BigJim2500 Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 Hi, looking for some thoughts on identification of a fossil I bought a while ago. This is a fairly well preserved vertebra from an early reptile of some kind. Unfortunately I lost the original label for it so all I can say is that it’s from 300-250 mya, and from a formation in Oklahoma or Texas. I’m not very experienced with Permian stuff, so I’m not sure where to begin. Thanks for any help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim2500 Posted February 15, 2019 Author Share Posted February 15, 2019 More photos: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim2500 Posted February 15, 2019 Author Share Posted February 15, 2019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim2500 Posted February 15, 2019 Author Share Posted February 15, 2019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim2500 Posted February 15, 2019 Author Share Posted February 15, 2019 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zenmaster6 Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 obviously a trilobite jawbone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 @dinodigger 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...
Kane Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 4 hours ago, Zenmaster6 said: obviously a trilobite jawbone. Trilobites do not have jawbones. They are arthropods. Invertebrates do not have bones. 1 ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobby Rico Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 6 hours ago, BigJim2500 said: Unfortunately I lost the original label Yes I hate it when this happens. It has happened to me too a couple of time . I now add the info in a notebook too. Because of my dyslexia labelling is very hard work. @Uncle Siphuncle He maybe able to help as he has collected at Richards Spur quarry. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncle Siphuncle Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 I collected that quarry one whole day 15 years ago, haha. With a vert that big, I’d start w comparing to Eryops and Dimetrodon. 4 Grüße, Daniel A. Wöhr aus Südtexas "To the motivated go the spoils." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zenmaster6 Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 On 2/15/2019 at 2:13 AM, Kane said: Trilobites do not have jawbones. They are arthropods. Invertebrates do not have bones. well yeah its obviously a vert. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 31 minutes ago, Zenmaster6 said: well yeah its obviously a vert. Yes, which is why your declarative statement that it was obviously a "trilobite jawbone" made no sense. When uncertain, you may wish to use hedging words. For example: "it may be a trilobite", "it looks like a trilobite", or "might it be a trilobite?" Words such as clearly, evidently, and obviously signify absolute certainty. ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted February 15, 2019 Share Posted February 15, 2019 Or, if joking, at least make sure to use the emoticons to express your humor more openly. Tone is hard to pick up in writing on the internet. 6 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...
Zenmaster6 Posted February 16, 2019 Share Posted February 16, 2019 10 hours ago, Kane said: Yes, which is why your declarative statement that it was obviously a "trilobite jawbone" made no sense. When uncertain, you may wish to use hedging words. For example: "it may be a trilobite", "it looks like a trilobite", or "might it be a trilobite?" Words such as clearly, evidently, and obviously signify absolute certainty. I think even a 3 year old would know that was not a trilobite. Its bigger on its own than most trilobites. But yes, by saying obviously I was being sarcastic. Everyone knows trilobites don't even have bones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zenmaster6 Posted February 16, 2019 Share Posted February 16, 2019 10 hours ago, Fossildude19 said: Or, if joking, at least make sure to use the emoticons to express your humor more openly. Tone is hard to pick up in writing on the internet. Yeah, I thought we were all on the same page about that one. I guess it might not be as funny as I thought it was. Sorry guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim2500 Posted February 17, 2019 Author Share Posted February 17, 2019 Don’t worry about the joke, it’s all good. To get back on the subject, I have some beers that have been confirmed as dimetrodon milleri, and they aren’t very similar. It looks sort of like eryops, but not enough for me t confirm (although I’m not very experienced with that material). It is fairly well preserved, so I feel like a genus identification is possible, but I’m a bit stuck. Hmm... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim2500 Posted February 17, 2019 Author Share Posted February 17, 2019 Just now, BigJim2500 said: Don’t worry about the joke, it’s all good. To get back on the subject, I have some beers that have been confirmed as dimetrodon milleri, and they aren’t very similar. It looks sort of like eryops, but not enough for me t confirm (although I’m not very experienced with that material). It is fairly well preserved, so I feel like a genus identification is possible, but I’m a bit stuck. Hmm... VERTS, not beers, that was autocorrect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max-fossils Posted February 17, 2019 Share Posted February 17, 2019 On 2/16/2019 at 11:23 PM, BigJim2500 said: VERTS, not beers, that was autocorrect. Max Derème "I feel an echo of the lightning each time I find a fossil. [...] That is why I am a hunter: to feel that bolt of lightning every day." - Mary Anning >< Remarkable Creatures, Tracy Chevalier Instagram: @world_of_fossils Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max-fossils Posted February 17, 2019 Share Posted February 17, 2019 On 2/16/2019 at 4:08 AM, Zenmaster6 said: Yeah, I thought we were all on the same page about that one. I guess it might not be as funny as I thought it was. Sorry guys. Nah it was a decent joke, but Tim is right in saying that the emoticons should be used when making a joke like this. If you had written "Obviously a trilobite jawbone " it would've been much clearer. And not everyone knows that trilobites don't have bones; most people on the planet have never heard of trilobites, and many others simply deny they ever existed. 2 Max Derème "I feel an echo of the lightning each time I find a fossil. [...] That is why I am a hunter: to feel that bolt of lightning every day." - Mary Anning >< Remarkable Creatures, Tracy Chevalier Instagram: @world_of_fossils Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdp Posted February 18, 2019 Share Posted February 18, 2019 This is definitely not Dimetrodon or Eryops. The swollen neural arch and relatively small vertebral centrum fits pretty well with either a seymouriid (maybe Seymouria) or diadectid (Maybe Diadectes). I think the limnoscelid Limnoscelis might be a good match, actually. Any idea on the locality? 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tripermiblast Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 Seems very similar to one of the first few (closest to sacrum) caudal vertebra of Seymouria baylorensis. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdp Posted February 19, 2019 Share Posted February 19, 2019 Seems a bit large for Seymouria but I wouldn't totally rule it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim2500 Posted February 19, 2019 Author Share Posted February 19, 2019 On 2/18/2019 at 2:10 PM, jdp said: This is definitely not Dimetrodon or Eryops. The swollen neural arch and relatively small vertebral centrum fits pretty well with either a seymouriid (maybe Seymouria) or diadectid (Maybe Diadectes). I think the limnoscelid Limnoscelis might be a good match, actually. Any idea on the locality? Unfortunately even with the label I couldn’t give you a locality down to formation. The dealer wasn’t too sure himself. Now that I recall, I’m pretty sure it is from somewhere specifically in Oklahoma. I’ll definitely check on the species you suggested for comparisons. Hopefully knowing the state can do something to narrow the time frame. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdp Posted February 20, 2019 Share Posted February 20, 2019 Unfortunately the sequence in Oklahoma contains much of the Late Carboniferous and nearly the entire Early Permian sequence right up through the earliest parts of the Middle Permian. Preservation seems consistent with Waurika but it could also potentially be Fort Sill. There's a few other places it could be from. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJim2500 Posted March 27, 2019 Author Share Posted March 27, 2019 Ok, serious new development on this, I found the label! The sight is still left only as Oklahoma, but the date is 225 mya. So that sort of changes things. With this in mind, any new thoughts from anyone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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