Trilobite Hunting Down Under - April 2017

[Paleoworld-101]

G'day TFF,

 

I thought i'd share with you all the results of my recent trilobite hunting trip in country NSW, Australia. This is only the second time i have been able to collect trilobites and i am very pleased with the results! My family and i went out to a spot near Forbes that is part of the Silurian-aged Cotton Formation. The rocks are marine and date back about 435 million years old! It's crazy to think that at the time these animals were alive in the sea, there was very little life yet on land at all! The most common find here is the trilobite Odontopleura markhami, but you can also find graptolites and rare brachiopods and gastropods. 

 

We got to the site around about 11 am and quickly started splitting as many rocks as we could looking for the trilobites, and after being there for only about a minute i managed to split a beautiful near-complete Odontopleura markhami with both the positive and negative sides. It was only about the second or third rock i cracked open too! For the next few hours my family and i continued to whack away at the rocks and we managed to find at least 5 other complete trilobites during that time, in addition to lots and lots of disarticulated body parts (isolated heads, tails, sections of thorax etc). Mum and i got the best examples, but it really does tend to come down to luck (and persistence)! It was a great little trip and the specimens below are already proudly displayed in one of my bedroom glass cabinets. Now for the pictures!

 

 

The Location:

 

 

 

The Days Best Finds (complete or near-complete trilobites only)

 

First of all i thought i'd include a picture of what the seafloor might have looked like in this part of Australia 435 million years ago. 

 

 

This was the Odontopleura markhami  i found barely a minute after arriving at the site! 

 

 

My other favourite example that i found 

 

 

I love this Odontopleura markhami  that mum found! The detail of the spines is amazing!

 

 

Other great examples. All are again Odontopleura markhami. 

 

 

Thanks for checking this report out and happy hunting to all!

 

Cheers,

Nathan

 

[Phevo]

Gorgeous finds

 

I was wondering if you guys ever make any casts from the external molds?

[Dave pom Allen]

 nice finds

 

[Ludwigia]

1 hour ago, Paleoworld-101 said:

 

We got to the site around about 11 am and quickly started splitting as many rocks as we could looking for the trilobites, and after being there for only about a minute i managed to split a beautiful near-complete Odontopleura markhami with both the positive and negative sides.

 

 

I don't know why that is, but that often happens to me when I'm visiting or searching out new sites. Then there's sometimes nothing again for a long time, but at least I know that they're in there somewhere.

Nice finds, Nathan!

 

[Fossildude19]

All that shale to split!  

Great report, pictures and finds, Nathan! 

Thank you for the vicarious field trip.  

Regards,

[Kane]

Excellent finds! Looks like the perfect spot. Thanks for taking us along, at least virtually!

[Jeffrey P]

Looks like you collected some beautiful trilos there. I especially love the preservation on the second and third ones that you and your mum collected. Congratulations. Maybe you'll want to hunt for trilobites again. We have plenty here in New York.

[ynot]

Great report, pictures and finds, Nathan! 

[David E.]

Awesome finds.  Those positive and negative side by sides are really cool.

[Nimravis]

Very nice finds- congrats.

[deutscheben]

What lovely trilobites! The preservation is exquisite. Thanks for the trip report.

[hrguy54]

Great finds!  Very similar "approach" to what I find north of Dayton, OH from the Silurian...similar looking limestone.

 

Very different trilobites, though...mine are Flexycalamene's

[jpc]

Cool... now I want to go back to Oz.  

[piranha]

According to Jell & Adrain: Odontopleura (Sinespinaspis) markhami  is elevated to generic rank: Sinespinaspis markhami

 

 

Edgecombe, G.D., & Sherwin, L. (2001)

Early Silurian (Llandovery) trilobites from the Cotton Formation, near Forbes, New South Wales, Australia.

Alcheringa, 25(1):87-105  LINK

 

Jell, P.A., & Adrain, J.M. (2003)

Available generic names for trilobites.

Memoirs of the Queensland Museum, 48(2):331-553  LINK

 

[belemniten]

NIce report and great finds !

I love trilobites  Congrats !

 

[fossiladdict]

Love, love, love!  Great finds!

[Jakuzi]

Very cool.  The detail on them is amazing.

[DevonianDigger]

 

Those are gorgeous! Wouldn't mind snagging a few of those myself someday!

[fossilnoggin]

thanks for sharing!  the preservation on these trilobites is exquisite

[Darktooth]

Beautiful trilobites! Congratulations on a nice hunt! 

[Fossil-Hound]

This makes a trip to Australia worth it! Skip everything else and go for the bugs!

[goatinformationist]

Yes please, what they said and more of the same when you get the time.

[Wrangellian]

Add me to the list (jk)

Picking trilobites in sunny Australia.. what more could you ask for?

[cameronsfossilcollection]

Absolutely awesome finds! Australia has some awesome bugs!!

[automech]

Beautiful