scapula of some kind?

[jjim]

Hello! I found these a few days ago while taking a brisk stroll along a very seldom utilized section of the niagara river in western new york. the larger bone was just barely poking out of the silt/mud in the water. the water level was quite a bit lower than it has been in awhile. the smaller piece was about 20 feet away mixed with some small rocks at the water's edge. in that section of the river there is a good bit of silt/mud which sits on top of a fairly thick layer of clay. 

both pieces feel pretty much like rock, heavy for their size and neither exhibits a burned hair smell when flamed. 

i forgot to take a photo with the ruler but the smaller piece is about 4.5 inches long and maybe an inch wide. it has a curvature on one side.

ive been having fun researching the past few days but i think ive done all i can on my own as i dont really have any expertise in anatomy. i just like hiking around and trying to find unusual stuff. 

my best guess is that the larger piece is part of a scapula and the smaller piece resembles some photos of tusk portions ive come across but i really dont know. 

if anyone knows what animal these could potentially belong to i sure would appreciate any info.

holiday cheers to all!

 

 

 

[ClearLake]

Its fun to find interesting stuff while out roaming around!  Yes, that is a portion of a scapula, maybe a cow given the size and general shape, but it is pretty broken and worn to be too confident.  The second piece is part of a leg bone of some larger animal, and given that both ends are missing and it is split in half, anything beyond that would be pure speculation (but if it was near the possible cow scapula, then...).  And if they are Pleistocene in age, there are lots more possibilities, but I'd try to find more of the animal to feel better about that.  

[jjim]

On 12/13/2022 at 5:44 PM, ClearLake said:

Its fun to find interesting stuff while out roaming around!  Yes, that is a portion of a scapula, maybe a cow given the size and general shape, but it is pretty broken and worn to be too confident.  The second piece is part of a leg bone of some larger animal, and given that both ends are missing and it is split in half, anything beyond that would be pure speculation (but if it was near the possible cow scapula, then...).  And if they are Pleistocene in age, there are lots more possibilities, but I'd try to find more of the animal to feel better about that.  

appreciate it! cow and pig were definitely on my radar. im going to try to get back out there when the bit of snow we have here is gone to try to find some more pieces but at least having a confirmation that its a scapula is helpful. Cheers!