Fruitful Scouting Trip to the NJ Cretaceous

[Vae70]

Those that walk the cretaceous streams of NJ know all too well that late autumn is one of the worst times to hunt the brooks. The water becomes too chilly to sift comfortably and the ever changing gravel bars take on a carpet of leaf litter.

 

I rarely make the hike up to the brooks this time of year, though this weekend my desire to scout a new-to-me stretch of stream got the better of me. Donning a jacket, wading boots, gravel scoops in hand off my Fianceè and I went adventuring.

 

Navigating the brooks can be challenging in the nicest of weather but today presented a particularly muddy challenge as well. We made strong progress hopping into the stream and climbing up onto the banks when obstacles presented themselves, covering about 2 miles of stream. I used the gravel scoop as more of a rake than anything else, moving leaf litter out of the way to scan the gravel beneath. The areas we found with significant gravel banks were noted along the way and pinned on our map for the next collecting season.

 

Finds were average along most of the trip, a dozen small/medium teeth here & there beneath the leaves. It was only towards the last leg of the trip before we turned back did I find an something awesome, an incredibly well preserved Scapanorhynchus texanus anterior - the largest we've come across in NJ. Measuring in at almost 1.8", I was very happy to see it come up after I brushed away the leaves and mud! My Fianceè and I like to play a game around who claims the largest tooth found in our collection. Prior to this, she held the position strong with a 1.56" Scapanorhynchus texanus anterior for a year and a half. With this one under my belt, I'll take the lead! Though who knows for how long

 

Walking back, I closely scanned one of our more well known spots and came away with a small bounty - a small 0.5" crocodile tooth and a tiny 0.25" vert (likely ray/skate)

 

 

On the way back to the car, we found a rather unfortunate and stark reminder of the impact we can have on wildlife as humans.

 

 

One can easily imagine how this young buck met his end, caught in a soccer net from who knows where. The skull was in good shape, though left in situ for those who may enjoy collecting modern bones more than I.

 

Finally, I can't leave Monmouth County without a short hop out to Red Bank for some of my favorite ribs! Really hits the spot after spending my energy putzing around the brooks

[Tidgy's Dad]

Nice tooth.

Nice dinner.

Poor deer.

[Jeffrey P]

Really nice ("big") Goblin tooth. Congrats. That croc tooth could also be a small mosasaur. Does it have a cutting edge? Is the bottom more round or elliptical? Once I walked right by a fresh deer carcass lying on top of a gravel bar in Ramanessin. I must have been focused on fossils because I didn't see it till I stopped and then looked downstream to where it was. I admit it creeped me out and I ended up moving to a different spot. 

[Vae70]

8 minutes ago, Jeffrey P said:

Really nice ("big") Goblin tooth. Congrats. That croc tooth could also be a small mosasaur. Does it have a cutting edge? Is the bottom more round or elliptical? Once I walked right by a fresh deer carcass lying on top of a gravel bar in Ramanessin. I must have been focused on fossils because I didn't see it till I stopped and then looked downstream to where it was. I admit it creeped me out and I ended up moving to a different spot. 

No cutting edge and circular bottom, which lead me to think croc

[Danielb]

Nice finds.

[Andúril Flame of the West]

Congrats on a successful trip! That deer photo is quite sobering, but those of us that frequent creeks are too used to all the trash. At my local creek I can easily fill two trash bags, yet when the rains come it is as if I hadn't cleaned up at all.