kauffy Posted February 8, 2008 Share Posted February 8, 2008 Hello all, I was recently sent some sand from one of the members on this forum, that contained microfossils, at first i though I was going to find one or two little teeth but im absolutley amazed at how much material there is in it! its really fascinating me to see just how diverse the amount of bones and teeth are. I guess we all collect the larger fauna and dismiss what we know is there, but what we dont look for, im sure many other members have discovered little macro and micro fossils while collecting and if anyone has any pictures of them im sure they would be very interesting to all members....also if anyone has any methods for extracting microfossils this could also come in handy for those looking for something new! I know they dont make much of a display but they are extreamly interesting non-the-less, man they are cool! ive spent 4 hours already on my canaster of sand and have found around 10 shark teeth, 5 or so larger fish teeth, lots and lots of bone fragments, vert lines and individual! im going to use a microscope at school to extract some of the smaller ones! (nothing exceeding 5mm) Cheers Chris ps thanks again to that member! "Turn the fear of the unknown into the excitment of possibility!"We dont stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darren Posted February 8, 2008 Share Posted February 8, 2008 I had planned on collecting some anthill material to search for microfossils when i get home. when i go to the badlands this may. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest N.AL.hunter Posted February 8, 2008 Share Posted February 8, 2008 I have a stereo microscope that I use to examine fossils and search for microfossils. To pick one out from the sand mix, I use a toothpick that I stick into my mouth to get the tip slightly wet (or a sewing needle). I then touch this to the fossil as I am looking at it through the scope (can take a little practice). The fossil sticks to the toothpick and I can move it to a microscope slide where it is permanently mounted on a very small dab of glue (the glue is placed on the slide with a needle). I like to make one slide for each collection site, but I do not add any descriptive info, just where it is from. It usually works best for me to separate several good specimens out of the sand first and place them all on a separate slide, so that the glue will not dry before I can transfer them to the permanent slide. You can find some really great little fossils if you take the time to look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest N.AL.hunter Posted February 8, 2008 Share Posted February 8, 2008 I forgot that you are from Australia, so you'll have to do it all upside down. Might make it harder to keep the items on the slides! HAHA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gatorman Posted February 8, 2008 Share Posted February 8, 2008 After seeing some of JKfoam's micro's I too have an interest in them but do not have the equipment yet. Cris and I do search through small gravel for tiny fossils fish teeth and tiny shark teeth, it is very fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest N.AL.hunter Posted February 8, 2008 Share Posted February 8, 2008 Look here for custom slides perfect for small fossils http://www.cel-line.com/brand/10_well.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kauffy Posted February 9, 2008 Author Share Posted February 9, 2008 I forgot that you are from Australia, so you'll have to do it all upside down. Might make it harder to keep the items on the slides! HAHA QUIET YOU!!! ..... your the one who runs behind time....stop living in the past! anson i remeber you have that gravel with those time shark teeth, you got any pictures? im gonna get me some of that one day! hahaha Good tip "Backwards land Hunter" ive been using tweezers (sqaure tip) which is impossible to use to pick up tiny bones and teeth, i will try that technique tonight! JK Foam, got any pictures of your best micro finds? "Turn the fear of the unknown into the excitment of possibility!"We dont stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkfoam Posted February 10, 2008 Share Posted February 10, 2008 Kauffy, Shown below are a few photos of some of my micro's. I'm still learning how to photograph my micros and I haven't photograpged my whole collection yet so I can't say if the photo's here repersent the bestof my micros. I have been working for the past year on redoing my micro collection. I'm not finished but I have made some progress. Most of the fossils shown are Texas Eocene, Cook Mountain Formation, from Brazos County, Texas. JKFoam The Eocene is my favorite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncle Siphuncle Posted February 10, 2008 Share Posted February 10, 2008 JK Is that micro echie in the second to last frame? If so what is the genus and species? Pretty neat stuff. Grüße, Daniel A. Wöhr aus Südtexas "To the motivated go the spoils." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Pristis Posted February 10, 2008 Share Posted February 10, 2008 I have the microscope to work with micro-fossils, but I run out of patience. Add to that the fact that my eyes start to bother me after a while. I did mine some vertebrate (22 species) micro-stuff some time ago. I stilll have some of this Pleistocene material, washed and unwashed, if anyone is interested. -------Harry Pristis http://pristis.wix.com/the-demijohn-page What seest thou else In the dark backward and abysm of time? ---Shakespeare, The Tempest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkfoam Posted February 10, 2008 Share Posted February 10, 2008 Dan, The second to last frame is a snail not from texas but Claiborne Bluff on the Alabama River at Claiborne, AL. It is Gosport Sand Formation, Eocene. The critter is Mathilda claibornensis. It offers one of the best illustrations of heterostrophy (the property where there is an abrupt change in the coiling between the nucleus and the adult stage body whorls. JKFoam The Eocene is my favorite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nicholas Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 This question has been bugging me for a while I'll ask now, at what size is a fossil considered a micro fossil? I have some brachiopods which seem to be a few mm all around. Some of them even fit on the nail of my thumb so I was curious if theses would be considered micros. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gatorman Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 Great stuff guys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkfoam Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 Nicholas, A fellow once explained it to me as a micro fossil is any fossil in which you need a microscope to identify it. And by a microscope I mean a low power 10X microscope. For me, I consider a micro fossil as any fossil that I think is a micro fossil. I don't think there is any fixed rule or definition for micro fossils. If we had one it would just start arguments. Microfossils are larger than nannofossils are larger than picofossils. JKFoam The Eocene is my favorite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kauffy Posted February 11, 2008 Author Share Posted February 11, 2008 Awesome micros JK, they are so detailed, how fossiliferous is the material your looking through? are shells like those common or quite rare? I found a few teeth that were 5mm long...are these micros or marcro fossils? Got any more pictures JKFoam? those are some seriously neat fossils! "Turn the fear of the unknown into the excitment of possibility!"We dont stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJB Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 My Lord!!! Some of you guys are quite funny. That crack about kauffy being upsidedown by N. Al. hunter got me laughing so hard I got tears in my eyes! Thanks. But hey kauffy dude, I did get your emial, and I will get you some of that 'Sand' for you. RB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkfoam Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 Kauffy, Several of the Texas Eocene fossil locations are VERY fossiliferous and they are mostly glauconitic clay marl deposites that yield extremely well preserved fossils. Most of my micros were collected from what seemed small rivlulet or small channels that filled with shell debris and then was covered by normal clay deposites. Also really excellent specimens can be recovered when cleaning out the debris from larger snail cavities. They smaller fossils were protected in the interior of the larger snail cavities and not subjected to wave actions and currents which can disintergrate small fragile shell fossils. The pieces I collect are very hard lumps of clay that are literally packed with fossils and shell fragments. I break down the clay and wash the material on a 40 mesh seive. After drying the residue left in the seive I pick through it under a 10X binocular microscope. Typically I take a teaspoon of the dried material and spread it around on a plastic coffee can lid to examine under the microcsope. In one teaspoon there will be a hundred complete fossis or more scattered in the broken shell/sand debris. I find mostly mollusks (snails, clams, scaphopods and some pteropods), forams, some echinoid spins, fish teeth, fish otoliths. A lot of what I find are the juveniles of snails and clams. I'll post more photos in a couple of days. I think I will repost the photos showing how I curate my micros (the origional post was lost in the June site crash) JKFoam The Eocene is my favorite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramo Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 Kauffy, I'm not sure I told you how I clean that sand, but I put it in a cup and run water in it until the overflow runs clear. There is a lot of very tiny sand in it that can be washed off. There are also lots of rhinobatoes (sp) teeeth in it that are about the size of a "normal" grain of sand, so don't use too much water pressure. A stereo microscope with about 10X works best to find the real small stuff. I use a light above the fossils, instead of a light below them. That helps them to show up better. With the stereo scope, you can see the stuff in 3-D. That helps a lot in finding stuff. I also wanted to mention the fish tooth conglomerate. I soak that in vinegar overnight, scrub with a stiff toothbrush, and then rinse the small pieces into a cup with water, rinse all the vinegar off, and look through that with the microscope. I also search the surface of the rock. If you have any questions please ask. By the way, can anyone ID this thing? For one species to mourn the death of another is a new thing under the sun. -Aldo Leopold Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kauffy Posted February 11, 2008 Author Share Posted February 11, 2008 Kauffy, I'm not sure I told you how I clean that sand, but I put it in a cup and run water in it until the overflow runs clear. There is a lot of very tiny sand in it that can be washed off. There are also lots of rhinobatoes (sp) teeeth in it that are about the size of a "normal" grain of sand, so don't use too much water pressure. A stereo microscope with about 10X works best to find the real small stuff. I use a light above the fossils, instead of a light below them. That helps them to show up better. With the stereo scope, you can see the stuff in 3-D. That helps a lot in finding stuff. I also wanted to mention the fish tooth conglomerate. I soak that in vinegar overnight, scrub with a stiff toothbrush, and then rinse the small pieces into a cup with water, rinse all the vinegar off, and look through that with the microscope. I also search the surface of the rock. If you have any questions please ask. By the way, can anyone ID this thing? Thanks for the tips Bowkill, I will try the vinegar on the FTC, that thing is wicked! so much fossil teeth in one rock!! I will try to clean off some of the sand aswell with water, im going to use a microscope this week to pick out the really small stuff so I will let you know how it goes! JKFoam, seems like you have the whole method down to a thin line! cant wait to see more of your little critters! RB, i will get those pictures for you today! have you had time to start planning your trip down under with your atlas?! Thanks people Chris "Turn the fear of the unknown into the excitment of possibility!"We dont stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJB Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 RB, i will get those pictures for you today! have you had time to start planning your trip down under with your atlas?! Thanks people Chris Hey Chris. I do have somewhat of an itinerary planned out, but with soooo many months to go, that could change? I really didnt know that Australia was so HUGE!!! But with some echs, some trilos from ausiland and some crabs from New Zealand, along with some super duper fishing and drinking with my brother who lives there, I should have a bit of fun? HA!!! I hear the beer in ausi land puts our american beer to shame? Will be interesting to test it!!! Burp! HA!!! RB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kauffy Posted February 12, 2008 Author Share Posted February 12, 2008 HAHAHA yeah aussie beer is so much better than your american stuff...you will see!! im sure you will be putting a 6pack in your bag for home! so many different ones, TRY EM ALL!!! HAHAHA <troubled teenage alchoholic> Im sure you'l have fun no matter what you do! hey if I do well down in Yass and find a good locality for trilobites that is on public land i will let you know, i can get permission for you to hunt at some places aswell....we shall see, im so excited! i hope I find some nice trilos!AHHH so fossil deprived (going through Fish tooth conglomerate and finding tons of small teeth aswell as 1 large shark tooth, one small and one weird one...hmm! thanks for the tip Bowkill, im just picking bits of matrix off the back and finding lots of cool stuff, but they dont seem to stay on my dish....just fly to the roof for some reason....???!!!!HAHAHAHAHA) Oh also, the microscopes at my school are too powerfull, does anyone know a price range of a cheap 10-20x microscope? do you rekon it would do the job? or do i need to invest in an expensive one??? Thanks people <slips off chair head first, water not stayin in cup GRR><<<<randomness>>>>>...... "Turn the fear of the unknown into the excitment of possibility!"We dont stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkfoam Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Kauffy, Yes, the microscopes used in school are too powerful. They are usually called biological microscopes and are typically 40X, 200X, and 400X magnification. I use a 10X, 20X binocular microscope. If you purchase one new they can be pricey, but, Look on E-Bay. You can get one quite reasonably priced at auction. Just study the auctions for a while to learn what is available. Before you bid don't forget to check out the sellers feedback, factor in shipping costs and remember that you can ask the seller questions (if you don't get a satisfactory response don't bid). Last year I bought 3 biological microscopes on E-Bay for gifts to my granddaughters. I was completely satisfied with my purchases. These scopes were not toys but professional quality lab scopes like we had in college Zoology class. JKFoam The Eocene is my favorite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kauffy Posted February 12, 2008 Author Share Posted February 12, 2008 Kauffy,Yes, the microscopes used in school are too powerful. They are usually called biological microscopes and are typically 40X, 200X, and 400X magnification. I use a 10X, 20X binocular microscope. If you purchase one new they can be pricey, but, Look on E-Bay. You can get one quite reasonably priced at auction. Just study the auctions for a while to learn what is available. Before you bid don't forget to check out the sellers feedback, factor in shipping costs and remember that you can ask the seller questions (if you don't get a satisfactory response don't bid). Last year I bought 3 biological microscopes on E-Bay for gifts to my granddaughters. I was completely satisfied with my purchases. These scopes were not toys but professional quality lab scopes like we had in college Zoology class. JKFoam Thanks a lot JK, yep the ones at school are Biological microscopes, i will keep an eye out for some on ebay. if you dont mind me asking, how much were the ones you purchased? the nice lab quality ones? Cheers "Turn the fear of the unknown into the excitment of possibility!"We dont stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkfoam Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 Kauffy, I paid about $30-$35 for each and that included shipping. My wife and I are experienced E-Bay shoppers. We set a value on something we are looking at and we try to snipe it in the last seconds of the auction. We never chase an item if it goes over our value limit. There will always be another one up for auction. JKFoam The Eocene is my favorite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nc fossil guy Posted February 12, 2008 Share Posted February 12, 2008 i have 7 1 gal bags about 11lbs from lee creek have run 2 bags found over 300 shark theeth alot of shells fish theeth an ray ect bags are loaded would like to trade for other types of micro dirt or fossils will try to post pictures Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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