paleoflor Posted December 3, 2022 Share Posted December 3, 2022 L.S., Hopefully the collective knowledge of TFF community will once again prove able to identify something that has stumped me. This time I need your help with these curious stem fragments! A good friend of mine purchased these at a mineral show on the US mainland. The specimens potentially originate from Kane County, Utah, but this provenance is far from bulletproof. It is quite likely, however, that they come from somewhere within the USA. The stems exhibit a hollow centre, with a ribbed internal surface (pith structure?). None of the specimens show nodes or other signs of axial segmentation, however. The cross-sections (both rough and weathered as well as polished) show seemingly regularly spaced vascular structures. The larger "pores", especially, are quite striking. Scale on images is in centimetres. If the Kane County provenance is correct, then a Mesozoic age seems likely. But, again, provenance is very much in question still! Has anyone on TFF seen this type of petrified stems before? Any information you could provide would be very much appreciated! Thanks, Tim 1 Searching for green in the dark grey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DPS Ammonite Posted December 4, 2022 Share Posted December 4, 2022 Very interesting; never seen anything similar. Contact Walton (Walt) Wright. He is an expert on petrified wood and has one of the largest US collections. Talked to him once, but can’t find his number. Maybe a member knows. You might contact the society that he may belong to in Southern California: North Orange County Gem and Mineral Society. If that does not work out, PM me. I know an Arizona area collector that may have good connections. http://www.nocgms.com/show/nocshow04/wright/wright.htm http://www.nocgms.com/show/show.htm 1 My goal is to leave no stone or fossil unturned. See my Arizona Paleontology Guide link The best single resource for Arizona paleontology anywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paleoflor Posted December 4, 2022 Author Share Posted December 4, 2022 @DPS Ammonite Thanks for the suggestions! Meanwhile, I found a paper by Miller (1968) that may provide a match: Chinlea sp., a stem of lepidophytic affinity. You can consult this paper via JSTOR: https://www.jstor.org/stable/2440498 1 1 Searching for green in the dark grey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl Posted December 5, 2022 Share Posted December 5, 2022 HA! I actually contacted an expert friend for his opinion and it turned out to be the person who purchased the specimens! Small world, especially paleobotanically. I agree that Chinlea looks like a very close match. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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