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Shark, Ray, Fish, And Other Micros From Gainesville Florida


MarcoSr

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Tiny sand dollars and sea biscuits are common at the mouth of the Withlacoochee River on spoil islands consisting of dredged and deteriorated Ocala Limestone. Gainesville sits on a closely associated layer so more types should be available.

[attachment=220720:echinoids.jpg

John

Really nice sand dollars. You have a good number of them. I was real happy finding just three.

Marco Sr.

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

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That fused Dasyatis is beautiful. I can't wait until Monday when my box arrives!

John

You should find some really nice specimens in the Gainesville matrix.

Marco Sr.

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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I'm not sure type of fish it is but that is definitely a fish tooth. I find alot of them in the matrix Jogn S and Jeff send me.

John

I thought it was fish but I wasn't a 100% sure. I don't see a lot of small mammal teeth so I'm not really very familiar with them.

Marco Sr.

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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  • 2 weeks later...

John S. sent to me another gallon of well washed coarse gravel from his trip to Gainesville, Florida. As stated in the beginning of my post the gravel is from the Miocene Coosawhatchee Formation, Hawthorn Group. I’m posting the nicer specimens below. I really like the preservation and the great colors from this site. I again found a large number of shark, ray and fish fossils. The specimens which I found range in size from 1.75 mm to 25mm. If you place your cursor on a JPEG image you will see the file name which will have the specimen id as best that I can determine and the specimen size. If you can identify the specimens further please do so.

Some of the shark teeth:

Carcharhinus:

post-2515-0-25913000-1390500880_thumb.jpg

Sphyrna:

post-2515-0-98872200-1390500952_thumb.jpg

A pathological tooth:

post-2515-0-75551500-1390500975_thumb.jpg

Several shark teeth that I would like id help for. I have an id in mind but I’m not completely sure:

post-2515-0-45554500-1390501008_thumb.jpgpost-2515-0-95659700-1390501031_thumb.jpg

Some of the ray teeth and a ray barb which I found:

Dasyatis:

post-2515-0-85352100-1390501050_thumb.jpgpost-2515-0-73328300-1390501069_thumb.jpg

Myliobatis:

post-2515-0-28860400-1390501117_thumb.jpg

Rhynchobatus:

post-2515-0-93751500-1390501146_thumb.jpg

Ray Barb:

post-2515-0-49411600-1390501169_thumb.jpg

Partial fish mouth plates (These are definitely mouth plates as I can see from the back side that they definitely contain teeth):

post-2515-0-57020000-1390501194_thumb.jpgpost-2515-0-52050600-1390501206_thumb.jpgpost-2515-0-99903500-1390501226_thumb.jpgpost-2515-0-60522900-1390501240_thumb.jpgpost-2515-0-61502700-1390501267_thumb.jpg

Continued in the next reply.

Marco Sr.

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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Very nice Marco Sr! I need to post some more of the teeth I have found. Your matrix is different than the Peace River material though? I am not familiar with the river systems... I also love those little sand dollars! Thanks for sharing. :)

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Marco

If it isn't too much trouble I would really like to see the other side of your shell. It very much looks like an inarticulate brachiopod called Discradisca. Here is a photo of a similar one I saw on the web. These aren't as common in the US Neogene as the similar but much smoother Discinisca.

post-2301-0-88321900-1390504708_thumb.jpg

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Very nice Marco Sr! I need to post some more of the teeth I have found. Your matrix is different than the Peace River material though? I am not familiar with the river systems... I also love those little sand dollars! Thanks for sharing. :)

Lisa

This matrix is different from the Peace River matrix that John S. sent to the both of us. John made a special trip up to Gainesville to get it. I also like the little sand dollars.

Marco Sr,

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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Marco

If it isn't too much trouble I would really like to see the other side of your shell. It very much looks like an inarticulate brachiopod called Discradisca. Here is a photo of a similar one I saw on the web. These aren't as common in the US Neogene as the similar but much smoother Discinisca.

attachicon.gifdiscradisca.jpg

My specimen does look a lot like the one you posted. I thought the specimen was unusual and that is why I posted it. I only found one. I didn't find pieces of any either as the matrix was gravel versus shell. Here is the other side.

post-2515-0-46010500-1390507043_thumb.jpg

Marco Sr.

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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Nice finds and getting to be a good variety of species from this little creek. I'm pleased by the invertebrates in the mix and the fish grinding plates are an interesting addition as well. Anxious to see what John H. finds to round out this first batch of Gainesville matrix. I still have 1 gallon (previously allocated to John) in the garage. I'm looking forward to getting back there to really load up on a big batch so some other members can hunt Rattlesnake Creek.

Thanks for keeping me posted!

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Marco

I see the muscle scars that I expected on the inside of the shell. I'm certain it is Discradisca. I have found a couple Cretaceous ones but they are broken. Yours is flawless. Hard to believe it survived intact in the river. Very nice.

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Nice finds and getting to be a good variety of species from this little creek. I'm pleased by the invertebrates in the mix and the fish grinding plates are an interesting addition as well. Anxious to see what John H. finds to round out this first batch of Gainesville matrix. I still have 1 gallon (previously allocated to John) in the garage. I'm looking forward to getting back there to really load up on a big batch so some other members can hunt Rattlesnake Creek.

Thanks for keeping me posted!

John

Thanks again for all of your effort to get this matrix. The colors and preservation of the specimens is really nice. Plus there is a nice variety of genus and species.

Marco Sr.

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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Marco

I see the muscle scars that I expected on the inside of the shell. I'm certain it is Discradisca. I have found a couple Cretaceous ones but they are broken. Yours is flawless. Hard to believe it survived intact in the river. Very nice.

It is a really nice specimen for one that came from a creek environment. Thank you for the id of Discradisca.

Marco Sr.

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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It is a really nice specimen for one that came from a creek environment. Thank you for the id of Discradisca.

Marco Sr.

I previously said my specimens were Cretaceous. This one is actually Eocene Castle Hayne but there is a chance it is reworked from the Cretaceous. It is the best I have from North Carolina. It's pretty beat up.

post-2301-0-26921300-1390565057_thumb.jpg

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I previously said my specimens were Cretaceous. This one is actually Eocene Castle Hayne but there is a chance it is reworked from the Cretaceous. It is the best I have from North Carolina. It's pretty beat up.

attachicon.gifDiscradiscatff.jpg

I've actually found similar looking specimens in Cretaceous matrix. Mine were all pretty beat up also. At least now I know what they are.

Marco Sr.

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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MarcoSr, I really appreciate your posts on your finds in the Peace River matrix. The terrific photos and IDs are my bible for attempting to ID my finds from the PR matrix that I received from Sacha. I keep going back and studying all of your pics. I am sure that your posts help others too :)

 
12-2023TFFsig.png.193bff42034b9285e960cff49786ba4e.png
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MarcoSr, I really appreciate your posts on your finds in the Peace River matrix. The terrific photos and IDs are my bible for attempting to ID my finds from the PR matrix that I received from Sacha. I keep going back and studying all of your pics. I am sure that your posts help others too :)

I'm glad my posts help. Identifying shark teeth can be especially difficult. Teeth of a specific species can look very different in young sharks versus old sharks, male sharks versus female sharks and can look very different from anterior to posterior positions and from upper to lower jaws. Also there are genus where the teeth can look very similar to each other. Some genus like Carcharhinus have over 30 extant species which can all have very similar looking teeth. It is very much easier to identify extant shark jaws versus single teeth. The best way to be able to identify fossil shark teeth is to study the jaws of extant sharks. However with most extant shark jaws shown in pictures on the internet it is really hard to clearly see the individual teeth. However some sites like elasmo and J-elasmo show a lot of individual teeth from an extant shark jaw.

Marco Sr.

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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----------------------
OUTIL POUR MESURER VOS FOSSILES : ici

Ma bibliothèque PDF 1 (Poissons et sélaciens récents & fossiles) : ici
Ma bibliothèque PDF 2 (Animaux vivants - sans poissons ni sélaciens) : ici
Mâchoires sélaciennes récentes : ici
Hétérodontiques et sélaciens : ici
Oeufs sélaciens récents : ici
Otolithes de poissons récents ! ici

Un Greg...

Badges-IPFOTH.jpg.f4a8635cda47a3cc506743a8aabce700.jpg Badges-MOTM.jpg.461001e1a9db5dc29ca1c07a041a1a86.jpg

 

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Coco

Thank you very much for the links. I'm not envious of many things but I really wish I had such a nice extant shark and ray jaw collection. Like I've said above, extant shark and ray jaws really help with the id of fossil shark and ray teeth. You did a fabulous job with preparing the jaws.

Marco Sr.

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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Hi,

:)

Coco

----------------------
OUTIL POUR MESURER VOS FOSSILES : ici

Ma bibliothèque PDF 1 (Poissons et sélaciens récents & fossiles) : ici
Ma bibliothèque PDF 2 (Animaux vivants - sans poissons ni sélaciens) : ici
Mâchoires sélaciennes récentes : ici
Hétérodontiques et sélaciens : ici
Oeufs sélaciens récents : ici
Otolithes de poissons récents ! ici

Un Greg...

Badges-IPFOTH.jpg.f4a8635cda47a3cc506743a8aabce700.jpg Badges-MOTM.jpg.461001e1a9db5dc29ca1c07a041a1a86.jpg

 

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WOW! I thought I had a good weekend in the Gainesville creeks, but now I'm blown away!

Might I, em...ah...ask which creek they may have, um.. come from? Not like I'd go looking there, just curious in case I want to go swimming. :)

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WOW! I thought I had a good weekend in the Gainesville creeks, but now I'm blown away!

Might I, em...ah...ask which creek they may have, um.. come from? Not like I'd go looking there, just curious in case I want to go swimming. :)

Unfortunately I didn't collect the creek gravel myself that these specimens came from, so I can't tell you much about the location in Gainesville. A Florida collector made a special trip up to Gainesville to get the gravel and sent 3 gallons of it to me in Virginia to search. However, from what I can tell, there are a lot of good spots in the creeks of Gainesville where you can take gravel from. If you are using a 1/2" or 1/4" sift, most of these specimens from my post would have fallen through your sift. You need to catch in something with a smaller mesh size like window screen the finer gravel that is falling through your larger mesh size sift and take some of the finer gravel home to search when it is dry. Where ever you are collecting in Gainesville you should try this and take a few gallons of finer gravel home as a sample to search for these small teeth. You are probably already sifting locations where you can find the same types of specimens shown in my post if you just use a fine screen mesh like window screen on some gravel.

Marco Sr,

Edited by MarcoSr

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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Thanks for the suggestions. I generally use a 1/4" sifter, but will make a finer one. Also, from now I will always take some material home for further sifting.

Here's my score from the local Gainesville creek. I averaged better than one tooth per minute.post-8283-0-38343700-1390863059_thumb.jpg

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Thanks for the suggestions. I generally use a 1/4" sifter, but will make a finer one. Also, from now I will always take some material home for further sifting.

Here's my score from the local Gainesville creek. I averaged better than one tooth per minute.attachicon.gif2014Jan27b 006.JPG

Really nice group of fossils. From looking at what you found, I think you will definitely find a lot of nice specimens using a finer mesh size than 1/4" and bringing some finer gravel home to search.

Marco Sr.

"Any day that you can fossil hunt is a great day."

My family fossil website     Some Of My Shark, Ray, Fish And Other Micros     My Extant Shark Jaw Collection

image.png.9a941d70fb26446297dbc9dae7bae7ed.png image.png.41c8380882dac648c6131b5bc1377249.png

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