Bone, Tusk or just Dust? Zandmotor Newbie finds...

[MickeyH]

Hi Everyone,

 

I am completely new to the forum but have loved fossils since I was a kid holidaying on the Jurassic Coast in the UK. I was searching for potential fossil sites in the Netherlands and went to Zandmotor (Den Haag, Netherlands) hoping to discover a complete Mammouth Skull. Sadly this hasn't happened yet, but I found numerous interesting finds (which I photographed below).

 

My girlfriend and I have managed to identify most of them however I am having trouble identifying the second picture of the (brown pointed pieces). I think they could be fossilised wood (they look wooden to me but then part of me thinks they could be bone - ribs perhaps). Of course, they could just be nothing at all. My Girlfriend's 9-year-old daughter now has to know what they are, so I thought I would ask some experts.

 

I would love any input on this as this is not something I have encountered before.

 

Any help would be gratefully received.

 

Many thanks in advance

 

Mickey

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 15 by MickeyH
Photos badly laid out

[SawTooth]

I would also guess wood, but I would wait for others from your area to be sure.

[Rockwood]

I'm not positive, but I doubt this is wood. 

[val horn]

it does not look like bone to me because of the swirl in it .  Not an expert but I do think it is wood.

[MickeyH]

Thanks to everyone who replied. I think you are right about it not being bone as I realised I could just do a straight comparison of the bone I found at the macro level. Clearly, the structures are very different.

 

12 hours ago, Rockwood said:

I'm not positive, but I doubt this is wood. 

@ Rockwood, thanks for your comment. Why would you think this isn't wood? Would love to know your thoughts. Thanks in advance for your help, really appreciate it. 


Mickey

 

[Rockwood]

3 hours ago, MickeyH said:

@ Rockwood, thanks for your comment. Why would you think this isn't wood? Would love to know your thoughts. Thanks in advance for your help, really appreciate it. 

It's the wavy nature of the lines. I can't make out any clear growth increments. Some wood is less linear in appearance, but this looks more granular to me. 

I wonder if @paleoflor is around to offer an opinion? 

[Bronzviking]

8 hours ago, MickeyH said:

Thanks to everyone who replied. I think you are right about it not being bone as I realised I could just do a straight comparison of the bone I found at the macro level. Clearly, the structures are very different.

 

@ Rockwood, thanks for your comment. Why would you think this isn't wood? Would love to know your thoughts. Thanks in advance for your help, really appreciate it. 


Mickey

 

Looking at the right photo (the end) it looks like pores seen on bone.

[Fossildude19]

51 minutes ago, Bronzviking said:

Looking at the right photo (the end) it looks like pores seen on bone.

 

Yes, he said he was comparing the left photo in his last post with the right, which is bone. 

[paleoflor]

Pieces of wood do occur at the Zandmotor, I believe, but I'm no expert on the locality; @sjaak might be better equipped to help here.

[MickeyH]

17 hours ago, Bronzviking said:

Looking at the right photo (the end) it looks like pores seen on bone.

Hi thanks for replying, yeah I should have been clearer the find on the right was a bone from the same beach just photographed for some kind of comparison. 

 

[MickeyH]

16 hours ago, paleoflor said:

Pieces of wood do occur at the Zandmotor, I believe, but I'm no expert on the locality; @sjaak might be better equipped to help here.

Thanks for replying, I assumed there would be wood at this location as I read that the dredging from the sea floor at Rotterdam brings up items from the mammoth steppe that used to bridge NL to the UK in the last ice age. Which is pretty cool. 

 

 

22 hours ago, Rockwood said:

It's the wavy nature of the lines. I can't make out any clear growth increments. Some wood is less linear in appearance, but this looks more granular to me. 

I wonder if @paleoflor is around to offer an opinion? 

Thanks for taking the time to reply I can see what you mean, I was thinking that this might be sectional along the length of a piece of wood rather than across it(if that is what you mean)? It kind of has the appearance of bark to me.

I think I shall conclude its probably wood based on everyone's comments and a bit fo research about the geology of the area 

Thanks for your help guys, super friendly forum, really love it

 

[sjaak]

Yes, brown stuff is wood with lots of iron in it. Typical for zandmotor and maasvlakte2. Age unknown, Mammal bone is recent.

[Doctor Mud]

Plus one for not bone. Is it mineralised? It looks like wood. Is petrified wood found there? Some sedimentary rocks can look like that too.

 

great photos by the way such good lighting. 
 

A close up of the wood might help 

[MickeyH]

3 hours ago, Doctor Mud said:

Plus one for not bone. Is it mineralised? It looks like wood. Is petrified wood found there? Some sedimentary rocks can look like that too.

 

great photos by the way such good lighting. 
 

A close up of the wood might help 

Yeah apparently is found there. The close up on the left compares against bone I found on the same beach. 

Thanks for the compliments on the photos, I got out the photography lights and SLR + macro Lens then sharpened in PShop (benefits of being a professional designer!). Actually was very helpful acting like a low-powered microscope!