eccentric1 Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 Hi all, Aside for finding a crinoid by accident on the beach last October I have zero experience with fossils. Last Saturday I was woods walking looking for nothing in particular when I came to a deep ravine with a small creek running through it. It occurred to me that after the heavy snow melt and subsequent rains we have had in this area that perhaps an arrowhead or maybe even a fossil may have been washed down. I walked along the creek, crossing many times to look at the rocks collected at points where the creek curved. After about a half hour of flipping flat rocks I hit newbie paydirt. I found a rock about the size of a piece of notebook paper with several tiny indentations that looked like shells. My research leads me to believe that they are Devonian mollusks and brachiopods. Maybe they are nothing... Anyway, here are some really bad pictures to see if anyone agrees with the ID. I would think that my next move would be to continue flipping rocks upstream until I come to a layer of rock like the one I found. After this I have no idea how to go about extracting more samples from the rock face. Any advice and/or links would be genuinely appreciated. Please forgive any newbieisms in this post. e1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 (edited) Hello E1, Yup, looks like possibly some kind of Spiriferid brachiopods. Neat finds. Well, it depends.... on a few things. First thing you should do, is to acquire permission from the property owner, to see if it's okay to extract fossils from this area. If you gain permission, the usual steps require you to first remove the overburden, or layers on top of the fossiliferous layer, and them remove the fossil layer. Easier said than done. But a good sledge and some chisels, and maybe a wrecking bar or - in some instances a rock saw are very handy tools. Keep us informed of your progress in the future Regards,. Edited March 23, 2011 by Fossildude19 Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 You have all the right wiring; the discerning eyes and curiosity of a collector, you enjoy nosing about outdoors, and you know how to research your finds. You'll do well. "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts