My Collection - Wealden Beds, Hastings.

[blackdanter]

Some of the samples in my collection collected from the Wealden formations at Hastings (Rock-a-nore - Fairlight). The exposures at the location are early Cretaceous, around 140 million years old.

 

I restrict my collection to this locality as my interest lies in understanding the palaeo environment as much as possible. Collecting wise, the location is often viewed as frustrating. Fossils range from common (bivalves, plant fragments, trace) to scarce (fish, reptile). I have been collecting for 15+ years and have gathered a modest but manageable collection. The types of fossils found are random and cyclic. I usually find something with every visit but leave more than I take home as I'm not concerned with multiple specimens of the same thing unless they improve on a previous specimen held or offer something additional to my understanding. I'm lucky if I add 3 or 4 new specimens in a year. I actually enjoy being at the location more than anything else and finding something to add to my collection is a bonus.

 

I will add more to this thread time permitting but do feel free to offer up more precise or better identifications (mine are based on limited reference material or the knowledge of other collectors at the site).

 

Partial fish jaw - likely Sheenstia sp.

 

 

Shark teeth - Hybodus sp.

 

 

Fish scale and bone.

 

 

Bone fragment - potential Pterosaur.

 

 

Bone fragment - reptile.

 

 

Turtle - scute.

 

 

Bone - unknown, possibly turtle.

 

 

 

[blackdanter]

Larger fish scale - Sheenstia.

 

 

Partial shark spine - Hybodus sp.

 

 

Small shark fin spine - Hybodus sp.

 

 

Larger shark fin spine - Hybodus sp.

 

 

Section of carbonised and mud-stone infilled palm trunk.

 

 

Reptile bone section.

 

 

Reptile bone section (other side).

 

[Jaybot]

Wow!  Nice finds.  Those Hybodus shark teeth are incredible.  Thank you for sharing!

[blackdanter]

3 hours ago, Jaybot said:

Wow!  Nice finds.  Those Hybodus shark teeth are incredible.  Thank you for sharing!

Thanks Jay. I've not found any shark teeth for a while. You can find bigger ones, a little bigger anyway, so I keep an eye out for them.

[blackdanter]

This is an anomalous specimen.

 

I've never found anything else quite like this. It has the appearance of being blob of material. It's composed of hard clay pea sized matrix with a soft clay infill. One side has an ironised layer which looks as though it covered the whole thing at one time. Under a lens, the soft clay matrix is packed with really tiny fish teeth, spines, scales and bone fragments. The intriguing thing is the larger fragments, which are scales and bone.

 

There are obvious bits of small broken bone (shards). These have the appearance of the shards left over when your dog has destroyed a bone. In addition to that there are other bits which appear 'polished'. I can't decide whether these are broken teeth. To be honest the whole specimen feels like fossilised animal 'up chuck' of some sort.

 

 

 

A fish scale and two bone fragments or teeth. One is conical and points upward and one looks like a piece of rib except one end has cellular structure whilst the other end is solid. At the top of the image is a small damaged croc tooth.

 

 

A closer image of the anomalous bits. They don't look like any teeth I've come across before.

 

 

The second anomalous bit. Polished bone or tooth? I originally suspected croc tooth but the shape is really odd, elongated peg like would be the best description but the polished surface is weird looking to me (like a piece of polished dinosaur bone you might see at a gem stone sellers).

 

 

 

Another piece of bone poking out.

 

 

Any thoughts/observations appreciated.

[Yoda]

@blackdanter

Welcome to the Forum

Those are some nice finds. 

 

I also have one of those small Hybodus shark teeth

[blackdanter]

2 minutes ago, Yoda said:

@blackdanter

Welcome to the Forum

Those are some nice finds. 

 

I also have one of those small Hybodus shark teeth

Thanks Yoda. I've visited the site a few times over the years but didn't join as it didn't seem too relevant to my location. Hopefully I'm in a better position to add something now.

[blackdanter]

A section of fish - Sheenstia.

 

 

Degraded articulated fish material - the darker sections are exposed and eroded bone.

 

 

Shark fin spine - Hybodus sp.

 

 

Three broken dinosaur vertebrae - likely Iguanodon sp.

 

[FranzBernhard]

1 hour ago, blackdanter said:

To be honest the whole specimen feels like fossilised animal 'up chuck' of some sort.

Very interesting!

Would you like to consider posting this specimen also in the fossil ID section?

Franz Bernhard

[blackdanter]

1 minute ago, FranzBernhard said:

Very interesting!

Would you like to consider posting this specimen also in the fossil ID section?

Franz Bernhard

Hi Franz. Thanks, that sounds like a good plan to me. 

[blackdanter]

Articulated fish remains - Sheenstia.

 

Rear head/gill section. 

 

 

Side view.

 

 

Section of body/flank.

 

 

Side section.

 

 

As you can see, one side on each sample is exposed and has been weathered/eroded however, the opposing side is protected by hard mudstone and ought to be nicely preserved

following preparation.

[blackdanter]

Dinosaur footprints/casts found at the site over the years.

 

Iguanodon type foot cast - Fairlight.

 

 

 

Iguanodon type footprint - Ecclesbourne Glen.

 

 

 

Iguanodon type footprint - Rock-a-nore.

 

 

 

Theropod type foot cast - Rock-a-nore.

 

 

 

Iguanodon type footprint - Rock-a-nore.

 

 

 

Iguanodon type foot cast - Fairlight.

 

 

 

[blackdanter]

A recent find and maybe not that interesting to some but it's a current favourite with me.

 

Trace fossil cast - Invertebrate life activity in the top mud layer at the bottom of a body of water. There are tiny worm burrows and the 'pip' structures are usually interpreted as bivalve anchor/resting points.

 

This sort of material is fairly common at Rock-a-nore but is usually heavily weathered on loose pebbles or large boulders. I was pleased to find this relatively fresh sample.

 

 

 

[blackdanter]

Some plant material.

 

Fossil wood section.

 

 

The other side of the same section.

 

 

Horsetail (Equisetum sp,) 

 

 

 

Palm trunk - carbonised and infilled.

 

 

The broken edge - growth rings are discernible but easier to see under a lens. The structure is very similar to modern palm trunk internal structure.

 

Edited May 21 by blackdanter

[blackdanter]

Reptile bone fragment.

 

 

Other side.

 

 

Tempskya schimperi trunk specimen - this is the smallest piece (in terms of trunk width) that I've found at the location.

 

 

Tempskya schimperi trunk specimen - 'Cardinal's Cap' (top of trunk).

 

 

Iguanodon sp. caudal vertebra - likely Barilium.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 24 by blackdanter

[Cortinarius]

Gosh your finds are incredible - and what beautiful variety! 
 

I’m very grateful for you posting such good photos of your bone fragments - thank you! 

 

Your footprint photos are fantastic! 

 

I must admit, though they’re not what a lot of collectors are interested in, I’m also always delighted to find trace fossils, esp. burrows en masse and the like. I find them fascinating.

[blackdanter]

1 hour ago, Cortinarius said:

Gosh your finds are incredible - and what beautiful variety! 
 

I’m very grateful for you posting such good photos of your bone fragments - thank you! 

 

Your footprint photos are fantastic! 

 

I must admit, though they’re not what a lot of collectors are interested in, I’m also always delighted to find trace fossils, esp. burrows en masse and the like. I find them fascinating.

Thank you.

 

I'm fascinated by the whole paleo environment where I collect so I try to stay open to all things when I'm out collecting and I get just as enthused by finding a trace fossil as I do with finding a fragment of fish or the occasional reptile bone.

 

Bone is scarce at Rock-a-nore in terms of things that are recognisable. Preservation is hugely variable and there are a huge number of natural materials and formations that can be easily mistaken for bone. If I have any doubts it comes home with me for examination under a lens. That said, there's more of it underfoot on the beach than people think. It's just that the sea has done it's work and reduced it to bone core pebbles. It's easily identified under a lens but in reality it doesn't mean much other than being a curious pebble. I've long since stopped collecting it.

 

 

[Notidanodon]

Great fossils! I have a lot from the Hastings beds interesting material!

[blackdanter]

19 hours ago, Notidanodon said:

Great fossils! I have a lot from the Hastings beds interesting material!

Thanks. I'd be interested to see what you have. Have you got a gallery or thread (couldn't find one)?

[blackdanter]

A couple of new finds (this morning). Posted elsewhere but also here to keep things together.

 

I think this is possibly a partial fish rib or spine.

 

 

A fragment of reptile bone.

 

 

The other side of this specimen with clear vessel preservation.

 

 

And alongside a find from about a month ago in the same general area. Because preservation of bone is so variable at the location (and also a rarity) and, these are quite similar, I think these are likely of the same origin.

 

[Notidanodon]

8 hours ago, blackdanter said:

Thanks. I'd be interested to see what you have. Have you got a gallery or thread (couldn't find one)?

My collection has been very disorganised for a few years due to a move, so I haven’t done much photography, I believe I’ve posted some before but I’ll have a dig around and try to find some  

[Tidgy's Dad]

Great finds!

Thank you very much for sharing these!

[blackdanter]

Tempskya Schimperi - unusual disc shaped section (probably the top end of the trunk). This appears to be the result of water transport action prior to fossilisation.

 

 

Tempskya - a nice fresh trunk section with nicely defined fibrous outer trunk.

 

 

End section (top).

 

 

End section (bottom) - lots of internal frond base structures.

 

 

Large Iguanodon dorsal vertebrae (possibly Barilium). This has been compressed and distorted during the fossilisation process.

 

 

The other side of the vertebrae.

 

 

 

 

Edited June 2 by blackdanter
correction