Scaphopod? from Aurora, NC

[I_gotta_rock]

Found this in a bag of Miocene-Pliocene micro matrix from Aurora Fossil Museum in North Carolina. I apologize for the less than stellar image, but this object is only 2mm long and my microscope cam is at it's limit here.  It is hollow. The larger end is circular. The smaller end is obstructed by what looks like a portion of a missing bit at that end. There are no holes in the basket-weave outer texture, so not bryzoan. The surface is somewhat dirty as I was afraid of losing it if I tried to clean it.  I can't find any matches in my Miocene library. I don't have much on Pliocene or later. Might also be foram, mollusk, or worm. None of those have cancellated ornament on that shape shell/test. Does this look familiar to anybody?

 

 

[Al Dente]

It is a caecum. I’ll have to find my reference books to further ID it. Most likely from the James City Formation.

[Al Dente]

I don’t know how accurate this website is. They have a similar one labeled as Caecum cooperi. https://neogeneatlas.net/species/caecum-cooperi/

[I_gotta_rock]

5 hours ago, Al Dente said:

I don’t know how accurate this website is. They have a similar one labeled as Caecum cooperi. https://neogeneatlas.net/species/caecum-cooperi/

Perfect, Thanks! This site is pretty accurate, just not very thorough. I tend to forget it exists because I have more thorough resources.

[I_gotta_rock]

Ah! @Al Dente I found a match I overlooked in the Lee Creek series. Close, but wrong species. This is C. imbricatum. P.P. Carpenter, 1850. Like C. cooperi, it's still around. They top out at about 5 mm, so not easy to find in the wild or matrix. Looks like this is an unbroken specimen, too. Gonna have to see if any of my museum associates want it for their collections. Thanks!