Darren Garrison Posted July 28, 2015 Share Posted July 28, 2015 This is a fossil fragment that I found on Myrtle Beach (or possibly Edisto Beach) in South Carolina somewhere around 15 years ago. Every once in a while, I come across it in my beachcombing hoard and wonder what it might be. I found this site while trolling through Google Images looking for similar pieces (not that I saw a similar piece on this site.)From the complexity of the shape, I can’t envision it as being anything other than a skull fragment; from the size and thickness, it must have been from something fairly large. It has a flattened surface, a curved depression that may have articulated with something, and an area with three deep grooves with ridges between that must have had some muscle attached to or passing through them.Scale is in inches. Any clues? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren Garrison Posted August 1, 2015 Author Share Posted August 1, 2015 Since everyone seems to be baffled, here's a crude stop-motion animation that could be helpful. Plus details of the testure of the flattest surface. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckmerlin Posted August 1, 2015 Share Posted August 1, 2015 Hmm this is difficult without having the specimen in hand. Saying that you have done a great job to try and show as much detail as possible , Im nowhere near being an expert but it could be part of the Sphenoid region of a skull Im sure someone with far more knowledge than I will chip in soon. I think this maybe one for Rich wish I could help more sorry best regards Chris "A man who stares at a rock must have a lot on his mind... or nothing at all' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abyssunder Posted August 1, 2015 Share Posted August 1, 2015 I also used animated gif in one of my older thread (Asian tooth),with the same reason as you.I think a sample in motion could reveal other details than static images,sometimes images are the necessary but not sufficient condition for a good ID. I'm inclined to believe it`s a skull fragment but I'm not convinced of this. " We are not separate and independent entities, but like links in a chain, and we could not by any means be what we are without those who went before us and showed us the way. " Thomas Mann My Library Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichW9090 Posted August 1, 2015 Share Posted August 1, 2015 It does appear to be from a large skull, but based on those pictures I can't say what it is. Maybe elephant, maybe whale? Bobby should take a look to see if he can place it. 1 The plural of "anecdote" is not "evidence". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren Garrison Posted November 24, 2020 Author Share Posted November 24, 2020 Bumping because I have a brief video that I made for a Facebook group (which so far has no answers.) https://youtu.be/bsNi1d2YwAA 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy Cole Posted November 26, 2020 Share Posted November 26, 2020 I'm a complete novice here, so I'm probably way off base, but something about the way the lines kind of crimp together reminds me of some of the large turtle fragments I've seen, almost like a nuchal scute. It may not be shaped quite right for that, and I'm not sure how common turtle fossils are in your area. Just throwing my two cents in since there hasn't been much response yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plantguy Posted November 27, 2020 Share Posted November 27, 2020 Hi Darren, now that piece has some strange worn/broken features doesnt it--interesting!. When I first saw it I was wondering if those linear features were shark feeding damage as it just looked like just a very beat up fragment of unidentifiable bone--im still not sure. My 2nd thought was some type of whale periotic and those are canals but I was hesitant with so many visible bone cells--it just doesnt have the dense/looking bone most of mine show but I started to look at some pics I had and compared it against a baleen petrosal fragment that Bobby had identified awhile back. It has an interesting similarity to yours as but that's all I say as my brain sees/creates all kinds of structure/shapes/possible ID's sometimes. Anyways, for what its worth you got my two cents... I'll copy Bobby here and maybe he has a moment and can look at this thread. @Boesse Good luck with it.. Regards, Chris 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plantguy Posted November 27, 2020 Share Posted November 27, 2020 7 hours ago, Brandy Cole said: I'm a complete novice here, so I'm probably way off base, but something about the way the lines kind of crimp together reminds me of some of the large turtle fragments I've seen, almost like a nuchal scute. It may not be shaped quite right for that, and I'm not sure how common turtle fossils are in your area. Just throwing my two cents in since there hasn't been much response yet. Thanks for bumping this again. Yep there are some weird Trachemys and other nuchal ornamentation types but I think its something else...Here's a bunch of nuchals... Maybe Bobby or someone else will recognize something....I love this strange stuff but sometimes the answer isnt readily apparent! Regards, Chris 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandy Cole Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 On 11/26/2020 at 11:00 PM, Plantguy said: Thanks for bumping this again. Yep there are some weird Trachemys and other nuchal ornamentation types but I think its something else...Here's a bunch of nuchals... Maybe Bobby or someone else will recognize something....I love this strange stuff but sometimes the answer isnt readily apparent! Regards, Chris Thank you! Informative as always. --Brandy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boesse Posted January 17, 2021 Share Posted January 17, 2021 Hey all, thanks for tagging me, and sorry for the self-imposed exile. The cetacean bone in question is part of a cetacean squamosal - and despite being an expert on the subject, I can never quite seem to make them out from a few photos if they're even slightly broken, because they are WEIRD looking things. That being said, i think it could be from the dwarf cetotheriid Herpetocetus. 1 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