Some Eocene marine fossils from Virginia

[MarcoSr]

I have a good number of my micro vertebrate fossils in gem jar displays.  I probably have 100+ gem jar displays.  However until just recently I didn’t have a single Riker display case.  I just bought one so I could show a few of my macro Eocene marine fossils from Virginia to a couple of collectors that I now collect with.  I didn’t want to just put them in a gallon baggie to show the next time I went collecting.

 

So the below picture is my first Riker display case.  I don’t label anything in my collection any more with id labels.  I used to id label everything years ago but got tired of having to change the labels as genus and species names changed.

 

The Riker display case is 8” by 12” for size reference.  The very top has two rows of three different species of sea snake vertebrae.  Then there are two sawfish rostral teeth, an Otodus tooth, and portions of two ray tail spines.  Then a partial ray dental plate, four anterior sandtiger teeth, and two shark scroll coprolites.  Then a single medial tooth from a ray dermal plate and a bony fish jaw.  Then two turtle carapace pieces and two rooted croc teeth.  Lastly two turtle lower jaws and two more turtle carapace pieces.

 

 

EDIT:  I've added a number of specimens to the above Riker display case.  See the picture below:

 

 

 

 

Marco Sr.

Edited October 25, 2019 by MarcoSr
Added updated pictue

[Miocene_Mason]

Nice! Definitely better than a baggie

[SailingAlongToo]

Very nice @MarcoSr

We need to get out together sometime soon.

[Troodon]

Very nice assemblage.  Are these from the Fisher-Sullivan bone bed

[ynot]

Looking good Marco!

[Auspex]

I especially love the sea snake vertebra, and the turtle mandibles. Pretty rare finds in the Eocene, no?

[MarcoSr]

1 hour ago, WhodamanHD said:

Nice! Definitely better than a baggie

 

I just have too much macro stuff so I really don't use Riker display cases.  Most of my nicer fossils are just in map chest drawers like below which makes it very hard to take specimens to show people other than in baggies.

 

 

 

Marco Sr.

[MarcoSr]

Just now, Auspex said:

I especially love the sea snake vertebra, and the turtle mandibles. Pretty rare finds in the Eocene, no?

 

Chas

 

The turtle mandibles are pretty rare in the Eocene.  However, I have hundreds of sea snake vertebrae from the Eocene of MD and VA.

 

Marco Sr.

[Miocene_Mason]

3 minutes ago, MarcoSr said:

I just have too much macro stuff so I really don't use Riker display cases.  Most of my nicer fossils are just in map chest drawers like below which makes it very hard to take specimens to show people other than in baggies.

I can understand that, I only own one Riker myself. I don’t have a map chest, though I’m looking for one. A baggie is a lot better than the method I first used, which was pockets. Learned quickly and the hard way why that’s not done, and now somewhere in Western Maryland there is a Carcharodon hastalis tooth waiting to be found. I hope it makes whoever finds it happy, if not slightly confused.

[MarcoSr]

2 hours ago, SailingAlongToo said:

Very nice @MarcoSr

We need to get out together sometime soon.

 

Jack

 

Hopefully soon.  I need to get out into the field more.  I spend most of my time looking through matrix and only get out collecting one day a week.

 

Marco Sr.

[MarcoSr]

1 hour ago, Troodon said:

Very nice assemblage.  Are these from the Fisher-Sullivan bone bed

 

Yes, collected years ago.  I put the Riker display case together to show a group of Calvert Marine Museum interns who asked about the Sullivan site when we were out collecting recently in Virginia.  The vast majority of the specimens from the bone bed would fall through a 1/2" mesh sift that is why we put window screen under our sifts to catch them.  I would only find 5 or 6 specimens in my sift each trip, usually large sandtiger teeth or large coprolites.  However, ever once in a while something else large would show up like the specimens in the Riker display case.

 

Marco Sr.

[MarcoSr]

1 hour ago, ynot said:

Looking good Marco!

 

Tony

 

These specimens are from the only site that I liked almost as much as the Ernst ranch which is my favorite site.

 

Marco Sr.

[Bone guy]

Wow! Nice collection! Is that a wahoo jaw I see in your drawer? 

[Troodon]

57 minutes ago, MarcoSr said:

 

Yes, collected years ago.  I put the Riker display case together to show a group of Calvert Marine Museum interns who asked about the Sullivan site when we were out collecting recently in Virginia.  The vast majority of the specimens from the bone bed would fall through a 1/2" mesh sift that is why we put window screen under our sifts to catch them.  I would only find 5 or 6 specimens in my sift each trip, usually large sandtiger teeth or large coprolites.  However, ever once in a while something else large would show up like the specimens in the Riker display case.

 

Marco Sr.

I know, collected the site quite a few times with a friend of mine, not sure you know him Chuck B.   The two screen technique was a must if you wanted to go home with smaller teeth.  You have some beautiful  specimens in that riker and I also love those turtle mandibles which I never saw.

[Darktooth]

Did you post this just to make us drool? Because if you did, its working!

[goatinformationist]

Heh!  Not too messy. Careful about moving them outta the jar and into the drawer.  Next thing you know they stretch and grow.

[MarcoSr]

1 hour ago, Bone guy said:

Wow! Nice collection! Is that a wahoo jaw I see in your drawer? 

 

Yes, that is a Wahoo jaw.  That drawer has Miocene fossils from Virginia.

 

Marco Sr.

[MarcoSr]

1 hour ago, Troodon said:

I know, collected the site quite a few times with a friend of mine, not sure you know him Chuck B.   The two screen technique was a must if you wanted to go home with smaller teeth.  You have some beautiful  specimens in that riker and I also love those turtle mandibles which I never saw.

 

I never collected with Chuck.  However now I collect with Mike F. who used to collect with Chuck all the time before Chuck moved.

 

Marco Sr.

[MarcoSr]

1 hour ago, Darktooth said:

Did you post this just to make us drool? Because if you did, its working!

 

The site that the Eocene fossils came from had some really nice and uncommon specimens.

 

Marco Sr.

[MarcoSr]

50 minutes ago, goatinformationist said:

Heh!  Not too messy. Careful about moving them outta the jar and into the drawer.  Next thing you know they stretch and grow.

 

I wish they did grow.  I would do that with all of my megs.

 

Marco Sr.

[SailingAlongToo]

14 minutes ago, MarcoSr said:

 

Yes, that is a Wahoo jaw.  That drawer has Miocene fossils from Virginia.

 

Marco Sr.

Which meg is the 1 you found after Theresa & I walked over it? 

[MarcoSr]

3 minutes ago, SailingAlongToo said:

Which meg is the 1 you found after Theresa & I walked over it? 

 

Jack

 

It is now in the below drawer.  Unfortunately I took this picture before I added that meg to this drawer.

 

 

Marco Sr.

[Miocene_Mason]

The Parotodus benedeni’s!

[MarcoSr]

13 hours ago, WhodamanHD said:

I can understand that, I only own one Riker myself. I don’t have a map chest, though I’m looking for one. A baggie is a lot better than the method I first used, which was pockets. Learned quickly and the hard way why that’s not done, and now somewhere in Western Maryland there is a Carcharodon hastalis tooth waiting to be found. I hope it makes whoever finds it happy, if not slightly confused.

 

9 hours ago, WhodamanHD said:

The Parotodus benedeni’s!

 

Pockets aren't the best.  However I've dropped/lost plastic bottles and baggies with teeth also over the years.

 

I have 3 Parotodus in that drawer from MD.  Parotodus from MD/VA don't seem as common as those found in NC/SC.

 

Marco Sr.

[Manticocerasman]

Nice Otodus. The Eocene ones I find in my area are with serrations ( Otodus auriculatus ). What are the other shark teeth?

 

The turtle jaws are realy cool.