Botanical Fossils in Northeast Oklahoma

[fixer11]

This is my first post since I introduced myself a week or so ago. All of this (the forum as well as the fossils) are extremely new to me. So, I hope I'm doing everything alright. I've tried to read up a bit before posting. I'm honestly wanting to know if what I've stumbled on is a place as special as it seems to me. I guess, that's what matters anyhow. Nonetheless, I wanted to show you a few pictures of the types of things I find. None of these have to be looked for. They are in a creek that is sometimes full and running with water, and sometimes dry as a bone. But these are everywhere. Actually, the form the bed of the creek even. The "chunks" I pick up feel like clay and can be split when they are still somewhat wet. If they dry, they get brittle. If I soak them in water to wet them again, the completely fall apart. The only way I know to open them to find the little treasures inside is within 15-30 minutes after I get a bag full and get back home. Any info on them is great. I want to share and hopefully learn. Thanks, Frank

[tmaier]

Sweeet!

Carboniferous period plant fossils in mud stone (about 320 million years old).

[Fossildude19]

Nice finds - good contrast between the fossils and matrix.

I see some Pecopterids, Asterophyllites, Neuropteris, and Calamites.

Thanks for posting them.

Regards,

[piranha]

Here is an excellent paper on the Middle Pennsylvanian flora of Okmulgee County:

 

 

Moore, L.C., Wittry, J., & DiMichele, W.A. (2014)

The Okmulgee, Oklahoma fossil flora, a Mazon Creek equivalent: Spatial conservatism in the composition of Middle Pennsylvanian wetland vegetation over 1100km.

Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 200:24-52

 

PDF LINK

 

 

 

[tmaier]

1. ?

2. Neuropteris species

3. Sphenophylum species

4. Calamites species

5. ?

6. Neuropteris species

7. Alethopteris species

Those are my best guesses, other people might have additions and corrections.

[abyssunder]

For me #1/3 at right part/counterpart= (#5, No.3) looks like Asterophyllites equisetiformis.

[fixer11]

Thanks so much to everyone for taking the time you have and giving me some references so I can get some learning done. It seems I'm finding something different almost every time I go. I'm hooked, no doubt.

[tmaier]

"But these are everywhere..."

Wow, are you lucky to have such a rich and interesting formation so close by.

Some books you can read are "Plant Fossils of West Virginia and Adjacent areas" and "Plant Fossils of the British Coal Measures". During the Carboniferous, the USA was connected to England, so the plants found in England are often the same as found in your area.

So your formation is a muddy swamp filled with ferns and fern trees, and also might have other creatures that would occupy a swamp, like insects and snails, etc.

Trying to identify one fern from another requires close examination of how the leaflets attach to the main stem, the shape of the leaflets, and the vein pattern in the leaflet. It can get pretty detailed and confusing.

[tmaier]

Oh, and a word of warning. These plant fossils are a bit weird in that the different parts of the plant can have different taxonomical names. So one plant can be classified with several different names, because the leaves have one name, the roots might have another name, the bark another name. This is because there was a dispute as to which leaves went with which plants, so they decided to classify them separately. Normally one creature has only one latin classification name.

And plants are a bit weird in that one species can have different appearance based on the environment it grows in and the maturity of the leaves and their position on the plant. All that added to the difficulty in classification, and the books will show this.

Edited April 28, 2016 by tmaier

[fixer11]

And plants are a bit weird in that one species can have different appearance based on the environment it grows in and the maturity of the leaves and their position on the plant. All that added to the difficulty in classification, and the books will show this.

Thanks a ton. I got some information back from a Paleobotanist at the Sam Nobel Museum of Natural History in Norman, OK. I sent her a few of the same pictures I posted here, and she took quite a bit of time that I appreciate more than anyone knows in her reply. I thought I would share it with everyone:

"Thank you for your inquiry and sharing the photos of the fossils you found.

It does appear like you found a nice spot in NE OK for finding paleobotany

fossils. It also appears from looking at the photos you sent, that you have

fossils that can be identified as fossilized ferns as well as some other

Pennsylvanian age fossils.

Many of the plants are Medullosans. Medullosans are a group of seed plants that

are commonly, though incorrectly, called seed ferns. You have some that can be

identified as types of Neuropteris and Alethopteris. More info on Medullosans is

available on our website at: http://samnoblemuseum.ou.edu/common-fossils-of-okla

homa/plant-fossils/fossils-by-plant-group/fossil-medullosans-/

additionally our specimen database (http://samnoblemuseum.ou.edu/collections-and

-research/paleobotany/integrated-paleobotany-and-invertebrate-paleontology-datab

ase/)

has specimens with photographs to compare with the fossils you found. Use "

Neuropteris" or " Alethopteris" as the search term.

You also have some "true" ferns meaning that they are related to our modern day

ferns. You have some that can be identified as Pecopteris. Unfortunately, we

don't currently have a webpage in our Common Fossils of Oklahoma for these, but

if you search our specimen database (http://samnoblemuseum.ou.edu/collections-an

d-research/paleobotany/integrated-paleobotany-and-invertebrate-paleontology-data

base/)

using the term "Pecopteris" you will find specimens in our collection that have

images for you to compare to the fossils you found.

You also have a few that probably can be identified as Cordaites (a seed plant

that is considered to be related to conifers). The ones I think you may have are

of the strap-like leaves. More on Cordaites is available on our website at: http

://samnoblemuseum.ou.edu/common-fossils-of-oklahoma/plant-fossils/fossils-by-pla

nt-group/fossil-cordaites/

additionally our specimen database (http://samnoblemuseum.ou.edu/collections-and

-research/paleobotany/integrated-paleobotany-and-invertebrate-paleontology-datab

ase/)

has specimens with photographs to compare with the fossils you found. Use

"Cordaites" as the search term.

You may also have a few that can be identified as Lepidopylloides (the leaf of a

Lycophyte). More info on fossil Lycopods can be found at http://samnoblemuseum.o

u.edu/common-fossils-of-oklahoma/plant-fossils/fossils-by-plant-group/fossil-lyc

ophytes/

additionally our specimen database (http://samnoblemuseum.ou.edu/collections-and

-research/paleobotany/integrated-paleobotany-and-invertebrate-paleontology-datab

ase/)

has specimens with photographs just use " Lepidopylloides" as the search term.

Most of the specimens in the photos appear to be in a type of rock called shale.

Shale is made from very fined grained sediments like clay that have been

cemented together to form rock. When shale is wet it can indeed appear to be

more like clay than rock. Also, shale is deposited in layers of sediments that

come in as influxes. Each influx creates a layer that cause bedding planes from

the various influxes of sediment.

Sincerely,

Margaret Landis

Paleobotany, Micropaleontology, & Mineralogy Collection Manager Sam Noble Museum

University of Oklahoma

2401 Chautauqua Ave., Norman, OK 73072-7029

Phone: (405) 325-8266

Fax: (405) 325-7699"

http://www.snomnh.ou.edu

[tmaier]

That is really nice that you got such an expert reply. If you take up collecting these fossils, that person might be a valuable expert resource. But she would probably appreciate that you put in some time into the research first.

Your link to the museum's fossil page isn't working, so I found it through google.

http://samnoblemuseum.ou.edu/common-fossils-of-oklahoma/plant-fossils/fossils-by-plant-group/fossil-medullosans/

Maybe you can stop by the museum? They have a list of activities on their main web page.

I only had one day opportunity to collect Carboniferous plant fossils, and I gathered so many that I spent the next several weeks researching them. That was about 25 years ago.