ScottBlooded Posted October 25, 2020 Share Posted October 25, 2020 Split this slab of needmore shale I found near Winchester Virginia and found this. I am by absolutely no means an expert, but I’ve worked in this formation a lot and I’ve never seen anything shaped/sized quite like this. The way the rock split, it seems to have laterally bisected the specimen. The fossil itself is 3 dimensional and the shell of either side of whatever this is was left on both sides of the split, along with some interior matter. As to the shell, it LOOKS like it’s segmented into quarter inch segments, also has the impression of what LOOK like eyes but can’t be sure. As to the interior matter, the most striking of it is the white chalky material, located on only one side of the specimen. I’ve never seen rock of that consistency anywhere in this formation myself, so again, no clue. Lastly there’s the smaller fossils immediately surrounding the largest fossil. They look to me (at least a couple of them) to be trilobites that just got preserved next to whatever this is, but again... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottBlooded Posted October 25, 2020 Author Share Posted October 25, 2020 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottBlooded Posted October 25, 2020 Author Share Posted October 25, 2020 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottBlooded Posted October 29, 2020 Author Share Posted October 29, 2020 Sorry to give this a gratuitous bump but it’s sincerely driving me nuts. I’m guessing there’s no chance it’s a segment of a eurypterid? Probably just wishful thinking. But I’ve seen a few photos that are fairly convincing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minnbuckeye Posted October 29, 2020 Share Posted October 29, 2020 @Malcolmt has experience with eurypterids. He should have a knowledgeable opinion for you. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malcolmt Posted October 29, 2020 Share Posted October 29, 2020 Hard to tell from this pics with 100% accuracy. Being in North Virginia (???) I would suspect this material is Devonian which makes it all the less likely to be eurypterid. There have been eurypterids found in the Silurian of West Virginia. To me it looks more trilobite in nature than eurypterid. The separation of the segments on a eurypterid is more distinct. The bit at the bottom right that you suspect is an eye is very trilobite looking.... It is rare to find trilobites associated with a eurypterid. You could contact James Lamsdell of West Virginia University as he is a eurypterid expert and would know for sure james.lamsdell@mail.wvu.edu 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted October 29, 2020 Share Posted October 29, 2020 I think this may just be a concretion, with some mineral staining and decay. I find many things like this in the Newark Supergroup areas I frequent. 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...
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