tatehntr Posted May 27, 2018 Share Posted May 27, 2018 Hi everyone, I just got back from my morning trip to the beach and am thrilled to have found another nice tooth. Last night I went out and the tide was much too high, I ended up leaving after a few hours with only a few small teeth. As I searched the beach for the first hour this morning, I started to worry that my luck might finally be running out. Thanks to Memorial Day weekend the beach was absolutely packed, which was an unpleasant change of pace from usually having the beach mostly to myself. As I started to lose interest and consider heading back to the car, I decided to check up higher in the dryer shell deposits as opposed to where the waves were reaching. As I walked a few feet up the beach, I almost immediately stumbled across this tooth, lying completely exposed with footsteps surrounding it a few feet in each direction. The tooth was almost fully dried out at this point and must have been sitting there for close to an hour as the tide had receded 10-20 feet down the beach. Tourists looking for shells littered the beach in every direction, I was in shock that nobody had seen this tooth all morning! I have attached a photo of the tooth as it laid in the sand upon finding it. Unfortunately the tip is a little damaged, however the root is probably in better condition than every large tooth I've found here. Additionally, the coloration of the tooth is very different compared to the jet black teeth I am used to finding. Although I didn't end up finding much else in the next hour or so (a few small teeth), I'm really happy I decided to head out this morning. It's funny how when the hunting has been really good, just one bad day can really kill your confidence. At the same time though, just one good tooth brings it all back! I'll be back out there soon... Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darktooth Posted May 27, 2018 Share Posted May 27, 2018 Persistence pays off! Congratulations! I like Trilo-butts and I cannot lie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trevor Posted May 27, 2018 Share Posted May 27, 2018 Awesome tooth! Hopefully you can go back to being the beach god of teeth when all of the pesky tourists flush out. : ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miocene_Mason Posted May 27, 2018 Share Posted May 27, 2018 Nice tooth! “...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...
Tidgy's Dad Posted May 27, 2018 Share Posted May 27, 2018 Nice one! Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilSniper Posted May 27, 2018 Share Posted May 27, 2018 If a tooth is broken by feeding wear, I consider it even cooler than having a perfect tooth. I think it adds to the story. Since your tooth was worn out by the animal itself (and not geological erosion, as is seen in many river teeth), I think that is a great tooth! (save for a few enamel weather lines.) Overall, nice angustiden! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tatehntr Posted May 27, 2018 Author Share Posted May 27, 2018 1 hour ago, FossilSniper said: If a tooth is broken by feeding wear, I consider it even cooler than having a perfect tooth. I think it adds to the story. Since your tooth was worn out by the animal itself (and not geological erosion, as is seen in many river teeth), I think that is a great tooth! (save for a few enamel weather lines.) Overall, nice angustiden! So is it safe to assume that tip damage to an overall good condition tooth is the result of feeding? I've heard that tip ding-age can result from feeding damage but I've never known whether this was the case with my teeth, or if they broke at the tip long after falling out in the waves. Are there any tell-tale signs to determine when it is feeding damage vs. breakage from wear and tear? Thanks for the information and in advance for any clarification here! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToothMan Posted May 28, 2018 Share Posted May 28, 2018 5 hours ago, tatehntr said: So is it safe to assume that tip damage to an overall good condition tooth is the result of feeding? I've heard that tip ding-age can result from feeding damage but I've never known whether this was the case with my teeth, or if they broke at the tip long after falling out in the waves. Are there any tell-tale signs to determine when it is feeding damage vs. breakage from wear and tear? Thanks for the information and in advance for any clarification here! Ive often wondered this myself. Ill be looking forward to hearing a bit more on this topic. Awesome tooth by the way! I really love this species. Beautiful find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miocene_Mason Posted May 28, 2018 Share Posted May 28, 2018 Hard to say if this is feeding damage, though I’d lean towards yes with a little extra wear in recent times. Megateeth like to break in certain planes when put under pressure, so a diagonal tip fracture is a tell- tale sign. Here’s a feeding damaged meg I bought, it’s got a clean break and an extra fracture down the middle to prove it. “...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...
Plax Posted May 29, 2018 Share Posted May 29, 2018 tThe teeth on the beach come from just off shore in a dredge pipe. Some of them have already been reworked by nature several times. This one looks fresher than most I've seen locally but can't see how one can attribute life wear to the worn edges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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