Potomac Fossil hunting trip

[Daisbea]

Hi! I went on my first fossil hunt yesterday! Found two  cool shells, some pretty quartz, a few rocks but no fossils. Here are my finds! I was wondering what i should look for when hunting along and in the potomac! Was hard to find stuff when I wasn’t sure what to look for haha! ^^ im 16 so I cant go often but im going to be begging my parents to take me again soon because i found pottery too! (Its not old but i find it interesting ^^)

[Tidgy's Dad]

Are you sure those two snails aren't fossilized? 

[Daisbea]

2 minutes ago, Tidgy's Dad said:

Are you sure those two snails aren't fossilized? 

I have no idea! Ill send close ups after im done with work! I genuinely dont know how to tell when something is fossilized or not so I assumed no. If you have any resources on learning ways to tell thatd be awesome!

[Tidgy's Dad]

It's not always easy. 

Modern shells will have their colors and patterns preserved for a while but will soon bleach white. But not always. 

Fossils may be the bleached white type but in a matrix, but may be free of that matrix. 

Your shells are black and look mineralized to me, but may not be. 

It all comes with experience and having the pieces in hand, but even then there are often times one cannot be sure. 

[Daisbea]

Just now, Tidgy's Dad said:

It's not always easy. 

Modern shells will have their colors and patterns preserved for a while but will soon bleach white. But not always. 

Fossils may be the bleached white type but in a matrix, but may be free of that matrix. 

Your shells are black and look mineralized to me, but may not be. 

It all comes with experience and having the pieces in hand, but even then there are often times one cannot be sure. 

Thank you so much! I need to get more books on it and go on more hunts! I think if I keep going ill learn to differentiate. But as of now I need my parents to also be free so they can drive me haha!

[Tidgy's Dad]

1 minute ago, Daisbea said:

Thank you so much! I need to get more books on it and go on more hunts! I think if I keep going ill learn to differentiate. But as of now I need my parents to also be free so they can drive me haha!

I remember the days of my mother, father and grandparents driving me to fossil spots. 

I still don't drive. 

Please post close-up photos of your gastropods; I'm curious now. 

[Daisbea]

13 minutes ago, Tidgy's Dad said:

I remember the days of my mother, father and grandparents driving me to fossil spots. 

I still don't drive. 

Please post close-up photos of your gastropods; I'm curious now. 

I will when im off work! 

[Andúril Flame of the West]

I believe that you are correct in saying you did not recover any fossils this time around, but the Potomac river is rich in fossils and with some searching I have no doubt you will soon accumulate a nice collection. From the photos provided I cannot comment with certainty, but it seems to me that the gastropods are modern and not fossilized. I am not particularly familiar with the fauna of the Calvert Formation (which is exposed on some sections of the Potomac river) but as far as I know the most common fossil gastropod from the Paleocene Aquia Formation (which also exposes along the Potomac river) is in the genus Turritella. 

 

As far as tips for hunting the Potomac river, I would certainly focus on areas south of Washington D.C. as these are generally more productive and easier to hunt. There are a few parks on the Maryland and Virginia side of the river that offer access to beaches where many shark teeth and other marine fossils can often be found. Other than visiting parks, hunting the Potomac can be difficult due to private property, but with some scouting you may be able to find other accessible locations that contain fossils. 

 

Also, if you are looking for a good book on fossil sites in the area, I would certainly suggest picking up a copy of Fossil Collecting in the Mid-Atlantic States by Jasper Burns. Although the book is outdated and some sites are no longer accessible, it still has a number of sites that can still be visited and offers other helpful tips regarding fossil hunting in the Mid-Atlantic area. 

Edited May 28, 2023 by Andúril Flame of the West

[Daisbea]

4 hours ago, Andúril Flame of the West said:

I believe that you are correct in saying you did not recover any fossils this time around, but the Potomac river is rich in fossils and with some searching I have no doubt you will soon accumulate a nice collection. From the photos provided I cannot comment with certainty, but it seems to me that the gastropods are modern and not fossilized. I am not particularly familiar with the fauna of the Calvert Formation (which is exposed on some sections of the Potomac river) but as far as I know the most common fossil gastropod from the Paleocene Aquia Formation (which also exposes along the Potomac river) is in the genus Turritella. 

 

As far as tips for hunting the Potomac river, I would certainly focus on areas south of Washington D.C. as these are generally more productive and easier to hunt. There are a few parks on the Maryland and Virginia side of the river that offer access to beaches where many shark teeth and other marine fossils can often be found. Other than visiting parks, hunting the Potomac can be difficult due to private property, but with some scouting you may be able to find other accessible locations that contain fossils. 

 

Also, if you are looking for a good book on fossil sites in the area, I would certainly suggest picking up a copy of Fossil Collecting in the Mid-Atlantic States by Jasper Burns. Although the book is outdated and some sites are no longer accessible, it still has a number of sites that can still be visited and offers other helpful tips regarding fossil hunting in the Mid-Atlantic area. 

Thanks! ^^ i mightve been hunting too high up the potomac!

Edited May 28, 2023 by Daisbea

[Daisbea]

5 hours ago, Tidgy's Dad said:

I remember the days of my mother, father and grandparents driving me to fossil spots. 

I still don't drive. 

Please post close-up photos of your gastropods; I'm curious now. 

Heres some photos! Also included a very round rock i want to crack open haha!

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

I would say fossil, but I don't know the area.

Hopefully an experienced local member will chime in. 

[patelinho7]

7 hours ago, Tidgy's Dad said:

I would say fossil, but I don't know the area.

Hopefully an experienced local member will chime in. 

As far as I’m aware, Turritella is the only gastropod found along the Potomac. These look like the standard snails around here. The whitish one does trick the eye but unfortunately they are not fossils. However, if you found an exposure, they (Turritella) would be everywhere!
 

I too relate to being restricted by my parents’ schedule! I’m in college now and still have difficulty getting to spots (i don’t have my own car yet). I used to be on the paleontology track but grew distanced from pursuing it. I used to blame my parents for not taking me places as much as I wanted but the reality is, I wasn’t mature enough to realize how much could be learned outside of the fossil hunt. And if I wasn’t willing to do that, maybe I wasn’t truly interested in paleontology. But that doesn’t matter, the point is that the best way to pursue this interest is to continue learning and absorbing information while you’re still young! And then you can find spots to hunt and tell your parents where to take you when they are free! And I do like my new career path, but I’ve grown enough to fully appreciate paleontology and be less impatient with not going fossil collecting as frequently. And doors are always open for me to continue studying the stuff I love! 
 

Unnecessary long story short, keep up your own research and learning about this stuff and you’ll come away with many skills to take with you. And feel free to reach out with questions about anything, I’ve done a lot of research about this area so I can offer some help with your hunting!

[shark57]

The snails are recent, not fossil. They are a fairly common land snail that are often found on the beach in Maryland in the Popes Creek area.

[Northern Neck]

Westmoreland state park is where some go on Virginia side.  Anywhere you can find cliffs and gravel.   For teeth, the bigger the gravel the bigger the teeth is my common logic.  The best places are private for a reason.  The Potomac has lots of neat finds.  Just focus on somewhere close to cliffs or known spots and find the gravel beds.  Go slow.   Never know what you might overlook.