kauffy Posted September 2, 2008 Share Posted September 2, 2008 Ok well... its now 11:52 as I write this, and lets just say I had a pot of coffee about 3 hours ago that has kept me up and at it for a bit longer than i intended it to, especially considering i have an exam tomorrow... but thats not the point of this topic.... basically i did something constructive, well other than studying which is something i should have been doing but i decided to mess around with some fossils.... I found this block of chalk filled with some disarticulated but assosiated fish bones, now anyone who has found cretaceous bony fish in chalk would know that they are extreamly fragile and crumble very easily... so a long time ago, any attempts to prep this in any way went out the door. I remembered tho that when i was in America i put some vinegar on a small block that had some oysters and that it reacted really well with the chalk. BINGO procrastination here we go, so i pulled out the block, tested a bit of bone to see if it would react and it didnt, so i chucked the block in a bucket of vinegar and waited..... low and behold the vinegar reacted but there was not enough to dissolve the rock at all, but it made the rock surrounding the bones butter soft! i spent some time picking and brushing away and i actually did quite well to remove some chunks of bone, and i also discovered another large bone underneith the cruddy outer bits! Ive got some nice assosiated bones free of matrix that I can now put into a collection box together instead of having just some crumbly bits on a rock! whoo, i will get some pictures tomorrow.... which is techniqually in 5 minuites but dont expect them until i get some sleep ok..... i need some ID's on some of the boney bits, there quite cool! ok well that was my caffine filled blab about what i did tonight..... and hey, im only a little bit covered in some chalky sludge, but being the keen micro fossil obsessive compulsive person i am, of course i kept that sludge to search through for bits of bone tomorrow... ok ive got way too much caffine running through my system at the moment......im sorry if i just wasted a bit of your time... "Turn the fear of the unknown into the excitment of possibility!"We dont stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted September 2, 2008 Share Posted September 2, 2008 Hi Kauffy, I excavated these partial skull pieces from the same block of Chalk. 1st pic is a closeup. 2nd pic field of view 10mm, different view. 3rd pic lower jaw. I used a diabetic's syringe. How do I get to post message "between" pictures? KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kauffy Posted September 2, 2008 Author Share Posted September 2, 2008 wow awesome stuff! too bad my boney bits are most probably from the tail of a boney fish! do your bones tend to splinter? thats my main problem with these, they flake and splinter like crazy.... but the vinegar really helped. Im guessing yours are cretaceous? "Turn the fear of the unknown into the excitment of possibility!"We dont stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted September 2, 2008 Share Posted September 2, 2008 Yes they do splinter and are Cretaceous. Pic 3 shows how cracked and fragile they are. KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted September 2, 2008 Share Posted September 2, 2008 Incidentally, I have heard back from the NH Museum in London, who have them at the moment. They are unidentifiable. KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kauffy Posted September 2, 2008 Author Share Posted September 2, 2008 bummer they are still amazing specimins though, and definanltly great finds! "Turn the fear of the unknown into the excitment of possibility!"We dont stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted September 2, 2008 Share Posted September 2, 2008 You'll have to change your avatar to a Vinigaroon "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...
kauffy Posted September 2, 2008 Author Share Posted September 2, 2008 You'll have to change your avatar to a Vinigaroon Hahahahaha! "Turn the fear of the unknown into the excitment of possibility!"We dont stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest solius symbiosus Posted September 2, 2008 Share Posted September 2, 2008 How do I get to post message "between" pictures? Click the "Manage Current Attachments" drop down, then click the green cross. That will place the image in your post where ever the cursor happens to be located. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted September 2, 2008 Share Posted September 2, 2008 Thanks Solius KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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