Question about Peace River Fossils

[BenM]

Hello Fossil Forum community,

 

This is my first post.  My name is Ben and I recently learned about the Peace River.  After getting my fossil collecting permit, decided to try my hand at it! I loved collecting trilobites and sea animals in upstate NY, so to know there is a place in FL with abundant, remarkable and unusual fossils, makes me so happy!  I live about 45min away from Paynes Creek Historic State Park; here the creek and river join.  I collected these fossils just past the border of the park.  I would like your help to try to ID them, please!

 

Where Paynes Creek (right) meets lazy Peace River (left)

 

Here are some fossils I think I know, but I am still unsure.

 

Horse tooth?

 

 

 

Dugong rib bone? (very dense feeling, like lead):

 

Left: barracuda tooth? Right: claw?

 

 

Back of "claw":                                                                                                    Front:

Front, zoomed:                                                                                                     Side:

 

Many thanks for any help, I love this River!

 

Thanks for your time, 
Ben

[Scylla]

I don't think the first one is a tooth, I just don't see the enamel. Agree with Dougong rib. They all look like fossils at least

[caldigger]

Strange, I don't get any pictures showing just tons of encrypted script. 

[Tidgy's Dad]

And i only get the dugong rib, the others just come up as no entry signs! 

[Mark Kmiecik]

Hi, Ben, and welcome to the forum.

 

Please post actual JPEGs as opposed to links. When the location of the photos is no longer available the information in this post becomes useless. I only see the second photo (?horse tooth?) and the rest are URLs that don't work and will not even allow me to highlight in order to copy and google.

[BenM]

Okay, I will add the actual photos here.

What I did was drag and drop the photos from an external site into the message space. 

 

First 3: barracuda tooth, and some claw?

 

Second 3: Dugong rib?

 

Third 3: horse tooth?

 

Thanks

Ben

Edited April 17, 2019 by BenM

[BenM]

Unknown bone:

 

 

Edited April 17, 2019 by BenM

[Shellseeker]

My name is Jack,  I have hunted the Peace River for 10 years,  I have evn hunted while looking at the downstream boundary sign for Payne Creek Park.

Your "claw" is a broken and heavily worn lower Hemipristis serra tooth.

The fossil next to it is likely Barracuda, but can not tell until you provide a photo of where it connects to jaw. See the top photo in this thread:

The majority of worn bone in the Peace River is dugong rib.  Other worn bones are not identifiable without unique features,  like the ends that show connection points to other bones.

The 5th worn bone back might be dolphin jaw bone because the indentations might be tooth sockets..  A clearer photo might help.

Welcome to both the Peace River and TFF.

[Mark Kmiecik]

1 hour ago, BenM said:

Okay, I will add the actual photos here.

What I did was drag and drop the photos from an external site into the message space. 

Yay! I can see. I can see. Thank you.

[BenM]

3 hours ago, Shellseeker said:

My name is Jack,  I have hunted the Peace River for 10 years,  I have evn hunted while looking at the downstream boundary sign for Payne Creek Park.

Your "claw" is a broken and heavily worn lower Hemipristis serra tooth.

The fossil next to it is likely Barracuda, but can not tell until you provide a photo of where it connects to jaw. See the top photo in this thread:

The majority of worn bone in the Peace River is dugong rib.  Other worn bones are not identifiable without unique features,  like the ends that show connection points to other bones.

The 5th worn bone back might be dolphin jaw bone because the indentations might be tooth sockets..  A clearer photo might help.

Welcome to both the Peace River and TFF.

Hi Jack, nice to meet you.  Thank you so much for your help.  I really appreciate your knowledge.

Two questions:  

I am scared of alligators; what do you have to say about them?

Any tips on finding Megalodon?  Or is it just a matter of probability/time invested?

 

"Claw": Wow, I'm impressed you could recognize it.  It surely is different now.

"Barracuda": Okay, well the top of my tooth is unfortunately worn away to the point it has none of those "root" structures.

"Dugong": Crazy that these are so common, such an unusual animal by today's standards, but I love my fossil none the less!  It's heavy like lead.  I love how it feels in my hands.

 

Okay, here are more pix of the lil bone fragment.  I would be so excited if it was a dolphin fragment!

 

By the way, I found these with my bare hands.  Not anymore!  I got a bad cut in my thumb.  I noticed a fair amount of glass in the river bed. 

 

Here is also the photo of where Paynes Creek Meets the Peace River.

 

Edited April 18, 2019 by BenM

[Shellseeker]

17 minutes ago, BenM said:

Two questions:  

I am scared of aligators, what do you have to say about them?

Any tips on finding Megalodon?  Or is it just a matter of probability/time invested?

Alligators:

They are ambush predators. Do not swim over deep holes. Do not pretend to be food. Avoid dusk and dawn -- it is when they hunt. Stay in clear water.  Dig near the banks. Pay attention to your surroundings.  Never hunt alone. Here is a good thread.

 

Megalodons:

They are numerous in the rivers and Creeks. Some people obsess over them. I would rather find Mastodon Teeth or Sloth claws, which are much rarer.  I find lots of Megs looking for Mastodon or Sloth. It is just a matter of time and persistence. Dig DEEP. They lay on the bottom.

 

 

45 minutes ago, BenM said:

"Claw": Wow, I'm impressed you could recognize it.  It surely is different now.

I have seen thousands of similar looking broken lower hemis over the years.

 

46 minutes ago, BenM said:

Okay, here are more pix of the lil bone fragment.  I would be so excited if it was a dolphin fragment!

Google search "dolphin fossil jaw".  You have a piece of one.

48 minutes ago, BenM said:

By the way, I found these with my bare hands.  Not anymore!  I got a bad cut in my thumb.  I noticed a fair amount of glass in the river bed. 

If you last, you will learn. I have 3,5,7 mm wetsuits,  thick soled Scuba boots (I used to wear sneakers until a rusty metal spike came up thru the space next to my big toe). Always have a glove on left hand to spread the gravel on the sieve.

 

Good Hunting..

[Mark Kmiecik]

Persistence is what counts. Stay with it.     1.)The longer you do it, the more you learn.     2.)The more you learn, the better you get.     3.)The better you get, the more you find.     4.)The more you find, the better the quality. From there it snowballs. Most people burn out before they get to step three. There is no instant gratification unless you're extremely lucky. Pay your dues and you will do well.

[Yoda]

15 minutes ago, Mark Kmiecik said:

Persistence is what counts. Stay with it.     1.)The longer you do it, the more you learn.     2.)The more you learn, the better you get.     3.)The better you get, the more you find.     4.)The more you find, the better the quality. From there it snowballs. Most people burn out before they get to step three. There is no instant gratification unless you're extremely lucky. Pay your dues and you will do well.

......as with most things in life.