izak_ Posted September 9, 2023 Share Posted September 9, 2023 (edited) At the end of August we went on a quick two day trip to see if the creeks we hunt for Pleistocene megafauna in near Tambar Springs were still full of water. Unfortunately, most of the creeks were still full but we did have one nice section of dry creek bed to walk while we were up there. A lot of the things we find are either shards or particularly robust bones (e.g. kangaroo calcanea), and occasionally jaws or teeth. This is because the material tends to weather out of its original layer and gets redeposited into newer gravelly layers, a process which tumbles and grinds up the fossils. Here are a couple of examples. Bone fragment in situ: Macropod tooth fragment from the same bank: A photo of the gravelly bank the last two specimens were found in. The rocks seem to be a mixture of Tertiary basalt and Jurassic sandstone (also petrified wood). Some of these alluvial gravel layers may still be very old, however the Pleistocene fossils they contain weren't originally deposited in them. Very rarely, we found sections of what I assume is the original fossil containing deposit. It is a soft, sandy clay which has occasional small pebbles and bands of calcrete. It is here we found our best find this trip, a partial wombat (Vombatus sp.) skull! In situ photos: After removing from the bank: A pretty intense storm rolled in that afternoon. Fortunately we missed the bulk of it while we were in the field! More to come... Edited September 9, 2023 by izak_ 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
izak_ Posted September 9, 2023 Author Share Posted September 9, 2023 (edited) On our way back to the site on the second day, we stopped at a nice road cutting which seems to be a section of the Purlawaugh Formation (the same formation as the famous Talbragar Fish Beds). I was surprised to find very similar nodules to those found in the Ashfield Shale, a Triassic formation within the Sydney Basin as opposed to a Jurassic formation within the Surat Basin. Some of the nodules contained unidentifiable plant fragments and fossilised wood. I wonder if these nodules have potential to contain fish like those in the Ashfield Shale? Another road cutting yielded some nice petrified wood. Not sure which formation this belongs to, maybe the Pilliga Formation? There are a number of Jurassic sandstones in this area. That's all for the trip, but here are some photos of the preparation of the wombat skull. Before any preparation. Note the build up of calcrete around the teeth: Soaking in dilute acetic acid to remove the calcrete (after air scribing the bulk of it off): After gluing on part of the zygomatic arch and some more acid baths: Gluing on the rest of the zygomatic arch with 20% paraloid, quite tedious because of how little contact there is between it and the remaining part of the skull. Here it is mostly finished! I've since removed the loose sediment from inside the nasal cavity and added another small piece of bone. Edited September 9, 2023 by izak_ 16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cris Posted September 10, 2023 Share Posted September 10, 2023 Unbelievably cool stuff! I spend the vast majority of my collecting time in the Pleistocene of Florida, so it is always a thrill to see discoveries from the same time in a place where the animals were vastly different. Thanks for sharing! 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaleoBri Posted September 10, 2023 Share Posted September 10, 2023 These are amazing! The fauna in Australia is so fascinating to me, they’re so unique. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJB Posted September 10, 2023 Share Posted September 10, 2023 Very cool thread. Thanks for sharing RB 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hemipristis Posted September 10, 2023 Share Posted September 10, 2023 The wombat find is fascinating! Great report! 1 'Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.' George Santayana Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
izak_ Posted September 11, 2023 Author Share Posted September 11, 2023 Thank you all, I'm glad you enjoyed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidgy's Dad Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 (edited) Wow! What an interesting thread and that wombat skull being revealed is marvelous. Edited September 11, 2023 by Tidgy's Dad 1 Life's Good! Tortoise Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GPayton Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 That wombat skull is amazing (and definitely worth posting in Fossil of the Month)! 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DPS Ammonite Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 Now you need to find a fossil wombat cubic coprolite to go along with the skull: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-have-solved-mystery-how-wombats-poop-cubes-180976898/ 1 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 More sharing options...
izak_ Posted September 11, 2023 Author Share Posted September 11, 2023 47 minutes ago, GPayton said: That wombat skull is amazing (and definitely worth posting in Fossil of the Month)! Thank you! I would love to, but I worry the preparation isn't dramatic enough to warrant entry since it was found last month (just barely). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DPS Ammonite Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 50 minutes ago, izak_ said: Thank you! I would love to, but I worry the preparation isn't dramatic enough to warrant entry since it was found last month (just barely). The prep did change it dramatically; you can see all the teeth now. Enter it. 1 2 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 More sharing options...
Jared C Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 not often we get a glimpse in the field of the Australian Pleistocene. Following! 1 “Not only is the universe stranger than we think, it is stranger than we can think” -Werner Heisenberg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yoda Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 @izak_ Great trip report, and some really nice finds. 1 MotM August 2023 - Eclectic Collector Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
izak_ Posted September 11, 2023 Author Share Posted September 11, 2023 Some better photos. Front view: Side view: Bottom view: Top view: 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffrey P Posted September 11, 2023 Share Posted September 11, 2023 Great specimen and wonderful prep. Excellent report! Congratulations and thanks for posting it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notidanodon Posted September 13, 2023 Share Posted September 13, 2023 Great specimen! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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