Large Whale Jawbone

[Ben Daniels]

Hi All,

I've received this piece of baleen whale jawbone (measuring 57cm/22.4 inches) however upon purchase there wasn't information available on possible species or even the formation it was found. The only information provided was that this was a partial whale jaw from the Pliocene from Florida. when contacting the seller I've found that the individual who collected this specimen was out megalodon tooth hunting in a river system on the east side of Florida. I hope that is enough information to give a rough idea which formation this fossils is from as I know the megalodon tooth hunting community is strong in this forum! To give a definitive species will be much harder however as I know the posterior part is missing in my specimen which would help greatly in a full identification, however if someone has a good idea what species it is please do let me know.

 

Along with the fossil itself, there are 2/3 features that I would also like further confirmation on. the first feature is what I think is a shell imbedded in the fossil. if I could get confirmation that it is a shell, what type of shell fish species it could be and whether its from around the time of death or latched onto the fossil much later after fossilisation that would be great.

 

The second feature(s) are these 2 crystallised mineral deposits. they both have a very worm like or other soft bodied organism shape, however I'm not knowledgeable in soft bodied preservation so cant say for sure. another feature about them is they both have a hole in the centre that run down the fill length of the deposit. if anyone has any idea what these deposits could be or what caused them that would be brilliant.

 

I've attached pictures below, thank you all for your time and help  

[Fossildude19]

@Boesse

[Shellseeker]

Welcome to TFF, Ben  a great resource for those interested in Florida whales...

Here is a post that is worth reading. You might find more of these if you go up to the magnifying glass in upper right corner and search for Baleen.

http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/63327-finally-1st-since-jan-6th/

 

We are very fortunate to have one of the world's experts in whales as a forum member.  He said this in the above thread...

 

On March 11th, I found this section in a West Florida riverine system.

Edited May 5, 2022 by Shellseeker

[Ben Daniels]

@Shellseeker Thank you for your help on this, its much appreciated  . ill have a read through the thread you've linked