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Red and Blue Fossils for Election Day


DPS Ammonite

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Show us your red and blue fossils in celebration of Election Day. While red and blue states and members of red and blue political parties occur in equal to subequal numbers in the US, blue fossils are quite rare. Lots of fossils are reddish because iron minerals are the most common pigments of rocks on Earth. Blue colors in fossils are quite rare. The blue phosphate rich mineral vivianite sometimes occurs in phosphate rich fossils such as Mammoth and shark teeth that have been altered by soil conditions.

 

My red fossil is a crinoid column replaced by iron-rich, chert from the Pennsylvanian Naco Formation in central Arizona. I don't have a true blue fossil so here is a photo of one found on the internet: a probable millipede fossil composed of Larimar which is a rare blue variety of the mineral pectolite found in the Dominican Republic.

 

The gist of this challenge is for our members to show us liberal numbers of blue fossils even though, by conservative estimates, reddish fossil are much more common.

 

For those of you caught in the middle, that don't have red or blue fossils, show us your purple fossils. Then we would really be impressed.

 

 

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My goal is to leave no stone or fossil unturned.   

See my Arizona Paleontology Guide    link  The best single resource for Arizona paleontology anywhere.       

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Fragments of fossilized kangaroo bones from the pleistocene of Australia :)

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"Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another."
-Romans 14:19

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8 minutes ago, DPS Ammonite said:

Wow! You may have a not so middle of the road purple fossil.

Purple? :P I thought these were purple and those were blue?

 

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"Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another."
-Romans 14:19

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Show Us Your Blue Fossils - LINK

 

Show Us Your Pink Fossils - LINK

 

Close enough.... :P 

    Tim    VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER

   MOTM.png.61350469b02f439fd4d5d77c2c69da85.png      PaleoPartner.png.30c01982e09b0cc0b7d9d6a7a21f56c6.png.a600039856933851eeea617ca3f2d15f.png     Postmaster1.jpg.900efa599049929531fa81981f028e24.jpg    VFOTM.png.f1b09c78bf88298b009b0da14ef44cf0.png  VFOTM APRIL - 2015  

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"In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."
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Lots of teeth at Shark Tooth Hill come out of the ground blue (temporarily), then soon turn grey when exposed to the air.

 

 

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Would Paraloid etc stop that, caldigger?

 

Skye - try pics in the sun, it shows more the blue side ;) love the colours!

"Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe" - Saint Augustine

"Those who can not see past their own nose deserve our pity more than anything else."

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1 hour ago, Ash said:

Would Paraloid etc stop that,

My guess is no, because it is ultraviolet light that causes the fading. (or is it dehydration?)

 

Tony

 

PS It is kind of disappointing to watch them fade.

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.

 

 

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Tony, I think it is caused by removal from an anaerobic environment. Once they get fresh air (meaning oxygen ),they quickly fade. My first big tooth (for me it was), didn't see direct sunlight and it went from deep sky blue to grey within about 20 minutes. I would love it if they retained the fresh out of the ground colors, but alas the don't.  I think trying to coat them in the field may be a bit impractical, due to the amount of sandy matrix that clings on until washed.

 

 

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