Need ID - Bone Valley Chunkasaurus, Pleistocene Megafauna

[Bone Daddy]

Hi Fossil Friends,

 

I have some big bone chunks that were recovered from the Peace River (Bone Valley Formation, Hawthorn Group, Florida). There a couple of partial bones here that can possibly be ID'ed. There are also 3 "bone balls" - I am guessing these are the broken-off ends of larger bones, but can they be ID'ed?

 

We hung on to these in the hopes they might be something interesting or unusual. But given their condition, it might be difficult or impossible to ID them. Any help would be appreciated.

 

Thanks! 

 

MikeG

 

[Bone Daddy]

Another bone :

 

[Bone Daddy]

One more bone :

 

[Bone Daddy]

The "bone balls"

 

 

[Mark Kmiecik]

Wasn't there a song like that? Wait, no, that's La Bamba. Never mind.

[Brett Breakin' Rocks]

This looks like a scapula from a bovid .. possibly a bison ?  Maybe @Shellseeker or @digit can confirm that ...

5 hours ago, Bone Daddy said:

Another bone :

 

Image Credit:

Oshkosh museum

 

 

 

 

I've found two similar on the Savannah River ... 2 views of the largest. (though a horse or something similar is also a possibility, I can't tell and am not much of a mammal expert)

 

 

The "balls" , I'm assuming are Femoral heads from a large animal ... the two larger ones I don't know how that can't be from something like a mammoth.  Here is mine from South Carolina.

 

 

Cheers,

Brett

[Brett Breakin' Rocks]

5 hours ago, Bone Daddy said:

One more bone :

 

I'd be curious if this wasn't a cetacean digit .. a whale finger bone ?  Anyhoo ... nice finds !

 

[digit]

I'm stumped. I found part of a "bone ball" on my last outing on the Peace. Dr. Hulbert was able to tell it was whale and not hose-nose (mammoth/mastodon) mainly due to the texture and density. You might try passing images of these unknowns past him though you should not be surprised if they lack enough diagnostic features to be identified.

 

 

Cheers.

 

-Ken

[Bone Daddy]

Thanks for the help! I know these chunkasaurus pieces can be difficult to identify. 

[digit]

Indeed! I usually toss back virtually all of the bone fragments that I find when sifting in the Peace. I'm sure I've probably tossed bits of ground sloth, dire wolf, big cat and other enviable species over the years because the fragmentary finds were just too nondescript to be identifiable. Even if a random bone fragment could be assigned to a species due to context with an in situ find, they hardly make top shelf display case prizes when you try to impress your fossil friends with a two inch segment of some long bone.

 

That said, I've often heard Dr. Hulbert mention that as long as a bone has one articulating surface there stands a chance of assigning an ID with good probability. I've shown Richard a number of interesting shaped bone fragments from the Peace before and he was able to reply with an ID without missing a beat. I've only had success satisfying my curiosity with finds that had some distinctive shape to them or with a complete articulating surface. Your items (aside from the ball ends of some limb bones) do have enough character to likely turn up a reasonable ID from someone who has seen untold thousands of Florida fauna bones. Your images do have a scale in them and I think Dr. Hulbert might be able to provide a reasonable idea of what they are. If you send these to him and get a response, please remember to post that information here so we'll have a record of the identification.

 

 

Cheers.

 

-Ken