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ID- mosasaur or gator tooth?


Robin252

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Found this tooth in GMR in eastern North Carolina today. Some have suggested a mosasaur tooth or a gator tooth. The back is missing, but there is still a curve on the tooth. Thanks for looking. We also found belemnites upstream from here. 

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If I remember correctly mosasaur teeth have a cutting edge on the front of the tooth and gator do not. It is pretty worn but you can see stiarations at the base so it may be gator. I am no expert though.

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I like Trilo-butts and I cannot lie.

 

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I could be very wrong, but it reminds me of a very worn Ischyrhiza rostral tooth root. Curvature could be postmortem or pathological. Maybe pictures of the base would help.

The Tooth Fairy

 

 

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It seems to me that it might be a rooted alligator/crocodile molar/premolar with a really worn crown. The shape, curvature, and striations of much of the tooth, especially the left end/bottom part, is almost identical to my three modern rooted alligator premolars. The crown (small part of tooth above/right of the constriction) seems to be simply worn down and lost enamel (hence it's similar texture with the root).

 

Here are my three modern alligator premolars for comparison. Notice the similar shape and curvature (unfortunately, the white color of the tooth makes the camera not able to capture the striation details clearly, so this is the best I can get.), and if you can manage to get the details, the striations. On the left are my Pleistocene Alligator anterior teeth, which have lost enamel. You can also notice the similar texture of the enamel-less teeth (Look at the light reflection to see some of the details)

1oAJoUI.jpg

 

However, I am not an expert and this is a guess based on anatomic comparison. Others may have some different says, so remember to consider other's opinions before you ID!

If you're a fossil nut from Palos Verdes, San Pedro, Redondo Beach, or Torrance, feel free to shoot me a PM!

 

 

Mosasaurus_hoffmannii_skull_schematic.png

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3 hours ago, Anomotodon said:

I could be very wrong, but it reminds me of a very worn Ischyrhiza rostral tooth root. Curvature could be postmortem or pathological. Maybe pictures of the base would help.

I sort of doubt it, but a look at the the end, as in Harry's top example, would be helpful in determining that.

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Welcome to TFF:tff:

 

 

Am I the only one that is seeing possibly a mammal tooth in the second picture of the reply just above??? That curvy edge really reminds me of the edge of enamel mammals often have... I might be completely off though. 

 

Max

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3 hours ago, Max-fossils said:

Am I the only one that is seeing possibly a mammal tooth in the second picture of the reply just above???

No. I noticed the similarity to an area on the giant beaver tooth I have. 

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5 hours ago, Max-fossils said:

Welcome to TFF:tff:

 

 

Am I the only one that is seeing possibly a mammal tooth in the second picture of the reply just above??? That curvy edge really reminds me of the edge of enamel mammals often have... I might be completely off though. 

 

Max

 

Yes, I agree. This pic looks like occlusal view. Now I definitely see that it is not a sawfish :)

 

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The Tooth Fairy

 

 

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On 1/28/2018 at 1:23 AM, Anomotodon said:

I could be very wrong, but it reminds me of a very worn Ischyrhiza rostral tooth root. Curvature could be postmortem or pathological. Maybe pictures of the base would help.

Am thinking that Anamotodon has the ID correct. That is; he was correct that it is an Ischyrhiza rostral.

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1 hour ago, Plax said:

Am thinking that Anamotodon has the ID correct. That is; he was correct that it is an Ischyrhiza rostral.

' Be a narly old monster wouldn't it. ;)

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37 minutes ago, Rockwood said:

' Be a narly old monster wouldn't it. ;)

I thought the first one I ever found was a mammal molar! Had the wrong end up (or out). It was found in New Hanover Member of the Castle Hayne which is Eocene but with reworked Cretaceous.

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@jpc GMR, or Greens Mill Run; in Greenville North Carolina. The formations here;all mixed together in a big smorgasbord, include Cretaceous, ?Eocene?, Miocene, Pliocene and Pleistocene. 

 

I do not think the tooth is croc / alligator nor mosasaur. The thought of it possibly being a well worn and broken I. mira rostral tooth is rather intriguing. I have found some very large ones in this creek. All worn, broken or both. Mammal teeth from the Pleistocene are not unheard of and I have seen at least 2 different giant beaver teeth from here.

 

Honestly though, I think the fragment of tooth is too worn and broken to get a positive I.D. on; all would just be speculation.

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behind the trailer, my desert
Them red clay piles are heaven on earth
I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt

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image.png.0c956e87cee523facebb6947cb34e842.png May 2016  MOTM.png.61350469b02f439fd4d5d77c2c69da85.png.a47e14d65deb3f8b242019b3a81d8160.png.b42a25e3438348310ba19ce6852f50c1.png May 2012 IPFOTM5.png.fb4f2a268e315c58c5980ed865b39e1f.png.1721b8912c45105152ac70b0ae8303c3.png.2b6263683ee32421d97e7fa481bd418a.pngAug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 VFOTM.png.f1b09c78bf88298b009b0da14ef44cf0.png.af5065d0585e85f4accd8b291bf0cc2e.png.72a83362710033c9bdc8510be7454b66.png.9171036128e7f95de57b6a0f03c491da.png Oct 2022

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six gill is correct. I'd bet 10 bucks maybe but not the house on this ID. The pic is really reminiscent of the pic of I. mira by Leidy? from NC. Wish I could remember where I saw that pic.

That was Emmons not Leidy...

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If you've got it, check out p155 - 156 in the NCFC Fossil book volume 3. getting closer to betting the house but not there yet...

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The more I look at the picture of the base of this broken tooth, and yes I do believe it is a tooth, the more it does in fact look like Ischyrhiza mira to me.

Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt
behind the trailer, my desert
Them red clay piles are heaven on earth
I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt

Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers

 

image.png.0c956e87cee523facebb6947cb34e842.png May 2016  MOTM.png.61350469b02f439fd4d5d77c2c69da85.png.a47e14d65deb3f8b242019b3a81d8160.png.b42a25e3438348310ba19ce6852f50c1.png May 2012 IPFOTM5.png.fb4f2a268e315c58c5980ed865b39e1f.png.1721b8912c45105152ac70b0ae8303c3.png.2b6263683ee32421d97e7fa481bd418a.pngAug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 VFOTM.png.f1b09c78bf88298b009b0da14ef44cf0.png.af5065d0585e85f4accd8b291bf0cc2e.png.72a83362710033c9bdc8510be7454b66.png.9171036128e7f95de57b6a0f03c491da.png Oct 2022

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