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Several Unidentified Fossils/rocks


32fordboy

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I have collected these over the years and I'm curious as to what they may be. I realize some aren't fossils, but I figured you guys would know exactly what they are. All these came from unknown locations in Colorado, except where noted. Sorry if these have been on here before, I've done what research I can. If you need better photos just let me know. Thanks!

Nick

Specimen #1: Dark brown, lumpy but smooth texture, relatively large. Third picture of number 1 shows cross section.

Specimen #2: I have shown the top one to someone before, they said it looks like a barnicle. On each side you can see where several cylindrical-shaped formations used to be, each cylinder with ridges running side-to-side. The second fossil in the photo seems to be a bone fragment, found in a river rock shipment next to our house.

#3: I have no clue. Looks like fragments of the same bone in a limestone matrix. NOT SURE on this one

#4: This one is definately a bone. You can clearly see the dark brown marrow on the cracked end. I figured it wouldn't be worth more pictures because only a small fration of the bone can be seen through the limestone anyway. From what I can tell this came from Nebraska.

#5: Found this one in the mountains, most likely in west-southwest colorado. Looks like a bunch of little lines on one side, and a bunch of dots on the cross-section, kind of like little worms in mud.

#6: Found these in a rock shipment next to my house anlong with #7 and #2. They are round and seem to contain an iron-like mineral on the inside.

#7: Found beside my house in the rock shipment. Appear to be petrified mud-bubbles. I cracked these babies open myself, so I know the bright coloration is natural.

#8: I found this in South Dakota. Can't tell you where, it too came in a rock shipment (next to a Dairy Queen in Rapid City). I rule out laf imprint in favor of mineral deposits. The picture is pretty bad. The imprints are well defined.

#9: My Grandfather had this one laying around for years. I'm pretty sure it's from the Colorado Rockies. It was hard to photograph. One side is smooth, the other side has lots of pits in it and also has several hairline cracks, but only in the surface. The color is light grey throughout.

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Welcome to the Forum, 'Deuce! :D

#1; if it's a fossil, it might be a coprolite.

#5; maybe coral? pet. palm wood?

#s 3, 6, &7; concretions.

The rest, I can't weigh in on.

"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!

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To me, #5 is the only one that looks like a fossil, and I'd guess along the lines of what Auspex said. Stuff I've found like that was with other wood and no "animal" fossils, so I'd probably guess palm.

lots of unusual looking rocks are just generic minerals that formed in unusual ways. It looks like you have some iron and mudstone concretions, and some chert, and I don't know what else.

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Yeah, I knew most of these aren't fossils, but I'm going to keep them anyway. They're pretty cool. I know without a doubt #4 is a bone from a small animal, but what it came from is anyone's guess. I'll have to ask my uncle where he got it from. It would be nice if I could see the rest of it that is hidden away in the limestone.

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Okay, here are better pics of both specimens from #2 and the "bone" from #4. Sorry, guys, this is as good as my camera gets. Notice on #4 the "marrow". It's brown and full of holes. On the backside, you might see the circular protrusions sticking out of the limestone. I don't think these are related to the "bone" on the other side, but can't be sure.

As for the specimen I was told by a paleontologist might be a barnicle, notice the ridges on it, like something else (with ridges, of course) was pressed up against it at one time. Now as for the second specmen in #2, the outer part looks a bit like petrified wood. What throws me off is the brown interior (no holes), and the little pinholes on the exterior (won't show up in photo). Too bad the camera won't capture the texture well. It really does look like bone or wood.

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OK, the last pictures look like a chunk of wood which was water tumbled and then eventually broken, which accounts for the one end being worn and the other end being sharper and having the less-weathered center showing. I do see what appears to be the characteristics of a barnacle on the one object. It probably is a barnacle. The "bone" with "marrow" looks to me to be a burrow later filled with with sediment which had iron or pyrite/limonite staining as it weathered. Note the outer shape of the "bone" isn't regular like most bones would be - it seems a bit eccentric or random in shape, which would be common in burrows but not in bones.

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I'm pretty sure that's petrified palmwood. The pinholes are palm's diagnostic vascular structure.

"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!

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#5, definitely palm wood.

The first #2 looks like it might have some of the characteristics of a conularid. Not sure though.

The second #2 looks like petrified wood of an unknown species. Some of the wood from the Yegua formation in texas gets those irregular dark colored streaks through it that are formed during mineralization.

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Yep, #5 is palm - even my 12 year old daughter nailed that test question in about .5 seconds!

Of course, as Mike D knows, I have a lot of palm laying around the house...

I'd recommend polishing it and seeing what kind of finish you can bring out.

What is geology? "Rocks for Jocks!"

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Yeah, I knew most of these aren't fossils, but I'm going to keep them anyway. They're pretty cool. I know without a doubt #4 is a bone from a small animal, but what it came from is anyone's guess. I'll have to ask my uncle where he got it from. It would be nice if I could see the rest of it that is hidden away in the limestone.

You could use a vinager to apply to the jaw to eat away some of the limestone around the teeth. You have to be careful though that the rest of the material is not composed entirely of Limestone or you could loose some of the fossil. It takes a while to disolve though. You could try using a q-tip soaked in the stuff.

The soul of a Fossil Hunter is one that is seeking, always.

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I took some vinegar to it a couple days ago. It has all kinds of little, unorganized, round formations under it, so I bet you guys were right about it being some kind of trace fossil. That's why I decided to ask you pros! ^_^

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