SteveE Posted March 23, 2019 Share Posted March 23, 2019 Central PA, Mifflintown-Bloomsburg (undividied) Block collected from roadsite float. Its pretty variable, with a flaky/fissile layers alternating with slightly more cohesive ones. Lots of broken brachiopod bits. For an experiment to I dropped an unremarkable flake the size of a large coin in some vinegar and let it soak for a day. The flake had a couple brachiopod bits and I wanted to see if they would fall free or dissolve in place. The brachiopds disappeared and I was left with this (see pics). Of course I got really excited and thought I had an early fish spine, but now I think I dissolved a crinoid stem and what we see is the matrix that filled in the soft bits. What do you think? Total length is 3/4" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted March 23, 2019 Share Posted March 23, 2019 Yes that is a lumen cast from a crinoid stem inside the mold of it. Edit: Vertebra does not apply. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abyssunder Posted March 23, 2019 Share Posted March 23, 2019 Although the pictures are a bit blurry, it looks like there were crinoid pluricolumnals, now almost totally dissolved, leaving behind external molds of columnals and internal molds of lumens with the crystallized sediment infill between what once were columnals. picture from here picture from here 1 " We are not separate and independent entities, but like links in a chain, and we could not by any means be what we are without those who went before us and showed us the way. " Thomas Mann My Library Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveE Posted March 23, 2019 Author Share Posted March 23, 2019 (edited) 5 hours ago, Rockwood said: Yes that is a lumen cast from a crinoid stem inside the mold of it. Edit: Vertebra does not apply. Thanks Rockwood, that's what I thought. Searching google images on _Crinoid vertebra_ led to a web page that has a diagram of various cross sections labeled "vertebra". I thought that must be trade jargon. It's really fun realizing the flake showed no sign of this stem, but a day in Vinegar and...... voila! Makes me wonder what else is (was) in all the rocks I "threw back". Edited March 23, 2019 by SteveE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveE Posted March 23, 2019 Author Share Posted March 23, 2019 1 minute ago, abyssunder said: Although the pictures are a bit blurry, Heh.... that's shooting with a handheld IPod through a handlens for you! Nice pics MOTM... that's some careful prepping Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abyssunder Posted March 23, 2019 Share Posted March 23, 2019 6 minutes ago, SteveE said: Nice pics MOTM... abyssunder is my username..., MOTM means "Member of The Month", a very nice appreciation from TFF. 1 " We are not separate and independent entities, but like links in a chain, and we could not by any means be what we are without those who went before us and showed us the way. " Thomas Mann My Library Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted March 24, 2019 Share Posted March 24, 2019 2 hours ago, SteveE said: Thanks Rockwood, that's what I thought. Searching google images on _Crinoid vertebra_ led to a web page that has a diagram of various cross sections labeled "vertebra". I thought that must be trade jargon. It's really fun realizing the flake showed no sign of this stem, but a day in Vinegar and...... voila! Makes me wonder what else is (was) in all the rocks I "threw back". It was once thought that crinoid columnals were homologous to vertebra. The idea has since been dismissed though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zenmaster6 Posted March 24, 2019 Share Posted March 24, 2019 4 hours ago, abyssunder said: abyssunder is my username..., MOTM means "Member of The Month", a very nice appreciation from TFF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveE Posted March 24, 2019 Author Share Posted March 24, 2019 well I always like making others laugh or smile..... note to self, user names on my screen are nearly invisible (white on light grey) until AFTER I log in.... Hmmm next time I'm at a roadcut, I'll have to try logging in, and then maybe I'll see more fossils.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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