Any Thoughts On What This May Be? Cretaceous Eagle Ford - 3" X 2" X 1" Thick.

[claire01]

First I thought fish, then crustacean and now I'm just not sure.

Here is a link to an album with more pictures: http://imgur.com/a/3Art6

Thanks so much for having a look!

[Auspex]

Lobster?!

[tmaier]

Definately crab or lobster.

[Indagator]

Hey Claire,

You can see parts of a claw in the middle lower section of the rock so it is either crab or lobster.

[tmaier]

In the upper right of the top image there is a carapace.

And farther below that is an obvious swimming leg.

I'm gonna go with crab now.

[claire01]

Wow, that was fast, y'all! Thank you! I had someone telling me this portion was was an eye socket and I was completely confused:

[tmaier]

I'm not sure what that is...

[Auspex]

Am I seeing a segmented abdomen, or is that a misinterpretation?

[Herb]

some kind of crustacian

[FossilDAWG]

You should be able to uncover more of the claw, which will allow a better ID. At the moment I would say that I'm getting a "callianassid" (ghost shrimp) vibe from this specimen. Nice find.

Don

[claire01]

That would be awesome, Don. I find evidence of them, but never the actual shrimp! That would make my day. I will do more prep work and see what I can uncover. Thanks everyone, I appreciate your input

[Boesse]

I told you on Reddit it was a crustacean! Glad to see everyone corroborating my ID.

[claire01]

Yes, after someone there told me they thought it was a skull I came here for a second opinion Reddit fossil ID can be a bit of a snarge shoot sometimes. I have been a redditor for years and absolutely love that site, warts and all. Especially the warts

Edited August 15, 2014 by claire01

[RJB]

That 'eye socket' appears to be a part of the claw, but don't hold me to that.

RB

[PFOOLEY]

I told you on Reddit it was a crustacean!

[claire01]

I posted this to TFF for a second opinion before I heard from Boesse on reddit and the post was 16 hours old at that point. The order of the posts there are based on popularity and are not chronological. That is why his appears at the top, not because he answered first. At the time I posted this here I had only heard from 1 person who suggested it was the skull of an herbivore and I came here for verification. Is that not okay? Sorry if I upset anyone.

*Edited to add a link to the thread on reddit.

Here's a link to the post: http://www.reddit.com/r/fossilid/comments/2dj8wz/cretaceous_eagle_ford_3_x_2_x_1_thick/

Edited August 16, 2014 by claire01

[lissa318]

Great find Claire!!!!!

[claire01]

Thanks, Lissa!

[bone2stone]

What you have may indeed be a "Ghost Shrimp" in fact it may be two on one stone.

The pincers are just too small for any of the other types I have found but compares

very well with my ghosties.

The pic I post here is a Notopocorystes in my hand the one to the top right is a shrimp.

I have three other species found in the Eagleford but alas no pics on my work comp.

That is besides the post though for I do think your is a ghostie.

Hope this is something you can follow up on.

They can be prepped out but it does take a pro with an air scribe and perhaps an abrasive air device.

Jess B.

[claire01]

Wow, your notopocorystes is HUGE compared to the ones I have found! Very nice! I haven't had a chance to do much more prep work on mine, but I do plan to get it done. Thank you for your input