Have had a few good hunts in SW FL

[Snookn420]

I have a couple places I have been searching. One in a Mangrove Forest, the others in Construction yards.

 

I am finding some nicely colored Sharks teeth, and one was so encrusted with junk it took hours with several types of sand paper to polish. The very dark brown complete one on the bottom left. It is really a beautiful tooth, but I need to polish it further to get the Enamel a bit less opaque. Any methods for polishing by hand?
 

There are other assorted pieces as well, some nice small black teeth from construction sites, the brown and orange are from the Tannins in the Mangrove Swamps

The Brown stuff I find right on the surface in ancient lagoons which have dried up and the wind has blown away the top soil, but its a slog and a hike to get to them! (Or boat/kayak).

i have been wondering if I dig and excavate a little if Id find better preserved teeth under the surface. 
The smal half of a meg that is black next to the quarter I just randomly stuck the shovel in the dirt up higher in the scrub away from the water and it just fell out about 4 inches down.

I wish I had a better understanding of where the Fossil Layers are, and how to where to dig a bit better.

 

I had apparently been digging at the construction sites in the wrong spots for months, some older dude saw me and showed me that I need to look in the grey layer, not the yellow sandy layer below it. He didnt have to help me, but I appreciated it none the less!

 

I am not getting skunked usually so thats good. 
do you guys know of any textbooks that discuss in great detail (academic level) the geology of SW Florida? I have the Mark Rentz books and they give a highschool, surface level detail about fossiling.

 

just wanted to post an update on my fossiling adventures lately!

 

 

[patelinho7]

Not the most experienced with fossil preparation but I don't think it's a good idea to use sandpaper directly on the surface of a fossil, you'll likely damage it. Enjoy it as it is! 

 

Also digging doesn't necessarily unearth better quality fossils. The same preservation of fossils are going to be in the earth or on the ground, digging just brings up new ones.

[Fossildude19]

Also, it is generally considered bad form to dig in river or stream banks. 

[Snookn420]

2 hours ago, Fossildude19 said:

Also, it is generally considered bad form to dig in river or stream banks. 

Im not digging in the banks of rivers, I did not even mention those words... bank or river. These are in areas that used to be lagoons which were once Mangrove Habitat and are no longer tidal. almost like a salt pan. Too much mineral content for other plants, so it erodes.

the test hole I dug was in scrub brush in which I was seeing fossils on the ground, some 200 yards from the nearest water source.

 

I understand that folks like to chime in with things that they think others are doing wrong, or not in line with the values of a community writ large. I respect that, though maybe it would be nice to add some positive discussion along with it, since, I and many others are trying to learn on their own, who is there to tell me what is and is not kosher? If most fossil hunters jealously hide their sites, and as I have seen written here, think new folks should learn through trial and error; alone, it would seem likely mistakes will be made in the process.

 

 

Attached is the before photo of the tooth, I think you will agree I did the right thing, though maybe not with as much finesse if I knew how! patelinho7, thanks for the info about the condition of subsurface fossils! 

This leads me to think that once you look over an area on the surface you would need to wait some time to come back and look again?

 

 

[Fossildude19]

 

25 minutes ago, Snookn420 said:

Im not digging in the banks of rivers, I did not even mention those words... bank or river. These are in areas that used to be lagoons which were once Mangrove Habitat and are no longer tidal. almost like a salt pan. Too much mineral content for other plants, so it erodes.

the test hole I dug was in scrub brush in which I was seeing fossils on the ground, some 200 yards from the nearest water source.

 

My mistake.  I apologize. I misunderstood this line:

"...  I just randomly stuck the shovel in the dirt up higher in the scrub away from the water ... "   It sounded to me like digging in a river bank.  Again, my mistake.

 

25 minutes ago, Snookn420 said:

I understand that folks like to chime in with things that they think others are doing wrong, or not in line with the values of a community writ large. I respect that, though maybe it would be nice to add some positive discussion along with it, since, I and many others are trying to learn on their own, who is there to tell me what is and is not kosher?

 

We do chime in with positive feedback.  It is concerning when we see things that could potentially get a person in trouble down the line, and thereby endanger a fossil hunting site with banishing all fossil hunting in an area - it has happened before.  Therefore, we try to prioritize setting the record straight, to stop poor behavior before it breeds terrible consequences. 

 

 

30 minutes ago, Snookn420 said:

If most fossil hunters jealously hide their sites, and as I have seen written here, think new folks should learn through trial and error; alone, it would seem likely mistakes will be made in the process.

I don't know of anyone who has collected for any good length of time who has not had a site plundered.  Usually, by someone they thought they could trust, who ended up telling or bringing 5 other people to the site, ... and they all told 5 people about the site and so on, until the next thing you know, the site is either ruined until it can be replenished naturally, (sometimes taking years) ... or it gets closed/gated/fenced off/patrolled by the police,   due to poor behavior of those people, (people leaving junk or ruining private property.)  This is the most common reason for people "jealously " guarding their sites.  Can you blame them??

 

 

There is no need to go it alone. 

Fossil/Mineral Clubs are great ways to meet people. You learn from people with more experience than you. You get to visit sites that may be off limits to individual collectors.

And you can make some long lasting friendships. Some of those friendships can sometimes lead to opportunities at secret honeyholes that someone may trust you with. 

 

 

 

 

[patelinho7]

On 1/12/2023 at 4:21 PM, Snookn420 said:

This leads me to think that once you look over an area on the surface you would need to wait some time to come back and look again

Yup, this is why people time their hunts after storms. Storms unearth new material. 

[Fin Lover]

Yes, it can take a couple of months for new fossils to wash out of the sites I visit, depending on the amount of rainfall. That's another reason people don't like to give away their sites.  We invest a lot of time into researching, finding, and hunting them, and some replenish very slowly.  As a newer hobbyist, I completely understand the frustration in not knowing where to start. But, I also absolutely understand and see the need to keep tight-lipped about good sites, especially in over-hunted areas like mine.

 

It does also take time to understand the layers, as you have already learned.  I've been at this for 9 months and still don't have the layers in my area figured out.  

 

Learn what you can from the forum.  Advice is never intended to be negative or a personal attack.  It is there for your safety, to keep you out of legal trouble, and to protect sites from being shut down or restrictive laws from being put in place.  New hobbysts can easily make mistakes that are dangerous, illegal, and/or detrimental to the environment.  We do want to keep others safe and maintain sites in a way that allows them to be productive for future generations to enjoy and learn from.

[EMP]

On 1/12/2023 at 11:47 AM, patelinho7 said:

Not the most experienced with fossil preparation but I don't think it's a good idea to use sandpaper directly on the surface of a fossil, you'll likely damage it. Enjoy it as it is! 

 

Also digging doesn't necessarily unearth better quality fossils. The same preservation of fossils are going to be in the earth or on the ground, digging just brings up new ones.

 

There are some places where digging is okay/allowed, but in a lot of places digging, especially along waterways and in protected environmental areas, can quickly get sites closed to public access. Since I've started collecting I can think of a lot of sites where that's the case. Tibb's Bridge, a well-known spot for trilobites in Georgia, was closed because of people digging too much into the banks of the river. Swatara Gap in Pennsylvania, another trilobite/starfish site, was also closed because some people started digging into the outcrop and undermined an interstate bridge. St. Clair, a plant site in Pennsylvania, was closed after some people snuck in and dug illegally into areas they weren't supposed to. I've also heard stories of the BLM limiting/banning collecting because of people violating rules against digging. 

 

Depending on where in southwest Florida your site is, it's a good bet it's on protected land. Surface collecting might be okay, but I know Florida does have laws protecting mangrove swamps, and so there's a decent chance digging (especially with the large shovel in your picture) is illegal (Mangrove Forests | FWC (myfwc.com)). 

 

I don't mean to come off as rude or mean spirited. Fossil collecting is a great way to get outdoors and learn more about our world, and I'm glad to hear that someone's getting into it. But it's important to be ethical and follow the relevant laws when looking for fossils, not just to ensure future access to sites, but to avoid future legal troubles that could harm not just yourself but the community as a whole. 

[patelinho7]

8 minutes ago, EMP said:

 

There are some places where digging is okay/allowed, but in a lot of places digging, especially along waterways and in protected environmental areas, can quickly get sites closed to public access. Since I've started collecting I can think of a lot of sites where that's the case. Tibb's Bridge, a well-known spot for trilobites in Georgia, was closed because of people digging too much into the banks of the river. Swatara Gap in Pennsylvania, another trilobite/starfish site, was also closed because some people started digging into the outcrop and undermined an interstate bridge. St. Clair, a plant site in Pennsylvania, was closed after some people snuck in and dug illegally into areas they weren't supposed to. I've also heard stories of the BLM limiting/banning collecting because of people violating rules against digging. 

 

Depending on where in southwest Florida your site is, it's a good bet it's on protected land. Surface collecting might be okay, but I know Florida does have laws protecting mangrove swamps, and so there's a decent chance digging (especially with the large shovel in your picture) is illegal (Mangrove Forests | FWC (myfwc.com)). 

 

I don't mean to come off as rude or mean spirited. Fossil collecting is a great way to get outdoors and learn more about our world, and I'm glad to hear that someone's getting into it. But it's important to be ethical and follow the relevant laws when looking for fossils, not just to ensure future access to sites, but to avoid future legal troubles that could harm not just yourself but the community as a whole. 

 

Digging can also be injurious to yourself like at cliffs! i've always been told that digging is rather barbaric in general and is a poor and dangerous way to find fossils when untrained, you either damage the fossil or the land

[EMP]

6 minutes ago, patelinho7 said:

 

Digging can also be injurious to yourself like at cliffs! i've always been told that digging is rather barbaric in general and is a poor and dangerous way to find fossils when untrained, you either damage the fossil or the land

'

Personally, I've never had much success digging or hammering into outcrops. It's always been better to just collect from what's already weathered. One would be surprised how quickly even a roadcut's talus cover can be replenished given a few good storms/freeze thaw cycles.