Turtle scute? Please help with ID

[D.N.FossilmanLithuania]

Dear Guys,

 

I recently found this scute fossil in pink fluvial sandstone erratic boulder of Juodikiai quarry, Klaipeda district, Western Lithuania. 

It has many pits various in size and it is 1.4 cm length. I think it is turtle because the fossil is flat and rectangular but I need opinion about family and age.

 

Best Regards

Domas

[jpc]

This looks more crocodilian.  The holes are round and do not touch each other.  What age is this?  

 

[D.N.FossilmanLithuania]

@jpc I think the age should be Triassic or Jurassic because there are much of Prequarternary surface From Triassic to Early Cretaceous around Klaipeda (western Lithuania).

 

[jpc]

how big is it?  It looks  pretty small.  There are many crocodile-like things in the Triassic with this sort of sculpturing.  By the Jurassic, I think it would be more or less only crocodilians.  

[D.N.FossilmanLithuania]

@jpc it is about 1.3- 1.4 cm length. What would you tell judging by size? There is another osteoderm (5 mm length) that is identified as aetosaurian.

Please give your opinion if the ID is correct. 

 

Best Regards

Domas

[jpc]

Size is more of a curiosity.  Yes, this one looks more aetosaur... long and wide.  If it is this means you are in the Triassic.  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aetosaur

There are some early Jurassic sites for aetosauria, but they are all tracksites.  

 

The dimples on this one look different than the original post so that one could still be a crocodilomorph.  

very cool.  

[Anomotodon]

Why do you think it is aetosaurian? Osteoderms are quite hard to identify, if not impossible sometimes. Are these specimens from the same location as numerous Enchodus teeth you have posted before? If so they are ~Mid Cretaceous.

[D.N.FossilmanLithuania]

@Anomotodon These osteoderms are found in erratic boulders that much differ from flints where I found fish scales and teeth. Aetosaurian is found in dolomite, crocodilomorph- in fluvial sandstone. In Cretaceous period dolomites were not common in Lithuania so these stone fragments are transported by Pleistocene glaciers from other areas. The crocodilomorph scute is found Near Klaipeda city- in the North from this area there are much Jurassic, Triassic and older rock layers in prequarternary surface.

 

Best Regards

Domas 

[jpc]

What I see that is aetosaurian is

1) the rectangular shape

2) the dimples seem to be longer than round "streaming" toward the edges

3) the middline seems thicker on the bottom side (as seen in this photo) than on the top side

 

Having said this, I am far from an expert, and have rarely collected in the Triassic, so take this with a grain of salt. 

[D.N.FossilmanLithuania]

Dear @jpc

Thank you very much for the confirmation of aetosaurian and crocodyliform scutes from Triassic, maybe I will use them in my further publications. 

Thank you all for the opinions!

 

Best Regards

Domas 

 

[jpc]

10 hours ago, D.N.FossilmanLithuania said:

Dear @jpc

Thank you very much for the confirmation of aetosaurian and crocodyliform scutes from Triassic, maybe I will use them in my further publications. 

Thank you all for the opinions!

 

Best Regards

Domas 

 

Cheers... I sent you a PM.  

 

[D.N.FossilmanLithuania]

34 minutes ago, jpc said:

Cheers... I sent you a PM.  

 

Thank you, I messaged recently. Very interesting suggestions, I am really happy that you are going to help me with identifications!

 

All the best

Domas