Jump to content

Petrified wood in northeastern Ohio


ArthurDuhaime

Recommended Posts

So I am new to this forum and I'm hoping someone can help me out with this. Also just an FYI I know practically nothing about fossils other than I think they're really cool.

I found this rock at my old home in Geauga Gounty Ohio. I was doing some regrading around the foundation of the house when my shovel hit this thing about 2 feet underground. I am certain that it is petrified wood but how it got there is what has me scratching my head. Soil type is a silt loom (mahoning silt loom) the property in the front of the house is classified woodland wetlands. Water table is about 28" below the surface. Not what I would picture when I think of good fossil hunting grounds. So my questions are:

- Is it common to find petrified wood in this type of wet clay environment?

- Is there any way to determine what type of tree or shrub this may have been from?

- If you look close at the picture you may be able to see what I believe are fossilized bug butts that have burrowed holes in this piece of wood. Any thoughts on that?

 

I really wish I could have uploaded more photos but one put me right up to the limit. 

20190916_203323.jpg

  • I found this Informative 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am not seeing any tale tell would cellular structure.  Im thinking this is a cast of a wood chunk.

Sediments bury the log, ground hardens , the wood fully desentagrates away leaving a perfectly log shaped void ( mold ).

Minerals seep through the ground filling the void and hardening, thus leaving a cast of the original log segment.

  • I found this Informative 2

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It is a piece of wood with knot holes (not burrows). Show us the ends of the wood to see if any internal wood structure shows. You might need a magnifying lens to see the structure and take pictures of it.

  • I found this Informative 3

My goal is to leave no stone or fossil unturned.   

See my Arizona Paleontology Guide    link  The best single resource for Arizona paleontology anywhere.       

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, ArthurDuhaime said:

- Is it common to find petrified wood in this type of wet clay environment?

- Is there any way to determine what type of tree or shrub this may have been from?

- If you look close at the picture you may be able to see what I believe are fossilized bug butts that have burrowed holes in this piece of wood. Any thoughts on that?

It is common to find petrified wood where petrified wood has been found before. If you found it in loam it most likely has been transported there by glaciers though.

An expert likely could determine the wood type by studying it in thin section under a microscope. A guess could be made from it's structure, but it would be less reliable.

I agree that the holes look like where branches had been.

  • I found this Informative 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you guys so much for all your input. I'm going to attempt to get some better photos on here so you guys can get a better look at the details.

20190916_230235.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looking at the end photo, there appears to be visible wood structure in the very center of the piece. Nice find! :wub:

  • I found this Informative 1

The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.  -Neil deGrasse Tyson

 

Everyone you will ever meet knows something you don't. -Bill Nye (The Science Guy)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've seen conifers in modern settings that branch this way near the trunk before thinning naturally from competition.

It's just a thought though, not an identification. 

  • I found this Informative 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here is another photo in support of my unfounded bug butt speculation. 

20190917_073631.jpg

Edited by ArthurDuhaime
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 months later...

I'll have to agree with Rockwood on this with qualification. Having collected a few pieces of petrified wood in Maryland I've come to realized that at minimum keeping the piece out of the weather is desirable. If you don't the freeze-thaw cycle will likely break the piece apart, especially if it has voids for water to gather. And if you want to find out more about the species you might want to cut off a section so a thin section can be prepared and examined with a microscope. I've done this and it was rewarding and didn't break the bank. Nice piece. 

  • I found this Informative 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...