Catskill Formation, Pennsylvania 4

[Paul1719]

So here is my 2021 summary of my collecting trips to the late Devonian Catskill formation of Pennsylvania. I have been collecting for the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia for the past few years. A Tristichopterid skull collected at the Cogan House exit on RT15 in the 2019 season was just described as a new species of Eusthenodon in JVP, Daeschler et. al.. Very exciting! 

All three trips to PA this year included Red Hill. While the forestry department was very limiting on the use of power tools, they seem to not care too much if people collect with hand tools. The problem is most of the easier surface and near surface material has been collected over the many years the site has been worked. Now, the only way to discover any new tetrapod material is to move large quantities of rock. So that's been the challenge. How much stone can be moved with hammer and chisel with 64 year old wrists? 

Anyways, I was able to recover a number of interesting specimens although nothing has been id'd as tetrapod so far. These have all been sent to ANSP for analysis. 

 

This head plate with what I thought were lateral line canals (Y shape in middle) had a different ornament from other specimens of Hyneria I have. I had also convinced myself the curved surface on the left side and lower image appeared to be orbits but the experts determined it to be just a run of the mill Hyneria post parietal shield. ….It was exciting for a while.

 

 

 

Even though this endochondral bone was found in with some exceptionally well preserved material it must have experience some significant transport before being deposited. With a thin blade at the top and some hefty bone at the bottom, I thought this might be id'able but no such luck. I still feel like it must be a shoulder girdle. Not sure what else it could be??

 

 

 

This is another endochondral bone found closely associated with the others. It is minimally a mesomere element of a fin but compares well with the radius of Ichthyostega (see below). Unfortunately, it again being an isolated element has not been id'd at this point. 

 

 

 

Unfortunately, this mesomere element split when I was removing the head plate. It seems to compare well with an ulna/tibia from a sarcopterygian fin.

 

Here it is with the above "radius"? 

 

Finally, the one id'd significant fossil from the season! This bone was found at the Cogan House exit on RT 15. Ted Daeschler was pretty quickly able to id it as a lungfish lower jaw, probably something like Soederbergia. 

 

[Nanosaurus]

Very cool material. I would love to find such animals someday.

[Fossildude19]

Hey Paul!

You had a busy year! Found some neat stuff, for sure.

The lungfish jaw is amazing! 

 

Great finds, all around! Thanks for posting this too often overlooked material!

 

 

[Paul1719]

Hey Tim! Thank you! and Sorry the one day you came to Red Hill was one of the worse I had ever been there …and I've been there during some pretty bad weather. It was an inferno. All I remember was any metal tools left for more than a few minutes in the sun were too hot to pick up! 

[Fossildude19]

It was hot, but that was beyond your control - thanks for letting me pick through your finds of that day!

 

[Paul1719]

Here's a couple more Red Hill fossils. An unidentified Hyneria (90% sure) head plate. This is another exceptionally well preserved head plate. I am hoping to expose some of the dermal side this winter. 

 

 

and here is a partially articulated Turrisapis placoderm. These are Arthrodires same order as Dunkelosteus although they are freshwater and apparently occupy the same niche as a sunfish or a bluegill. First image is dermal ventral shield. Any help in id'ing plates appreciated. 

 

This second image, I believe, is the visceral surface of the partially articulated dorsal thoracic shield. I'm pretty sure the upper plate (broken) is medial dorsal.

 

[Jeffrey P]

Congratulations Paul. Looks like you're still pulling excellent material out of Red Hill, a site that is exceptionally challenging to pull excellent material out of, especially without power tools. Summer must be brutal with the full sun exposure. Thanks for sharing these and good luck in 2022.

[Paul1719]

Hey Thanks Jeff! I have been lucky to be able to do this and not have inherited my mother's endothermal regulation. 

[FossilBaron]

Very nice finds! Despite my interest in Pennsylvania fossils, I don't have or know much in the way of Red Hill. Unfortunately, I missed an opportunity to head up there and dig, but hope to get there someday.