Texas Pennsylvanian "Super Shark"

[BobWill]

I posted a portion of a shark braincase in this sub-forum on June 7th of 2014 that I had sent to the American Museum of Natural History in November of 2011. Dr. John Maisey is their curator of fossil fishes and the leading expert of Paleozoic sharks so I thought he should be the one to have a look. When he proposed writing a paper on it I donated it to the museum collection. That was September of 2012 and he has just now gotten past peer review with the paper and it will be in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology soon. It is already available in their digital edition.

 

Over 5 years has been a long time to wait but I am very glad I got the chance to make this contribution since it appears to be from the largest known shark of it's time. We still don't know which shark it is but there have been some very large teeth found at the Jacksboro Texas Lost Creek Dam site where this was found so maybe someday we will. A search for shark brain case will bring up some related posts on TFF.

 

The paper is titled:

A Pennsylvanian ‘supershark’ from Texas , John G. Maisey, Allison W. Bronson, Robert R. Williams & Mark Mckinzie.

 

Edit: You can view the contribution on the second pinned page at the 15th post.

 

[doushantuo]

awesome donation,Bobwill

[DPS Ammonite]

Thanks Bob. Let's thank Mark McKinzie for the donation too.

 

Here's a link to view the paper if you can access papers thru ResearchGate: 

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/317832543_A_Pennsylvanian_'supershark'_from_Texas

 

Bob, do you have pictures of the proper sized teeth to go with this giant shark found in the Finis Shale in Jacksboro, Texas?

[Ludwigia]

Congratulations on that, Bob. It really is something special to have found something special and to have seen it given its proper place in the annals of paleontology. Did Dr. Maisey's team make a cast of the original for you?

[BobWill]

7 hours ago, DPS Ammonite said:

Thanks Bob. Let's thank Mark McKinzie for the donation too.

 

Here's a link to view the paper if you can access papers thru ResearchGate: 

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/317832543_A_Pennsylvanian_'supershark'_from_Texas

 

Bob, do you have pictures of the proper sized teeth to go with this giant shark found in the Finis Shale in Jacksboro, Texas?

Not sure if the size is correct but it has to be close. Yes, Mark is also the one who first identified my find. This was not Jaxbro, I forget what was found there.

 

 

 

7 hours ago, Ludwigia said:

Congratulations on that, Bob. It really is something special to have found something special and to have seen it given its proper place in the annals of paleontology. Did Dr. Maisey's team make a cast of the original for you?

Thanks, it does seem odd to see my name on the paper. He has mentioned that he would send a cast a couple of times but I haven't gotten it yet. Maybe I should hold my next find hostage until it arrives. LOL

[Ludwigia]

1 hour ago, BobWill said:

Thanks, it does seem odd to see my name on the paper. He has mentioned that he would send a cast a couple of times but I haven't gotten it yet. Maybe I should hold my next find hostage until it arrives. LOL

 

As you probably know, time is quite relative in the land of paleontology. It also took 5 years from start to finish with one of my finds before it was published and then another year before the cast arrived. The finder is traditionally attached as co-author without having had to even write a sentence, so I know the feeling.

[Al Dente]

Congratulations.

[old bones]

That's terrific, Bob. Congratulations.

[MB]

Congratulations, well done

[Ropterus]

Congratulations!

[thair]

Congrats. I sent my shark material a few years ago and hope someone has time to study it sometime.

[BobWill]

On ‎7‎/‎20‎/‎2017 at 4:22 PM, thair said:

Congrats. I sent my shark material a few years ago and hope someone has time to study it sometime.

I forget, was that you who found some shark parts at Wilson C.P.?

[thair]

Yes it was from the pit. Cartilage with associated teeth. Sent to Natural History Museum N Y

[Fossildude19]

I must've missed this when I was away on vactaion.  

 

Well done, Bob.   Congratulations. 

Regards, 
 

[BobWill]

On ‎7‎/‎26‎/‎2017 at 1:03 PM, thair said:

Yes it was from the pit. Cartilage with associated teeth. Sent to Natural History Museum N Y

I don't remember seeing a thread on that find, but then I forget a lot of stuff. lol

Dr. Maisey told me that I should go back to Jacksboro and find some more of the beast, preferably with associated teeth so we could tell what shark it is. It will be interesting to find out what they can tell about the size of your shark from what you found. Mark McKinzie told me about some other material they were looking at. Maybe that was yours.