Tootslg Posted December 29, 2022 Share Posted December 29, 2022 We have several of these. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digit Posted December 29, 2022 Share Posted December 29, 2022 You've got an awesome collection of curiously shaped phosphate nodules. They are exceedingly common in places like the Peace River where we hunt for fossils. Years back I took a friend's family out to fossil hunt on the Peace and his son was having just as much fun collecting what we were calling "fossilized mud". He said he wanted to have the world's best collection of these. The one with the whole through the center may represent a hardened burrow segment but the others are all geologic rather than biologic. Cheers. -Ken 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tootslg Posted December 29, 2022 Author Share Posted December 29, 2022 They seem to have dimples on most of them. What is it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digit Posted December 29, 2022 Share Posted December 29, 2022 I have many--not easily at hand to photograph at the moment--which have concentric circles and other interesting textures. I have not been able to turn up any scientific paper which describes the bizarre shapes that these nodules can take. Cheers. -Ken 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minnbuckeye Posted December 30, 2022 Share Posted December 30, 2022 In the first picture, to the far right, third one down, it looks like you MIGHT have a piece of a Dugong rib. Maybe a close up pic from multiple angle would help ID. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abyssunder Posted December 30, 2022 Share Posted December 30, 2022 These are nodules/concretions, for sure. Some of them might have other "things" attached or included. 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...
ClearLake Posted December 30, 2022 Share Posted December 30, 2022 On 12/29/2022 at 4:11 PM, Tootslg said: They seem to have dimples on most of them. What is it? Very nice selection! Phosphate nodules often form in proximity to fossils and often have imprints or partial shapes "imprinted" on them. My guess is that is what you are seeing. So many of yours have it because that is probably a shape that intrigued you and you selected those ones. If you took a look at a random sample of phosphate nodules, you would probably see a more random assortment of shapes that are purely geologic (and not as eye-catching). Just a suggestion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tootslg Posted December 30, 2022 Author Share Posted December 30, 2022 So what is the imprint from Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClearLake Posted December 30, 2022 Share Posted December 30, 2022 Without knowing what formation they come from and what the fossils are in that formation to choose from, I'd just be making it up. I don't see an obvious pattern that would point to something specific, other than "round". End of a fish vert, bottom of an echinoid, to name but a few of an endless list of possibilities (at least for me). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tootslg Posted January 1, 2023 Author Share Posted January 1, 2023 These are are fossilised already. Doesnt mud when it starts to dry crack? There are no cracks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digit Posted January 2, 2023 Share Posted January 2, 2023 It is my understanding that these phosphate nodules were forming underground/underwater and would not have been subject to the surface mud cracking you are envisioning. The phosphate from the Bone Valley Formation that has been actively mined for over a century is the result of the decomposition of masses of organisms and the phosphate (as I understand it) in those organisms. Now I feel I need a refresher in the history of Florida phosphate and I'm going to spend tomorrow reading through the attached PDF which can be found here as well: https://pubs.usgs.gov/bul/0604/report.pdf Cheers. -Ken 538979699_ThePhosphateDeppositsofFlorida.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Pristis Posted January 2, 2023 Share Posted January 2, 2023 This pdf appears terribly naive and totally outdated in light of subsequent work. I don't think there is anything in it that sheds light on the nature of the phosphate. Being posted by a Moderator here, I think there is substantial risk that some readers will rely on some of this information. That would be counterproductive to the purpose of this forum. http://pristis.wix.com/the-demijohn-page What seest thou else In the dark backward and abysm of time? ---Shakespeare, The Tempest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DPS Ammonite Posted January 2, 2023 Share Posted January 2, 2023 18 minutes ago, Harry Pristis said: in light of subsequent work. Please enlighten us with newer references. I understand that a lot of the phosphate is deposited chemically and is not a fossil. 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...
Harry Pristis Posted January 2, 2023 Share Posted January 2, 2023 You're capable of doing your own research, I believe. I see you already know about the chemical deposition of phosphate. http://pristis.wix.com/the-demijohn-page What seest thou else In the dark backward and abysm of time? ---Shakespeare, The Tempest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digit Posted January 2, 2023 Share Posted January 2, 2023 I'm sorry. This was the first reference I came upon in a search. True it is quite ancient but as it dated from a time when phosphate was actively being mined from Florida I assumed it would have some sound geological research. I had only quickly scanned the sections and was planning on sitting down and digesting this fully to learn some of the geological background about the phosphate deposits in Florida. I had assumed that this publication (all 118 pages of it) would provide a firm basis of knowledge in the phosphate formations of Florida. I guess I'll have to look for more recent materials if I want to complete my background education in this important aspect of Florida geology. I'll have to check my Roadside Geology of Florida book and reread that. Cheers. -Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DPS Ammonite Posted January 2, 2023 Share Posted January 2, 2023 3 minutes ago, digit said: I guess I'll have to look for more recent materials if I want to complete my background education in this important aspect of Florida geology. I'll have to check my Roadside Geology of Florida book and reread that. Ken, talk to the paleontologists/geologists at FMLNH or local university for their suggestions of the best literature to understand phosphate deposit formation in Florida. 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...
digit Posted January 2, 2023 Share Posted January 2, 2023 Indeed. Most of what I find searching the internet is either PR publications from the phosphate industry or environmental concerns for the mining itself. Cheers. -Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Pristis Posted January 2, 2023 Share Posted January 2, 2023 Look for a copy of THE GEOLOGY OF FLORIDA edited by Tony Randazzo and Doug Jones (1997 or later). The book has extensive coverage of Florida phosphate, including phosphogenesis, causes of. This book may be available at the University Book Store as a used textbook. http://pristis.wix.com/the-demijohn-page What seest thou else In the dark backward and abysm of time? ---Shakespeare, The Tempest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digit Posted January 2, 2023 Share Posted January 2, 2023 I'll work on locating a copy. Surprised there is so little useful info online. The phosphate beds and in particular the Bone Valley Formation are so fundamental to Florida's fossil story that some more background study seems warranted. EDIT: Found a used copy online which should get here next week. Cheers. -Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Pristis Posted January 2, 2023 Share Posted January 2, 2023 You can get a good used copy on Amazon for $9.59, free shipping. The Geology of Florida: Randazzo, Anthony F., Jones, Douglas S.: 9780813014968: Amazon.com: Books http://pristis.wix.com/the-demijohn-page What seest thou else In the dark backward and abysm of time? ---Shakespeare, The Tempest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digit Posted January 3, 2023 Share Posted January 3, 2023 Done did that. Arrives next week. Been reading through the ancient PDF linked to above. Interesting historical perspective and I can see the ages of the formations in Florida have undergone significant revision since this was written (over a century ago) but it is still fun to read. Haven't gotten to any specifics about the genesis of the phosphate formations but hopefully that will be better explained by my arriving book. Cheers. -Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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