Various Texas fossils (most marine), need help identifying

[spike]

Hello! I’m back from a trip to Texas, and while there I did quite a lot of fossil hunting. I’m not going to be uploading everything here (because I found quite a bit and I feel a bit bad putting so many), but I figured I’d post the ones I’m most stumped on. I’d really appreciate any help.

I’m on mobile, so I’m not sure if these will upload in order (they should, but if not I’ll fix it on PC soon).

1: Not sure what this is, but I really like how it’s intact on both sides. Found at Benbrook Lake, Fort Worth to the left of the marina.

2: My dad is mostly interested in this one. Maybe it’s just a rock, but I do think its formation and little cracks are interesting. Also from Benbrook.

3. Looks pretty cool (though I’m not confident in any guesses I could have). Benbrook Lake.

4. I actually got this one identified before at a museum, but I want to hear everyone’s thoughts without influence (because it ended up being pretty cool and I’d like to know for sure). Found in Paluxy by a river that another fossil hunter recommended.

5. This has a teeny little imprint, if you can see that. Maybe some little wormy thing? Not sure! Found in Benbrook.

Again, I’d be so thankful for any help and I had lots of fun collecting everything. Will probably upload all the rest at some point.

 

 

Edited December 24, 2021 by spike

[Ludwigia]

Here's what I can see:

1. Part of an ammonite.

3. Some kind of shell.

5. Crinoid imprint.

Not sure about the other 2.

[spike]

43 minutes ago, Ludwigia said:

Here's what I can see:

1. Part of an ammonite.

3. Some kind of shell.

5. Crinoid imprint.

Not sure about the other 2.

Huh! Didn't consider a shell for the third one. Thanks!

There were also a lot of giant ammonites I wish I could've taken, but they were embedded too far into the rock and I didn't have any tools with me (plus, whatever was loose was too big to take home). Hopefully someone else has the right stuff.

[FranzBernhard]

9 hours ago, spike said:

I want to hear everyone’s thoughts without influence

Difficult, lots of black .

So I am guessing coalified wood or jet, but could be many other things.

More data needed (density, hardness, reaction to a flame).

Franz Bernhard

[spike]

9 hours ago, FranzBernhard said:

Difficult, lots of black .

So I am guessing coalified wood or jet, but could be many other things.

More data needed (density, hardness, reaction to a flame).

Franz Bernhard

I do have some coalified wood! I actually went back to the site I found this at and assumed it was the same, until I compared the textures and realized this one was much different. It's hard like a rock and doesn't have that softer consistency (plus, I got the wood identified by a nearby fossil hunter). Sad part is, this was actually one solid piece until we put it in a bag... wrapped it up nice, but maybe pressure from something else broke it. Needless to say, we were extra careful with all the other fossils we brought home.
Okay, I've gotten the black piece identified by quite a few people now, and the most common answer is that they don't know or aren't quite sure. When I first got it, however, I brought it to a museum and did get a rather interesting identification: mammoth or mastodon tooth. The lady there picked it up and compared it to one of the mammoth molars she had, and it looked like a perfect fit. I wanted to see if anyone else came to the same conclusion first somehow, but now I'm wondering if that seems like a possibility. Thank you guys for all the inputs anyway!

Edited December 25, 2021 by spike

[hadrosauridae]

I think your last one is a partial impression of an ammonite called idiohamites.  It was a heteromorph (differently shaped) ammonite that looked like a stretched out letter "C".  You have the imprint of the straight section, and I *think* I see it trying to curve and maybe the ghosts of the curves at the top and bottom.  

 

Looks like a good area to explore more!

Edited December 25, 2021 by hadrosauridae

[abyssunder]

2 - it's a concretion, maybe something in the realm of "crocodile skin", in my opinion.

3 - three bivalve shells, maybe close to Pinnidae (Pinna).

Edited December 25, 2021 by abyssunder

[FranzBernhard]

2 hours ago, spike said:

but now I'm wondering if that seems like a possibility.

Would never have guessed that. Depends on the microstructure and the other properties you mentioned, so, why not? Many bones and teeth could turn black .

If it would be from "my" Cretaceous area, I would have IDed it as lydite, which is veeeery abundant in conglomerates there.

Franz Bernhard

Edited December 25, 2021 by FranzBernhard

[abyssunder]

11 hours ago, FranzBernhard said:

Difficult, lots of black .

So I am guessing coalified wood or jet, but could be many other things.

More data needed (density, hardness, reaction to a flame).

Franz Bernhard

I have a feeling that you may be right.

Coalified wood material might be a good guess. Proboscidean teeth material might be good, but more resistant to weathering. 

Btw, all of the specimens above are transported material, in my opinion. 

[JohnJ]

3 hours ago, spike said:

I brought it to a museum and did get a rather interesting identification: mammoth or mastodon tooth.

 

If you could take clearer photos in daylight, more characteristics may be visible.  At first glance, nothing about it looks related to proboscideans.

[spike]

8 hours ago, abyssunder said:

2 - it's a concretion, maybe something in the realm of "crocodile skin", in my opinion.

3 - three bivalve shells, maybe close to Pinnidae (Pinna).

 

Holy smokes! Didn't think it'd be any kind of skin, but I can see it now. And yes, that looks very similar to my fossil. Thanks!
I'll also take some better photos in daylight, though I did try to snap a few more just now in better lighting and with an actual camera. They might not be perfect, but maybe of better clarity in case anyone wanted to take a look at them now.

 

[BobWill]

I agree with ammonite for # 1, maybe mud stone for #2, #3 is a Pinna comancheana (common at Benbrook), and #5 is a crinoid stem since you can see the crinulations between the segments and it's far too long for Idiohamites with ribs having that spacing.  It's unlikely it originated at Benbrook which is Cretaceous and they would be very rare from there. More likely from one of the Pennsylvanian sites farther west.

[FranzBernhard]

Thanks for the additional pics of the black thing. No idea, just saying, that it breaks "like jet". Interior and surface texture could be indicative of tooth material, though. But no experience with such material. @JohnJ - Thank you!

Franz Bernhard

[Lone Hunter]

5 hours ago, spike said:

 

Holy smokes! Didn't think it'd be any kind of skin, but I can see it now. And yes, that looks very similar to my fossil. Thanks!
 

 

Think there might have been some confusion,  it's not really skin, and the comparison was to the second item.  That is a shell he showed is what your third item is. 

[spike]

10 hours ago, Lone Hunter said:

Think there might have been some confusion,  it's not really skin, and the comparison was to the second item.  That is a shell he showed is what your third item is. 

Sorry, forgot to specify. I know the one he compared it to was for my third item. The skin-looking one I'm still kind of wondering about.

Also, what @BobWill said was interesting. Maybe the crinoid came up the river somehow, though it might have been some time ago. I went to three different rivers but I know this one was definitely from Benbrook.

Still not sure about the black piece, but I'm really curious as to what it might be even if it's not fossil. I did find some other black fossil-looking pieces at Fossil Creek Park, but they could just be rocks (like I said, I'm not too great at telling the difference yet unless the "rock" just happens to look a little weird). I'll try and get pictures of those later.

[abyssunder]

5 minutes ago, spike said:

did find some other black fossil-looking pieces at Fossil Creek Park, but they could just be rocks (like I said, I'm not too great at telling the difference yet unless the "rock" just happens to look a little weird). I'll try and get pictures of those later.

Please post them, we are interested. 

[abyssunder]

On 12/26/2021 at 5:24 AM, spike said:

 They might not be perfect, but maybe of better clarity in case anyone wanted to take a look at them now.

 

Somehow, it reminds me of turtle scute/osteoderm, but probably I'm in the wrong way. 

Edited December 27, 2021 by abyssunder