nailing down differences between camelid and bison.

 

Maybe someone with more experience can give yours another look.  

Sorry for the delay in responding. 

I am only experienced in what I find.  Finds drive my interest and education, and I am just not in enough environments to find comparable long boned of the larger fauna.

I have been lazy,  leaving such identification to Harry...

[Brandy Cole]

@Shellseeker I understand.  I like to view posts from knowledgeable members about a variety of things, but I primarily spend my time studying about things I've found or am more likely to find in my area.  I didn't realize that large fauna long bone discoveries are pretty rare on the Peace.

[Shellseeker]

54 minutes ago, Brandy Cole said:

@Shellseeker I understand.  I like to view posts from knowledgeable members about a variety of things, but I primarily spend my time studying about things I've found or am more likely to find in my area.  I didn't realize that large fauna long bone discoveries are pretty rare on the Peace.

Most long bones are broken up by the heavy churn of the river during rainy season, which is just about to start.

There is a Heard Bridge that crosses the Peace River at a Height of 25 feet over the river. This photo shows the water a day after Hurricane Irma in Oct 2017... running about 3 feet under the bridge. There were thousand pound logs and concrete blocks moving downstream.

Whatever long bones I find are in the creeks...

 

Edited May 24, 2022 by Shellseeker

[Brandy Cole]

@Shellseeker

I understand.  Most of the long bone pieces I find in the river are only partials.