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A Quick Visit For Some Georgia Trilobites


Nimravis

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Today, I decided to stop and see what @MeargleSchmeargl left behind at the Conasauga River trilobite location. I do like collecting at this Cambrian site. It is not a matter of finding trilobites, it is deciding which pieces you want to keep. I only spent about 1 hour there and did not collect any matrix, I just felt like splitting some pieces and finding a few trilobites.

 

Nothing special was found and they we’re all Aphelaspis brachyphasis.

 

As stated in @MeargleSchmeargl post, the River was low and the matrix was dry, thus making it very easy to split. I have only seen the River lower than today on one other occasion. When it is low, it is easier to maneuver and find a place to get comfortable.

 

Here are my finds from today- this is the least amount of trilobites that I have found, but it because it was just a quick stop and I was taking my time.  

 

7D55B87E-628A-4B9A-B7ED-28E3A24CE34D.jpeg.aa7fafa67a86cef24bd539535db45e1c.jpegBE09686E-D5FB-4543-8981-314F90A59FF3.jpeg.73a97ab2c9e5f40bc90814affe3c3492.jpeg3A3B3372-2A7A-4733-8014-2FE837AEB3C3.jpeg.f65cb6080bb1acea0f31172c22fdf38b.jpeg6CCDACFB-F1AE-426A-B570-AA694DA68921.jpeg.2494d130f9230f8e602d1b0483fd70fc.jpeg

 

 

Here is my favorite find of the day-

 

9917B793-6B19-430D-97E1-2CD25E47EA22.jpeg.b283b516e67b21f262420ba3129d0840.jpegCC071ADB-54D0-4EF9-8208-6B7DEED230D2.jpeg.2756c92a5044586e6147d278cbdc80f3.jpeg

 

Here are some others-

 

0BBD642F-8F28-431E-84DE-E453498A325A.jpeg.908171f58c81ae326bdb53d7cab6e460.jpeg23606EB6-7D18-48B4-8CD7-EF7AE080D66B.jpeg.cc94628e0fe031899e645f3d8908b27f.jpegC733257B-72AF-489C-B3C1-C824BDE7E606.jpeg.67287a35889157c7a82ccc9c0e70e1cf.jpegAF44FEFB-8AB7-4C79-B0F4-7D4277C0A8A7.jpeg.0cb2596fed5c8a021fb04fca355c7681.jpeg4BC9C71F-028C-4EC9-AA20-C52615F1924D.jpeg.918082174a11bf55a50d49e84a1ea812.jpeg96433411-8BE9-475A-A6B7-41701CEC2604.jpeg.0455d2ead675cc06f669e61dfc9112e7.jpeg

 

51CB649E-CFA8-46EA-89DB-FA8FFB60F3C0.jpeg.3a4708c93355e98f57278661f36b6116.jpegB048E186-CEB0-4989-86CC-9E542C1DE043.jpeg.03c4dee5c50be01428e6af6259f604b2.jpeg72521FF5-FECA-4D51-B86F-4A1C3CF9F3B8.jpeg.49a6dff93ed12653ae4fe3cf6af312c3.jpeg807DD053-6EF3-4DFA-888C-BDB464A1FA67.jpeg.5bbc03a1ac05172efee395d7f7b5f0b3.jpeg5973249E-5447-4711-9810-8AFB7D6E175D.jpeg.e529416e0fe4d9a912b786d6d2bf82e2.jpegBEDBF073-2908-43AB-ADE1-624A32C5B48F.jpeg.5aa6180548a15c34809b7dd5b6118f07.jpeg69368DB0-FD8E-40B0-B895-CD7021F2DC10.jpeg.780a35b8830804fa3b1eee3c13dbdf30.jpeg18F4BEA9-92D5-4DFD-9FB6-F34B3720CFF7.jpeg.c40b7130e2915f4238665dfbf4323812.jpeg

FDC7EA7E-EE95-4579-9355-E9725653BB1B.jpeg

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As an amateur, how do you get such a clean break and how do you split it right where the trilobite is in the rock? Is there a process or is it a sort of break it open and hope theres one there?

Edited by fogo26
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7 minutes ago, fogo26 said:

As an amateur, how do you get such a clean break and how do you split it right where the trilobite is in the rock? Is there a process or is it a sort of break it open and hope theres one there?

You pick a natural fracture line, put your chisel to it, and hammer it in. Some splits have things, some splits don't. It's like a 50/50 chance or so you get at least a bit.

 

 

@Nimravis I really like the 3rd and 4th pairs. They're gorgeous! Can you get more detailed pics of them and the 1st pair so I can admire them more? :wub:

 

Every single fossil you see is a miracle set in stone, and should be treated as such.

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10 minutes ago, fogo26 said:

As an amateur, how do you get such a clean break and how do you split it right where the trilobite is in the rock? Is there a process or is it a sort of break it open and hope theres one there?

It’s shale, which breaks into sheets. You just hit it along the bedding plane, which is where it splits easiest, and hope there is a trilobite inside. Rocks that are fairly fossiliferous like this will have a couple trilobites per rock typically. 

Each dot is 50,000,000 years:

Hadean............Archean..............................Proterozoic.......................................Phanerozoic...........

                                                                                                                    Paleo......Meso....Ceno..

                                                                                                           Ꞓ.OSD.C.P.Tr.J.K..Pg.NgQ< You are here

Doesn't time just fly by?

 

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Just now, MeargleSchmeargl said:

You pick a natural fracture line, put your chisel to it, and hammer it in. Some splits have things, some splits don't. It's like a 50/50 chance or so you get at least a bit.

Dang, beat me to it.:default_rofl:

Each dot is 50,000,000 years:

Hadean............Archean..............................Proterozoic.......................................Phanerozoic...........

                                                                                                                    Paleo......Meso....Ceno..

                                                                                                           Ꞓ.OSD.C.P.Tr.J.K..Pg.NgQ< You are here

Doesn't time just fly by?

 

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Just now, UtahFossilHunter said:

Dang, beat me to it.:default_rofl:

Gotta go fast :P

Every single fossil you see is a miracle set in stone, and should be treated as such.

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45 minutes ago, fogo26 said:

As an amateur, how do you get such a clean break and how do you split it right where the trilobite is in the rock? Is there a process or is it a sort of break it open and hope theres one there?

It is the latter.

 

You can also soak the pieces and split them with your fingers- I use this method if I have matrix at home and have already used a hammer. This method produces some nice trilobites, but some times the pieces are very thin.

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31 minutes ago, MeargleSchmeargl said:

You pick a natural fracture line, put your chisel to it, and hammer it i

I do not use this method, I hold the matrix in my gloved left hand and hit it with the hammer.

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44 minutes ago, MeargleSchmeargl said:

They're gorgeous! Can you get more detailed pics of them and the 1st pair so I can admire them more? :wub:

119864FB-30DF-483E-95A1-18D28B677D76.thumb.jpeg.42038989e4d6f1071b79f466ff44350b.jpeg

 

Original sizes so so you can zoom in if you like.

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Enjoyed your report and pictures, Ralph. 

Thanks for posting them!  :) 

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    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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Nice trilos, Ralph!  I especially love it when you have both the positive and negative of a specimen - they look great together!

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2 hours ago, Monica said:

Nice trilos, Ralph!  I especially love it when you have both the positive and negative of a specimen - they look great together!

Thanks Monica- when the two pieces are about the same thickness it is easier to take a picture of them.

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Some more nice Aphelaspis. 

Gorgeous species of trilobite, methinks. :trilowalk:

Look, this one's in the river! 

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Life's Good!

Tortoise Friend.

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

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