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a very succesful Devonian cephalopod hunt


Manticocerasman

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Today we had a field trip with the "Lithos" geology club at my favorite hunting spot.

 

Although the day started with freezing temperatures, the sun quickly rose the temperatures during t morning  and gave us a beautiful day.

 

the last time I visited the quarry the finds were disapointing due to the lack of activity in the quarry, but today we were lucky and the past week a new acces road was being dug to the side of the quarry, straight through the Matagne slate.

It didnt take long before I found my first fossils, at first a few halve goniatites, but after a while a complete large specimen and a nautiloid that I had never seen before at this locaton.

we searched further in the quarry where we found the spot where the rest of the slate was dumped, resulting in a couple extra goniatites, one of them was an exquisite specimen  and a 2nd nautiloid.

Note that al the goniatites this time weren't Manticoceras specimens, but an other Gephuroceratinae:  Crickites sp. they differ from the former with a more bulbous shape and large size ( up to 30cm in diameter )

 

In the afternoon we prospected the usual scree piles at the back of the quarry where we found a multitude of small pyritised cephalopods and I even found a broken nodule with very rare placoderm remains. Natalie also found a large and complete Crickites sp. at this spot

 

 

This day turned out to be one of my most productive days at this location.

 

IMG_20190216_104048.thumb.jpg.1a99fe711e007ed3c61b4f701ef7ed86.jpgIMG_20190216_104211.thumb.jpg.e72d398fed777c6059a77937ef1fcd92.jpgIMG_20190216_104206.thumb.jpg.b5aa6bade7e326736a1b796e5357e15d.jpgIMG_20190216_104004.thumb.jpg.5d7fe1a81ad619a61610bb614022c8dd.jpg

 

 

 

IMG_20190216_110911.thumb.jpg.6d8a33f25e0992c9ef487c01e0db1c04.jpg

 

 

51974093_371383180368580_4641903462701858816_n.jpg.8921808b135e04c235e9563f1bc15d1b.jpg51979971_626051484514461_4984197134828961792_n.jpg.51c1bbc0d6078041288f3a7c1d95401e.jpgIMG_20190216_144116.thumb.jpg.b1c5e91ae922ae4ae298c263b4f514c8.jpgIMG_20190216_131538_1.thumb.jpg.9098c6caa905c6ba0078d6b757fd795e.jpg

 

 

 

  • I found this Informative 19

growing old is mandatory but growing up is optional.

 

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Yaaaaaaaayyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You had a good day!:)

You certainly look happy enough in the photos.

Life's Good!

Tortoise Friend.

MOTM.png.61350469b02f439fd4d5d77c2c69da85.png.a47e14d65deb3f8b242019b3a81d8160-1.png.60b8b8c07f6fa194511f8b7cfb7cc190.png

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Looks like you're getting items all set for this year's Secret Santa exchange. ;)

 

What are they quarrying the material for at that site?

 

 

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11 hours ago, Tidgy's Dad said:

Yaaaaaaaayyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You had a good day!:)

You certainly look happy enough in the photos.

 

Thx Adam.

 

10 hours ago, FossilDAWG said:

What fantastic finds! .:wub:

 

Don

 

Thx Don :)

 

10 hours ago, Monica said:

Congratulations on a fantastic hunt!  Cephalopods rock! :ammonite01::wub:

 

Thx Monica. They sure do ;)

 

5 hours ago, Darktooth said:

Thanks for a great report and pics. Nice finds!

 

Thx Darktooth.

 

4 hours ago, ynot said:

Nice - all around!

Congrats on the finds.

 

Thx Tony.

 

4 hours ago, caldigger said:

Looks like you're getting items all set for this year's Secret Santa exchange. ;)

 

What are they quarrying the material for at that ?

 

They are to heavy to send by mail :P

 

 

They are quarrying for road ballast.

The center of the quarry is a devonian reef ( bioherm), so they have to remove the fossiliferous slates and limestone beds on the sides of it to get to the material. All the unwanted material is dumped in a field at the back of the quarry and offers us a great place to look for fossils :)

 

 

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IMG_20190217_121227.thumb.jpg.2c0100873452e1a55aa907fe4dd2866d.jpgA little update, I started to prepp the pieces:

 

 

IMG_20190217_121222.jpg

 

IMG_20190217_121127.thumb.jpg.329f4a2a65b0e285e68a9893d8f59c44.jpg

 

 

 

 

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Kevin, 

Thanks for posting all of these wonderful finds. 

We don't see cephalopods of this size, too much, in the Devonian areas I collect from.

Wonderful to see a great trip report and finds, this deep in winter. :) 

Congratulations. 

    Tim    -  VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER

   MOTM.png.61350469b02f439fd4d5d77c2c69da85.png      PaleoPartner.png.30c01982e09b0cc0b7d9d6a7a21f56c6.png.a600039856933851eeea617ca3f2d15f.png     Postmaster1.jpg.900efa599049929531fa81981f028e24.jpg    VFOTM.png.f1b09c78bf88298b009b0da14ef44cf0.png  VFOTM  --- APRIL - 2015  

__________________________________________________
"In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."

John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~   ><))))( *>  About Me      

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@Manticocerasman ,

Very nice finds. I don't get much opportunities to look at these types of fossils. Thanks very much.

On The Hunt For The Trophy Otodus!

 

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28 minutes ago, OwlEyes said:

Great founds.  I love all of them.  Thank you for sharing.

Thx :)

 

23 minutes ago, Fossildude19 said:

Kevin, 

Thanks for posting all of these wonderful finds. 

We don't see cephalopods of this size, too much, in the Devonian areas I collect from.

Wonderful to see a great trip report and finds, this deep in winter. :) 

Congratulations. 

 

Thx Tim, honestly we dont see them very often here either, it is unusual to find those in this size.

 

They are excavating the upper parts of the matagne formation, it apears that the cephalopods here get a lot bigger than the other layers.

 

20 minutes ago, FossilsAnonymous said:

@Manticocerasman ,

Very nice finds. I don't get much opportunities to look at these types of fossils. Thanks very much.

Thx, glad you like them. :)

growing old is mandatory but growing up is optional.

 

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Those are some BIG cephalopods! Great finds Kevin, good job!

:1-SlapHands_zpsbb015b76:

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

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22 hours ago, Ludwigia said:

Excellent! Can't wait to see those things finished! :popcorn:

I've finished one :D

 

a complete 25cm diameter goniatite, Crickites cf.

 

IMG_20190218_205831.thumb.jpg.e174eaa89c2f30aec0c6dc45bc716cb7.jpgIMG_20190218_210053.thumb.jpg.b7bab7cca65f109738c27c74c28ce8bd.jpg

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an update on my prepp work:

 

We also found a couple of Nautiloids this saturday.

This is the 1st one: ( size: 14cm long and 10 cm wide ) some kind of Oncocerid.

 

as found:

IMG_20190216_104206.thumb.jpg.84d4cfe000920a201fbf6790328b8655.jpg

 

after the prepp:

IMG_2127.thumb.JPG.da9c00cc16acc68da954f39339bdb1c5.JPGIMG_2128.thumb.JPG.30c2224ed7ea513701c92af47f67cf5a.JPG5c6bb70c4a837_IMG_2129(1).thumb.JPG.5c8a73cf6296182eba7f2127774ffe41.JPGIMG_2130.thumb.JPG.002e3862c717156889aa36e32cfdb17a.JPGIMG_2132.thumb.JPG.4b66e688f34c00d42725f4700ad20edf.JPG

IMG_2133.JPG

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@Ludwigia  and @Fossildude19

 

I prepped the goniatite that Natalie found, an other monster of 27 cm diameter .

 

 

Crickites sp.

Late Devonian

Frasnian

Matagne formation

Chimay ( Belgium )

 

 

as found:

IMG_20190216_153300.thumb.jpg.2fbb34c0625ad4e08ee81ece0af52459.jpg

 

during prepp:

IMG_20190217_121232.thumb.jpg.d290cb33414d391e8664ce66f9b1061a.jpg

 

 

finished: ( I might continu the center with an airscribe later )

IMG_20190219_212753.thumb.jpg.a31bca7f769c808e7e108556d8589553.jpgIMG_20190219_213241.thumb.jpg.8aae649098cbfb012a2af7df06c327ed.jpg

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WoW! :blink:  :trilosurprise:

    Tim    -  VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER

   MOTM.png.61350469b02f439fd4d5d77c2c69da85.png      PaleoPartner.png.30c01982e09b0cc0b7d9d6a7a21f56c6.png.a600039856933851eeea617ca3f2d15f.png     Postmaster1.jpg.900efa599049929531fa81981f028e24.jpg    VFOTM.png.f1b09c78bf88298b009b0da14ef44cf0.png  VFOTM  --- APRIL - 2015  

__________________________________________________
"In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."

John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~   ><))))( *>  About Me      

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