All Activity

I found in the hills around Farragut TN. I found it on a washed out logging road. Is this a fossil? If so, of what? It looks a little like the bark of a tree, so maybe it is petrified wood.

@EphemeralMoose thanks! I gotta get to bed but I looked up shelving. Looks like that’s probably correct. Here’s a photo of what I call “half banks”. I guess the way I see it there is a bank half way to the real bank. 😂👍🏅 Jp It’s midnight plus. Please excuse my drawing. A rule was used. To be fair.

I’ve included a better close up of the circled fossil and it certainly seems to match up with that species! (And better yet, at this particular angle it also looks a bit like a large slug, weirdly, one of my favorite animals - so thanks for making me take a second look!)

If I understand it correctly, I think your concept of a 'half-bank' may actually be either channel bars (many different types exist) or may be shelving on the bank. I think the latter may be closer to what you mean. Shelving can indicate the ordinary high water mark which is the highest flow a stream will normally see, excluding extreme flow conditions. You can think of it as a miniature flood plain that still exists within the channel of the stream. If my interpretation is wrong, then I would love to help you find the correct terminology if you don't already know it.

thanks, Jared yes, this is the Edwards Plateau region. For my own education, why is this a difficult area to fossil hunt? And if so, what are ways or techniques to search in this area? thanks Tom

Camp B➰P Returning to @Shellseeker and I’s new spot had been on my mind for weeks. Just knowing it’s there has been keeping my imagination occupied while I made it through a couple grueling weeks of work. Grateful, but allowed to be tired. It’s a good distance to the new location and for that reason I decided to establish a small campsite. I got lucky with the perfect spot on a “half bank”. A half bank is what I call when the river erodes a step into the bank but it spreads out a good amount. Big enough to flatten out before returning to the steep angle of the bank as it continues upwards towards the actual rivers edge. This spot is just high enough to be unnoticeable at water level. The draw back to a half bank is it’s gonna flood eventually so don’t expect anything permanent. ‘Leave no Trace’ is a practice I teach my kids in the outdoors. Normally, I’d try to minimize my footprint but since I’ll be here often a good established fire ring seemed beneficial. Using the sift spoils from the day did require some work hauling the bucket up but it’s “locally sourced” material. Thus, making it fancier. Shoveling and sifting turned into hours. Weather was perfect. Very excited to be head back soon with Jack and LA. Big plans! Picked up a few things…. After several days of drying here’s the cleaned up and photographed group. Gomphophere tooth fragment. Shovel tusker! It’s very delicate. I understand why these are In pieces. This is a true mastodon tooth but I believe I have this section of the Gomph version. I found this awesome drawing will looking for info. Really helped me see the difference. Next up we have a beautiful bison p3 and a couple of camelid fragments. I learned a little trick. p3 has 3 squiggly sections. p4 has 4… nifty While mammal teeth are fresh on the mind here are two mysteries. I believe them to be incisors? Any ideas?? A true bounty of tortoise spurs and maybe a Glyptodont spur in there too! Gator teeth were a plenty. I think a couple croc teeth too. (top right) Best Equus ear bone I’ve found. It’s really fascinating. The fine details are still there. I’m gonna spend some good periods of time looking at this. Deer antlers , a Cervid tooth frag and a “almost“ horse tooth. Eagle ray teeth bottom left (gotta go copy and paste the real name for Coco) Mammoth frags. So many. Here’s a few lookers. I’m hopeful a chunked is coming soon. The tiny bone project gained what appears to be a hefty delivery of carpal tarsal bones. Included with them are two partial astragalus. Bison and white tail deer. That small sesamoid in the bottom left belongs to a very large and very cool animal or a camel. Could go either way. 😊 I think. More on that. Four of them look to be a unciform, lunate, trapezoid, and a cuneiform. Most likely tapir. More on these soon. Especially if that sesamoid ends up being a sloth. Found my first “Peace sign”. Bucket list item crossed off. Some turtle shell pieces too. I believe the center shell piece with three sections is a ‘centrum’. @Fin Lover helped me narrow this down to Isurus. Carcharodon hastalis I’d the current internet name. Great to have found my first “Mako”. Next time holding out for a complete version! ID for this became very difficult due to several names for the species “mako” Keeping with the fin family these are some highlights from the Tiger and Hemi teeth collected this trip. I cropped the darn rule out but those tigers are all a good 1” -1.5” across Physogaleus contortus- . I believe these all to be this species. Not good with sharks teeth yet. I’m humbled by those who know all these species little nuances. Total in my collection is now up to 10! (If my ID holds) Who’s for a couple mysteries?!? Number1: what has this pattern in the enamel??? I’ve seen it before. Even feel like I should know but I’m blank… Number 2 Im thinking part of a once massive alligator tooth but I’m not convinced??? We head back out soon. Real soon. There’s a plan. I’m ready and if the ideas pan out these post should really start getting interesting! Please correct errors and guide when possible! Keep the faith and try to do good. Jp and Millie

I traded for morels .... I did well ... but thanks.

Welcome! You live in a good area for fossils, you will find lots of info about your finds on this site. I think that this is rather a rudist, and that you found this in the Edwards formation. That's a tough formation to hunt on, so I encourage you to look into the Glen Rose and Walnut formations

Not an entomologist, but Fungus gnat (family Mycetophilidae or Sciaridae ) might be a good match. Kudos on the microphotography! With photos of this quality perhaps someone more knowledgeable can give a positive id. Nice work!; Fungus Gnats on Houseplants – Wisconsin Horticulture (reference for image only)

Very nice... You didn't say what you traded for them but you may have come out ahead! You got a bunch of brachiopods and snails too? What do they look like and do you have all the locality info for them?

Thanks, hadrosauridae I was wondering if it might be a piece of ammonite because of the curvature and the grooves. Thanks for the input.

Hello everyone. I recently purchased Burmese amber.May I know what insects are in amber? Thank you

This is a post from June of 2022… but I agree with the others in that it looks like a mineral inclusion and nothing fossil related.

We will look into that! Thank you for the info.

+1 for rock. I don’t see anything here that points to something biological in origin.

You would be correct. This is a longer example than I typically have seen, but these are fairly common across the internet and gift shops. The teeth are likely real, but the “jaw” is either completely fake or an amalgamation of fossil, bone, plaster, and/or matrix.

It could be a very highly eroded section of an ammonite steinkern.

Hello and welcome to the forum from New York! Dave

I found this on a northeastern Florida beach. Does anyone know if it’s a fossil and what kind it could be? Thank you so much!

I agree. Not a fossil, but a lovely example of dendrites. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dendrite_(crystal)

Portrait of a Tricolored Heron, Egretta tricolor...

And if OP decides to put it on a shelf, should be dressed up

Def not catticus. oOdontaspid tooth

It's a rock with mineral staining and inclusions.