Penn Dixie Devonian

[DevonianDigger]

Haven't been posting lately, life has thrown me a few curve-balls this summer, but I was taking a closer look at my Penn Dixie crinoids and came across these two pieces I found on the surface of a dry pyrite bed, (Middle Devonian.) I had always thought they were crinoids—and may very well be, but they don't match up with anything that I've come across so far, especially for the area.

Also, it's tough to tell in the picture but those protrusions are definitely spiny—that is to say pointed.

Thank you in advance!

[Rockwood]

It's hard to see much detail in this photo, but I'm in the mood to speculate. They could be lumen casts, with the spines being traces of a boring organism.

It sounds like you may have been collecting off to the left from the entrance. They figure the area represents a low oxygen environment where the size of the fauna was limited.

[tmaier]

Zoom! Level shift! Crop!

... and it is still a mystery to me.

[Manticocerasman]

There are crinoids with spines on their stems. In my area I find such specimens in the early carboniferous: Platicrinites spinifer.

they look a lot like your specimens ( FYI: your pictures are defenitly crinoid stems )

[GeschWhat]

There are crinoids with spines on their stems. In my area I find such specimens in the early carboniferous: Platicrinites spinifer.

they look a lot like your specimens ( FYI: your pictures are defenitly crinoid stems )

I have never seen anything like this before...thanks for sharing!

[DevonianDigger]

It's hard to see much detail in this photo, but I'm in the mood to speculate. They could be lumen casts, with the spines being traces of a boring organism.

It sounds like you may have been collecting off to the left from the entrance. They figure the area represents a low oxygen environment where the size of the fauna was limited.

Dead on on the location!

[DevonianDigger]

Here's some better pictures I took. They certainly seem to be crinoids, I just haven't had any luck yet identifying them.

[Kane]

They are indeed crinoids. I find a lot of dead-ringers to the ones you have here in the Devonian deposits here in Ontario.

[abyssunder]

I could be wrong and I don't know if it's present or not in the Devonian of Penn Dixie, but Baryschyr anosus could be appropriate to yours. Here is a plate with a few B.anosus columns in longitudinal and transverse views, from the unique work CLASSIFICATION AND NOMENCLATURE OF FOSSIL CRINOIDS BASED ON STUDIES OF DISSOCIATED PARTS OF THEIR COLUMNS - RAYMOND C. MOORE and RUSSELL M. JEFFORDS. Try to compare.

" Genus Baryschyr Moore & Jeffords, new genus

Stem heteromorphic, medium-sized, characterized by superficially homeomorphic appearance of subequal columnals which generally are strongly tuberculate on their latera; articular facet consisting of medium to very large lumen which is variably quinquelobate to circular in outline, surrounded by crenularium with straight, moderately fine crenulae, interior of axial canal slightly constricted by bulges of claustra.
Type species.— Baryschyr *anosus MOORE & JEFFORDS, new species, from Middle Pennsylvanian of southern Oklahoma; designated herein.
Discussion.—A decidedly variable feature of this genus is the presence or absence of cirrus scars and irregularity of their placement on stems having them. In most specimens noditaxes of 4 columnals can be discriminated but not in all.
Occurrence.—Middle Pennsylvanian. "

[Jeffrey P]

Two years ago I found a tiny crinoid stem piece in that same area that' looks essentially the same as yours.

[DevonianDigger]

Thank you everyone for the feedback! Hopefully I will find more of them one of these days.

[doushantuo]

The Moore/Jeffords paper is undoubtedly present in Fruitbat's library