Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 I am right now out in the field, attempting to extract a string of articulated reptile vertebrae in the lower Atco. It is in a soft marl bed just a few feet above the basal Atco. There seems to be articulated ribs associated with the specimen, and so far I have uncovered 14 verts. 9 of them were lose of the surface and bagged in ziplocks, but now I am trying to get the rest out. If anyone has any advice, I need it! The specimen also has articulated ribs. I want to get this thing home tonight, and not destroyed. This is is my first time attempting to extract vertebrae, and I want to do it right and get it home tonight. It is currently 8:54 p.m. here in North Texas. Here are some pictures of the bones when I found them and where the dig is now. I don’t know what exactly it is, but I am guessing juvenile Mosasaur. Age is Earliest Coniacian. 9 verts were on the surface, and at least 6 more uncovered with ribs. Pictures incoming: All 9 verts. @Uncle Siphuncle @erose 10 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Author Share Posted June 16, 2019 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Author Share Posted June 16, 2019 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 I think it is more than a few hours on this. The bones should be uncovered and jacketed to keep them in place. This takes a lot of time. Nice find and good luck. 1 Darwin said: " Man sprang from monkeys." Will Rogers said: " Some of them didn't spring far enough." My Fossil collection - My Mineral collection My favorite thread on TFF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Author Share Posted June 16, 2019 More vert pics. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Author Share Posted June 16, 2019 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Author Share Posted June 16, 2019 Still digging at 10:44 p.m. 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramon Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 "Without fossils, no one would have ever dreamed that there were successive epochs in the formation of the earth" - Georges Cuvier Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 Could be a visit to Mike in your future.... The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true. - JJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Author Share Posted June 16, 2019 4 minutes ago, JohnJ said: Could be a visit to Mike in your future.... Saw him on Wednesday at the DPS meeting. Nice guy. Had no idea I would come upon this today (yesterday). It’s 1:05 a.m., and progress: 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Author Share Posted June 16, 2019 Mmm two more verts. They’ll keep. Vert count around 18 now. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Author Share Posted June 16, 2019 Trash can lid & substandard tools = success! 2:52 a.m. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Author Share Posted June 16, 2019 In the car and coming home! 3:08 a.m. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Author Share Posted June 16, 2019 And so we leave this place, leaving a bomb crater behind. It will be dealt with later. Thus concludes my first successful (partial) extraction of an associated vertebrate specimen. 3:28 a.m. 9 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncle Siphuncle Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 That’s killer. Looks bigger than Coniasaur. Hope you get a skull in there somewhere. 2 Grüße, Daniel A. Wöhr aus Südtexas "To the motivated go the spoils." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ptychodus04 Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 2 hours ago, Uncle Siphuncle said: That’s killer. Looks bigger than Coniasaur. Hope you get a skull in there somewhere. Agreed, looks like a small mosasaur. All the Coniasaur verts I have collected were <.25” diameter. These appear to be .5” to .75” plus, the shape is wrong for Coniasaur. 5 Regards, Kris Global Paleo Services, LLC https://globalpaleoservices.com http://instagram.com/globalpaleoservices http://instagram.com/kris.howe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJB Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 Very interesting but me thinks you may have attacked this too eagerly. The best of luck though. RB 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 16, 2019 Author Share Posted June 16, 2019 Whether it wise or not, the reason why I was so eager to get this out last night was first because the site is occasionally hunted by other folks. I wouldn’t call it a well known site, but known enough that a guy from Houston and his kids came to the site to hunt while we were there. So I wanted to extract all the visible bones before someone else came upon them. Secondly, a huge storm was coming through and hit just after we left, and since I had already exposed some delicate ribs on the block I wanted to get it out of there before it got pummeled with heavy rain. Also, I don’t really have any buddies who I could call upon to come out in a few days and help make a proper plaster jacket with me. My excavation crew consists of me, my parents, and occasionally Keith Minor if he happens not to be busy, which is rare. I may have erred by getting out the block with exposed bones, but I do think more of the skeleton is there. If I am not mistaken, these look like caudal vertebrae to me and that might mean that more of the skeleton, including the skull, is still buried in the chalky marl ahead. I saw no sign that material was weathering out towards where the head might be, which might either be a bad indicating that nothing is there, or it might be still buried. In any event, I will try to post some pictures soon (maybe today?) of the verts on the ID forum. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uncle Siphuncle Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 I too hate leaving things to chance. A bird in the hand... 1 Grüße, Daniel A. Wöhr aus Südtexas "To the motivated go the spoils." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JarrodB Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 Small mosasuar for sure. Congrats. I think you'll find more when you go back. Looks like that area is getting rain so I think you did the right thing getting what you could. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnJ Posted June 16, 2019 Share Posted June 16, 2019 Salvage operations ahead of weather or less thoughtful collection are sometimes the only reasonable option. I think you made the right choice last night. Good job. 3 The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true. - JJ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MeargleSchmeargl Posted June 19, 2019 Share Posted June 19, 2019 Any new pics? Every single fossil you see is a miracle set in stone, and should be treated as such. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heteromorph Posted June 19, 2019 Author Share Posted June 19, 2019 6 hours ago, MeargleSchmeargl said: Any new pics? Soon, hopefully tomorrow. The dust inhalation, over exertion, and staying up 22 hours straight resulted in my immune system crying foul, and as such a cold has befallen me. Coughing, stuffiness, fever, chills, the works. But, I can report that the rock was taken out of the car and placed into the house! So no current danger there. But next time, a plaster jacket will be a big part of the operation. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smt126 Posted June 21, 2019 Share Posted June 21, 2019 I would have probably done the same if I was in your shoes. Hope you find more in there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Amateur Paleontologist Posted June 22, 2019 Share Posted June 22, 2019 Looking forward to seeing how this turns out! -Christian Opalised fossils are the best: a wonderful mix between paleontology and mineralogy! Q. Where do dinosaurs study? A. At Khaan Academy!... My ResearchGate profile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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