New Members Hiberno Rex Posted January 25, 2014 New Members Share Posted January 25, 2014 Hi, I recently found what I believe is a fossilised coprolite in the glacial debris of an esker, close to my home here in Ireland,but I'm not sure?To be honest,Palaeontologists are like the proverbial 'hen's teeth' in my part of the world,so I'm relying on you good folk to help me if possible.I know it's not the most exciting find ever,but these are not found here in Ireland that often!It looks like a micaceous sandstone and measures 80mm.(3") long and 40mm.(1 3/4") wide.If it is indeed a coprolite,how old is this likely to be and would anyone like to hazard a guess as to what kind of creature may have excreted it??Any help would be deeply appreciated.Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 I'm just an amateur collector, but perhaps I can offer some information. While the overall form and some of the features on the individual sections do suggest coprolite, the substance seems wrong. If it is indeed sandstone it would almost have to be a natural cast. Glacial material and coprolites are complicated things to be certain of an experts often avoid public speculation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Eklund Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 This looks more like a series of concretions that have attached to one another. I have seen these even in the Oligocene where barite will form concretions and if near to one another, will attach in groups. If you want to see some Oligocene Badland coprolites from Western Nebraska... you can see why those are easily identified compared to a concretion. With a little shoe polish you would no doubt mistake them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Members Hiberno Rex Posted January 26, 2014 Author New Members Share Posted January 26, 2014 Thank you Rockwood and Ray.So the general consensus is that it's unlikely to be a coprolite - ah well, never mind!One thing I didn't mention is that there would appear to be several curved parallel grooves present on one part of the stone(unfortunately it's difficult to make them out in the attached images);I'm not sure if these grooves tell you anything more about what it's likely to be?Again,thanks a million for your help.Best wishes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted January 26, 2014 Share Posted January 26, 2014 I suspect those grooves could be what has caused enough uncertainty for some to avoid posting an opinion. I would hang on to it even if it is a long shot. I've got a few concretion / poops in my collection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Members Hiberno Rex Posted January 26, 2014 Author New Members Share Posted January 26, 2014 No problem Rockwood. Thanks for your help. All the best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now