Echies of Texas (found a few more!)

[JamieLynn]

Seems that it's about a year between my Echies of Texas posts now, because it's getting harder and harder to find something new!! So far I have collected :

Cretaceous:

Macraster - texanus, elegens and washitaensis

Heteraster - mexicanus, obliquetus and texanus

Phymosoma texanum

Goniopygus - zitelli, whitneyi and sp.

Leptosalenia - mexicana, volana and texana and possible sp.

Pliotoxaster - whitei and comanchei

Hyposalenia phillipsae

Pygopyrina hancockensis

Holaster simplex

Tetragramma  texanum

Loriolia - rosana and possibly whitei (if that is considered a viable species)

Polydiadema travisensis

Anorthopygus texanus

Heterosalenia sp.

Paraorthopsis comalensis

Coenholectypus - planatus and ovatus

Pseudodiadema aguilera

Plagiochasma texanum

Goniophorus scotti

Hemiaster - calvini and bexari

Washitaster sp.

Diplodetus americanus

Echinothurid sp. plates

Balanocidarid spines

 

Not Cretaceous

Eocene Protoscutella mississippiensis

Pennsylvanian Archeocidaris plates and spines

                     Pronechinus  plates and spines

 

So I am happy to add a few new ones to my list! A not recent find (from last year) but newly prepped and all kinds of pretty ( it's actually kind of scrappy but I love it!!) is one of my absolute best finds:

Codiopsis stephensoni 

 

 

Next up is kind of a heart breaker because I only found a fifth of it. When I saw it in the dirt, my heart skipped a few beats,  thinking it was a whole one!  It's so beautifully preserved and while I do have a very nice Paracidaris texanus in my collection, it was a gift and not self collected. SO I  am happy to have at least found on my own....a fifth of a Paracidaris!

 

 

And speaking of cidarids - I was super excited to find not one, not two, but three Balanocidarid spines in close association - all within 18 inches or so of each other. (Only two in the picture because my hunting partner actually found the third one, so she has it in her collection)  Perhaps a test will reveal itself one day?? If I am to understand correctly, only spines have been found in Texas. Weird.

 

 

Next up was a total surprise find (again, pretty scrappy, but hey, I'll take what I'm given)

while walking a creek that I have found some good stuff in....just wasn't expecting to find a nice little urchin!  It's a Globator whitneyi!  

 

And finally, from the Eocene - what are affectionately called BB Urchins....a tiny Fibularia texana from the Eocene. This was a gift as well. I didn't get to go on the East Texas field trip, but apparently lots of these can be found and so my friend Melvin gifted me one! It's about 1/4 inch

 

well, and I just wanted to show off an absolute beauty of a Leptosalenia mexicana.....I have a few but this one is beautifully preserved and has amazing color!! Thank you to @JohnJ for my first L. mexicana....I was trying SO hard to find one and just couldn't so he gave me a tiny one. I have since found....quite a few. SO just keep looking....those critters are out there!  PS...still trying to find that dang Tetragramma taffi.....

 

 

[doushantuo]

those spines are awesome,J.!

[JamieLynn]

They are such crazy things! Big club spines. Here is a picture of the four best I've found so far from three different locations:

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Lovely photographs, as always. 

Very interesting too. 

[grandpa]

[JohnJ]

Some may just see echinoids; I see stories.  Beautiful work, Jamie.  

[hadrosauridae]

Those are amazing!  You such a vast array of finds, congrats!

[JamieLynn]

@hadrosauridae - I am lucky to live in the land of echinoids! hahhhaha

[FossilNerd]

Echinoids are awesome, and I didn’t even have to wait for Th’Urchin Thursday to see some!  Congrats on the finds and thanks for sharing!  

[Mikrogeophagus]

Amazing collection! I’m curious what fm that Globator came from? I don’t know much about those

[JamieLynn]

@EPIKLULSXDDDDD  That Globator came from Georgetown Formation. In this same creek I also found the Holaster simplex and the Hemiaster calvini. 

[old bones]

Gorgeous Echies, Jamie, and great photos!