frankh8147 Posted September 6, 2020 Share Posted September 6, 2020 Hello! I found this unusually well preserved 2.25 inch long bone at a Monmouth County New Jersey Cretaceous stream yesterday and was hoping someone could identify it. It has faint lines running vertically on it (most visible on pictures 2 and 3) which I believe I have seen on some Plesiosaur specimens but I can't seem to find the threads on the forum. It's also pretty flat, which I think rules out Mosasaur but again, I'm unsure If anyone could help identify this, it would make my weekend Thanks! @Trevor @Carl @non-remanié 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankh8147 Posted September 6, 2020 Author Share Posted September 6, 2020 ... 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankh8147 Posted September 6, 2020 Author Share Posted September 6, 2020 .. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paleoworld-101 Posted September 6, 2020 Share Posted September 6, 2020 Definitely a marine reptile phalanx, but whether it is mosasaur or plesiosaurian is hard to say 2 "In Africa, one can't help becoming caught up in the spine-chilling excitement of the hunt. Perhaps, it has something to do with a memory of a time gone by, when we were the prey, and our nights were filled with darkness..." -Eternal Enemies: Lions And Hyenas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Top Trilo Posted September 6, 2020 Share Posted September 6, 2020 I'm not an expert on these at all and have no background with big brook which is very close to where you found this probably but it looks like mosasaur to me (the top darker image) because the plesiosaur bones look a lot more shorter while yours is longer like the mosasaurs. But i don't know let's see what other people have to say. 8 “If fossils are not "boggling" your mind then you are simply not doing it right” -Ken (digit) "No fossil is garbage, it´s just not completely preserved” -Franz (FranzBernhard) "With hammer in hand, the open horizon of time, and dear friends by my side, what can we not accomplish together?" -Kane (Kane) "We are in a way conquering time, reuniting members of a long lost family" -Quincy (Opabinia Blues) "I loved reading the trip reports, I loved the sharing, I loved the educational aspect, I loved the humor. It felt like home. It still does" -Mike (Pagurus) “The best deal I ever got was getting accepted as a member on The Fossil Forum. Not only got an invaluable pool of knowledge, but gained a loving family as well.” -Doren (caldigger) "it really is nice, to visit the oasis that is TFF" -Tim (fossildude19) "Life's Good! -Adam (Tidgy's Dad) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trevor Posted September 6, 2020 Share Posted September 6, 2020 I agree with @Top Trilo 's reasoning. I believe that since your find appears to be one of the finger digits, the flatness does not matter. Excellent find Frank, as always! Now just to find the rest of that flipper. 1 : ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuMert Posted September 6, 2020 Share Posted September 6, 2020 Yep, plesiosaur digits are more robust and not so flattened 1 My sites & reports Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Jersey Devil Posted September 6, 2020 Share Posted September 6, 2020 It also seems more like Mosasaur because of the hourglass shape. 1 “You must take your opponent into a deep dark forest where 2+2=5, and the path leading out is only wide enough for one.” ― Mikhail Tal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted September 6, 2020 Share Posted September 6, 2020 Nice find. 1 Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankh8147 Posted September 6, 2020 Author Share Posted September 6, 2020 This is awesome!! Big thank you to everyone! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaleoNoel Posted September 6, 2020 Share Posted September 6, 2020 Nice find! Really good bone preservation for the NJ brooks. I agree with mosasaur based on the shape from the pictures @Top Trilo shared. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonnyquest Posted September 6, 2020 Share Posted September 6, 2020 Beauty! I'm jealous :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paleoworld-101 Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 12 hours ago, RuMert said: Yep, plesiosaur digits are more robust and not so flattened How generalised can this be? Looking at some of the Jurassic plesiosaur paddles they also seem to have pretty flat digits. 12 hours ago, The Jersey Devil said: It also seems more like Mosasaur because of the hourglass shape. Plesiosaur digits can be very hourglass shaped as well so the hourglass shape alone is not a reliable discriminator. "In Africa, one can't help becoming caught up in the spine-chilling excitement of the hunt. Perhaps, it has something to do with a memory of a time gone by, when we were the prey, and our nights were filled with darkness..." -Eternal Enemies: Lions And Hyenas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Jersey Devil Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 5 minutes ago, Paleoworld-101 said:Plesiosaur digits can be very hourglass shaped as well so the hourglass shape alone is not a reliable discriminator. I was just going off of the above picture @Top Trilo posted “You must take your opponent into a deep dark forest where 2+2=5, and the path leading out is only wide enough for one.” ― Mikhail Tal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paleoworld-101 Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 4 minutes ago, The Jersey Devil said: I was just going off of the above picture @Top Trilo posted Understood, but this is a plesiosaur paddle for example, they can be just as hourglass shaped 2 "In Africa, one can't help becoming caught up in the spine-chilling excitement of the hunt. Perhaps, it has something to do with a memory of a time gone by, when we were the prey, and our nights were filled with darkness..." -Eternal Enemies: Lions And Hyenas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuMert Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 35 minutes ago, Paleoworld-101 said: this is a plesiosaur paddle for example, they can be This could be a primitive plesiosaur (if any). What is the provenance? My sites & reports Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paleoworld-101 Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 15 minutes ago, RuMert said: This could be a primitive plesiosaur (if any). What is the provenance? It is from Lyme Regis which is why i wondered how much the paddle morphology can be generalised, elasmosaurids and polycotylids vs. more basal Jurassic forms etc "In Africa, one can't help becoming caught up in the spine-chilling excitement of the hunt. Perhaps, it has something to do with a memory of a time gone by, when we were the prey, and our nights were filled with darkness..." -Eternal Enemies: Lions And Hyenas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuMert Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 Location and period above all. Late Jurassic and Cretaceous plesiosaurs should look like Top Trilo's 2nd pic, so if we are to chose between mosasaur and plesiosaur ( Late Cretaceous), the digit looks mosasaurian while in Early Jurassic it could have possibly been plesiosaurian. Generalization is not the best option as animals change drastically over time 2 My sites & reports Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paleoworld-101 Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 2 hours ago, RuMert said: Location and period above all. Late Jurassic and Cretaceous plesiosaurs should look like Top Trilo's 2nd pic, so if we are to chose between mosasaur and plesiosaur ( Late Cretaceous), the digit looks mosasaurian while in Early Jurassic it could have possibly been plesiosaurian. Generalization is not the best option as animals change drastically over time You were generalising when you said "plesiosaur digits are more robust and not so flattened". I agree this one is more likely mosasaurian but it is good to clarify why. "Cretaceous plesiosaurs" is also a very broad category, with surely a considerable range of morphological variation. More specifically what formation is this from and what taxa are reported from it? "In Africa, one can't help becoming caught up in the spine-chilling excitement of the hunt. Perhaps, it has something to do with a memory of a time gone by, when we were the prey, and our nights were filled with darkness..." -Eternal Enemies: Lions And Hyenas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuMert Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 I was obviously referring to this specific case, which relates to late Cretaceous. Plesiosaur digits are more robust and not so flattened? Yes they are. You don't think so? We'll be happy to get acquainted with your own position and arguments. My sites & reports Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankh8147 Posted September 7, 2020 Author Share Posted September 7, 2020 16 hours ago, PaleoNoel said: Nice find! Really good bone preservation for the NJ brooks. I agree with mosasaur based on the shape from the pictures @Top Trilo shared. 14 hours ago, jonnyquest said: Beauty! I'm jealous :-) Thank you! It's something I haven't found before and looks great in my Mosasaur collection! I'm betting this just popped out of the cliffs because it's tough to imagine it surviving the streams for long 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob-ay Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 Very Nice find! and awesome Mosasaur collection! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pachy-pleuro-whatnot-odon Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 47 minutes ago, Bob-ay said: Very Nice find! and awesome Mosasaur collection! What he said! That's one impressive collection and an awesome find. I'm jealous! 'There's nothing like millions of years of really frustrating trial and error to give a species moral fibre and, in some cases, backbone' -- Terry Pratchett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RuMert Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 Yes, nice variety: teeth, digits, verts. I lack marine reptile teeth unfortunately My sites & reports Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guns Posted September 7, 2020 Share Posted September 7, 2020 1 hour ago, frankh8147 said: Mosasaur collection Wow . very very nice collection ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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