May 2013 Finds Of The Month

[Cris]

Entries will be taken through May 31st. Please let us know if you have any questions, and thanks for sharing more of your fossils and research this month.

To view the Winning Fossils from past contests visit the Find Of The Month Winner's Gallery.
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Rules for The Fossil Forum's Vertebrate and Invertebrate/Plant Find of the Month Contests

1. You find a great Vertebrate Fossil or Invertebrate/Plant Fossil! Only fossils found by you.

2. Post your entry in the Find of the Month topic. Use a separate post for each entry.

3. Your Fossil must have been found during the Month of the Contest, or the significant Preparation of your Fossil must have been completed during the Month of the Contest.

4. You must include the Date of your Discovery or the Date of Preparation Completion.

5. You must include the common or scientific name.

6. You must include the Geologic Age or Geologic Formation where the Fossil was found.

7. Play fair. No bought fossils.

Shortly after the end of the Month, separate Polls will be created for the Vertebrate and Invertebrate/Plant Find of the Month. The maximum entries allowed by the Polling software will be selected for each contest by the staff.

In addition to the fun of a contest, we also want to learn more about the fossils. So, only entries posted with a CLEAR photo and that meet the other guidelines will be placed into the Poll.

Within a few days, we will know the two winning Finds of the Month! Now, go
find your fossil, do your research, and make an entry!

[Kosmoceras]

Nice Jaw Darren!

Found this on my last collecting trip; out again tomorrow to see if I can bag any more nice specimens at a new chalk location. The ammonite here is around 15cm and the largest I have found in the chalk.

Acanthoceras rhotomagense

A. Rhotomagense zone, Zig Zag Chalk

Bedfordshire, England

05/05/13

Regards,

[Evgeny Kotelevsky]

Name: Coeloptychium subagaricoides

Phylum: Porifera

Class: Hexactinellida

Age: K₂st (Upper Cretaceous, Santonian)

Location: Saratov, Russian Federation

Discovery date: 10 May 2013

Preparation finished: 12 May 2013

Short description: Complete skeleton with stem and roots

Edited May 17, 2013 by Evgeny Kotelevsky

[Ludwigia]

I haven't been here "in person" for a while now, but I found something recently that I thought might be worth showing. Just finished preparing it this week.

Microconch ammonite with apophysen

Diameter 4.5cm.

Genus: Stephanoceras sp.

Subgenus: Normannites sp.

Species not yet determined

Stratigraphy: Middle Jurassic/Bajocian

German "Dogger delta"

Humphresianum Zone

Location: South of Basel, Switzerland.

[JohnJ]

An exquisite find, Roger. Great prep. Congrats.

[Ludwigia]

Thanks, John

[DE&i]

Stunning Roger thats a first seen for me.

Darren.

[Ludwigia]

Stunning Roger thats a first seen for me.

Darren.

Yours is really something special too!

[Grenzton]

Hi Guy's.

Now it's time to response...

This sponge comes from a cretaceous quarry of Hoever near Hannover in Germany.

It is an 4" wide ear-shaped sponge with many spines on the inside and outside wall.

his name is Verruculina cf. tenuis, i have found and prepp him in this month.

greetsfrom germany, karl

Edited May 20, 2013 by Grenzton

[Evgeny Kotelevsky]

Hi Guy's.

Now it's time to response...

This spone comes from a cretaceous quarry of Hoever near Hannover in Germany.

It is an 4" wide ear-shaped sponge with many spines on the inside and outside wall.

his name is Verruculina cf. tenuis, i have found and prepp him in this month.

greetsfrom germany, karl

Nice sponge! Two sponges in one competition - that's interesting ))))))

[Jurassic Jim]

Here is my entry for invertebrate find of the month. This was subject of a previous post. Fossils found on May 4 with preparation completed later on May 4.

Bryozoan

Archimedes Swallovanus (?)

Mississippian Age

Shale unit in contact with Bangor Limestone

North Alabama

These are by far the largest Archimedes I have ever collected, especially free of matrix with the largest previously around 3 1/2" long.

[KansasFossilHunter]

Here is my Vertabrate entery for the Month...

Ptychodus mortoni

Shell-crushing shark jawplate

Discovered: 5/4/13

Smoky Hill Chalk (L. Cretaceous)

Kansas, USA

Some info on Ptychodus-

~ A genus of durophagous shark (shell-crushing)

~Ptychodus has been found on every continent including Australia

~First discovered in England, thought to be "palates from fish"

~Had crusher teeth on both upper and Lower Jaws

~ Few specimens have included cartilage and even vertabrae remains

~Jaw plates like this are very rare

Link to the Hunt/Discovery: http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/37214-keystone-fossil-hunt/

Edited May 29, 2013 by KansasFossilHunter

[Nandomas]

Guys... you are killing me :o

Sponges... my favorite fossil sin

Gorgeous archimedes

Stunning ammo

Plesiosaurus mandible

Ptychodus dentition

... what else?

[chele]

I would like to enter two Pachycephalosaur teeth. Both were found on May 13th. The teeth are rare to find, especially in the color blue.

Class Reptilia, Superorder Dinosauria, Order Ornithischia, Family Pachycephalosauridae

Late Cretaceous

Fossil Site: Hell Creek Formation, Garfield County, Montana

[KansasFossilHunter]

This is my first Invertebrate entry...

Uintacrinus socialis

Floating Crynoid colony

Discovered: 5/4/13

Smoky Hill Chalk (L. Cretaceous)

Kansas, USA

Little info about Uintacrinus...

~ The only echinoderm currently known from the smoky hill chalk

~ Related to starfish and sea urchins

~ Were apparently colonial and free-living (not attached to the sea bottom)

~ Named after the Uinta Mountains of Utah, where very fragmented remains were first discovered by Marsh in 1870. Better specimens were discovered in the Smoky Hill Chalk, few years later.

~ I was reaching for a big calcite crystal when I saw this specimen near a small bush.

Link to the Hunt/Discovery: http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/37214-keystone-fossil-hunt/

Edited May 29, 2013 by KansasFossilHunter

[Nandomas]

I am done. R.I.P Nando

[Ludwigia]

I am done. R.I.P Nando

Don't worry. We'll all be more than glad to attend your wake ...you're Irish, aren't you?

[caterpillar]

Palaeotherium magnum from eocene of SouthFrance. Found next week and just prepared

[Coco]

Found next week and just prepared

Found last week ! It is the problem with foreigners, sometimes we have to think not to confuse two words (it often arrives at me, even with "last" / "next") !

Bon lundi férié à toi !

Coco

[caterpillar]

Yes, you're right! Sorry, sorry!!

J'ai jamais été bon en anglais!!

[Boneman007]

OMG! What a month!

Heck, if I would have to find a T-rex skull to compete with y'all!

But, unfortunately, due to my Kansas background, Im going to have a hard time not voting for the Unicrinus I've spent years trying to find a itty bitty piece of one, but have failed miserably. To see one here is fantastic! Plus it was found by one of my favorite members whose input and opinions I value highly.

Now for my vertebrate vote, I have no idea, even though I love ptychodus, and know how rare associated dentitions are!

[KansasFossilHunter]

OMG! What a month!

Heck, if I would have to find a T-rex skull to compete with y'all!

But, unfortunately, due to my Kansas background, Im going to have a hard time not voting for the Unicrinus I've spent years trying to find a itty bitty piece of one, but have failed miserably. To see one here is fantastic! Plus it was found by one of my favorite members whose input and opinions I value highly.

Now for my vertebrate vote, I have no idea, even though I love ptychodus, and know how rare associated dentitions are!

Thanks, Boneman. That means a lot

[Nandomas]

Thanks, Boneman. That means a lot

Actually I found my Uintacrinus socialis small plate in ... Germany, at Munich Mineralientage

It was not so expensive, so I bought it

I am so envious of your find!

[pleecan]

Late Devonian:

Super Rare partial Placoderm Skull ( Tentative) found May 20, 2013.

Found in Shallows of Lake Huron

ON Canada

Kettle Point Formation

PL

[Scylla]

^{I would like to add an amazing fossil to an amazing month. I never thought I would have a FOTM entry, but sometimes you just get lucky.}

^{We went with the NYPS on their trip to the Lower Devonian of New York and I found this specimen laying on the ground on my way back to get the car to pick up the kids. The geologist for the mine ( who was amazingly helpful all trip long) said he had never seen one like it come out of there. The red color comes from the oxidising pyrite and is not crayon as some have suggested}

^{Asteroides Species}

^Starfish

^{Colarusso & Son's Quarry (formally Becraft Mt.)}

^{Becraft Formation}

^{Found May 18th}

^Size:

Edited May 28, 2013 by Scylla