FossilAddicted1991 Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Xiphactinus is one of my favorite type of species that is a total fascination because of its size, the teeth, and just plain scary to think this fish use to to live. I've been pretty blessed to find some good Xiphactinux material in the North Sulfur river including some verts, a couple teeth, jaws, and some associated wash out from a couple different ones I have yet to find the source. I couldn't imagine swimming and having a tarpon like fish the size of a Great White shark come up from behind and swallowing me whole. Below are the various Xiphactinus fossils I've found in the Sulfur aswell as photos of the 3D Xiphactinus Audax cast skeleton made by Triebold Paleontolgoy as well as the largest Xiphactinus ever found which came from Kansas and was prepped by Triebold. 14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Nice finds. Thanks for posting those, ... and the extra pictures. They were scary looking fish, for sure! Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeepTimeIsotopes Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 A carnivorous fish big enough to rival sharks is crazy to think about. The past is one weird place. Each dot is 50,000,000 years: Hadean............Archean..............................Proterozoic.......................................Phanerozoic........... Paleo......Meso....Ceno.. Ꞓ.OSD.C.P.Tr.J.K..Pg.NgQ< You are here Doesn't time just fly by? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facehugger Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Great stuff! Some of your pics helped me identify some NSR specimens as Xiphactinus... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Amateur Paleontologist Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 I also like that big fish Those are some neat finds - especially the jaw material!! Absolutely love it -Christian Opalised fossils are the best: a wonderful mix between paleontology and mineralogy! Q. Where do dinosaurs study? A. At Khaan Academy!... My ResearchGate profile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Macrophyseter Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 1 hour ago, UtahFossilHunter said: A carnivorous fish big enough to rival sharks is crazy to think about. The past is one weird place. Also considering how even a frightening fish like that has no match against some sharks at the time (Myers and Lieberman, 2011)(Shimda and Everhart, 2004), it makes the past even wilder. 1 If you're a fossil nut from Palos Verdes, San Pedro, Redondo Beach, or Torrance, feel free to shoot me a PM! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Great finds and a great post. I can't swim and i'm a rubbish fisherman, but back then those would have been positive attributes. 1 Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xiphactinus Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Nice finds! I obviously have a soft spot in my heart for Xiphactinus! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 1 hour ago, Xiphactinus said: Nice finds! I obviously have a soft spot in my heart for Xiphactinus! No kidding! Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
belemniten Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Great finds Thanks for the pictures! Many greetings from Germany ! Have a great time with many fossils Regards Sebastian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 Superb X-fish! The jaw sections are especially amazing. Always a highlight find in the NSR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 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...
Barby Posted December 12, 2018 Share Posted December 12, 2018 WOW! I love these guys also! I've only been hunting them for a year, but I'm totally hooked on them --no pun intended. I'm finding them in shale, which is easy digging, but just awful to handle them in getting them out in good enough shape to cast. They're like graham crackers -soft and crumbly. I thought a vinac solution would be the answer to render them solid enough to move--plus sliding a flat cookie sheet under the specimen in order to lift it out WAS a great idea. Then I could slide it onto a piece of heavy cardboard, cover it in foil, and cast it. BUT_the vinac was an awful idea; it made the shale matrix harder than the fish bone and was a nighmare to prep.Next time I go, I'll stick to butvar in the field, and use the vinac to harden the specimen AFTER I prep it. The first one I found was only 13 inches, but it had fins and tail. The second one had the complete skull and jaws, nearly 5 feet of verts, and a partial tail--no fins.It took weeks to prep all the verts, but the skull was worth it. If anybody out there has any suggestion for getting these crumbly critters out of soft shale, I'd be glad to give it a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xiphactinus Posted December 12, 2018 Share Posted December 12, 2018 15 hours ago, Barby said: WOW! I love these guys also! I've only been hunting them for a year, but I'm totally hooked on them --no pun intended. I'm finding them in shale, which is easy digging, but just awful to handle them in getting them out in good enough shape to cast. They're like graham crackers -soft and crumbly. I thought a vinac solution would be the answer to render them solid enough to move--plus sliding a flat cookie sheet under the specimen in order to lift it out WAS a great idea. Then I could slide it onto a piece of heavy cardboard, cover it in foil, and cast it. BUT_the vinac was an awful idea; it made the shale matrix harder than the fish bone and was a nighmare to prep.Next time I go, I'll stick to butvar in the field, and use the vinac to harden the specimen AFTER I prep it. The first one I found was only 13 inches, but it had fins and tail. The second one had the complete skull and jaws, nearly 5 feet of verts, and a partial tail--no fins.It took weeks to prep all the verts, but the skull was worth it. If anybody out there has any suggestion for getting these crumbly critters out of soft shale, I'd be glad to give it a try. Barby - I've never done it in shale, but to get these out of crumbly chalk, here is the tried and true method: clear off the top of all the bones in the field dig a trench around the entire thing pour plaster RIGHT ON THE bones before the plaster sets, jacket the entire fossil with plaster/burlap let the plaster set dig under and flip prep from the former bottom, now top you will remove all the shale, leaving only bones attached to plaster clean up for display enjoy! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barby Posted December 12, 2018 Share Posted December 12, 2018 Plaster directly ON the fish? I'd never have thought of that! Plaster will certainly be easier to get off than vinaced shale... Thank you for a great idea--can't wait for spring to try it out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaimin013 Posted December 12, 2018 Share Posted December 12, 2018 Very nice specimens thanks for sharing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.thumb.jpg.51c371f10936bbc883322324e44cc518.jpg)
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now