cnhedeen Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 found this on a spoil pile, dirt layer above soft limestone which sits above shale. Not from the area (Allen,Texas) so I don't know the period etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpc Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 Interesting.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troodon Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 A vertebra? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miocene_Mason Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 31 minutes ago, cnhedeen said: Not from the area (Allen,Texas) so I don't know the period etc. Would be late Cretaceous Austin chalk, maybe mosasaur bit? Could be vert or perhaps posterior skull element (wild guesses). 1 “...whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been and are being evolved.” ~ Charles Darwin Happy hunting, Mason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NSRhunter Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 Sounds like possible Woodbine formation so could be dinosaur. Maybe hadrosaurid? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 Very interesting. When I look at the geologic map, all of Allen, Texas is in the Austin Chalk as @WhodamanHD said so the Woodbine is out. The Austin Chalk goes from the uppermost Turonian to the earliest Campainian, all late Cretaceous. When I look at Allen on the map I would guess that it is Santonian based on its location in the Austin Chalk. While I am definitely not a vertebrate guy I would also guess a Mosasaur vertebrae. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpc Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 That is huge for a mosasaur vert. Too big. If it is bone, it might be the back end of the skull. But I am not seeing anything identifiable except for the symmetry. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
All Day Rocks Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 Mosasaur brain case material? What do you think @believerjoe? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 Very interesting. And a very warm welcome to TFF from Morocco. Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cnhedeen Posted April 5, 2018 Author Share Posted April 5, 2018 Thanks for the welcome! I apologize if I didn't properly introduce myself. Socially inept introvert etc... I would like to add these photos to the conversation/investigation. This toothy looking piece was laying within a couple of feet of the above suspect. I perused again today for a short time & found no other pieces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DPS Ammonite Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 What is the matrix made of? Does it fizz in vinegar? I see some possible oyster shells in the matrix. Can you take close-up photos of any smaller fossils or rocks in the matrix. The fossil also could be Pleistocene. Details of matrix will help us determine if it is Cretaceous or Pleistocene. It also could be a reworked Cretaceous fossil redeposited in Pleistocene sediments. 1 My goal is to leave no stone or fossil unturned. See my Arizona Paleontology Guide link The best single resource for Arizona paleontology anywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdp Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 What color was the rock in this spoil pile? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cnhedeen Posted April 5, 2018 Author Share Posted April 5, 2018 The piece itself has numerous shells embedded. slashed with vinegar no fizz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cnhedeen Posted April 5, 2018 Author Share Posted April 5, 2018 (edited) Basically no rock in the pile, Mostly clay & the mushy white & gray chalk. According to the USGS map of the area the pile sits in the Austin Chalk (Cretaceous) a short distance from a lone "island" of Fluviatile terrace deposits(Pleistocene). Spoil pile is at the base of a hill & the boundary between the 2 rock units looks to be 50 yards or so at the top of the hill. Edited April 5, 2018 by cnhedeen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeschWhat Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 9 minutes ago, cnhedeen said: Looks like a chimp in this photo Lori www.areallycrappystory.com/fossils www.facebook.com/fossilpoo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DPS Ammonite Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 This does not look like anything I have seen from the Austin Group in the area. The shells look a little like Texigryphea oysters. I wonder if this piece was dumped there with human help. I have seen rocks with Texigryphea oysters and large bones (Dino?) from the Grayson Fm. in nearby Denton. I wonder what @Uncle Siphuncle and @JohnJ think? My goal is to leave no stone or fossil unturned. See my Arizona Paleontology Guide link The best single resource for Arizona paleontology anywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cnhedeen Posted April 5, 2018 Author Share Posted April 5, 2018 (edited) I watched them dig the ditch that produced the spoil pile. Grassroots, virgin land. The more I look at it I can't help but make out a short lower jaw,( first 2 photos show this) Edited April 5, 2018 by cnhedeen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cnhedeen Posted April 5, 2018 Author Share Posted April 5, 2018 Whatever it is, it's certainly bizarre and heavy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miocene_Mason Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 2 hours ago, cnhedeen said: Socially inept introvert Welcome to the club A gracious welcome is in order for all those who seek knowledge mom interested to see what the experts say “...whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been and are being evolved.” ~ Charles Darwin Happy hunting, Mason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
believerjoe Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 This is a mosasaur occipital or brain case. At least a good portion of one. I guess it at least has a lot of similarities. Any side pics? The ball looking thin would be the back. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeargleSchmeargl Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 Have no idea. Really interested to find out! Every single fossil you see is a miracle set in stone, and should be treated as such. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darrow Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 Just found a number of good views of the occipital here... http://oceansofkansas.com/page11a.html 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordTrilobite Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 Mosasaurid partial braincase seems like a good possibility. But I think this piece needs some good prepping to get a better idea of the morphology. 1 Olof Moleman AKA Lord Trilobite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramo Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 I agree Mosasaur skull element. 2 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...
Heteromorph Posted April 6, 2018 Share Posted April 6, 2018 20 hours ago, DPS Ammonite said: The shells look a little like Texigryphea oysters. I have also seen oysters shells like these from the Santonian stage of the Austin Chalk. Not sure what they are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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