Mtskinner Posted September 14, 2014 Author Share Posted September 14, 2014 And the last goodie he had was this small set of fused verts...just over an inch long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mtskinner Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 Bad collecting techniques?. Just keep looking you will run into teeth. Harder to see and preserve than bone. Lol how did I miss this one! Probably so! Seriously though this brings up a huge issue I have with finding the mother lode...how do you develop better technique when all fossils in my area seem to be way out of context? I have actually found fossilized shark teeth in old coke bottles and sardine cans a few feet "below" mosasaur teeth! Everything, and I mean everything we have found is already "loose" and rolling down the creek. How can I better refine my technique in these cases? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troodon Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 When one goes prospecting in the Hell Creek or any place you want to follow the bone back to the source. For example, if you see bone fragments at the bottom of a bank you work your way up to see if you can find where its coming from. You indicate that everything is loose and rolling down the creek. So what you need to do if find out where the material is coming from. The side of the bank ? A layer that is above the bank? There could be a channel which can only be a one or two feet thick that is contains the mother lode. Keep working to try to find the source, it just may take time and patience. The other thing you need to keep in mind is that their may not be a mother lode. Dinosaur material is not abundant in eastern AL. Best of luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squali Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 I would walk up stream until the material disappeared or changed. Then, working back downstream look for small exposures in the stream bed. Small means possibly a 6'' wide exposure. Your material seems relatively fresh to the stream environment so your not far the exposure that is producing these fossils. Formation contacts can be productive. Looking forward to seeing more of your finds. It's hard to remember why you drained the swamp when your surrounded by alligators. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mtskinner Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 I hear ya and I've tried to replicate it but to date I've never found even a sharks tooth in the marl cliffs along the banks of any of these creeks...but I've found 4-5 thousand teeth (shark) walking the bars. And I'm talking miles upon miles of several different creeks where the bars are constantly turning over and moving down the creek each year. There are a few creeks over in Georgia that you can find the shell line and dig out teeth until your fingers bleed but I have yet to find that line or anything that resembles it in Alabama. Don't get me wrong, I fully appreciate any guidance I can get but it does get frustrating when you know where the fossils should be but time after time they just aren't. No way I'm giving up though, just tough to figure out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mtskinner Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 (edited) I would walk up stream until the material disappeared or changed. Then, working back downstream look for small exposures in the stream bed. Small means possibly a 6'' wide exposure. Your material seems relatively fresh to the stream environment so your not far the exposure that is producing these fossils. Formation contacts can be productive. Looking forward to seeing more of your finds. I believe you told me to try this before and I have started doing this the last few trips. Have yet to find much due to lightning running me out this year but I'm on it! All my hunting buddy's are beating me to em! Edited September 16, 2014 by Mtskinner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mtskinner Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 Could these be possible predation marks? Just seen these in one of my pics I posted yesterday! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mtskinner Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 (edited) Different view Edited September 16, 2014 by Mtskinner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troodon Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 I hear ya and I've tried to replicate it but to date I've never found even a sharks tooth in the marl cliffs along the banks of any of these creeks...but I've found 4-5 thousand teeth (shark) walking the bars. And I'm talking miles upon miles of several different creeks where the bars are constantly turning over and moving down the creek each year. There are a few creeks over in Georgia that you can find the shell line and dig out teeth until your fingers bleed but I have yet to find that line or anything that resembles it in Alabama. Don't get me wrong, I fully appreciate any guidance I can get but it does get frustrating when you know where the fossils should be but time after time they just aren't. No way I'm giving up though, just tough to figure out! How high are the marl cliffs? Is it possible there is a channel deposit in those cliffs that is only a thin layer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troodon Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Could these be possible predation marks? Just seen these in one of my pics I posted yesterday!Those are not your teeth marks getting rid of built up fustrations in not finding those teeth? Boy its hard to say, its possible but I would have expected something more narrow with some grooving to really support predation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mtskinner Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 How high are the marl cliffs? Is it possible there is a channel deposit in those cliffs that is only a thin layer? The banks in most of the creeks range from 10-20 foot high (marl) but this new creek where the claw was found is 20-30 foot straight up. I'll try to get a few pictures Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squali Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 If there is a bottom to the marl I would look there. you will probably have to dig down some but I wouldn't do it under a marl cliff. It can fail massively. It's hard to remember why you drained the swamp when your surrounded by alligators. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troodon Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 The banks in most of the creeks range from 10-20 foot high (marl) but this new creek where the claw was found is 20-30 foot straight up. I'll try to get a few pictures Wow pretty high banks. Your finds appear fresh and on the surface so stating the obvious they are probably weathering out from the cliff face. That exposure can be anywhere even at point you cannot reach or see. It can be a channel deposit which would contain a variety of species. Nice size limb bones have come out of those cliffs so the lens maybe be thick. Your best bet when you get out to this area is not only to work the base of the cliffs but the face looking for protruding bones. Not easy but over time may yield results. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mtskinner Posted September 16, 2014 Author Share Posted September 16, 2014 Thanks for all the advice...I'm gonna take it and run with it next time I'm in the creek! Here's a few pics of two of the creeks I hunt. As you can see the banks are pretty steep in some places. Never mind my pot bellied hunting partner in one of the pics. He found a few points that day and was a happy camper! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troodon Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Beautiful collecting area, a bit humid in the summer? Mother nature is everywhere. I can see it can be quite challenging to collect since the marl seems quite uniform. I would keep one eye on those cliffs and see if there is anything popping out especially in areas where you are finding fossils. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Very even, but distinct, strata (if I am seeing it right). I'd love to know its depositional history! What is the round irregularity I've marked? "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...
Mtskinner Posted September 17, 2014 Author Share Posted September 17, 2014 Well...that's a good question! My luck it's a huge vertebra that will be gone when I go back and check on it! There are several large stone objects that stick out of the bank in that creek and that's probably what it is. We call them fossilized turtle shells b/c some of them look like a large turtle lying there from far off. Some of them are perfectly round and can be up to 2-1/2 foot across. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Opisthotriton Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 That is a really beautiful location to spend time fossiling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted September 17, 2014 Share Posted September 17, 2014 I hear ya and I've tried to replicate it but to date I've never found even a sharks tooth in the marl cliffs along the banks of any of these creeks...but I've found 4-5 thousand teeth (shark) walking the bars. And I'm talking miles upon miles of several different creeks where the bars are constantly turning over and moving down the creek each year. There are a few creeks over in Georgia that you can find the shell line and dig out teeth until your fingers bleed but I have yet to find that line or anything that resembles it in Alabama. Don't get me wrong, I fully appreciate any guidance I can get but it does get frustrating when you know where the fossils should be but time after time they just aren't. No way I'm giving up though, just tough to figure out! Places like that are tough puzzles. I would closely inspect any matrix attached to the bones you find for subtle clues like: matrix color, texture, even smaller fossils. You might find that there are subtle variations in the strata that can get you to the level producing the bones. Other areas to look closer at would be bank collapses, faults, and any resistant strata forming a 'bench' or 'shelf' along the creek. Consider how most of the float material that you are hunting got into the creek bottom. Much of it was likely lifted from the bottom itself. Additional material will come from bank collapses, shrink/swell cracking, 'benches', and faults. Study any geologic maps of the area closely. Search for any paleontology papers published that involve the creeks. Keep following the clues...at least the beasts you are hunting can no longer bite back. 1 The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true. - JJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mtskinner Posted September 18, 2014 Author Share Posted September 18, 2014 Thanks for the comments! I actually looked up after reading the last post and there, staring back at me was the only tooth I've ever found that still had matrix on it! Might just be my golden ticket! It's not a lot of material to go on but it's a start! Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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