Bronzviking Posted May 8, 2018 Share Posted May 8, 2018 Hi, I'm new to this forum and I'm a rock collector/hunter and found this interesting sandstone rock on the beach on the Gulf Coast of Florida. At first I thought the rock was engraved with the letter "L", but after further examination it appears to be impressions in the rock. What I thought was real cool is on the top of the "L" there is hair or fibers sticking out of it. Can anyone please help me identify this specimen???? Thanks so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted May 8, 2018 Share Posted May 8, 2018 The little fibres look like the fruiting bodies of a modern moss to me. The rock seems to be a rough sandstone breccia with very rough quartz crystals and the 'L' is where it has been broken, I think. 1 Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted May 8, 2018 Share Posted May 8, 2018 Welcome to TFF! I agree with Tidgy's dad 1 Darwin said: " Man sprang from monkeys." Will Rogers said: " Some of them didn't spring far enough." My Fossil collection - My Mineral collection My favorite thread on TFF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted May 8, 2018 Share Posted May 8, 2018 One might imagine that carbon from plant mater was contained in the darker material, but I agree that it can not be identified as a plant fossil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Herb Posted May 8, 2018 Share Posted May 8, 2018 Sorry, it is not likely to be a plant fossil from that part of Florida "Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence"_ Carl Sagen No trees were killed in this posting......however, many innocent electrons were diverted from where they originally intended to go. " I think, therefore I collect fossils." _ Me "When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."__S. Holmes "can't we all just get along?" Jack Nicholson from Mars Attacks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronzviking Posted May 9, 2018 Author Share Posted May 9, 2018 Tidgy's Dad...so you think it is a moss plant fossil? You said broken, you mean like a stem bent or broken? I rotated the photo to get another perspective, what do you think? Can it be sea grasses? ynot, Thanks for your feedback! To Herb and Rockwood: What do you think it is than? What made the impressions in the stone and what are the hairlike strands??? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 No, not a fossil, modern moss growing on the rock. I meant the rock is broken. The other impressions have been made as some of the harder fragments of rock have come loose from the matrix or where softer ones have been dissolved away. i see no fossils here. Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted May 9, 2018 Share Posted May 9, 2018 I think most likely it is an inclusion that was cemented (naturally) by a darker substance, perhaps iron or manganese. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plantguy Posted June 7, 2018 Share Posted June 7, 2018 Was thinking more about this...could the fibers be the remains of byssus attachments filaments from a bivalve??? Do those attachments leave a residue like what we are seeing in this example? Regards, Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronzviking Posted June 8, 2018 Author Share Posted June 8, 2018 Anything is possible, they could be Byssus filaments. The fibers or hairs are embedded in the deep crease of the sandstone. I tried pulling on them and they don't pull off. I don't know what you mean about leave a residue? Please clarify. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plantguy Posted June 9, 2018 Share Posted June 9, 2018 7 hours ago, Bronzviking said: Anything is possible, they could be Byssus filaments. The fibers or hairs are embedded in the deep crease of the sandstone. I tried pulling on them and they don't pull off. I don't know what you mean about leave a residue? Please clarify. I'm probably going out in left field again but if those fibers are from a recent (non-fossil) mussel attached to your specimen I was wondering if the discoloration/stains might reflect multiple attachment areas...the beard has lots of filaments coming out. .....not sure I could prove my crazy idea without some microscopic/chemical analysis of the actual stains/fibers..Somewhere I thought there was another discussion here on the forum recently about bivalve attachments...maybe there is an answer in there....maybe these guys have some thoughts. @MarcoSr, @abyssunder from this link http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2010/03/scienceshot-how-mussels-hang Here's a picture of green mussels in Tampa Bay from the UF site http://sfrc.ufl.edu/greenmussel/Images/Index/Green_Mussels_Tampa.jpg Aside from the unknown filaments the lighter surfaces still look fresh and recently broken/exposed. I dont see any fossils. I cant explain the impressions..could be a weakness pattern in the rock when it was broken. Perhaps the darker areas if not from some type of mussel attachment are just discoloration/weathered/mineralized areas as the others have mentioned.. Heres a couple photos showing fresher/unweathered surfaces with similar coloration/mineral deposits on a gastropod fossil and another specimen showing a darker weathered rind. Regards,Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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