abach292 Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 This year of collecting started off great with an early March Mazon Creek trip! Some other members of the fossil forum were collecting last weekend as well, and it was nice to have the company. I'd say the first trip was a success with my first ever Tully Monster find! I'm still in disbelief over it! I found it early in the day and couldn't resist taking a glance at it every time I went back to my bucket for a water break. It's a really great specimen too! It is the new centerpiece to my collection. I never thought I would ever actually find one, and didn't think there were even any left to find! All my trips to Mazon usually result in roundish concretions (jellyfish or worms) or small ovals (ferns/plants). Never have I found anything that was even remotely shaped like a Tully until last weekend. It's ironic timing since the Tully was recently in the news. I found the fossil half-way eroded out of the soil on a very steep ridge. It was actually closed and I was going to freeze-thaw it with the rest of my finds. But in moving the bag and climbing around back to my bucket, the fossil came open on its own. My Take on Treating and Cleaning Mazon Creek Fossils with Vinegar It was recognizable as a Tully, but did have quite a bit of grime and sediment on it from i suppose the small crack that had started. I read online and in this forum, that a water and vinegar solution will help get it clean. I was extremely nervous to use this treatment on the find of a lifetime, but the tully needed a cleanup. So i tested a water and vinegar mixture on some other opened finds that had a similar sediment buildup. I had some positive results, I was actually surprised at how well it cleaned my other 2 'test' fossils up without causing any damage or change to the fossil itself. The practice gave me confidence to try it on the tully. Below are pictures of the fossil and detail on the cleanup procedure. I was very cautious, and very happy with the results. Click each image for full size. This is an image of the raw fossil, no cleaning or treatment. The tully was more visible and more detail was shown when the fossil was wet or damp. But this is what it looked like dry, and hidden under some dirt and buildup. I had scrubbed it lightly with an old toothbrush, but it had little to no effect on cleaning this up. I had to use the vinegar solution. This is the back of the fossil (i.e. what you can look for in the shape and color of a Pit 11 Tully) I opted for a solution that was 1 cup of slightly warm water, 1/4 cup of vinegar. I let the fossil soak for about 5 minutes. I was able to see bubbles coming up from the grime that was the sediment covering the fossil. After 5 minutes I swabbed these areas of the fossil with a Q-Tip while it was still submerged in the vinegar bath. I could actually see particles flaking off and the tully coming to life underneath. After a quick dry and spot-check, the result was that some of the dirt was coming off, but I did not let it soak long enough for the full effect (or the vinegar solution was not strong enough). So I repeated this process 1 more time, soaking for 5 minutes, and then brushing lightly. Then I let the fossil dry to see the result (shown below). You can still see some of the white sandy buildup towards the bottom of the fossil. It was becoming harder to see while soaking in the vinegar solution. I soaked it one more time, and used this picture as a reference to where I need to clean more. The end result is below! With a coin for size reference. What a difference compared to the first picture. And just look at that eye bar. I followed this vinegar bath by rinsing the tully in cold water under the faucet for 10 minutes, hopefully neutralizing the vinegar and preventing any further changes. I was thinking of submitting this for fossil of the month for March. I have a small (but growing) collection of Mazon Creek fossils since I make a couple trips out there each year. You can read about my trips, and a Mazon Creek Field Guide I am working on at my blog Chicago Rants: http://chicagorants.com/2016/03/19/finding-mazon-creek-fossils-the-ultimate-guide/ http://chicagorants.com/2013/05/21/fishing-the-mazon-river-near-morris-il/ http://chicagorants.com/2012/05/15/mazon-creek-fossil-hunting-in-braidwood-il/ 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CBOB Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 Way to go! Another infamous Tully coming out of Mazon! Congrats on a great and rare find. I would definitely enter it in the FOTM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mohsenamini Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 well only can say good job Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darktooth Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 Nice find! I like Trilo-butts and I cannot lie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilized6s Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 Congrats on the partial Tully. I can't believe you and Keith found one in the same day! ~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...
Rob Russell Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 Alright Andrew!! I knew you were out there with us, but never saw you! Lol Congratulations on your great your great find! Finding my way through life; one fossil at a time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abach292 Posted March 21, 2016 Author Share Posted March 21, 2016 thanks so much everyone! as you can tell I'm still really excited about this one, I think I'll get a couple better images and submit it for FOTM for March! And Charlie and Rob, haha I heard you guys were out there too! Would have been cool to meet up, but we never crossed paths. I spent some time with Keith and Andy and we found a few productive ridges and searched them together before eventually wandering off. Keith did find a Tully too! A bit earlier in the day than mine, and I do not think he found the other half, but his had the full eye bar and was similar in shape and size. His probably will look nice once cleaned up and I hope he posts it, and I hope that Pit 11 continues to be so lucky! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digit Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 Good on ya! Two more Tullies saved from weathering to dust in obscurity. I'm still looking for mine but it is good to know they are still there and people are finding them. Thanks for the photo-packed informative post. It's useful posts like this that make this forum such a great resource. Cheers. -Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJB Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 Wow! That's perty dang cool! Nice find. RB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilDudeCO Posted March 22, 2016 Share Posted March 22, 2016 congrats on a fantastic find! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrangellian Posted March 25, 2016 Share Posted March 25, 2016 Nice results... I'm tempted to try this on a couple of my Mazon specimens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stats Posted March 25, 2016 Share Posted March 25, 2016 Here's a shrimp I found the first weekend. The concretion was already open and needed a small amount of clean up. Cheers, Rich Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilized6s Posted March 26, 2016 Share Posted March 26, 2016 Here's Keith's Tully find. ~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...
abach292 Posted March 26, 2016 Author Share Posted March 26, 2016 thanks for posting Charlie! That is a beaut! More complete and defined than mine, congrats Keith! I hope you use some of my cleaning tips to make it really pop. Going to be a good year, 2 tullies from Pit 11 before March is even over! that has to be some kind of record. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squali Posted March 26, 2016 Share Posted March 26, 2016 (edited) https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/palaeocast/id556959673?mt=2#episodeGuid=b71dd5ce358c6d82e349a1a46b21ff9e Attached is a Palaeocast episode featuring mason creek fossils and particularly the Tully monster. Dr. Victoria McCoy published a paper in Nature two weeks ago detailing the findings that point to the Tully being a chordate. The Dr. goes into detail describing what you are seeing in the fossil. Excellent interview as usual. I thoroughly enjoy these podcasts presented for free. You do have to download iTunes to see/ hear it though. Edited March 26, 2016 by squali 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...
deutscheben Posted March 28, 2016 Share Posted March 28, 2016 Wow, nice finds and very useful advice on the cleaning. It looks like I better get back up to Mazonia soon to catch the Tully rush! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abach292 Posted March 31, 2016 Author Share Posted March 31, 2016 good luck! Be sure to post on the forums if you plan on heading out, I'd be open to joining you among others I'm sure. And Squali, thank you for sharing the podcast! Listened to it on the train the other day and found it pretty cool. One idea they mentioned briefly is that the Mazon area was more of a 'hatching' crib for baby sharks, fish, and animals. Perhaps the Tullies we are finding are just babies and they normally grow to the likes of a giant squid? haha I don't think that is the case, but found it an interesting idea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Amateur Paleontologist Posted April 8, 2016 Share Posted April 8, 2016 Yet another Tullimonstrum! I heard from recent research that this enigmatic animal was in fact a vertebrate. I would strongly recommend you to enter it into the VFOTM. Great find of a rare fossil! Opalised fossils are the best: a wonderful mix between paleontology and mineralogy! Q. Where do dinosaurs study? A. At Khaan Academy!... My ResearchGate profile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squali Posted April 14, 2016 Share Posted April 14, 2016 (edited) Another paper released today in Nature. Thomas Clements from Leicester University is interviewed on Palaeocast, same day as paper is released. Lots of interesting science in the Mazon preservation. His focus is the eye bar but some good taphony is included. Leicester is having a Great year. Edit: check out the proposed on line museum they are working on as well. There are many ways to help and it would be a benefit to the science of paleontology. Edited April 14, 2016 by squali 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...
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