Multiple similar bones from South Carolina

[Fossiljones]

Hi All,

 

While diving South Carolina rivers, I've collected a group of bones which seem to have the same general characteristics:

Roughly hourglass shaped, tapering lengthwise (like a doorstop), most have perceptible grooves if viewed from the correct angle.

Are these just random bone frags that coincidentally eroded to roughly the same shape?

Or can they be identified to a specific body part such as an ankle or foot ?

[SailingAlongToo]

Many of them resemble random pieces of a broken mammal skull. Not sure if it cetacean or terrestrial animal. Have you tried to fit any of them together?

[Fossiljones]

2 minutes ago, SailingAlongToo said:

Many of them resemble random pieces of a broken mammal skull. Not sure if it cetacean or terrestrial animal. Have you tried to fit any of them together?

No, they don't fit together.

These were not all recovered from a single site, but rather from multiple sites over many years.

I don't think any are related.

[Fossiljones]

I think the first photo I posted was too washed out, and included too many pieces to convey the actual similarity between the pieces.

Here are a couple better shots:

[Boesse]

These are incomplete fragments of baleen whale parietal and squamosal bones.

[Fossiljones]

1 hour ago, Boesse said:

These are incomplete fragments of baleen whale parietal and squamosal bones.

Boesse: Thank you!  I'm happy to finally know what these things are!

Of course I've been Googling "whale parietal and squamosal bones", since I read your reply!