Possible probable Reef?

[Kato]

I was on a walkabout with my smallest pack and came across this specimen in the bottom of a dry canyon bed. It has obviously been somewhat tumbled and rounded over the years. 16" at the widest dimension. I found a couple of other specimens that are much bigger. Over 2x larger. This was the most interesting due to the strange folds of material on the top and right side.

 

My first guess was some type of reef material but I've never seen anything like this before and cold find nothing online even coming close. Maybe just a bunch of fossilized shells on end? With the odd folds I sort of ruled that out.

 

I only have this single shot. My bad.

 

 

Going to try and bring it out in my biggest heaviest duty pack...a tad over a 2 mile ruck to the closest road. Thankfully downhill. Unless someone tells me it is a leaverite.

[ynot]

Looks like a coquina to Me.

As to it being a "leaverite", that is a personal choice. If You like it enough to carry it for two miles- go for it.

[Rockwood]

This looks like an informative cross section of a shell here.

[Tidgy's Dad]

I agree with ynot, it's a coquina : a mass of bivalve shells (in this case) all packed together comprising a large part of the rock and held together with matrix. 

i'd leave it, but then carrying that 2km would kill me. 

It's quite pretty. 

[Kato]

I do like the looks of it. Maybe I can get lucky and find a smaller piece to bring home. It would look awesome out in my xeriscaped yard, though.

[DPS Ammonite]

Probably calcareous phylloid algae which formed reefs and is common in the late Paleozoic. Phylloid algae grew as upright irregular curving fronds that sometimes had tight folds. A cross section of bivalves would show pieces that have much more similar curvatures to themselves; tightly folded curves would not occur or be common.

 

@Kato Show us or describe to us some of the fossils found with this rock; they probably are late Paleozoic. Many fossils can be identified by the fossils around them: guilt by association.

 

 

http://www.lakeneosho.org/King1Pic157-Tech.html

 

[ynot]

4 minutes ago, DPS Ammonite said:

Probably calcareous phylloid algae.

I like the looks of this ID. seems to match very well.

[Kato]

Wow! That does look similar. The only other type that had to my mind was wackestone. But this specimen would have been wackestone on super steroids.

[minnbuckeye]

Looks like a surface that might look nice polished?????