Success at Red Hill! (and some questions)

[bockryan]

Took the long trip to Red Hill for the second time today, my first attempt was fun but I found absolutely nothing and was totally confounded by the site in terms of where to look and what even to look for. This time I returned after a lot of reading and watching and did much better and (I think) found my very first Paleozoic vertebrate fossils! Curious if anyone experienced with the site could tell me about these and if anyone has any collecting (or preparation!) tips for the site. Also if anyone is planning any trips this season I'd love to tag along!

 

First find was broken sadly, but includes a rather large scale (?) and a piece of plate laying on top of it, found in some of the loose boulders at the bottom of the hill that are basically conglomerates of pebbles and loose material, mostly greenish in color with the fossils coming in as bright red (not coming through nearly as nice in the pictures) 

 

 

 

Next find is a mystery and could be noting, but it's that same reddish material with a clear pattern on it, also includes a plate fragment on the back for a nice bonus. Found in the same material.

 

 

 

 

 

[jpc]

The second is certainly s platey fossil from some devonian thingy.  Good finds.

[Fossildude19]

@Paul1719  @jdp

[jdp]

1&2 are scales. 1 is Megalichthys. 2 might be Holoptychius

Edited June 21, 2022 by jdp

[bockryan]

3 hours ago, jdp said:

1&2 are scales. 1 is Megalichthys. 2 might be Holoptychius

 

Thank you! Hopefully can get it a bit more cleaned up and see if any more pops out, I brought home 3 large slabs that have other material in them so will post those once they're uncovered

[jdp]

Looking forward to seeing more!

[Paul1719]

Hi Bockryan, yes, first definitely a Megalichthys scale with (I think) a Turrisaspis plate over it. The second does look like a Holoptychius scale but I don't think they have ever found one there before. Doug Rowe has found Holoptychius scales down by the river. Holoptychius is associated with more near shore environments usually with Bothriolepis which is also absent from Red Hill. It represents a more up river environment but during the late Devonian the shoreline was basically racing across PA as the Acadian mtns to the east were eroding away and dumping many cubic miles of sediment that is now the Catskill formation (I believe 2 miles thick at RH) . If it's thin and flat not sure what else it would be other than Holoptychius. To prep something like that it's incredibly fragile. I use Paleobond stabilizer and dot the exposed portion very carefully with a pin or the long bottle attachment they send you. Take some matrix off and repeat. If you find it's thicker than it looks in the picture the cleithrum and clavicle of Hyneria have ridgy type ornament similar to that. This one I found in 2017 is at the Field museum. ventral =left caudal = top

 

 

 

[bockryan]

On 6/26/2022 at 7:24 AM, Paul1719 said:

Hi Bockryan, yes, first definitely a Megalichthys scale with (I think) a Turrisaspis plate over it. The second does look like a Holoptychius scale but I don't think they have ever found one there before. Doug Rowe has found Holoptychius scales down by the river. Holoptychius is associated with more near shore environments usually with Bothriolepis which is also absent from Red Hill. It represents a more up river environment but during the late Devonian the shoreline was basically racing across PA as the Acadian mtns to the east were eroding away and dumping many cubic miles of sediment that is now the Catskill formation (I believe 2 miles thick at RH) . If it's thin and flat not sure what else it would be other than Holoptychius. To prep something like that it's incredibly fragile. I use Paleobond stabilizer and dot the exposed portion very carefully with a pin or the long bottle attachment they send you. Take some matrix off and repeat. If you find it's thicker than it looks in the picture the cleithrum and clavicle of Hyneria have ridgy type ornament similar to that. This one I found in 2017 is at the Field museum. ventral =left caudal = top

 

 

 

 

Thank you for the *fantastic* response, I've just gotten my first shipment of stabilizer and will try taking another crack at it, the surrounding rock is very frustrating but think I just have to be patient and scrape away at it. I was using my Dremel previously with some success but may have been losing parts of the fossil in the process where the matrix wasn't flaking off cleanly. I believe it's more likely to be scale than the larger bone pictured, it does seem fairly thin. Time will tell!

[jdp]

On 6/26/2022 at 6:24 AM, Paul1719 said:

Hi Bockryan, yes, first definitely a Megalichthys scale with (I think) a Turrisaspis plate over it. The second does look like a Holoptychius scale but I don't think they have ever found one there before. Doug Rowe has found Holoptychius scales down by the river. Holoptychius is associated with more near shore environments usually with Bothriolepis which is also absent from Red Hill. It represents a more up river environment but during the late Devonian the shoreline was basically racing across PA as the Acadian mtns to the east were eroding away and dumping many cubic miles of sediment that is now the Catskill formation (I believe 2 miles thick at RH) . If it's thin and flat not sure what else it would be other than Holoptychius. To prep something like that it's incredibly fragile. I use Paleobond stabilizer and dot the exposed portion very carefully with a pin or the long bottle attachment they send you. Take some matrix off and repeat. If you find it's thicker than it looks in the picture the cleithrum and clavicle of Hyneria have ridgy type ornament similar to that. This one I found in 2017 is at the Field museum. ventral =left caudal = top

 

 

 

 

I will note that I have seen photos of material of a Holoptychius-like porolepiform, putatively from Red Hill.

[bockryan]

My best find yet from the rock I took home after seeing all the red bits poking through. Thinking either a dorsal or pectoral plate from either Groenlandaspis pennsylvanica or Turrisaspis elektor based on what's available here: http://www.devoniantimes.org/who/pages/placoderm.html

 

Very pleased with how they came out, besides a few marks from the Dremel and some stubborn matrix around various parts. It even split into a nice manageable piece without damaging the fossil which was a bit nerve-wracking. Planning to carve away at the bottom a fair bit to see if there's anything to be found and to make it a bit of a flatter plate for display.  

[Paul1719]

That's beautiful! Well done!

Looks like a partly articulated Turrisaspis thoracic shield! Definitely not common. 

This beauty will someday make its way to ANSP but for now it's on my display case.

 

[Fossildude19]

47 minutes ago, Paul1719 said:

That's beautiful! Well done!

Looks like a partly articulated Turrisaspis thoracic shield! Definitely not common. 

This beauty will someday make its way to ANSP but for now it's on my display case.

 

 

That is an amazing fossil, Paul!     

[Fossildude19]

On 8/12/2022 at 11:27 AM, bockryan said:

My best find yet from the rock I took home after seeing all the red bits poking through. Thinking either a dorsal or pectoral plate from either Groenlandaspis pennsylvanica or Turrisaspis elektor based on what's available here: http://www.devoniantimes.org/who/pages/placoderm.html

 

Very pleased with how they came out, besides a few marks from the Dremel and some stubborn matrix around various parts. It even split into a nice manageable piece without damaging the fossil which was a bit nerve-wracking. Planning to carve away at the bottom a fair bit to see if there's anything to be found and to make it a bit of a flatter plate for display.  

 

 

Great fossil! Thanks for showing us!

[Tidgy's Dad]

Wow! 

[Misha]

Both fantastic specimens! Love to see Catskill Fm. material, such interesting organisms with great preservation

[bockryan]

On 8/29/2022 at 11:10 AM, Paul1719 said:

That's beautiful! Well done!

Looks like a partly articulated Turrisaspis thoracic shield! Definitely not common. 

This beauty will someday make its way to ANSP but for now it's on my display case.

 

 

What an amazing find! I'm heading back to the area this coming weekend for 2 days, hopefully will have some luck now that I have a better sense of what to look for.

[Paul1719]

Ironically, it was when I was moving from MA in 2019 that I was going through my heaps of specimens to figure out what to take and came across this with only the very tip of the median dorsal showing. I figured I'd just see how far it went under the rock and next thing I knew….