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  • MikeR

    The End Of My Pliocene Project

    By MikeR

    When I began this blog late in 2010, my intention was to report on recent field trips however, with the exception of one excursion each into the Upper Miocene, Lower Pliocene and the Calabrian Pleistocene, all of my posts have concentrated on the Upper Pliocene of the US Atlantic and Gulf coastal plains. I already had an extensive collection of Florida Upper Pliocene invertebrates that I had collected while a resident of the state in the late 80s and early 90s. The fossils from these beds are
    • 9 comments
    • 9,669 views
  • MikeR

    The Problem with Siphocypraea

    By MikeR

    For millennia, humankind has been fascinated by the hard-external shell of the organisms classified within the Phylum Mollusca.   Consumed first as food, their empty shells have served multiple functions in the past; as tools in many ancient cultures, in religious ceremonies by the Aztecs, and money by Pacific Islanders. During the Age of Discovery, sailors could supplement their meager incomes by selling exotic seashells to wealthy gentlemen for their Cabinets of Curiosity.  Today many people f
    • 3 comments
    • 4,432 views
  • JohnJ

    Ancient Hunters

    By JohnJ

    June 5, 2010 Barry held his camera barely two feet away from the back of an Agkistrodon piscivorus. Although a small snake, it was still very dangerous and he positioned his camera based on years of experience with these reptiles. Known more commonly as a Cottonmouth or Water Moccasin, the twelve inch juvenile snake had coloration similar to the closely related Copperhead. However, its patterns were muted by late afternoon shadows in a remote location that was not favorable to an easy medic
    • 26 comments
    • 9,409 views
  • andreas

    The Columbianus Zone/alaunium 2/ Norium/upper Triassic, In The So Called “Hallstatt Limestone” Of The Northern Calcareous Alps In Austria

    By andreas

    The columbianus Zone/Alaunium 2/ Norium/Upper Triassic in the so called "Hallstatt Limestone" of the Northern Calcareous Alps in Austria Dear Fossil Forum members! This pictured report about the ammonite bearing Triassic Hallstatt limestone will be the first one of a continuous series of reports. Since the beginning of the geological research in the Northern Calcareous Alps of Austria in the 19th century, about 500 species of Triassic ammonites have been described from the Hallstatt limestone
    • 14 comments
    • 13,271 views

A fossil sponge - reproducing...

Well, this would be a lot more interesting if the movie I uploaded- was working.  Sorry; and I'm working on it... fossil birth.mov       This is a fossil sponge I dug out of my Feeder 2 watercourse, when I discovered I was stepping on it, and it had clearly interesting bits showing.  Only about 5 cm of stone was out of the ground.  It has been exposed to freeze-thaw winters for at least 20 years.   It came out with only a half hour of digging - cheap - and all in

Philip Rutter 2

Philip Rutter 2 in General Fossils

Progress !!

There has been some clearing of the mists to report!  As a result of my finds of "apparent" chert tools, I received a day-long visit from an expert in local tool-making stone.  We managed to look at my cleaned and under cover collection, and visited 2 of the Feeder Ravines.  3 days after I received his written report, which I hope to be able to pass on here; but the permissions are pending.     It was great.  We both- listened.  Wonderful when that happens!  He did not find that my app

Philip Rutter 2

Philip Rutter 2 in General Fossils

Here's the fossil that pushed me into the rabbit hole - from Sept. 11 -

Here is the fossil that I mentioned above; it was just this mossy rock in my way - I turned it over getting ready to move it elsewhere- and this is what I saw (not including the tape...)   These photos are not my best, was waiting for replacement lens to arrive, and also the metric measure, but they give the idea.  The resolution is good enough for considerable zooming in.  I think most of the white flecks visible when zoomed are - fungus?     This exactly as found; not wash

Philip Rutter 2

Philip Rutter 2 in General Fossils

I didn't disappear- things got complicated -

Dear Fossil Folk: Greetings!  I am truly sorry for the obnoxious gap in my presence and communications.   The fossils ate my homework.   :-)  Actually, the entire Cosmos ate my homework; a habit the Cosmos formed decades ago.   I'm cursed.  No matter what I do, my immediate and clear path forward - will split into 3 parts, or more; all of which require instant attention. Part of my curse is that my explanations have a huge tendency to sound unbelievable.  Like the story I have for

Philip Rutter 2

Philip Rutter 2 in General Fossils

Hell Creek, 2024. Another formative adventure in the sandy wilderness of the Dakotas (June, 2024)

Two years ago, I embarked on a journey to North Dakota to see an online friend I’ve never met before. He promised badlands, with soft rock dinosaur hunting through the sandy former territories of Triceratops and T. rex. From this adventure came one of the most formative experiences of my young life, and I entered a new circle of life long friends.    That same year, I also made some incredible finds in the shady Texas creeks I’m so homely with… and to be honest, I didn’t really find mu

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

Discovering clues in the Texas Cretaceous (June 5, 2024)

After an unusually long, blissful spring, summer has arrived here in Texas. School is out, and my schedule is open, free from the burden of classes.  Despite the freedom, my time has been getting filled. Working on a mosasaur paper, prospecting new sites, social commitments and a fun day job are forming good memories, and more are coming (I'll get to that).   First though, my excursions from a week ago --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

A fulfilling day in the Texas Eocene (3/17/2024)

For a little while now, @Mikrogeophagus and I have been trying to meet off the forum and hit some spots together. With spring break ending yesterday, we finally found the perfect opportunity before our classes resumed. Tyler had recently singled out a promising locale for middle Eocene crabs, one that neither he or I had visited. As it later turned out, I had passed by the spot before but never committed to its investigation. I was pleasantly surprised at its serenity, and Tyler and I found

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

Chesapecten from the Miocene of Coastal Georgia and NE Florida

Between 2020-23, two collectors who scuba dive for fossils throughout Florida and Georgia have recovered 5 chesapecten (including two paired valves) with morphological characteristics that signal a Miocene age. These characteristics include an acute byssal notch and a byssal fasciole that is strongly differentiated from the shell’s auricle in terms of sculpture and elevation. The largest of the adult shells also displays an active ctenolium. Additionally,  one of the paired specimens displays si

mbeyer747

mbeyer747 in Fossils

A surprising day in a surprising spot (10/29/2023)

Yesterday, Pita and I found an amazing spot.   We pulled into a shopping center so I could pick up some cleats (for fossil hunting steep, marly slopes), and I noticed a small patch of limestone next to the curb. We parked by it so I can poke at it for a minute or two before going in, and Pita, never one to be bored while I look at rocks, walked into the tree line nearby.    A sudden noise of amazement brought me over to where she was, just a few paces away, and ou

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

The quintessential hill country experience (October 14, 2023)

On Wednesday, I got a text from Lee of an incredible discovery he made. I rushed off with in a multiple hour drive to assist his dig, ultimately spending two days working together on his find until we were both exhausted. He'll tell that epic, still unfolding story when he's ready     The last day of that dig though, I made it home well into the night, looking like a swamp monster covered in plaster and mud. I took a brief shower, woke up the next morning bright and early with plaster

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

basal mosasaur excavation- a follow up

Hey all! It's good to be back and writing a trip report again - I've certainly been busy this summer.   As some of you may recall, my step brother and I found a basal mosasaur in September of 2021. I haven't spoken much about it publicly, but rest assured it hasn't been forgotten! Research and preparation of the specimen is reaching a fever pitch this summer, both of which I'm happy to say I'm actively involved in. The reason for the silence has been to avoid leaking details that might

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

Discovering the unexpected in the Texas Turonian (March 2023)

Perhaps the most definitive, lasting project I've had during my short time in paleo is the excavation and study of a basal mosasaur skeleton my step brother and I found in September of 2021 (If you missed it, it's in my blogs on my profile). The site is on a fairly inconspicuous outcrop of the Eagle Ford formation, in a zone that's atypical for the upper eagle ford, as the rock itself is very condensed compared to what is usual for the upper kef. Notably, while Mosasaur material is very, very ra

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

Highlights of a jam-packed January (Jan, 2023)

Hi all, it's been a minute since I've written a report and I think I'm due    To start: This last January I got to be a part of two special discoveries in the marine reptile realm. Though not made directly by me, I'm still glad I got to be there. I'll detail them below:   Early January: Last summer, I spent two weeks in North Dakota on the Hell Creek formation, and made some lifelong friends. Two of them (Harry and Piper) arranged a trip down from North Dakota and Florid

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

a frigid, fossiliferous end to 2022

@Uncle Siphuncle has a great saying that I think of often - "To the motivated go the spoils".  To embody that sort of spirit, I have focused my efforts into some hard to reach places in less than ideal conditions, and not always to success. But, now and then it pays off...   I was back home for the holidays, with ample Cretaceous strata in every direction. I have been looking forward to this planned week and a half bonanza for months. With the Ochem monkey off my back, my thoughts

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

three months of adventures squeezed in

In the last three and a half months I'd say I finally had the true college experience - always tired, hungry, and getting strangled by ochem 2 . But, my last final was yesterday, so time for a long overdue trip report.    I'll go consecutively, with brief notes on the sights and interests encountered along the way, culminating with a prep update on the Plesiosaur I found over the summer with @Ptychodus04 and Joe.  Unfortunately, the block containing the Coniasaur from the same tri

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

Two trips, some amazing fossils, and a note to the forum (Middle August, 2022)

Recently, my good friend Carter ( @Jackito ) found my personal holy grail of Texas Cretaceous sharks - Pseudomegachasma comanchensis    While I knew of the existence of the genus here in Texas, I didn't know much about the teeth themselves as I never was really that convinced I'd ever find one. But Carter's find proved it's possible, and what's better... he found it at a site we both knew of!   So, we went out together in an effort to find another. What's better is that I ha

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

Jewels from a new site (Early August 2022)

This has to be a very brief report, as I have to hop in my car soon to go hunt for my ever elusive Pseudomegachasma tooth - but I discovered a tiny, amazing site on a scout this weekend:   The trek had me running into several large homeless camps, so I was a little tense the entire time, but the results were worth it. All of these finds came from a sandstone roof above me. It was like looking up at a church ceiling mural, telling a story of some distant time, except this was a ~95 mill

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

A weekend of rarity (mid July- early August 2022)

This last weekend produced probably the best results I've ever experienced while fossil hunting - these last two days will be hard to beat.   Before I get to that though, I do want to include a find from the weekend before (since this is the topic of rarity). It was a local find and a first for the species for me. Not only that, but my first real "heartbreaker". It was bound to happen at some point!   Sticking halfway out of the gravel, I instantly recognized a large Ptychodu

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

Unforgettable moments in the Hell Creek formation

(Note: I don't know why half of this is in bold, I wrote this in a google doc first and copy pasted it to here, and it defaults to bold without the ability to undo it. This tends to fluctuate. Easy to see though!)   "Dinosaurs are overrated", Mike teased to me. We were sitting together at the flooded dig site of our mosasaur in the early morning hours, having just finished a jam-packed but enjoyable conversation about his research and other matters related to paleo. Naturally, dinosaur

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

Surprise on Easter weekend

Spring in my stretch of Texas is brilliantly green, with lush, heavy foliage that reaches tall. The atmosphere is warm, with humid air that has weight of its own, and the open, bright blue skies are occasionally interrupted by fleeting storms.   This season of sticky air and vibrant greenery have made me deeply nostalgic for when I was just starting to figure things out and really exert myself in the practice of fossil finding, just a year ago. I spent steamy days romping up and down i

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

A walk in the Austin Chalk (two cidarids!) (4/01/22)

For whatever reason, I used to completely dismiss the Austin chalk as a formation of any interest. I viewed it almost through the same lens that I view the Edwards formation, as if it was some barren uninteresting hinderance that gets in the way of cooler formations. Accidentally finding a large Parapuzosia ammonite in it once changed that a bit, but for the most part I still ignored it...   Turns out I was just looking in the wrong places, and had very little understanding of it

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

An exciting spring break

As the title implies - I had a very busy and exciting spring break. Big news first - I confirmed plans this June  to intern with a small paleo company, "Fossil excavators", in North Dakota for two weeks digging up a sub-adult T. rex, which was found right at the end of the season last year.   We'll be exploring more than just that though, as the hell creek dig sites accessible to them are rife with life. A unique Triceratops horridus specimen,  nicknamed "Alice", who's an adult missing

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

First Tetragramma! (2/19/2022)

As most of you should be able to easily tell, I know virtually nothing about invertebrates, despite the good potential my area has for them. However, I was super fortunate the other day to find what ranks among my two best invertebrate finds: My first Tetragramma echinoid   While looking for flint nodules to knap, my step brother encountered a tiny little oasis of shale/clay in a vast sea of limestone. He wasn't immediately interested, but still mentioned it when he was talking ab

Jared C

Jared C in Trip Reports

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