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Lorne Ledger

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A few weeks ago I revisited a small Cave/Rock shelter up by Marble Falls, TX that I collected in back in the 90's.  I had found some good stuff then but with boredom finally decided to go out again and bring back more dirt to sift through.  Quite the treasure trove, working on a paper about the locality.  The material seems to be mostly late Pleistocene and is consistent with other caves in Central Texas such as Cave Without A Name and Miller's Cave.  The entire cave floor has been torn up probably by artifact hunters but they did miss one - a late Archaic Point that I have identified tentatively as an Ensor Point (Variety I).

5fb1ed098d5db_EnsorPoint.jpg.50def114dd1159ff566ee8b875b66b03.jpg

 

Now to the fossils - first the two extinct species

 

5fb1ed47c0598_Dasypusbellus.thumb.jpg.f457cd09553427c89fd5045dab4301eb.jpg

5fb1ed58a88bc_DireWolf.thumb.jpg.cfd13042544a65a59cd224768a379f8a.jpg

A Cottonmouth Viper fang

Agkistrodon.jpg.ebbd58f0593874465fe264131008e4c4.jpg

5fb1edaa65895_Agkistrodonhollowhypotip.jpg.4e2afc2ca659169a4963828c0ee4fdd7.jpg
Hmmm, I seem to have reached the max MB for upload, will post more later

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I LOVE the dire wolf tooth! Found any canines there? Carnivore teeth are my main interest in fossils!!! Are the cottonmouth & armadillo pieces fossils?

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Yes @Familyroadtrip they are all fossils and not yet on any canines other than Racoon.  Most are encased in caliche but clean up nicely soaking in vinegar overnight.  Some I didn't dare leave in the acid solution too long.  Will try posting more pictures

 

 

Possum1.jpg.ad7cc82b444e7a0295453f2352a7b32c.jpg

Possum2.jpg.77b3ad0ea9fe6b60aa79367a297645d2.jpg

Possum3.jpg.41fef0935ea1a0408f4ee85bd413fd5f.jpg

 

Considerable amount of rodent teeth and bones, I still need to work my way through them and get some ID's.  But here are some pics 

 

Unknown.jpg.d3c58994ae1188b2759bb6b3e8a4f18c.jpg

ToDoJaw.jpg.79f6a84f17546434497b5551493a42f6.jpg

5fb200566d274_IsolatedtoID.jpg.6d3b8fefba300896c6802f35362d4aff.jpg

TinyMetapodials.jpg.5715738a31268f0036a70fae412c3f19.jpg

 

This material is very small, most of the teeth are 1mm or less in size.  Gonna have to unpack my microscope to ID them.  Will keep you posted, hope to find some extinct species but from what I have been reading on Miller's Cave and other similar sites - nearly all the rodents are extant. 

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Wow, that truly is a treasure trove, very cool finds! 

Interested in all things paleontology, geology, zoology, evolution, natural history and science!
Professional exotic pet keeper, huge fantasy geek, explorer of the microfossil realm, member of the BVP (Belgian Association for Paleontology), Volunteer prepper at Oertijdmuseum Boxtel.  

View my collection topic here:

The Growing Collection of Ziggycardon
My animal collection at the "Members pet" topic

Ziggycardon's exploration of the microfossil realm

Trips to Eben Emael (Maastrichtian of Belgium)

My latest fossil hunt

 

Next project will be a dedicated prepping space.

 

"A mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone, if it is to keep its edge." - Tyrion Lannister

 

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Unbelievable finds!!!! My first fossil found 50 years ago, was  in a cave of sorts, an old mine shaft.  So your fossils bring back memories. Thanks

 

Mike

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Thank you everyone, going to take more pictures today.  I need to do more sorting of the elements and hopefully narrow down some of those tiny teeth for identification.

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On 11/15/2020 at 10:12 PM, Lorne Ledger said:

A Cottonmouth Viper fang

Agkistrodon.jpg.ebbd58f0593874465fe264131008e4c4.jpg

5fb1edaa65895_Agkistrodonhollowhypotip.jpg.4e2afc2ca659169a4963828c0ee4fdd7.jpg


This looks pretty robust for a fang and there is an odd bump on the side. Is there a slit near the tip for the venom?

Here’s a modern set I have (copperhead instead of cottonmouth).

 

 

57BF74CF-5269-443B-BD38-3427AC017CD4.jpeg

285ECE13-8636-491E-A48B-238B7B0146BB.jpeg

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@Al Dente Very cool, that will actually help me as I have a few broken fangs that I am not sure if they are crotalus or agkistrodon,  they do have the venom delivery slits.  Will post them soon.  Taking pictures of this small stuff is really difficult, heh.

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These are such great finds! Thank you for posting photos.  They're well done, and it's really helpful to see examples of smaller fossils like these.

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