NJ Cretaceous Scute

[Nick Fish]

Possible scute? Found in NJ cretaceous streams. Thoughts?

 

 

[val horn]

i think so,  the cretaceous croc scutes that I have seen look like that.  

[Darktooth]

This might actually be a drum fish mouth plate. @frankh8147 @Trevor @The Jersey Devil

[Thomas.Dodson]

3 minutes ago, Darktooth said:

This might actually be a drum fish mouth plate. @frankh8147 @Trevor @The Jersey Devil

I was thinking the same.

[Thomas.Dodson]

16 minutes ago, Thomas.Dodson said:

I was thinking the same.

As I look into it I'd guess croc scute as I now see some holes that are rather asymmetrical for drum teeth.

 

 

[The Jersey Devil]

This is neither a drum fish mouth plate nor a Croc osteoderm. This is a reptilian bone fragment showing the internal porous structure. Drum fish aren't found in the Cretaceous.

[Thomas.Dodson]

27 minutes ago, The Jersey Devil said:

 Drum fish aren't found in the Cretaceous.

Not in the taxonomic sense of Sciaenids but there are plenty of other cretaceous fish with crushing plate dentition that are often referred to as "Drumfish". It's erroneous, yes, but I doubt they're going to stop calling them drums.

[IsaacTheFossilMan]

50 minutes ago, The Jersey Devil said:

This is a reptilian bone fragment showing the internal porous structure.

Forgive my uneducated opinion, but, aren't the holes a bit too circular for a bone structure? All of the reptilian fragments I've seen sport a more tubular structure. Going off my current information, I say croc osteoderm. 

[ThePhysicist]

I agree that this is bone, and likely reptilian. This is a similar piece from the Cretaceous of TX, NSR. No crocs there.

 

 

Turtle chunk from Galveston, TX:

 

 

The bone is very spongey.

[Trevor]

6 hours ago, ThePhysicist said:

I agree that this is bone, and likely reptilian. This is a similar piece from the Cretaceous of TX, NSR. No crocs there.

 

 

 

 

Turtle chunk from Galveston, TX:

 

 

 

The bone is very spongey.

 

I very much agree that this is turtle bone.

[Lone Hunter]

To my untrained eye that looks like a Cretaceous croc scute I have from North Texas,  assuming mine is,  would one of the differences be the distance between the holes?

[val horn]

I would find the shape of the surface characteristics very odd for a bone fragment,  they are round and not sharp edged and have an even depth.  Also they appear to me to be significantly larger than trabecular structure even in turtles or whales.  As I said earlier it looks like cretaceous croc.   More recent Croc scutes from florida  pleistocene  look different ,and  have a rise in the middle.

[The Jersey Devil]

This is a typical bone fragment from NJ. A bunch of abrasion can easily completely reshape the bone frag. The more delicate structures in the bone get rounded off / destroyed and look like they have a pattern like a Croc osteoderm, but it is an illusion.

[MartynH]

I would say fragment of croc scute - the specimen is identical to the ones we find here on the Isle of Wight, slightly worn but quite identifiable. 

 

Cheers

 

Martyn

Edited February 27, 2021 by MartynH