thelivingdead531 Posted July 3, 2016 Share Posted July 3, 2016 Hello! I found these two pieces during a visit to the Asheboro Zoo in NC in their dinosaur exhibit where they had a mound of dirt, sand, and rocks that you could dig through to try and find fossils. I believe they brought in the mounds from closer to the NC coast, but I'm not entirely positive on that. I'm fairly certain that they are coral fossils, but I couldn't find much info through Google. If anyone can help me identify what they are exactly and possibly how old they are I would greatly appreciate it. I will post more photos of this one and then the other piece below. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thelivingdead531 Posted July 3, 2016 Author Share Posted July 3, 2016 Last picture from the first piece, first picture of the second piece. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thelivingdead531 Posted July 3, 2016 Author Share Posted July 3, 2016 Last two photos of the second piece. Third picture is both pieces together in a different light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kane Posted July 3, 2016 Share Posted July 3, 2016 Welcome to the forum. If I had to venture a wild guess, it would be a Solenastrea hyades from around the Miocene (5-23 million years ago). I'm sure our NC experts will weigh in shortly! 2 ...How to Philosophize with a Hammer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guguita2104 Posted July 3, 2016 Share Posted July 3, 2016 Hello and welcome to TFF ! I can't provide very precisely the taxonomic classification.However, I'm sure that you have a beautiful scleractinian colonial coral (quick link:http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/cnidaria/scleractinia.html). Regards, 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Dente Posted July 3, 2016 Share Posted July 3, 2016 Kane is close. It is most likely Solenastrea bella from the James City Formation (Pleistocene). The material comes from the Lee Creek Mine and is shipped to many places around North Carolina for people to search for fossils. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thelivingdead531 Posted July 4, 2016 Author Share Posted July 4, 2016 Thank you both! What about the second one? Any thoughts on that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doushantuo Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 (edited) I'll have to chime in with the following:I'm not saying i disagree with the above assessments ,but for the sake of completeness/clarity:scleractinian taxonomy isn't easy/clearcut . Hermatypic(reefal) corals show a lot of homoeomorphy,and EVEN WITH RECENT corals one has to resort to ultrastructural (ornament in the sub-millimeter domain) and molecular phylogenetic data to keep species apart.Mussiid coral just being one example. Multivariate techniques like ANOSIM and PERMANOVA are used to discriminate between species,because "by eye-recognition"" is well nigh impossible. If all else fails, one resorts to the "part of the ",.,." plexus assessment. Edited July 4, 2016 by doushantuo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmaier Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 The second fossil is either brachiopods or bivalves that have eroded out of their matrix, and they have left behind the impressions, casts, and molds of their shells. Looks like at least two different species. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guguita2104 Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 The second fossil is either brachiopods or bivalves that have eroded out of their matrix, and they have left behind the impressions, casts, and molds of their shells. Looks like at least two different species.I agree with tmaier.However, for my experience about reefal fauna, I would say they're bivalves (please accept this Id with a big question mark) Regards, 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeR Posted July 4, 2016 Share Posted July 4, 2016 Multivariate techniques like ANOSIM and PERMANOVA are used to discriminate between species,because "by eye-recognition"" is well nigh impossible. The North Carolina Plio-Pleistocene were warm temperate to sub tropical and were dominated by only two species of coral; Septastrea marylandica in the Pliocene and Solenastrea bella in the Lower Pleistocene. It is not S. marylandica and Eric's assessment of S. bella is accurate based upon the abundance of that species in the James City Formation at Lee Creek Mine. I would say that the bivalve molds are from the Middle Eocene Castle Hayne Formation also based upon the abundance of the mined material shipped around the state. Mike 2 "A problem solved is a problem caused"--Karl Pilkington "I was dead for millions of years before I was born and it never inconvenienced me a bit." -- Mark Twain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thelivingdead531 Posted July 4, 2016 Author Share Posted July 4, 2016 Thank you all! I'm very new to this although my love of fossils has been a lifelong interest. I appreciate everyone's feedback greatly! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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