Coral Or Alga?

[bjorn512]

I get this fossil but I don't know what fossil is, is a marine fossil, an alga or coral. I include a picture of a similar "plant" living today.

http://geofosil.blogspot.com/2010/11/coral-or-algium-with-clues.html

thanks

[Markovic]

Bjorn,

I believe it is not an alga, tho I'm not sure if it is a coral, neither. It reminds me of some Bryozoan groups. Bryozoa are colonial organisms similar to corals, but they belong to different phyla, because of their developmental characteristics. Here are some photos to compare with: http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:2DJsMsFJ96yD5M:http://www.mrbbug.com/bz7.jpg&t=1

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:mZFwVgCCP1PXFM:http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s249/Roz_Morgan_photos/100_0961-1-1.jpg&t=1

I hope this helps.

M