Purse State Park 2/20/16

[Boneheadz]

I went down to Purse state park this past Saturday morning. Didn't find anything crazy but did manage to take some pics for you guys. Someone even had their Duck blind set up right on the beach, not sure if this is legal or not. I know its legal to hunt down there but seeing up a structure, I haven't seen this before. Also took a few macro shots of some small teeth i found. Enjoy!

[Boneheadz]

and the macro shots

[sixgill pete]

Nice teeth. Love the photo's of the actual formation. As far as the duck blind, that seems like one that would have been very labor intensive to set up there, but who knows.

[TNCollector]

Looks like you got yourself 2 little Otodus! Nice finds. I have been there only once, but from my experience, it is a relaxing place to collect.

[kgstfinder]

Thanks so much for posting pics. I really want to check this place out. We just started collecting this year and have only been to Fossil Beach and Stratford Hall. Looking forward to visiting sites in Maryland.

[Boneheadz]

Thanks everyone! kgstfinder, I hunt at fossil beach at least once a week, i love that place.

[SailingAlongToo]

Purse SP is always a good place to go especially if you can't get to other sites because of wind, tide, weather, landowners, etc. A person is practically guaranteed to find sharks teeth, even if most of them are small, meaning no larger than a finger nail. Some larger teeth can be found as Boneheadz shows but most are smaller. My wife and I found a couple hundred teeth in about 2 hours one March day last year, but none were larger than my thumb nail. In the summer Purse SP area can be worked over pretty well by large numbers of people so late fall, winter and early spring are really good times to go.

Not that it matters, but the duck blind looks as if it floated onto the beach in the flooding we have had recently. I've collected Purse SP quite a bit over the last decade including many "winter" trips and have never seen a blind on the beach. Though, we have found many pieces and parts of blinds that got destroyed and "relocated" in the winter flooding. Blinds are usually constructed in shallow water with a sandy or muddy bottom so the pilings can be pounded down manually. Every blind used for hunting federally protected, migratory water fowl must have a federal license/permit physically attached to it, so it won't be hard for the appropriate agencies to figure out whose it is.

On another note about Purse SP, Mallows Bay is currently ACTIVELY being considered for designation as a National Marine Sanctuary by several federal and state agencies with the current proposed boundaries to include Purse SP. If that occurs with the boundaries as proposed, it would be illegal to collect fossils (or Native American artifacts for that matter) at Purse SP going forward. To me, that would be absolutely horrible as Purse SP is a great educational site used by so many schools in MD to teach kids about fossils and geology. I seem to remember the Public Comment period on the National Marine Sanctuary proposal for Mallows Bay goes through the second week of March. I will find the link and post it here in case anyone wants to make a comment. All of the local fossil clubs have distributed emails and info to their members in hopes they will all submit comments during the consideration process.

Here is the link: http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NOS-2015-0111

and I apologize, the comment period closed mid-January.

Just my 2 cents.

Good job Boneheadz.

Edited February 23, 2016 by SailingAlongToo

[Boneheadz]

Good to hear from you sailingalongtoo! I've seen marco sr.s post about this about a month ago. I hate to say it but federal land sucks, leave it to the states!

Edited February 24, 2016 by Boneheadz

[FossilDAWG]

Hi SailingAlongToo,

Following the earlier thread on the proposed marine sanctuary, I was left a bit confused. It was suggested that inclusion of Purse SP in the sanctuary would result in a ban on collecting fossils from the beach. On the other hand, others stated that the proposed sanctuary is a marine sanctuary, and so would protect the marine ecosystem but would not impact use of the actual shore. The shore would remain under control of the state park, and so fossil collected from the beach could continue. Do you know with reasonable certainty which scenario would apply? Is there any reason why the state would cede control of its territory (Purse State Park) to Federal control? Would private property owners along the shore suddenly be unable to build a dock or boat launch, or otherwise be unable to continue to use their property as they had previously?

Thanks,

Don

[SailingAlongToo]

Don,

All I can tell you is what was communicated to me through several fossil, mineral and geology forums and clubs I'm associated with. Below in blue, italics is exactly what I got back in early Jan. It originated from someone in the Southern MD Rock and Mineral Club to someone who forwarded it "on behalf of the" Delaware Mineralogical Society. The email made some valid points about precedent from other National Marine Sanctuaries and the impact of this one.

What I do know relevant to your line of questions is that there was an original boundary shown for the Sanctuary when it was first proposed to the public. But, when it got several steps through the government red tape and eventually to the Public Comment period for the Environmental Assessment / Impact phase the boundary had actually been increased and there were proposals to increase it even more. When I went to the link I provided in my original post and read the documents because I had the same confusion you did, I couldn't find an answer reference to continued fossil collecting being allowed or not allowed. I do know it is illegal to "collect" or remove fossils, relics, etc. from many other federal lands without a permit. (I'm not saying all federal lands, but there is quite a bit that requires a permit and they don't give them out except to research institutions.)

Back in December I heard a really well done piece / report on NPR about Mallows Bay being considered for Sanctuary status. You may be able to find that on their website using "Mallows Bay" as the search words.

Here's what I got from several fossil and mineral clubs in the mid-Atlantic region:

[Hello from a concerned Rock Hound ----

It has just come to my attention that the proposed Federal Mallows Bay National Marine Sanctuary in western Charles County, Maryland may prohibit collecting fossils, native American artifacts and rocks such as the Patuxent River Agate along a large portion of the Potomac River in Southern Maryland.

The original purpose of Marine Sanctuary status was to protect a small area of the tidal Potomac River containing the wooden remains about 200 small ships which were burned to their waterlines and abandoned there in the 1800’s and early 1900’s.

The proposed Sanctuary initially increased in size from less than 100 acres to 14 square miles including the popular fossil collecting areas of Purse State Park and Douglas Point BLM area. And recently, it has been proposed that the Sanctuary area expand again to many times (over 50 square miles) in size to include all of the tidal Potomac up to the high tide mark on both the Virginia and Maryland sides south to Popes Creek to include Nanjemoy Creek and Port Tobacco Creek and north to include Mattawoman Creek and Chapman’s Landing State lands.

Although the proposed exact language for the Mallows Bay National Marine Sanctuary regulations has not been published, other sanctuaries specifically prohibit the “…possessing, moving, removing, injuring, or attempting to possess, move, remove, or injury a Sanctuary Historical resource.” A Historical Resource (per the Monterey Bay, CA Nat’l Marine Sanctuary regs) is defined as “…any resource possessing…archaeological or paleontological significance … including … objects significantly associated with … earlier peoples, cultures.”

If you want to LEGALLY continue to collect (and possess) shark’s teeth and other fossils as well as the incidental arrowhead or pretty rock in this area, then you better act fast and make a comment requesting specific language to allow fossil collecting by January 15, 2016 deadline (this coming Friday) on the following Federal website: (highlight the web address below and left click your mouse)

http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NOS-2015-0111

Please pass this to all your Rock Hound friends – and send in your comments TODAY. If you know how to put it on Facebook and other social media, please do so.]

[Auspex]

The $100,000 question is whether the interpretation of 'historical resources' includes fossils from above the tide line.