paalsbrook Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 (edited) Hi guys,I just joined the forum and wanted to post some photos of fossilized artifacts I've been finding in central Alabama. I'm unsure of their identity, but they appear to be vertebrae, and phalanx bones. I have also found what appears to be large tooth (unknown origin), and two positively id'd shark teeth (only one shown). I was hoping someone may be able to shed some light on them; I find them very interesting and would like to be able to educate people on their history. I have attached photos that I believe should be clear enough, showing the main features of each item. I also have more photos if those do not suffice. Thanks a lot for any help! Edited March 20, 2015 by paalsbrook Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paalsbrook Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 (edited) Possible phalanx tip? Edited March 20, 2015 by paalsbrook Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Each post has that limit. You can add additional photos with each post. The six vertebrae in the upper left of your photo look like they belong to a Late Cretaceous swimming reptile called a mosasaur. So, that means you found bones from something as old as the last dinosaurs. 1 The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true. - JJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paalsbrook Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 Thanks a lot for the help! That's really neat stuff. I'll add some clearer, individual pictures as well. Any idea what the large tooth at the front of the picture may be? Or is it even a tooth at all? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Thanks a lot for the help! That's really neat stuff. I'll add some clearer, individual pictures as well. Any idea what the large tooth at the front of the picture may be? Or is it even a tooth at all? That would be a suggestively shaped stone, me thinks. "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...
paalsbrook Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 Here is a front and back image of what I believed to be a tooth. Could it be something else or possibly a false alarm? The yellowish outer coating scrapes off revealing a hard grayish material underneath. Thought it may have been discolored by sediment? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Here is a front and back image of what I believed to be a tooth. Could it be something else or possibly a false alarm? The yellowish outer coating scrapes off revealing a hard grayish material underneath. Thought it may have been discolored by sediment? These images confirm my assessment: a suggestively worn piece of (lime?) stone. 1 "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...
fossilized6s Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Cool verts! I agree with Auspex, it looks like a worn rock. Also it looks like you have a Squalicorax tooth, scapula (probably modern) and what looks like a Rugose coral (or similar species). 1 ~Charlie~ "There are those that look at things the way they are, and ask why.....i dream of things that never were, and ask why not?" ~RFK ->Get your Mosasaur print ->How to spot a fake Trilobite ->How to identify a CONCRETION from a DINOSAUR EGG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paalsbrook Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 Ah! What a bummer! Quite an interesting shape it formed I must say though. Any thoughts on my second post? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paalsbrook Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 Cool verts! I agree with Auspex, it looks like a worn rock. Also it looks like you have a Squalicorax tooth, scapula (probably modern) and what looks like a Rugose coral (or similar species). Thank you for the insight! I thought that looked like a piece of coral or some tubular plant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtdauber Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Here is a front and back image of what I believed to be a tooth. Could it be something else or possibly a false alarm? The yellowish outer coating scrapes off revealing a hard grayish material underneath. Thought it may have been discolored by sediment? These look like clams enclosed in matrix (similar to crab nodules). Very common in creeks cutting into Cretaceous sediments in south-central Alabama. The coral-looking specimen is a sediment filled boring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Is this a scapula, or what? "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...
fossilized6s Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Is this a scapula, or what? ~.jpg Looks like one to me. A shot from the bottom would confirm. ~Charlie~ "There are those that look at things the way they are, and ask why.....i dream of things that never were, and ask why not?" ~RFK ->Get your Mosasaur print ->How to spot a fake Trilobite ->How to identify a CONCRETION from a DINOSAUR EGG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paalsbrook Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 These look like clams enclosed in matrix (similar to crab nodules). Very common in creeks cutting into Cretaceous sediments in south-central Alabama. The coral-looking specimen is a sediment filled boring. Ah, I see. The clam idea seems more accurate; I say that because I have found a plethora of clam-like creatures in the creek that appear to be fused together. The characteristics of the object(s) suggest something other than an oddly shaped piece of sediment in my opinion. The shape made me think it was a tooth. Here's a picture of a few clam-like specimens I have found. The area is saturated with these and other similar creatures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paalsbrook Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 Looks like one to me. A shot from the bottom would confirm. I'll get a better picture when I get to the house. Any idea what it may have come from? That's somewhat of a strange shape for a scapula isn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Herb Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 The oysters are Exogyra, pretty nice ones at that. They are common in the Cretaceous of Alabama and Tenn. 1 "Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence"_ Carl Sagen No trees were killed in this posting......however, many innocent electrons were diverted from where they originally intended to go. " I think, therefore I collect fossils." _ Me "When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."__S. Holmes "can't we all just get along?" Jack Nicholson from Mars Attacks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Is this a scapula, or what? ~.jpg I think it looks more like a piece of a (softshell) turtle plastron. 1 The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true. - JJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirtdauber Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 I agree with JohnJ on the softshell turtle plastron. Probably recent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted March 20, 2015 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Ah, now I can see it! "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...
jpc Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 Yeah, soft-shelled turtle. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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