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Running of the Bulls.


Darktooth

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Hello to all my fossil friends! In the early hours of the morning, my family and I returned to the Arctic of the north, from a weeks vacation in sunny Florida. We had a great time at Disney and Universal Studios. But the highlight of the trip, for me, was a Fossilhunt at Cookie Cutter Creek with @digit (Ken) and his wife, Tammy. This trip was planned since the fall when I had asked Ken if he would be willing to meet up with me for a hunt. Originally I was wanting to hunt the Peace River. A couple weeks ago Ken told me that the water levels of the Peace were too high and we discussed other possible options he mentioned  Cookie Cutter Creek as a possibility and I was all for it. I would like to take this time to mention that Ken was constantly giving me updates on the weather and water levels of various waterways and also tons of information  about what to bring and what to expect while there. He really put a lot of time into this for which I am extremely grateful. At one point he brought @Shellseeker (Jack) into the conversation to ask if he could help out with any sites that were not flooded. Jack did a few scouting trips on the Peace but could not find a site which was doable. We were hoping that maybe he would meet up with us at CCC, but he could not make it. I would like to say Thank-you for reporting back with us the conditions. Also Ken got the OK, from @jcbshark to access this site so a big Thank-you to you sir as I had such a great time there.

 

The trip was planned for Monday, March 4. I got up at 3:30am and left the resort by 4 i had about a 2 hour drive in which it was pouring rain and lightning. I was afraid that the hunt might be canceled but the rain and lighting stopped after about an hour into the drive. We met up at McDonalds for a bite to eat and then i piled my stuff into Ken car and he drove us to the site. Before we left, Tammy gave me a big bag of homemade Chocolate Walnut cookies. They were delicious. I ate a couple every day for breakfast for the remainder of my vacation. When we got almost to the site we were greeted by a couple deer. I always enjoy wildlife so it was a good way to start the day. A couple minutes after that, we were at the site.

 

For anyone that doesn't already know, this creek is named as such, as it is the only place in Florida, known to produce the teeth of the Cookie Cutter Shark. To find these you must collect and search through the micro matrix. Ken had planned out a system that would benefit us both. He had brought 3 sisters. 2 of them had1/4 inch mesh the other 1/2 inch. In the 1/2 he put in a piece of window screen. He then would put the 1/4 on top, fill it with gravel, shake it so the smaller stuff fell through to the window screen. He then handed me the top sifter to look for the bigger stuff as he continued to rinse the micro matrix in the window screen and then dump it into the bucket. Then he would take the other unused sifter and put that one on top. As I got done searching through one we kept swapping sifters back and forth. It was a very efficient way for both of us to get what we wanted. Ken was interested  solely in the micro matrix and I was more interested in the bigger stuff. 

 

One of the first things of interest when we entered the creek was a shell layer visible a short way upstream from the access point. There were so many shells jam packed onto the side of the banks. I was going to take a pic of this but forgot. It was very impressive. But I did grab some of these shells so I have pics of what I took. It was just a bit further from this were we spent most of our time searching the gravel.

 

More to come...............

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7 minutes ago, Darktooth said:

Ken had planned out a system that would benefit us both. He had brought 3 sisters.

Some typos inadvertently tell a very interesting story. :D

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...How to Philosophize with a Hammer

 

 

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Here is pic of Ken and Tammy. I should mention that Tammy shared in the work more then I did. She would hold the screen while Ken shoveled in the gravel and then both would shake the sifters for the silt to wash out. I only had to search the sifters. I have to admit that I am not used to having it so easy. I stared feeling quilty and asked them a couple times if they wanted me to take over. I was allowed to once or twice for a couple minutes.:P

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Just now, Kane said:

Some typos inadvertently tell a very interesting story. :D

:hearty-laugh:My Bad!

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I like Trilo-butts and I cannot lie.

 

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Here is one time that I was allowed to touch the shovel.:D

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So now you may ask "Why is the topic called Running of the Bulls?" Well it seemed like just about every load of gravel contained a Bull Shark tooth. Or at the very least a Carcharinus sp. as I know they are not all Bull Shark. That being said there was a great diversity  of finds to be had. Snaggletooth, Sand Tigers, alligator tooth, alligator scute. Drumfish teeth and mouth plate, plenty of stingray teeth and spines, fish verts, turtle spur and various pieces, and misc bone. There was definitely enough finds to keep me busy. After Ken collected 5-6, 5 gallon buckets of micro matrix we switched over to hunting for macro stuff for the remainder of the trip. It was nice to spend time with Ken and Tammy, not only for the hunt but also on a personal level. I had only met them once before on their east coast trip through New York in October. This time I felt like I was able to learn more about them. Ken is very knowledgeable about Florida fossils and he spent a lot of time sharing his knowledge. When it got about 1:30 it got cloudy and started to rain. We decided  that was our sign to call it a day. My wife had asked that I meet up with them at Hollywood Studios by 5:00 so it was a good time to call it a day. The last finds before we left were some good ones though. Ken found a decent size echinoid and a small mammal jaw which he thought was either raccoon or possum but was not sure how old it was. Either way, when my son Devin saw it he claimed it as "his". Though this was not my first fossil hunt of 2019 this was the first with "substance" to it. I again want to Thank Ken and Tammy for everything they did, to provide me with a great experience and fond memories of time spent with good company. I could not have asked for anything better. :) Now on with the show!

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I almost forgot to mention that Ken sent me home with about 4 gallons of micromatrix. I found my first Cookie Cutter! Yay!:yay-smiley-1:

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On the way out of the site we encountered an endangered Gopher Tortoise. It was a great ending to a perfect day! @Tidgy's Dad

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My Family and I stopped at Siesta Keys on Wednesday. It was too chilly to swim so we wading in the surf for a bit and found these.

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I couldn't  resist this purchase at one one the surf shops. 

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Ken thought this was a possible mammoth  tooth fragment. All of those flakes came off the main chunk during the trip home. What do you think?

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These are a mystery. Ken said he has only found these at this site but has not been able to get an ID. Any ideas?

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Stay tuned more to come..........

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13 minutes ago, Darktooth said:

These are a mystery. Ken said he has only found these at this site but has not been able to get an ID. Any ideas?

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Hey Dave .. if I'm mistaken these have popped up before. Fishy and related to Tilly bones if not lumped into the same camp.  I'll find the thread. These examples are very worn.

 

Cheers,

Brett

 

PS. Jealous of course.  Nice running of the bulls !

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12 minutes ago, Darktooth said:

Raccoon or possum?

99% sure it is not an opossum, at least not a modern one, dental formula is wrong (not enough molars).  Just went out a grabbed one of each to compare.  Could be a raccoon, looks more like that.

 

What age are those shells?

 

Really nice haul!!

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