eyesearch Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 I found this in a mound of shells on Casey Key in Venice Beach, FL. It is almost 1 1/2 inches long. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kosmoceras Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 Looks like it could be, but I am no expert with Venice beach stuff, so I can't tell for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Russell Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 It appearse to be a toe bone, but from what I'm not sure. I have no doubts that that someone here will know. Cool find, and welcome to the forum! Finding my way through life; one fossil at a time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dragonsfly Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 (edited) That's what I was thinking, nice find ! Edited March 4, 2012 by dragonsfly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 Looks like a metatarsal; from what I don't know. "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...
dragonsfly Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 Are you sure its fossilized? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted March 4, 2012 Share Posted March 4, 2012 (edited) Are you sure its fossilized? Good question. It doesn't look it to me. If you need some help answering I'm sure you will get plenty of advice here.On second thought, maybe not. It looks like that was the question. Tap it with something hard. If it sounds like fine china it's mineralized. It's not always that simple but it's a good place to start. Edited March 4, 2012 by Rockwood Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eyesearch Posted March 5, 2012 Author Share Posted March 5, 2012 After tapping it with various hard items, I would guess this is not fossilized. Where could I find out what kind of bone this is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted March 5, 2012 Share Posted March 5, 2012 There is a difference between fossilized and mineralized. This looks modern but I have some 15,000 year old clam shells that look modern. I think much of Florida is Pleistocene also. I really expected someone more local to jump in here, but short of that you could try to find a match on line or take it to a university. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted March 5, 2012 Share Posted March 5, 2012 (edited) Cow/pig phalanx? Total Guess. Was hopping Nate or Harry would see this. You could try the "flame test" to see if it's recent or not. Good Luck. Regards, Edited March 5, 2012 by Fossildude19 Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarheel59 Posted March 5, 2012 Share Posted March 5, 2012 This past summer I was on the gulf coastal area and visited Venice. There was a lot of bones lying in the shallows that were not fossilized They were scattered hundreds of yards. Could they be whale or some other marine mammal?? Jeff/Tarheel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eyesearch Posted March 10, 2012 Author Share Posted March 10, 2012 Update- I sent the photos to Richard C. Hulbert Jr. the Collections Manager at the Division of Vertebrate Paleontology, Florida Museum of Natural History and he identified it as a toe bone from a juvenile white-tailed deer. Modern, not a fossil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krisdigs86 Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 metatarsal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lloyd Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 The "tap test" is a good indicator if you do get that fine china sound because, of course, that verifies you have a fossil. I've found, though, in Florida the lack of the fine china sound does not rule out fossil so it is not a good indicator in that way. I've heard of the flame test but never tried it myself, I have heard - however - that it will positively identify a find as fossil or not based on the smell once put under flame. That being said, looking at it I thought toe bone right away with no clue what animal.... since you had Hulbert at UF look at it, I'd take that ID to the bank, being the collections curator there at the Museum, he has access to the entire Florida State collection and his id's are rarely anything but right on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jacob Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 Looks modern to me, my best guess would be from a cow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrehistoricFlorida Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 It's important to note that this bone is a phalanx, not a metatarsal. Based on these pictures, I would identify it as a juvenile modern pig. www.PrehistoricFlorida.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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