TyrannosaurusRex Posted March 27, 2015 Share Posted March 27, 2015 This is from morocco. It measures about 4" long Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpc Posted March 27, 2015 Share Posted March 27, 2015 (edited) Looks more like a piece of skull. I am not seeing much croc texture, though. Frontal or parietal bone of a croc is my semi-educated guess. I am only guessing croc because you suggested it. Correction: the upper right photo does indeed show croc texture. The hourglasss shape and bilateral symmetry suggest top of skull. Edited March 27, 2015 by jpc 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TyrannosaurusRex Posted March 27, 2015 Author Share Posted March 27, 2015 Thanks SO much JPC! I appreciate the answer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpc Posted March 27, 2015 Share Posted March 27, 2015 You're welcome. Fun little fossil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilized6s Posted March 27, 2015 Share Posted March 27, 2015 I agree with JP, it looks like a skull element. But Croc, ......maybe. I'm not familiar enough with Croc material to say "yay" or "nay". So no, this would not be considered a scute. ~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...
Ptychodus04 Posted March 27, 2015 Share Posted March 27, 2015 I also don't see the normal texturing associated with croc skull members. Granted, there is a lot of variation when comparing different bones from the same beast. It does look like a frontal bone to me as well. Regards, Kris Global Paleo Services, LLC https://globalpaleoservices.com http://instagram.com/globalpaleoservices http://instagram.com/kris.howe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diceros Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 The pic in the lw. rt. is the key - it's part of the neurocranium (the top of the skull) of a huge bony fish. This view is ventral (the view above dorsal, both with anterior at right), and the two concave areas in the center, at top and bottom, are for the tops of the eyes. The distinctive hourglass shape in the center is characteristic of the underside of bony fish neurocrania. It looks like the back of the big bone wasn't fully fused to the part of the neurocranium behind it. The top of the skull's better fused to the rest of the skull in crocodilians. From the color, I'm guessing it's from Kem Kem (e. Cenomanian), in eastern Morocco, and not from the phosphate beds (e. Maastrichtian at bottom, and e. Eocene at top) from along the coast. Kem Kem has some huge bony fish, so it's possible. You might send the pics to John Maisey, at the American Museum in New York, in case it's a giant coelacanth. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichW9090 Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 Welcome to TFF, Diceros. Always good to add another knowledgeable resource to the mix! The plural of "anecdote" is not "evidence". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diceros Posted April 1, 2015 Share Posted April 1, 2015 Thanks Rich, nice to be here. Dr. Diceros Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now