Waldron Shale Collection

[Ken K]

Until I am able to start a Gallery Page I am going to fetaure some of my Waldron Shale specimens.

 

Featured here is one of only a few known specimens of a complete Eucalyptocrinites crassus complete with root system.  I collected this specimen near the type locality in Shelby County, Indiana.

I prepared 90 percent of this specimen with some final matrix work being done by Scott Vergiels.  Specimen measures 8 inches high.

 

Edited September 29, 2018 by Ken Karns

[Raggedy Man]

I love hunting the Waldron shale

[Ken K]

Yup...me too!

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

Very nice crinoid specimen  Would love to see more!

-Christian

[RCFossils]

Welcome to the forum from another Waldron collector.

That is a spectacular specimen.

 

[Fossildude19]

Very nice!

Thanks for sharing it. 

[Ken K]

Thanks Christian, and you bet...I'll be posting many more Waldron Fossils and will start a Gallery Page once It's open for me.

 

RC Fossils, appreciate that and I consider it a once in a life time find for sure.  Was a challenge to collect in the field and to prepare but well worth the time and effort spent on both.  Of all the years collecting the Waldron it is the only E. crassus I have found complete with a full root system.  Although a showy specimen I enjoy equally extensive effort in collection and preparation of all the Waldron fauna.  

 

Thanks Tim and for all your help getting me started so far!

 

Ken

Edited September 29, 2018 by Ken Karns

[Ken K]

Its always a thrill to put in a hards days collecting in the Waldron and secure a fine specimen of a rarely collected species of Crinoid or Trilobite.  However, I enjoy securing nice specimens of the more commonly collected taxa such as the bryozoans, bivalves, sponges, brachiopods, etc..  In particular, the brachiopod fauna of the Waldron Shale produces some of the finest preserved specimens you can imagine.  There is however, very little separation between matrix and the specimen exoskeleton in the Waldron unless significant weathering has occurred.  Collecting complete and undamaged specimens from fresh material can be a source of frustration particularly for the large brachiopod species such as the one featured here.  The specimen here, Eospirifer radiata, is easily one of the largest brachiopod species encountered in the Waldron and one of the more difficult ones to collect in excellent condition.  Why is condition important?  We all like to collect the finest specimens of any given species we can as this illustrates the merits of the species.  There is an additional fine point to collecting Waldron fossils in good condition and that is the presence of epifauna, those small encrusting organisms that attach themselves to the specimen such a worm tubes, hold fasts, bryozoans, etc. This epifauna is often destroyed from weathering, improper collecting techniques, or over aggresive preparation.  Even mild preparation techniques such as boiling in various detergent solutions such as the old "Quaternary O" can destroy fine epifauna and secondary mineralization such as fine pyrite crystals that are so common and add a measure of beauty to many specimens, including the one featured here.

 

With this in mind I prepare all my specimens from the Waldron Shale with careful and precise air abrasive techniques as the final level of preparation.  With that said, I maintain a large reference collection of Waldron fossils that are simply taken from the field and washed off with simple soap and water and then curated in specimen boxes in cabinet drawers.  I also choose the finest specimens of any given species and prepare them with the air abrasive technique and place them in my main Waldron display cases along with a growth series of each species if applicable.

 

      

 

Portion of my Waldron brachiopod collection.

 

 

 

Note the growth series and individual specimens of Homoeospira evax in my main Waldron display case.  

 

 

Here is one of my best examples of Eospirifer radiata from the Waldron.  This specimen was collected from fresh shale and prepared by me with air abrasive and very low final pressures.  Note the retention of fine detail, epifauna, and secondary mineralization in the form of fine pyrite crystals (specimen approx. 3.5 cm across)

 

More later...Ken

 

 

[ynot]

[Ludwigia]

Excellent specimens and extremely well prepared

[Bobby Rico]

Stunning collection thank you

[Ken K]

Thanks for the thumbs up ynot...

 

Appreciate that Roger.  I do spend a good bit of time preparing my collection.

 

Thanks Bobby, nice to hear from you.

[Ken K]

Just finished preparing a gorgeous little Calymene breviceps from the Waldron Shale.  This specimen was almost entirely buried in the matrix which is typical for the Waldron. Specimen measures 27mm.

 

 

Edited October 15, 2018 by Ken K

[Kane]

Excellent preparation work on an immaculately well preserved specimen (with nice association pieces to go with it!). 

 

I've never had an opportunity to prep any Waldron shale. How is it to work with? 

[Ken K]

Nice hearing from you Kane.  I'm lovin that you noticed and made a comment regarding the association of the brachiopod species, small gastropod, etc..That very thing, the wonderful associations, is what drew me to specialize in the Waldron Shale.  Preparation of the Waldron material is not for the faint of heart.  The main issue is the lack of separation between the specimen and the matrix combined with the shale being moderately hard.  Very few things "pop" out or are "split" out of the shale.  Most specimens are found just below the bedding plane as the example of the specimen here.  I must alternate between my Arrow scribe and the air abrasive throughout the prep always watching out for associated taxa as I go.  The example above...neither of the brachiopods werre visible when I started the pre on this guy.  I use Dolomite powder exclusively and anything more aggressive has no place in Waldron material preparation.  Waldron material has so much microsculpture and epibionts that over prepping will destroy this detail.  A bonus with the Waldron material is a common secondary mineralization of pyrite on many specimens.  This form is quite stable and I have not detected any deterioration of the pyrite in any of my specimens with many 30 years+...

 

Here is an example of a specimen in progress...it's a beautiful large gastropod with a large cornulites and has scattered pyrite crystals which will make this a handsome display piece.  Gastropod measures 50mm across.

 

 

[ynot]

4 hours ago, Ken K said:

Just finished preparing a gorgeous little Calymene breviceps from the Waldron Shale.

Fantastic piece and wonderful prep.

[Kane]

I know that all too well when working with Verulam material where the trilobite is "ghosting" under a layer of matrix! But it is definitely a lovely surprise during prep to encounter the hidden ones, for sure. Dolomite is my regular go-to blast medium (I don't use anything more aggressive on any of the matrix I collect), and then a swap with baking soda for finer details or thinner-skinned specimens. 

 

That gastropod looks like it will come out very nicely. The ones I find in the Devonian tend to have fairly thick, forgiving shells, but care is still needed if one doesn't want to blast off any spines (more particularly among juveniles that sport them). I'm hoping it is the same for your gastro as well. Hopefully one day I'll get my hands on some Waldron shale to "get a feel" for the stuff!

[Tidgy's Dad]

Lovely finds and prepping. 

All those brachiopods have actually made me come over all dizzy 

[Ken K]

Thanks much Ynot...really getting motivated to put a dent in my back log of unprepared specimens.  It's like collecting all over again!

 

Verulam is a great and prolific formation which I have dabbled in over the years.  Not since the border restrictions but that's not the only reason of course.  Sounds like you have a solid prep background and I like that you are concerned about preserving the utmost detail as well.  The "pods" in the Waldron are quite robust with good thick shells so most turn out wonderfully.  They do have a host of parasitics and encrusters so careful prep is still in order...did a bit more on this guy last night.  Was hoping the cornulites was attached to the outsaide of the gastropod but the tip goes up into the pods aperture!  Still very cool.  Working on a really nice and hard to prep bivalve I'll post soon.  Keep in touch...

 

Hey Tidgy's Dad...Thanks for the kind words.  Glad you noticed the brachs.  I love the entire Waldron fauna and the brachiopods are wonderfully diverse and the preservation of most is stunning.  The only drawback is that most, if not all, need preparation with the air abrasive to bring out and retain the all imporatnt detail.  I began picking up literally every brachiopod I found since I strated collecting the Waldron over 35 years ago.  I have amassed a reasonably synoptic collection since then as you can imagine.  My brachiopods get the same attention the trilobites and crinoids do!

[FossilDAWG]

Your attention to detail really brings out the best in these fossils. 

I suppose that back when they were alive the brachiopods were islands of hard substrate in a sea of fine mud, the only place for epifauna to settle without sinking into the ooze.

 

BTW, what do you mean by "...since the border restrictions"?  There are essentially no restrictions on invertebrate fossils coming out of Ontario, except maybe the need to clean them of soil.

 

Don

[Ken K]

Thanks much FossilDAWG.  Right you are...many studies have looked at this "secondary tiering" in the Waldron Shale.

 

Maybe I was a bit harsh using "border restrictions" I meant the need for passports before going back and forth.  When I collected in Canada there were no such restrictions.  Obviously no big deal just fiddly for those of us with long expired passports!

[FossilDAWG]

I also remember when a driver's licence was all you needed.  It is a pain to have to remember to keep that in date.

 

Don

[Wrangellian]

Just came across this topic now. I'm impressed with the quality of both the specimens and your prep work!  This should serve as a good standard for other preppers to measure their work against, and get tips from, probably (I'm not a prepper myself... yet).

Would love to see a wide-angle shot of your storage units with a few drawers open, but you probably don't need to advertise the magnitude of your collection of treasures to the world!

Anyway I hope you continue to post your projects here.. Now that I've posted a reply I'll see any additions.

 

[Ken K]

Right Don, me too...I love Canada collecting and the country in general.  I should get my passport and get up there...!

 

Hi Wrangellian...I thank you for the comment and I have been preparing fossils for many years.  I started with the best equipment I could find and have never regretted it.  For sure!  I'd be happy to post some pictures.  I'll get some shots of my curation and display areas as well as my prep shop.  I built my "museum" myself with built in and lighted glass display cases.

 

Here's a picture of one wall of my display room and just a portion of my Waldron collection...more later...Ken

 

 

[Walt]

Beautiful!