Hunterc123 Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 Looking through my typical pile of gravel I saw this, I thought maybe it was wishful thinking because I see spiral shapes all the time. I picked it up and noticed it had traces of shell like material tracing the spiral. Could it be an ammonite encased in chert like this, or just a worn down snail of some other sort? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelius Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 I'd imagine this is a gastopod fossil. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notidanodon Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 Maybe Chert replaced gastropod 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunterc123 Posted May 31, 2019 Author Share Posted May 31, 2019 My only hesitation to say that it's simply a gastropod is the fact that I find these fossils around coral and crinoids which I believe date to around the Devonian period when the US was covered in shallow oceans. What other gastropods were there at the time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Natalie81 Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 Definitely a gastropod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 16 minutes ago, Hunterc123 said: My only hesitation to say that it's simply a gastropod is the fact that I find these fossils around coral and crinoids which I believe date to around the Devonian period when the US was covered in shallow oceans. What other gastropods were there at the time? There were no actual ammonites during the Devonian. Those would show sutures of one kind or another. Only goniatites and ammonoid type cephalopods. Here are some potentially helpful links. LINK 1 LINK 2 Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunterc123 Posted May 31, 2019 Author Share Posted May 31, 2019 3 minutes ago, Fossildude19 said: There were no actual ammonites during the Devonian. Those would show sutures of one kind or another. Only goniatites and ammonoid type cephalopods. Here are some potentially helpful links. LINK 1 LINK 2 I have seen that link before, but I can now definitely see how if the top of a gastropod shell would wear down, it would end up looking like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelius Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 There are also planispiral gastropods which resemble ammonites. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Kmiecik Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 Some were long stretched out spirals; some were nearly flat. Mark. Fossil hunting is easy -- they don't run away when you shoot at them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunterc123 Posted May 31, 2019 Author Share Posted May 31, 2019 1 hour ago, Mark Kmiecik said: Some were long stretched out spirals; some were nearly flat. I see. I've found many other gastropods in the gravel, but this is the first resembling this. Seeing other examples of planispiral gastropods, I can definitely say it looks like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Kmiecik Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 2 minutes ago, Hunterc123 said: I see. I've found many other gastropods in the gravel, but this is the first resembling this. Seeing other examples of planispiral gastropods, I can definitely say it looks like that. And some are even flatter. I just didn't run across a photo of one as I searched. Mark. Fossil hunting is easy -- they don't run away when you shoot at them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunterc123 Posted May 31, 2019 Author Share Posted May 31, 2019 9 minutes ago, Mark Kmiecik said: And some are even flatter. I just didn't run across a photo of one as I searched. The one I posted is fairly worn, thus its hard to see a cross section, but if anything I'd say about 2-3mm thick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Kmiecik Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 1 minute ago, Hunterc123 said: The one I posted is fairly worn, thus its hard to see a cross section, but if anything I'd say about 2-3mm thick. Can't judge the thickness well from the photo. If you Google "gastropod" you'll see the amazing variety of shapes and sizes. There's 35,000 extant species and, I'm guessing, at least that many fossil species. Mark. Fossil hunting is easy -- they don't run away when you shoot at them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 Image from HERE. 1 Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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