Daniel Frew Posted June 28, 2016 Share Posted June 28, 2016 Came across this today on a short hike in Norther Pope County Arkansas. Guessing its a trace fossil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted June 28, 2016 Share Posted June 28, 2016 Can We see pictures of the sides and back of the piece? Tony Darwin said: " Man sprang from monkeys." Will Rogers said: " Some of them didn't spring far enough." My Fossil collection - My Mineral collection My favorite thread on TFF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Frew Posted June 29, 2016 Author Share Posted June 29, 2016 Here is the back Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 Yeah, it is probably a trace fossil. Tony Darwin said: " Man sprang from monkeys." Will Rogers said: " Some of them didn't spring far enough." My Fossil collection - My Mineral collection My favorite thread on TFF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Frew Posted June 29, 2016 Author Share Posted June 29, 2016 Here is the side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Frew Posted June 29, 2016 Author Share Posted June 29, 2016 That's what I figured. Thanks Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 Side view shows it is definitely a trace fossil. Tony Darwin said: " Man sprang from monkeys." Will Rogers said: " Some of them didn't spring far enough." My Fossil collection - My Mineral collection My favorite thread on TFF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CraigHyatt Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 My first thought was bore holes (i.e. agree with trace fossil), but the holes being so uniform in size and distribution gave me pause. But in the side shot, the holes are not very straight so I'm thinking "wormy". Then, when I look closely at the top view of the holes, a lot of them look to be lined which might be from lubricating secretions. See what the experts say. 1 Info: Craig Hyatt, retired software/electrical engineer Experience: Beginner, fossil hunting less than a year Location: Eagle Pass, TX USA on the border with Mexico, hot dry desert Formation: Escondido, Marine, Upper Cretaceous Materials: Sandstone, Mudstone, Shale, Chert, Chalk Typical: Thalassinoides, Sphenodiscus, Exogyra, Inoceramus Reference: http://txfossils.com/Txfossils.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 I'm not the expert to evaluate this piece. In fact it's rare to see an assignment of trace to maker. I have read that the concept Craig mentions is quite valid though. Mucus does facilitate fossilization. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doushantuo Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 Planolites? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmaier Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 I think it is a trace, but maybe not a fossil. I think the holes are fairly modern tubeworm holes. http://www.google.com/search?q=rock+boring+tubeworm&btnG=Search&hl=en&gbv=1&tbm=isch So the tubeworms bored the holes after the rock was formed. That would explain why they are not infilled and have what seems like fresh activity to them. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doushantuo Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 Good call,Tmaier. *i take my hat off to you,sir* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmaier Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 Opps! Better put your hat back on! I think I might be half wrong. I forgot that this is coming from Arkansas, and it looks like marine tubeworms, so that would make it a fossil! The fact that the holes are still clear seems odd, if this is many millions of years old. Seems like some sediment would have settled and solidified in there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doushantuo Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 (edited) all the tubes are orientated more or less the same way,and of more or less equal thickness.Would anyone qualify the holes as being "equidistant"? Edited June 29, 2016 by doushantuo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmaier Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 all the tubes are orientated more or less the same way,and of more or less equal thickness.Would anyone qualify the holes as being "equidistant"? No, not mathematically equidistant. They are not totally random spaced either, they are spread out to give each other space, but not with an order to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CraigHyatt Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 (edited) all the tubes are orientated more or less the same way,and of more or less equal thickness.Would anyone qualify the holes as being "equidistant"?I'd say "uniformly distributed". In my own field of computer science there are algorithms for "random tiling", "random fill", "circle packing", etc. designed to create random, but uniform patterns as seen on this fossil.There are biological mechanisms to achieve this as described in "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" by Sean Carrol. There are chemical analogs like the BZ reaction: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/BelousovZhabotinsky_reaction Edited June 29, 2016 by CraigHyatt Info: Craig Hyatt, retired software/electrical engineer Experience: Beginner, fossil hunting less than a year Location: Eagle Pass, TX USA on the border with Mexico, hot dry desert Formation: Escondido, Marine, Upper Cretaceous Materials: Sandstone, Mudstone, Shale, Chert, Chalk Typical: Thalassinoides, Sphenodiscus, Exogyra, Inoceramus Reference: http://txfossils.com/Txfossils.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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