Jump to content

Find Of The Month August '09


Gatorman

Recommended Posts

Since it's still August, I should include this 40" Parapuzosia americana I found on 8/08 (hey, who knows when you're going to hit a fossil drought). On this trip, I took young Weston and his Dad (danwoehr) to one of my favorite locations in the Upper Cretaceous, Austin Chalk (Santonian) - Ammonite bluff. This location has produced large sections of P. americana in the past. I caught this one before the weather.

post-420-12517731571035_thumb.jpg

post-420-12517731268661_thumb.jpg

post-420-12517731087112_thumb.jpg

THAT is really cool!!! How long did it take to dig it out?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

clearly, john believes the contest is judged "by the pound", which has never been stated.

the echie is simply a teenage salenia with a mohawk. kids.

i note that the ginormous echie is shown only in situ. i want to see the pictures of it being transported to your yard to examine the technique involved.

i'd also like to see a photo of whomever named that "parapuzosia". just curious.

big or small, john finds them all...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

WOW! That ammonite is huge, John! How much did it weigh?....

THAT is really cool!!! How long did it take to dig it out?

...is shown only in situ. i want to see the pictures of it being transported to your yard to examine the technique involved.

...

I don't know how much it weighs, yet. We put several hours into exposing this ammo. The excavation was put on hold because of a silly mammoth humerus that had to be re-assembled...go figure. However, I have to say that I'm fairly indebted to danwoehr for his assistance in dirty digging on both the giant finds in August. Thanks, Dan.

The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true.  -  JJ

Link to comment
Share on other sites

August has been a great month of major discoveries for me. Here's another one. I found this echinoid on August 1st. It is a rare, unidentified echinoid from the Upper Cretaceous Eagle Ford Group / Upper Turonian of Central Texas. It is only the second one I've found (both from the same site). I found the first one in mid-July.

It appears to be a species from the Saleniidae Family. At present, I cannot find any references to anything like this being found in Texas. The scale is in millimeters.

post-420-12517717456439_thumb.jpg

post-420-12517717653986_thumb.jpg

post-420-12517717883862_thumb.jpg

post-420-12517718075917_thumb.jpg

post-420-12517719224676_thumb.jpg

post-420-12517719783817_thumb.jpg

John,

I'll vote for this echinoid, this a very rare Salenocidaris or Bathysalenia species, always rare and awesome.

congrats

:)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Since I found this one in August I will still post it here, though it is already September.

post-456-12518999030303_thumb.jpg

Oolopygus pyriformis / d'Orbigny, 1855

A flint cast of the interior of the original echinoid.

In most cases the original chalky test dissolves without a trace, but somehow the plating pattern on this specimen survived to create a nice display piece.

Cheers,

Paul

"And the men who hold high places, Must be the ones to start

To mould a new reality, Closer to the Heart"

(Rush, "Closer to the Heart" from the album "A Farewell to Kings")

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Since I found this one in August I will still post it here, though it is already September.

post-456-12518999030303_thumb.jpg

Oolopygus pyriformis / d'Orbigny, 1855

A flint cast of the interior of the original echinoid.

In most cases the original chalky test dissolves without a trace, but somehow the plating pattern on this specimen survived to create a nice display piece.

Cheers,

Paul

Really nice "in the matrix" ech. I would definitely put that on my shelf. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Really nice "in the matrix" ech. I would definitely put that on my shelf. :)

That's exactly where I have put it: on my shelf of goodies .....

"And the men who hold high places, Must be the ones to start

To mould a new reality, Closer to the Heart"

(Rush, "Closer to the Heart" from the album "A Farewell to Kings")

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ok, chances to enter the fossil of the month for Aug is closed. I think we gathered up the info we needed to make a poll :)

Sorry about the confusion for this month but we will be elaborating on the guidelines for future entries :)

Anyway, lets have fun :)

The soul of a Fossil Hunter is one that is seeking, always.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

OK; Here's a rewind of my previous post:

Date: August 15th, 2009

Place: Jungle of Gigantism - Texas (you know better than to ask)

Expedition team: JohnJ and danwoehr

Objective: Pleistocene fossils

Discovery: On a small secluded waterway in the Jungle, we watched a log submerge with purpose...it was no log. Big reptiles were only a hint of the giant to come. Shortly after, we hit the bank and Dan offered, "you want upstream or downstream?" Words he later said would influence a fossil career.

I made my way downstream and found a nice sized bone wedged in the gravel. It was mammal, but unusual in shape. I marked it with my paddle and continued to the small end of the ledge and looked over toward the water...and there it was. A plate sized dome edged from the face of the small bluff..... (Got to go pack for another trip. The rest of this story will have to wait...and it's a wild one.) OBJECTIVE ACHEIVED.

Well, I've never done a blog, but you're never too old to learn. So, the rest of the story above can be found in A Humerus Trip. :D

The human mind has the ability to believe anything is true.  -  JJ

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, I've never done a blog, but you're never too old to learn. So, the rest of the story above can be found in A Humerus Trip. :D

Holy carp. Why even have a vote? Maybe we should have a "no brainer" pick, and at least have some competition for a less-obvious choice...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...