Interpaleo Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 I was out hunting and thought I'd share one of the sites I visit up here in Northern California. I live in Arcata, Humboldt County, about 5 hours north of the San Francisco area. Its pretty much a forest all around, but there are a couple places right along the coast where there are no trees and I can do a little collecting. This is one of my favorite sites around here, and is only a few minute drive from where I live. This site is Pleistocene in age. There is a large Franciscan complex outcrop that trapped a whole lot of dead sea creatures in an eddy around 80 thousand years ago. Its mostly composed of shell and sand, with the majority of the formation made up of crushed shell. There are some pretty nice invertebrates though, including rare sea urchins and not so rare sand dollars. I occasionally pick up nice inverts, especially if I see a big crab claw or something. For the most part though I'm searching for vertebrate fossils. So far I've found Sea Otter, Seal, Bird, and lots of Fish. The vertebrates are extremely fragile, and if ANY portion is exposed by the elements it instantly powderizes. My first step every time I see a vertebrate fossil is to glue it in place, or else there is no hope of recovery. There is no literature on the vertebrates at this site, and many of the specimens I have are the only representatives ever found. The other vertebrate fossils from this site are in a collection held at Humboldt State University, with the most notable being a large section of sea otter jaw with teeth. Someday I hope to do a little writing on this site, but for now its a nice place to spend the afternoon. It'll probably take me a few posts to get the photos I want up, as I still don't know how to make their sizes smaller with this silly macbook. I'll start with the site, and a view from the site down onto the beach. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Interpaleo Posted December 15, 2011 Author Share Posted December 15, 2011 Formation shot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Interpaleo Posted December 15, 2011 Author Share Posted December 15, 2011 Close up of some typical broken up stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Interpaleo Posted December 15, 2011 Author Share Posted December 15, 2011 My "larger" vertebrates and an especially nice Whale barnacle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Interpaleo Posted December 15, 2011 Author Share Posted December 15, 2011 My favorite finds form this site are in the little case. Sea otter incisor, Sea otter molar, Two ray teeth, a ray spine, and a tiny fish jaw full of crusher teeth. The next shot is all the various fish parts I've come across. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Interpaleo Posted December 15, 2011 Author Share Posted December 15, 2011 Ok last post. Close up of the bird stuff. Then close up of the Sea Otter fossils. I should mention that sea otters are extinct around here, so these fossils are of a little more scientific value than most of the other stuff I've got. Thanks for checking out my stuff! Happy hunting, Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CH4ShotCaller Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Nice pics, thanks for sharing! I like the whale barnacle the most. Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new. -Albert Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeymig Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 With all the delicate bones you have found so far I think its only a matter of time before you find a skull. Many times I've wondered how much there is to know. led zeppelin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharkbyte Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Very Interesting finds. Congratulations. Bobby "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." - Confucius Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taffie Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Love all the pics, the site, the formation and the finds. Thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwbh Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Cool finds, I find some of the same looking stuff over here on the east coast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gizmo Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Great post! Thanks! - G Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Very informative post, Joe. It's a wonder that you get any complete bones from that "blender". The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true. - JJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davehunt Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Thanks for sharing. A really special spot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...bird stuff.... Can you give me an idea of their size? Length of the longest bone would be good enough. "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lloyd Posted December 15, 2011 Share Posted December 15, 2011 Great report. I always especially like to see the formation pictures. Thanks for letting us take a look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Interpaleo Posted December 15, 2011 Author Share Posted December 15, 2011 The largest bird bone I've come across form this site is 90mm in length, with a 10mm diameter. I think its a from a cormorant. Unfortunately, I keep getting to this site a little too late, and the weather has destroyed the ornate little ends that were exposed. Just one rainstorm is enough to destroy any bit of bird bone that's exposed, and this is Humboldt county, where it rains a whole lot. Its raining right now! Ruining anything I left exposed from yesterday. I'm gonna keep at it though, and sooner or later I'll luck out and get there right on time. For now though I'm happy to save what items I can from the elements. Thanks for looking, Joe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bdevey Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 Wow, what a great site you have there. I bet the weather can be a bummer as well as exciting, because you never know what you'll find when you get there. Thanks for sharing Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Thompson Posted December 16, 2011 Share Posted December 16, 2011 Hi; Funny thing; I've been to this site quite a lot and have a teaching collection of fossils from here. I was teaching my students about the paleontology of this site AS I WAS SENT YOUR POSTING!! What a coincidence. Anyway, regardless to say, you have some REALLY important vertebrates here. As you know, the majority of the material is invert. This is the Hookton Formation. Please do not give out the exact location as this is a very important late Pleistocene fossil locality and very limited. There is published papers on the site, most noteably Ray Cole's work (who's fossils reside at HSU and who has a curio shop in Old Town Eureka called "Natural Selection"; he can give you the skinny on all the details. I can forward you the paleo paper published when I get home if you wish. But keep those verts safe and really be sure they end up at HSU eventually; what you have from the photos are super important. Feel free to contact me if you need to. Wayne Thompson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Interpaleo Posted December 17, 2011 Author Share Posted December 17, 2011 (edited) Thanks for your post! I should say that this site is very limited in that there is not much accessible material. In addition, its extremely unstable with huge portions of cliff overhanging several feet. If you dig into the cliff it will fall on you. Besides, it took me 5 years to find these vertebrate fossils. This site is not rich by any means. When I dig at a place like Shark Tooth Hill I am disappointed if I don't find 100 perfect teeth per day. At this little site I am happy to find a single fish bone. I just thought I'd share some rare finds from a beautiful remote locality right here in the US. Joe Edited December 17, 2011 by Interpaleo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 Very nice Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scylla Posted December 17, 2011 Share Posted December 17, 2011 Can't wait to see that otter skull. I'll bet it's lurking just an inch below the surface Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoons Posted October 17, 2019 Share Posted October 17, 2019 P.S. I took know of this secret location. I will be making a voyage here in November with the rest of my class. I’ll post some findings here when I do. -Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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