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Echies of Texas (A Few Good Things from the Glen Rose Form.)


JamieLynn

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Central Texas has been experiencing a surprisingly cool September plus quite a bit of rain! And that equals some great fossil hunting! I have gone to a few old spots and a few new spots! All in the Cretaceous Glen Rose.  I am just constantly amazed at the amount of fauna in the Glen Rose. It seems like I find something new just about every time I go out!  

I was happy to find a new species of echinoid - a Goniopygus sp. ( very different from the previous Goniopygus I've found)  It's tiny tiny, only 5mm.  And I found my first really good vertebrate material - a Pycnodont jaw with teeth and a large piece of turtle (plastron?). And even thought it's no echinoid...it's still an echinoderm - my best find of the month so far....a free swimming crinoid! I had never seen one of these but thanks to the Paleontological Society of Austin and our latest field trip, I found this lovely odd little thing!  Plus some good Heart Urchins and some nice little Loriolias. 


Goniopygus sp.  5 mm

5f690cf0932e7_echinoidgoniopygus.thumb.jpg.6da49c097ebed77ce3235587ced75677.jpg

 

Free Swimming Crinoid:  1/2 inch (1 cm aprox)

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200920123414659.thumb.jpg.cc31ba8063761832f9c5e67244a0147a.jpg

 

Pycnodont Jaw with Teeth  1 inch

5f690d5861363_PycnodontTeethRebecack(1).thumb.jpg.292a39dbe146f1596b2febc843fb7faf.jpg

 

A small Cidarid Fragment and some Leptosalenia and Cidarid spines

5f690d1b72578_EchinoidCidaridGR.thumb.jpg.7d03836038f189dfe5826ea97e4c020b.jpg

 

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A nice Heteraster obliquetus:  1 1/2 inch

5f690c38e29aa_EchinoidHeterasterGRBandera(1).thumb.JPG.b09bfa92e63c11852952d0cdd47bd26f.JPG

 

A decent Pliotoxaster comanchei.  1 1/4 inch

5f690c3a8b520_EchinoidPliotoxasterGRBandera(1).thumb.JPG.e8a82f24a33bbb4c07d515c667305f04.JPG

 

A nice little Loriolia rosana   1/2 inch

5f690cbe53475_EchinoidLorioliaGRPleasant(4).JPG.9b755078e95c1500d5e59953071204ef.JPG

 

Turtle bone fragment 2 inches

5f690ed7c8f59_TurtleBoneFragGRPleasantV(1).thumb.JPG.07aa14e3bd5c5e3b348f1e5d3f130dfb.JPG

 

5f690f09c29c0_TurtleBoneFragGRPleasantV(2).thumb.JPG.81b385bfa44db2e4152cfc1073170bd4.JPG

 

 

 

 

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Wow that crinoid is neat. If you get it identified it would make a great Collections entry. I can help you with the entry.
 

Jamie, could you please send some of your cool and wet weather to Arizona. This has been the hottest summer ever. Even my forested mountainous collection areas have been too hot to collect in at times. Also, our monsoon season was a disaster. Thanks. 

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My goal is to leave no stone or fossil unturned.   

See my Arizona Paleontology Guide    link  The best single resource for Arizona paleontology anywhere.       

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oh dear...i knew New Mexico was having problems with Monsoon season (i have a cousin in Silver City) but didn't realize AZ was having issues too! Sending some rainy vibes to y'all!!  Of course....the rain today is due to another hurricane in the Gulf...

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Awesome finds! I've been enamored with echinoderms since my last trip out and you have some real beauties!:wub:

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)

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Fig. 1. Restoration of Saccocoma tenella (Goldfuss, 1831). Some arms or their distal parts omitted for clarity (drawing by Jerzy Dzik based on a model con− structed by the author).
Fig. 1. Restoration of Saccocoma tenella (Goldfuss, 1831). Some arms or their distal parts omitted for clarity (drawing by Jerzy Dzik based on a model con− structed by the author). 
 

Published in 2006

Functional anatomy and mode of life of the latest Jurassic crinoid Saccocoma

 

 

Researched free swimming crinoids a bit, knowing NOTHING about them. Looks like it could be a type of Saccocoma??????????????? 

 

GREAT finds!! 

 

 Mike

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4 hours ago, Al Dente said:

I like this crinoid. How long is it?

oops...forgot to put measurement on it! sorry! It is aprox 1 cm (1/2 inch). 

 

@DPS Ammonite - unfortunately there is no specific ID on the crinoid.  I asked Erich Rose (who is president of the Paleontological Society of Austin and all around super knowledgeble guy) and he said that he and a few others have sent their specimens to a guy who is supposed to be writing a paper on them, but it's been a while and it is not published yet. So there is sadly no specific info on this crinoid.

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1 hour ago, JamieLynn said:

oops...forgot to put measurement on it! sorry! It is aprox 1 cm (1/2 inch).

That's huge for a pelagic crinoid. The Cretaceous ones I find in North Carolina are less than 1 millimeter. I've looked through my references for Cretaceous crinoids and couldn't find anything similar to your crinoid, probably something new. 

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Great photos.  I am still totally PO'd that yall skunked me on the comatulid crinoids.  There must have been six of at least two types found, and for me a big goose egg, nada, zippo...  The small partial crab carapace was barely consolation. But dang, it was a really nice day after such a seriously hot and dry summer here in Central Texas.

 

PS the first heart urchin is Heteraster obliquatus, not H. texanus*, and the second is Pliotoxaster comanchei.

 

* Smith & Rader (2009) moved the Glen Rose Heteraster into H. obliquatus. If H. texanus occurs in the GR it would probably be much higher in the strata.

 

PSS Smith and Rader (2009) labeled those tiny urchins Goniopygus sp. because they are juveniles and don't yet show the goniopores in the apical plates.  They may be in fact one of the other named species in the GR but so far we only find the babies or the adults and always in different places.  

 

Cool fossils. Keep 'em coming.

 

Erich

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:) Thanks @erose for the ID and info. And I'd ALMOST trade you the crinoid for that crab carapace you found. Almost.  I have to say, it is truly due to y'all here on the Fossil Forum and the Austin Paleontological Society that I am the fossil hunter I am....hahhahah!!! Seriously.  Thanks to all of y'all. 

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Beautiful echinoids, and that crinoid is wonderful. That tiny little Goniopygus  is gorgeous!  Enjoy.

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Start the day with a smile and get it over with.

 

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