DeloiVarden Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 Hey Guys, I have spent the last few days cleaning teeth from a recent dive and just got around to some of the other odds and ends, only I don't know if this is an odd or end. I figure someone is going to say this is an easy one, but this find is a first for me after a few hundred dives. I have seen similar looking specimen, just not this size. It is not porous, but rather quite hard and dense. It is about 10" long and weighs over 3 pounds. I found it in a spot in SC which has yielded a lot of Miocene and Pleistocene material. My original thought was sloth claw, but the pictures I saw on the web didn't look the same since most of them had a nodule near the base. I guess enough of the base may be missing, but I doubt this could have been much bigger if it was a claw. Any id help would be appreciated. I took the pictures of this thing wet because it still has a day or so of soaking and the wet look gave more contrast to the curves anyhow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tracer Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 horn core, but i reserve the right to completely reverse myself since it's all wet and dark and laterally compressed and stuff that i can't quite discern Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrehistoricFlorida Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 horn core, but i reserve the right to completely reverse myself since it's all wet and dark and laterally compressed and stuff that i can't quite discern I'm not seeing horn. It's a very strange piece. How heavy is it? Is it heavy and solid like a rib bone? Horn cores are usually fairly light for their size. www.PrehistoricFlorida.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeloiVarden Posted September 1, 2011 Author Share Posted September 1, 2011 It is very heavy for the size. Weighs a little more than 3 pounds and is dense like most rib bones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrehistoricFlorida Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 It is very heavy for the size. Weighs a little more than 3 pounds and is dense like most rib bones. Yeah, that's what I figured. Due to the weight and compressed design, I would go with rib. www.PrehistoricFlorida.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tracer Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 it's too cool looking to just get labeled as a "rib". dry it off and post more pictures from different agnels, and i'll think of something cool you can name it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeloiVarden Posted September 1, 2011 Author Share Posted September 1, 2011 That isn't very exciting, but I guess I have seen smaller whale rib bones end in a point like this. I guess the only thing that has me still wondering is why this isn't more round. You can see from the profile that it is more flat and the flatter rib bones I have seen usually curve on the other plane if that makes any since. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrehistoricFlorida Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 That isn't very exciting, but I guess I have seen smaller whale rib bones end in a point like this. I guess the only thing that has me still wondering is why this isn't more round. You can see from the profile that it is more flat and the flatter rib bones I have seen usually curve on the other plane if that makes any since. Good point. Perhaps Bobby can shed some light on this one. www.PrehistoricFlorida.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyguy784 Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Definetly let it dry and re photograph it. Especialy the big end. That thing is honkin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharkbyte Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Jason, What ever it is, its very cool. I am going to risk (and not care) being told I'm wrong, but I am going with Tusk tip or Horn Core. If everyone convinces you its just a piece of rib then I would like to buy it at rib price. Everyone is right though, a lot more can be told by drying it and posting new pictures from the same angles as these. "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." - Confucius Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xiphactinus Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 another vote for horn core Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrehistoricFlorida Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 another vote for horn core The inner structure is not right for a horn. See attachments. Sorry for the poor pictures, they were taken indoors. www.PrehistoricFlorida.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeloiVarden Posted September 2, 2011 Author Share Posted September 2, 2011 (edited) I'll be sure to post pics once dry. As for a horn core. If it is, then it must have been a two horned animal due to the lack of symmetry. I did a search for horned Miocene and Pleistocene animals and have yet to find one with two short, stubby horns with such a thick base. Other than a rhino, which has symmetrical horns, very few other animals have short, stubby horns. I hope the dry pics help. Thanks for all of the help. I am with you sharkbyte, regardless of id, it is pretty cool looking. My brother wants it real bad! Edited September 2, 2011 by DeloiVarden Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeloiVarden Posted September 2, 2011 Author Share Posted September 2, 2011 Okay, due to the density of the piece, it dryed out real quick. Here are the dry shots...ignore the distractions in the background Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tracer Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 it's too bad auspex isn't here at the moment, because i know he'd just get in a complete dither over a rooster spur that large... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeloiVarden Posted September 2, 2011 Author Share Posted September 2, 2011 it's too bad auspex isn't here at the moment, because i know he'd just get in a complete dither over a rooster spur that large... That would be one scary rooster! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BisonJim Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 (edited) The arc seem too tight for the end of a bison horn; as noted, it's too compressed even though bison horn cores are not always perfectly round; the "groove" which appears to be on both sides, but which is way more pronounced on one side, does not look like any such grooving on any bison horn core that I've seen. It much wider and gracile than the thinner, more rough grooving that I'm used to seeing. That grooving is, at least in the case of horn cores, designed to prevent sheeth slipage in battle. I suppose the same principle would apply to a claw. It sure looks like a claw to me but I'm not familiar with anything that big. I think it is awe-inspiring. Nice find. It would look good on your wall. I hope someone figures it out. Or not. ;-) Edited to change my mind on the arc. That's possible I guess, but I still have questions about the rest. Edited September 2, 2011 by BisonLatifrons Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmorefossil Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 (edited) Ok this is my thoughts and i may be wrong but this is a tusk, there is a grove on the on side which faces inwards. The size of this find is huge so i really have no idea what it could be from. All i have to look at are peccary tusks which have that grove on the one side. Walrus maybe? What do the roots to gomph or mammoth tusks look like? Edited September 2, 2011 by bmorefossil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeloiVarden Posted September 2, 2011 Author Share Posted September 2, 2011 (edited) Thanks Tracer, Prehistoricflorida, Sharkbyte, bisonlafrons, and bmorefossils and any others I missed. I think the only consensus is that this is big. The only good thing about all of us being a bit stumped is that we all get to learn when we finally figure this out. Isn't this fun! Edited September 2, 2011 by DeloiVarden Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeloiVarden Posted September 2, 2011 Author Share Posted September 2, 2011 Ok this is my thoughts and i may be wrong but this is a tusk, there is a grove on the on side which faces inwards. The size of this find is huge so i really have no idea what it could be from. All i have to look at are peccary tusks which have that grove on the one side. Walrus maybe? What do the roots to gomph or mammoth tusks look like? So along the lines of tusks and gomph, I did some searching and think it may resemble the lower tusks seen on a very gomph like mammal called the Deinotherium. Take a look at the skull on wiki. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Deinotherium_giganteum_skull.JPG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gizmo Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 My link Walrus? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vordigern Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 that thing is really cool, very nice find whatever it is!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeloiVarden Posted September 2, 2011 Author Share Posted September 2, 2011 My link Walrus? That is pretty convincing. Did we every have the walrus down here. I know there were ice ages, but I don't think I have heard of anyone finding any walrus fossils. Do tusks fossilize well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gizmo Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 This is informative. My link And a closeup. My link Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BisonJim Posted September 2, 2011 Share Posted September 2, 2011 Yeah, I'm thinking piniped of some kind. I did a google pictures search under "fossil pinniped tusk" and came up with some stuff that struck me as similar, but older than Pleistocene. http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?app=core&module=attach§ion=attach&attach_rel_module=post&attach_id=3428 In any event, I looked under "saber" and "tusk" and all kinds of stuff but the "fossil pinniped tusk" came up the closest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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