SteveR Posted September 27, 2020 Share Posted September 27, 2020 Living at the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers, we're used to spring floods. Last year, though, it was a whopper, second (barely) only to the Great Flood of 1993. It was months before the water receded, and when it did, I went up the River Road to Grafton IL to see what I could see. There's a little exposed ledge right at the edge of town, with towering bluffs across a grassy area behind it, and to my surprise this was lying on top of the ledge. It has a fossil-y look to it but I mainly collect Ordovician seabed things and I can't recall seeing anything that looked like this, or that had the size this thing has. I'm attaching a map showing exactly where I found it and what the strata in the area are, hope that helps, but honestly it looked like something that might have been carried down from some unknown place upstream by the flood, and just deposited where I found it. Thanks for any insights! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darktooth Posted September 27, 2020 Share Posted September 27, 2020 I think this is the internal structure of a horn coral. I like Trilo-butts and I cannot lie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted September 27, 2020 Share Posted September 27, 2020 16 minutes ago, Darktooth said: I think this is the internal structure of a horn coral. I can see it, if it were part of the outer rim of an exceptionally wide specimen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Top Trilo Posted September 27, 2020 Share Posted September 27, 2020 I'm sure @Rockwood and @Darktooth are right but when I saw your picture from the road, it reminded me of that map game where you try to find it on google maps, “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...
SteveR Posted September 27, 2020 Author Share Posted September 27, 2020 Now, if it had just been about 10x the size, I could have passed it off as a mammoth tooth like this guy is holding! :-) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pippa Posted September 28, 2020 Share Posted September 28, 2020 Ordovician mammoths? Poor things, would have starved to death.... ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveR Posted September 28, 2020 Author Share Posted September 28, 2020 11 hours ago, Pippa said: Ordovician mammoths? Poor things, would have starved to death.... ;-) LOL, I know. But that's where the whole flood scenario fits in. No way to ever know where it came from upstream, but it's a cinch that it didn't weather out of the local rocks and leave itself lying right on top where I couldn't miss seeing it. Anyway the horn coral thing is what I'm going to assume. Thanks to everyone who replied! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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