minnbuckeye Posted April 3, 2022 Share Posted April 3, 2022 I was cleaning up my Platteville finds from last fall and came across this. It in all likelihood is an ichnofossil but if anyone have additional thoughts about it, please reply!! The Platteville has plenty of trace fossils but I have yet to see one with this appearance. Would love to have an idea of it's maker. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted April 3, 2022 Share Posted April 3, 2022 I think there's a body (fossil) buried in there. The base of a branching bryozoan. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tetradium Posted April 4, 2022 Share Posted April 4, 2022 13 hours ago, minnbuckeye said: I was cleaning up my Platteville finds from last fall and came across this. It in all likelihood is an ichnofossil but if anyone have additional thoughts about it, please reply!! The Platteville has plenty of trace fossils but I have yet to see one with this appearance. Would love to have an idea of it's maker. Its rare for me to see Ichnofossils in platteville so I agree with Rockwood. Bryozoans do exists into Platteville formation and I have seen 2 distinct species so far but there are a lot more! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abyssunder Posted April 4, 2022 Share Posted April 4, 2022 It could be also a crinoid anchoring system / holdfast. 1 " We are not separate and independent entities, but like links in a chain, and we could not by any means be what we are without those who went before us and showed us the way. " Thomas Mann My Library Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minnbuckeye Posted April 4, 2022 Author Share Posted April 4, 2022 (edited) @Rockwood , @abyssunder @TetradiumThanks for the replies. The particular area that this item was found has trace fossils in moderate numbers. Bryozoan was my initial thought, but with lack of pores of the zooid visible (I looked long and hard) and its shape uncharacteristic to the local Platteville bryozoans, I moved it lower on my list of differentials. The crinoid holdfast is intriguing, but a fairly large holdfast for the size of crinoids I see here. Somewhere recently, I saw a trace fossil pictured that showed a structure similar to this. A big body with "bumps" coming off of it. Will likely be stored in my Ordovician unknown box!!!! Edited April 4, 2022 by minnbuckeye Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minnbuckeye Posted April 4, 2022 Author Share Posted April 4, 2022 (edited) Actually, further research came up with an ID!!! Rauffella, described as passively filled horizontal burrow system with regularly spaced bulbus chambers known in the Platteville. Edited April 4, 2022 by minnbuckeye 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted April 4, 2022 Share Posted April 4, 2022 Absent coatings of calcareous algae being common as an overgrowth, this would be a good possibility. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted April 4, 2022 Share Posted April 4, 2022 Nice find and a good id, Mike. 1 Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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