The Growing Collection of Ziggycardon

[ziggycardon]

On 3/19/2022 at 2:26 PM, Tidgy's Dad said:

Great collection, Ziggy, you do have some beautiful pieces. 

Sorry, can't help with the brachiopod other than to say it's a rhynchonellid. 

 

Thank you!  
And no problem, I suspected as much, there is probably a reason why there is so little to find about the brachiopods from Cap Blanc Nez  

 

On 3/22/2022 at 5:39 PM, Yoda said:

@ziggycardon

Just catching up with your latest additions

Very nice 

Thank you!  

[ziggycardon]

Yesterday I recieved an exciting package with some fossils from the Solnhofen Limestone, Eichstatt, Bavaria, Germany (Jurassic, 150 mya)

 

A lovely horseshoe crab (Mesolimulus walchii)

This is another fossil that has been on my wishlist for a long time!  

 

 

A fossil waterbug Mesobelostomum sp.

Cool thing is that I used to keep a Giant Waterbug (Lethocerus africanus) as a pet years ago, so I'm happy to add a fossil one to my collection!  

 

[ziggycardon]

It's been a been quite in this topic for the past 3 months. 
I took a little break from purchasing fossils to save some money for my fieldtrip with the fossil club to Poland next month and for my new Chinchilla's which a got 2 weeks ago.  

But this month I did get some fossils again!  

 

An indeterminate theropod tooth found in the Maevarano Formation, Mahajanga Province, Madagascar (Cretaceous, Maastrichtian, 70 - 66 mya)

 

 

A Metoposaurus cf. diagnostus vertebrae from an old collection found in the Drawno Beds Formation, Keuper, Krasiejów, Poland (Triassic, Norian, 220 - 215 mya). 
Discovered in the early 90's and since the late 90's the Krasiejow site has been a protected site of great scientific importance due to it's great preservation of skulls, bones and skeletons mainly of Temnospondyl amphibians like Metoposaurus but also early dinosaurs, Phytosaurs and Archosaurs are known from this location.

I am quite excited to pay a visit to the site and help excavate for scientific research next month!

 

 

A Sinosura kelheimense (brittlestar) found in the Solnhofen Limestone, Malm Zeta 3, Heinheim, Eichstatt, Bavaria, Germany (Jurassic, Tithonian, 150 mya)

 

And some Brachiopods from Denmark which I recieved from some friends who went on a fossil trip there last month! 

A Brachiopod found at Stevn's Klint in Denmark (Paleocene, Danian, 66 mya)

 

A tiny brachiopod found in the Faxe Kalkbrud quarry in Denmark (Paleocene, Danian, 63 mya)

 

[pachy-pleuro-whatnot-odon]

2 hours ago, ziggycardon said:

I took a little break from purchasing fossils to save some money for my fieldtrip with the fossil club to Poland next month and for my new Chinchilla's which a got 2 weeks ago.  

 

[ S]ince the late 90's the Krasiejow site has been a protected site of great scientific importance due to it's great preservation of skulls, bones and skeletons mainly of Temnospondyl amphibians like Metoposaurus but also early dinosaurs, Phytosaurs and Archosaurs are known from this location.

I am quite excited to pay a visit to the site and help excavate for scientific research next month!

 

Those are some nice dioxide you have there all the same, Ken! And I'm looking forward to the trip report from Krasiejów *nudge nudge wink wink, know what I mean* 

Edited June 16, 2022 by pachy-pleuro-whatnot-odon

[FF7_Yuffie]

That Madagascar tooth is lovely! What a nice color it is. 

[ziggycardon]

On 6/17/2022 at 5:58 PM, FF7_Yuffie said:

That Madagascar tooth is lovely! What a nice color it is. 

Thanks! yeah I really loved the coloration and preservation myself. It was originally labeled as a Majungasaurus tooth but it was clear this was something different, but the good price and nice coloration and preservation was enough to make me buy it! And who knows, in a few years time when some new discoveries from Madagascar get described I might be able to put a name on the tooth.  

[ziggycardon]

Hey everyone, been way to long since I've updated this post. Been currently quite occupied first with sorting the finds from my trip from Poland (which is still not really finished) and I've bought Trilobase and I am curreltly putting all my fossils, minerals, rocks, meteorites and artefacts into the database which is no small task... 
Pretty much all the fossils are currently in the database and probably 70 % of the minerals are as well but I still need to photograph every fossil and other item to put in the database as well. Still a while to go.

But I will soon put some more pics of my finds in the Poland field trip topic

 

But here are the fossils which I acquired these past months as well as a number of minerals which I also acquired during the past year:

 

A piece of Beardog (Hemicyon goeriachensis) jaw with 2 molars found in Gracanica, Bosnia (Miocene, 11 mya)

 

 

 

A Pliosaur tooth (Brachauchenius lucasi) found in Asfla, Goulmima, El Rachidia, Morroco (Cretaceous, Turonian, 93 - 89 mya)

 

 

A giant brachiopod (Stringocephalus burtini) found in Liujing, Guangxi, China (Devonian, Givetian, 387 - 382 mya)

 

 

Eodiaphyodus granulosus tooth palate found in Ouled Abdoun Basin, Khouribga, Morocco (Cretaceous, Maastrichtian, 70 mya)

 

 

Fish jaw (I suppose Eutrichiurides sp.) found in Ouled Abdoun Basin, Khouribga, Morocco (Cretaceous or Eocene)

 

 

Otodus obliquus tooth found in Ouled Abdoun Basin, Khouribga, Morocco (Paleocene, 60 mya)

 

 

A bivalve wich I recieved from a friend, found in Falaises des Vaches Noires, Villers-Sur-Mer, Normandy, France (Jurassic, Oxfordian, 163 - 157 mya)

[mr.cheese]

The French bivalve is something special! Really like it.

[ziggycardon]

An Rhynchosauroides peabodyi print with skin impression found in Winterswijk, The Netherlands (Triassic, Landinian, 235 mya)

 

 

A block with Spiriferids found in Eifel, Germany (Devonian, Eifelian, 393 - 388 mya)

 

 

A hildoceras ammonite found in the Posidonia Shale, Lias, Dotternhausen, Germany (Jurassic, Toarcian, 180 mya)

 

 

A Belemnite (Youngibelus gigas I believe) found in the Posidonia Shale, Lias, Dotternhausen, Germany (Jurassic, Toarcian, 180 mya)

 

 

A Nothosaur bonebed with some teeth and fish scales which I got from a friend found in the Muschelchalk, Rüdersdorf, Germany

 

 

Next up is some nice material from the Smoky Hill Chalk which I got from @KansasFossilHunter

All found in the Niobrara formation, Smoky Hill member, Logan county, Kansas, USA (Cretaceous, Conacian - early Campanian)

 

A nice fish vertebrae column 

 

 

Xiphactinus audax tooth

 

 

Ginsu Shark (Cretoxyrhina mantelli)

 

 

A Tylosaurus sp. tooth

 

 

A Platycarpine indet tooth

 

 

A Mosasaur tooth, perhaps a pterogoid tooth

 

 

[ziggycardon]

I also got this nice large Vinctifer comptoni from @gigantoraptor, found in Santana Formation, Araripe plateau, Ceara, Brazil (Cretaceous, Albian, 115 - 100 mya)

 

 

And I did buy some nice stuff at the BVP fair earlier this month

 

A nice Wooly Rhino molar (Coelodonta antiquitatis) found in the Yakoetsk region, Siberia, Russia (Pleistocene, 40 000 years old)

 

 

A Cave Bear molar (Ursus spelaeus) found in Bihor, Roemania (Pleistocene, 40 000 years old)

 

 

A Scheenstia mantelli scale found in Champblanc, Cherves-de-cognac, France (Cretaceous, Berriasian, 140 mya)

 

 

A Crab carapace (Dromiopsis elegans) in a coral block found in Faxe Kalkbrud, Faxe, Denmark (Paleocene, Danian, 63 mya)

 

 

A crab carapace (Coeloma rupeliensis) from the Boomse Clay, Kallo, Belgium (Oligocene, Rupelian, 33 - 28 mya)

 

 

A sawfish tooth (Pristis sp.) found in Kallo, Belgium (Miocene, 15 - 10 mya)

 

 

A nice Hemipristis serra tooth found in Sukabumi, Western Java, Indonesia

[ziggycardon]

And some more BVP fair acquisitions:

 

A fossil fish which found in Lorca, Spain (Oligocene, Chattian, 25 - 23 mya).

It was labeled as Trachurus trachurus but I am not very sure about the identification as the morphology don't seem to match. 

 

 

A fossil squid (Plesiotheutis prisca) found in the Solnhofen Limestone, Eichstatt, Bavaria, Germany (Jurassic, Tithonian, 150 mya)

 

 

A Carcharodontosaurus tooth found in Taquiz, Kem Kem Beds, Morocco (Cretaceous, Cenomanian, 95 mya)

 

 

A Majungasaurus crenatissimus tooth found in the Maevarano Formation, Berivotra, Mahajanga Province, Magagascar (Cretaceous, Maastrichtian, 70 - 66 mya)

 

 

A crocodile tooth found in the Maevarano Formation, Berivotra, Mahajanga Province, Magagascar (Cretaceous, Maastrichtian, 70 - 66 mya)

 

 

Next up are no acquisitions of mine (unfortunately) but some Portugese dinosaur fossil from our club museum which were on display at the fair. 

A cf. Torvosaurus pedal phalange from the right foot found in Porto Novo-Praia de Armoeira Formatioon, Peniche, Portugal (Jurassic, Kimmeridgian)

 

 

A Stegosaurid dorsal vertebrae found in the Freixal Formation, Torres Vedras, Portugal (Jurassic, Tithonian)

[ziggycardon]

And last but not least some of my mineral acquisitions from the past year, some of which are among the rarest minerals and crystals on earth:

 

Celestine from the Sakoany deposit, Katsepy, Mitsinjo, Boeny, Madagascar

 

 

Baryte from Morocco

 

 

Vanadinite on Baryte found in Morocco

 

 

Rainbow Fluorite found in China
Unfortunately pictures don't do this piece justice as the color just don't show their splendor on it.

 

 

Pyrite cubes found in the Victoria Mine, Navajún, La Rioja, Spain

 

 

Uvarovite found in Russia

 

 

Brookite found in Kharan, Balochistan, Pakistan

 

 

Demantoid, a green variant of andradite found in Russia

 

 

A Herkimer diamond (double-terminated quartz crystals) found in Herkimer, New York, USA

 

 

Jeremejevite found in Namibia

 

 

Tourmaline quartz found in Brazil

 

 

Enhydro Agate found in Brazil

 

 

Ametrine found in South Africa

 

 

Prehnite found in Jaén, Spain

 

[mr.cheese]

Very nice stuff(again!), I have just bought a lot of minerals from a local chap I know who has had boxes of finds he made in Africa 20 or 30 years ago and left in the back of the Landrover he made the trip in parked up in the barn! Had some nice Vanadinite in there too amongst other pretty rough stuff!

No long found this sorting through a load of Amethyst, looks like it might be Pyrite inclusions?

[Kiros]

On 9/22/2022 at 5:01 PM, ziggycardon said:

Hey everyone, been way to long since I've updated this post. Been currently quite occupied first with sorting the finds from my trip from Poland (which is still not really finished) and I've bought Trilobase and I am curreltly putting all my fossils, minerals, rocks, meteorites and artefacts into the database which is no small task... 
Pretty much all the fossils are currently in the database and probably 70 % of the minerals are as well but I still need to photograph every fossil and other item to put in the database as well. Still a while to go.

But I will soon put some more pics of my finds in the Poland field trip topic

 

But here are the fossils which I acquired these past months as well as a number of minerals which I also acquired during the past year:

 

A piece of Beardog (Hemicyon goeriachensis) jaw with 2 molars found in Gracanica, Bosnia (Miocene, 11 mya)

 

 

 

A Pliosaur tooth (Brachauchenius lucasi) found in Asfla, Goulmima, El Rachidia, Morroco (Cretaceous, Turonian, 93 - 89 mya)

 

 

A giant brachiopod (Stringocephalus burtini) found in Liujing, Guangxi, China (Devonian, Givetian, 387 - 382 mya)

 

 

Eodiaphyodus granulosus tooth palate found in Ouled Abdoun Basin, Khouribga, Morocco (Cretaceous, Maastrichtian, 70 mya)

 

 

Fish jaw (I suppose Eutrichiurides sp.) found in Ouled Abdoun Basin, Khouribga, Morocco (Cretaceous or Eocene)

 

 

Otodus obliquus tooth found in Ouled Abdoun Basin, Khouribga, Morocco (Paleocene, 60 mya)

 

 

A bivalve wich I recieved from a friend, found in Falaises des Vaches Noires, Villers-Sur-Mer, Normandy, France (Jurassic, Oxfordian, 163 - 157 mya)

what amazing piece is the hemicyion fossil! I'm llooking for one since ages

[ziggycardon]

On 9/27/2022 at 10:18 AM, Kiros said:

what amazing piece is the hemicyion fossil! I'm llooking for one since ages

It's a cool piece indeed, missed out on one once, glad to have snatched this one instead.  

[Tidgy's Dad]

Some great new additions. 

I like the mineral collection as well. 

And the terebratulids from Denmark are fascinating. 

[ziggycardon]

On 10/28/2022 at 5:57 AM, Tidgy's Dad said:

Some great new additions. 

I like the mineral collection as well. 

And the terebratulids from Denmark are fascinating. 

Thank you! 

I am very happy with those brachiopods as well as I am getting more and more interested in Brachiopods lately and I've been wanting to get some Cenozoïc ones for quite some time so I am pretty happy I got the one from Faxe from my friend. 
Might even visit the location next year myself if the planned excursion shedule doesn't clash with anything.

[ziggycardon]

Some of the latest additions:

 

An Obaichtys africanus scale which I got from a friend of mine.
Found in the Kem Kem Beds, Morocco (Cretaceous, 95 mya)

 

 

This gorgeous split nodule with 2 Barasaurus besairiei specimens found in the Lower Sakamena Formation, Sakamena Group, Morondava Basin, Madagascar (Permian, 255 - 250 mya)

 

 

A Malagassy Pygmy Hippo (Hippopotamus lemerlei) molar found in Madagascar (Holocene)

 

 

A Grallator footprint found in Aveyron, France (Jurassic, 200 mya)

 

 

 

 

A Holoptychius sp. scale found in the Ketleri Formation, Venta River, Latvia (Devonian, 372 - 360 mya)

 

 

An Hyeanodon sp. molar found in the White River Group, Brule Formation, Converse County, Wyoming, USA (Oligocene, 33 - 30 mya)

 

 

A piece of Prodremotherium elongatum jaw (upper I believe) found in Quercy, Dép. Tarn-et-Garonne, France (Oligocene, 25 mya)

Apparently this animal is viewed as the earliest known ancestor of modern day giraffes.

 

 

I believe I haven't posted these on the forum earlier, but these are our latest finds from our trip to the Romontbos quarry in Eben-Emael, Belgium (Cretaceous, Maastrichtian, 68 mya)

 

Multiple fish vertebrae

 

 

We found some more great Trigonosemus pectiniformis specimens

 

3 of the 4 fish teeth were found during our last 2 trips, the Apateodus corneti being found during the last trip in the same block as the fish verts.

And we also found the Squalicorax pristodontus tooth during the last visit, which just lay in the middle of the path  

 

 

Some may have already seen our most recent found and probably one of our best to date: 
A partial Lepidotes found in the Falaises des Vaches Noires, Houlgate, Normandy, France (Jurassic, Callovian or Oxfordian, 166 - 157 mya)

 

Here is the full trip report: 

 

 

[ziggycardon]

And I finally took the time to clean and tidy up my fossil room as it was littered with boxes and buckets full of fossils which we found ourself or which were gifted to me. As well as our table being full with our most recent finds from Vaches Noires. 
But all is tidied up, I put all the finds which dind't find a place in the displays are drawers or which still need to be prepped (I finally bought myself a air scribe from a friend!) in curver boxes which I bought for each location. 

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

On 11/19/2022 at 5:45 PM, ziggycardon said:

Thank you! 

I am very happy with those brachiopods as well as I am getting more and more interested in Brachiopods lately and I've been wanting to get some Cenozoïc ones for quite some time so I am pretty happy I got the one from Faxe from my friend. 
Might even visit the location next year myself if the planned excursion shedule doesn't clash with anything.

Wish I could join you. 

And you're evidently a smashing chap if you're becoming more interested in brachiopods. 

[ziggycardon]

3 hours ago, Tidgy's Dad said:

Wish I could join you. 

And you're evidently a smashing chap if you're becoming more interested in brachiopods. 

Well I mainly have to thank you for becoming interested. 
Reading through your topics and replies on them is what got me to appreciate them more and more.  

And now I am at the point that I try to get a brachiopod from each geological period and from certain famous locations.

I also set myself a goal to find at least 1 brachiopod during each fossil hunt where I know they are present.  

[Tidgy's Dad]

20 hours ago, ziggycardon said:

Well I mainly have to thank you for becoming interested. 
Reading through your topics and replies on them is what got me to appreciate them more and more.  

And now I am at the point that I try to get a brachiopod from each geological period and from certain famous locations.

I also set myself a goal to find at least 1 brachiopod during each fossil hunt where I know they are present.  

[ziggycardon]

Some of my latest fossil additions: 

 

A fossil dragonfly found in the Solnhofen Limestone, Langenaltheimer Haardt, Bavaria, Germany (Jurassic, Tithonian, 150 mya)

 

 

A Gomphothere/Mastodont tooth found in Sansan, Dép. Gers, France (Miocene, Burdigalian, 17 - 16 mya)

Not sure about the ID as it seems multiple species have been found in this location, could be Gompotherium angustidens, Zygolophodon turicensis or Archaeobelodon filholi. 
Need to do some more research on those teeth to find a match.

 

 

A Petalodus sp. tooth found in the Harpersville Formation, Saddle Creek Limestone, Virgil Series, Brownwood, Brown County, Texas, USA (Carboniferous, 318 - 299 mya)

 

 

A small but rare Hyposalenia heliophora found in the Houten Formation, Vroenhoven, Riemst, Limburg, Belgium (Paleocene, Danian, 66 - 63 mya) 

Found back in the day (possible during one of the constructions) when more of the layers including the paleocene ones were exposed as today only a very small patch of Maastrichtian rock is still exposed at this location.

 

 

 

 

Got 2 Palaeophis vertebras, one from Belgium and the other from the UK

 

 

A Palaeophis toliapicus vertebrae found in the London Clay Formation, Minster, Isle Of Sheppey, Kent, England, UK (Eocene, Ypresian, 52 mya)

 

 

A Palaeophis sp. found in the Egem clay, Tielt Formation, Egem, Belgium

 

 

My first large North American mosasaur tooth found in the North Sulphur River, Ozan Formation, Fannin Country, Texas, USA. (Cretaceous, Campanian, 77 mya)

[ziggycardon]

 

 

I've also been buzy last week as I've bought 2 new glass display cases and decided to redo and rearrange a lot of my displays. 
When I started I wasn't very sure about whether it would turn out nice but in the end really ended up very nicely. 
The wall which was quite a lot of empty space before has become a nice filler which much more light, displays at eye height and more display room. 
I desperately needed more display room for certain displays are both my mesozoïc, cenozoïc, paleozoïc fishes and my 2 paleozoïc shelves in my display were running out of room. Especially since I am focussing more and more on paleozoïc fish, mammal fossils and marine reptiles this would become a problem in a short term. 
But with the addition with 2 more display cases I doubled the space for my paleozoïc fish with an extra shelf.
I got an extra shelf for various paleozoïc fossils as well. 
I also spit my mesozoïc shelf in 2 and will dedicate one to marine reptiles in special (and have room to eventually add another mesozoïc shelf if I need to)

Also my Cenozoïc shelf which was in the most dire need for expansion got split into 2 shelves, with one more focussing on mammals.

 

[Yoda]

@ziggycardon

Your displays look really good