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Possible Tusk or Tooth Fossil ID?


jameshammond

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Hello all!

 

I found this fossil diving about a mile off the beach in Venice, Florida in around 30 ft of water and was hoping someone here might be able to help me get an ID on it. I initially thought it was a rib bone when I was underwater but the guide we were with said it could be some kind of tusk or tooth due what looks like an enamel layer on the outside and a core running through it. You can see what looks like an outermost enamel layer that has peeled off (especially visible in photos # 2,5,6), as well as a cross hatch pattern on the material underneath (especially visible in photo # 5). The wider end piece looks to have a core running through the middle that has kind of a tear drop shape (photo # 4). The wider end piece seems to have somewhat of a rounded triangle shape to it (photo # 4). The smaller broken end piece has a shimmery surface that looks almost like obsidian (photo # 3). 

 

Let me know if anyone would like more pictures or information on this recent addition to my collection. Any thoughts on this fossil are much appreciated, thank you!!!

 

Best,

James

 

 

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Edited by jameshammond
Correcting incorrect photo references in text
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Cropped, brightened, and rotated:

 

IMG_0922.jpg.4453b5e43f86e9f00598b633b0a003b4.jpg

 

IMG_0923.jpg.a176cca7d5ce7a9988ce07002a0eeed1.jpg

 

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Thank you fossildude19!

 

I also just cleaned off most of the debris, so anyone please let me know if it would be helpful to post updated pictures of the fossil post clean-up.

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4 minutes ago, jameshammond said:

Thank you fossildude19!

 

I also just cleaned off most of the debris, so anyone please let me know if it would be helpful to post updated pictures of the fossil post clean-up.

Yes! Post pictures. Hope the barnacle scars will be there. :)

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James, 

Welcome to the fossil forum.  It is a great place for any fossil enthusiast.

 

So your question might be :  What, in the fossil record of Florida, has 5 inch canines,  with cross hatching on one end ? Here is one possibility.  There may be other possibilities... 

737339577_LivingFastandDyingYoung__LifeHistoryandEcologyofaNeogeneSpermWhale.jpg.14683a93d7a980950795a3b724d20f61.jpgIMG_2914Whale.JPG.e3e06b10ac3fe928b250ffd084efb530.JPGIMG_2914Whalecrop.jpg.64d6f595aca84bc8aaf93f98a9985fcb.jpg

 

CaptureKogiopsis.JPG.782624eabf06441ead955ac35a201bb6.JPG

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Thank you @Shellseeker that does seem to be a possibility, there is a resemblance there. Maybe my piece has had much more of the outer layer peeled away than the picture you posted. The cross hatching does appear on both ends though, shown here.

IMG_0969.thumb.jpg.8afb01eceb83d9578f6a138b0a393f47.jpg 

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The cross hatching tells us one thing... this is a whale tooth.  No other canine has such cross hatching.  The other possibilities are ALL whale. for example , you might have Scaldicetus instead of Kogiopsis.

The White Queen  ".... in her youth she could believe "six impossible things before breakfast"

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19 hours ago, Shellseeker said:

The cross hatching tells us one thing... this is a whale tooth.  No other canine has such cross hatching.  The other possibilities are ALL whale. for example , you might have Scaldicetus instead of Kogiopsis.

Ok got it, It seems likely that it's Kogiopsis due to the slender, curved shape rather than the tapered ends that Scaldicetus has. I appreciate the ID, thank you!

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4 hours ago, jameshammond said:

Ok got it, It seems likely that it's Kogiopsis due to the slender, curved shape rather than the tapered ends that Scaldicetus has. I appreciate the ID, thank you!

Yes, much more likely... Scaldicetus is far rarer than Kogiopsis.  Here are some Scaldicetus examples from the Peace River and Bone Valley mines.

post-Digit_PeaceRiver.jpg.908f10b0bbf8c6241368ec70bf6e32b2.jpgWhaleMRG2txt.jpg.8f72675230423f821d6c06501093196d.jpg

 

Bone Valley Phosphate mines...

SplitWhaleMrg.thumb.jpg.a52eee45b45ebc6ce773eb31c0842de3.jpgIMG_0890BVWhaleTxt.thumb.jpg.b230214d6b9bc2185af5122feaf857c9.jpg

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The White Queen  ".... in her youth she could believe "six impossible things before breakfast"

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