Rockpit Posted November 13, 2019 Posted November 13, 2019 After being in and out of the freezer since October this concretion opened yesterday. It is different than anything I've seen before and I haven't been able to match it to anything online or in Wittry's books. I am assuming it is fauna but I'm really not sure. Of course it could be a jellyfish but I've never seen one like this before. Could it be a cephalopod?
sharkdoctor Posted November 13, 2019 Posted November 13, 2019 Lovely piece! I have no clue, but hope that someone can help. I just got so tickled at your note....."After being in and out of the freezer since October this concretion..." It makes me so happy that there are other people who think that having wet rocks lying about their freezer is a totally normal thing (along with the bulk samples drying in the oven, whale vertebra weathering out of concretions in the flowerbeds, PVA solution in jars in the attic, etc) You TFF'ers make me feel normal from time to time! And very thankful for all of the longsuffering spouses that put up with concretions in the freezer. 1
RCFossils Posted November 13, 2019 Posted November 13, 2019 Looks to be a poorly preserved jellyfish or possibly acorn worm. It looks like there was quite a bit of decay prior to fossilization. 4
westcoast Posted November 13, 2019 Posted November 13, 2019 I think that most Mazon Creek samples are an ideal substitute for the classic Rorschach test. 2
fifbrindacier Posted November 13, 2019 Posted November 13, 2019 5 hours ago, sharkdoctor said: Lovely piece! I have no clue, but hope that someone can help. I just got so tickled at your note....."After being in and out of the freezer since October this concretion..." It makes me so happy that there are other people who think that having wet rocks lying about their freezer is a totally normal thing (along with the bulk samples drying in the oven, whale vertebra weathering out of concretions in the flowerbeds, PVA solution in jars in the attic, etc) You TFF'ers make me feel normal from time to time! And very thankful for all of the longsuffering spouses that put up with concretions in the freezer. I also do that sometimes. 1 "On ne voit bien que par le coeur, l'essentiel est invisible pour les yeux." (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry) "We only well see with the heart, the essential is invisible for the eyes." In memory of Doren
Mark Kmiecik Posted November 13, 2019 Posted November 13, 2019 No guess from me. Sometimes they are just not identifiable. Mark. Fossil hunting is easy -- they don't run away when you shoot at them!
Rockpit Posted November 14, 2019 Author Posted November 14, 2019 14 hours ago, sharkdoctor said: I just got so tickled at your note....."After being in and out of the freezer since October this concretion..." It makes me so happy that there are other people who think that having wet rocks lying about their freezer is a totally normal thing (along with the bulk samples drying in the oven, whale vertebra weathering out of concretions in the flowerbeds, PVA solution in jars in the attic, etc) You TFF'ers make me feel normal from time to time! And very thankful for all of the longsuffering spouses that put up with concretions in the freezer. Thanks! It's great to be normal (sometimes). Lucky for me I have an extra refrigerator for bulk items such as orange juice, apples, oranges and, concretions! Whatever it is I think it is one of my favorites. 1
Rockpit Posted November 14, 2019 Author Posted November 14, 2019 12 hours ago, RCFossils said: Looks to be a poorly preserved jellyfish or possibly acorn worm. It looks like there was quite a bit of decay prior to fossilization. Thanks for the reply. I hadn't heard of acorn worms before and now that I looked at some that show a "pinched collar", I can see how it could possibly be a worm. I was wondering if the single strand hanging down was a tentacle but maybe that's where the decay come in? I must admit though, I'm not usually squeamish and have no problems touching earthworms or leeches, but some of the nonfossilized images online were grossing me out! If it is a worm, this is the first I've found-I haven't had any worms yet. Wait. . .
Rockpit Posted November 17, 2019 Author Posted November 17, 2019 Just out of curiosity, are there cephalopods associated with Mazon Creek? I didn't have much luck finding examples online. @Mark Kmiecik @RCFossils @Nimravis @deutscheben
RCFossils Posted November 17, 2019 Posted November 17, 2019 Yes, cephalopods, the earliest octopus and squid have all been found in the MC deposit. They are all very rare. I have a few examples that I will post in the next week or two. 1
Nimravis Posted November 17, 2019 Posted November 17, 2019 11 minutes ago, Rockpit said: Just out of curiosity, are there cephalopods associated with Mazon Creek? I didn't have much luck finding examples online. @Mark Kmiecik @RCFossils @Nimravis @deutscheben Yes there are- here is a picture of a Titanoceras that he found years ago and was ID by the Field Museum. This other piece (picture) I sold to a collector as a squid- Jeletzkya, I was not positive on it, but he was pretty sure and the price was right. It was very small, a little smaller than a nickel and I only had one half- it was found inside the cooling lakes at Pit 11. @RCFossils what do you think? 5
Rockpit Posted November 17, 2019 Author Posted November 17, 2019 Wow! Those are both very cool! I'm not sure I would have recognized the first as a fossil if I had come across it!
Nimravis Posted November 17, 2019 Posted November 17, 2019 2 minutes ago, Rockpit said: I would have recognized the first as a fossil if I had come across it Ditto here
Rockpit Posted November 17, 2019 Author Posted November 17, 2019 However, I do see a man's profile in the upper right hand side. 1
Nimravis Posted November 17, 2019 Posted November 17, 2019 25 minutes ago, Rockpit said: Wow! Those are both very cool! I'm not sure I would have recognized the first as a fossil if I had come across it! I forgot that I had this picture of a Holotype that is in Dave's Down to Earth Museum in Evanston, Illinois. 1
Pippa Posted November 18, 2019 Posted November 18, 2019 1 hour ago, Rockpit said: However, I do see a man's profile in the upper right hand side. And he doesn't look too happy either, stuck forever on that fossil....
RCFossils Posted November 18, 2019 Posted November 18, 2019 2 hours ago, Nimravis said: Yes there are- here is a picture of a Titanoceras that he found years ago and was ID by the Field Museum. This other piece (picture) I sold to a collector as a squid- Jeletzkya, I was not positive on it, but he was pretty sure and the price was right. It was very small, a little smaller than a nickel and I only had one half- it was found inside the cooling lakes at Pit 11. @RCFossils what do you think? The Titanoceras is pretty impressive. Not sure about the Jeletzkya. It is definitely a possibility. Cannot make out enough detail to be sure. 2
Rockpit Posted November 18, 2019 Author Posted November 18, 2019 4 hours ago, Nimravis said: I forgot that I had this picture of a Holotype that is in Dave's Down to Earth Museum in Evanston, Illinois. Those are really nice! I really need to go there! 1
Mark Kmiecik Posted November 18, 2019 Posted November 18, 2019 22 hours ago, RCFossils said: Not sure about the Jeletzkya. It is definitely a possibility. Cannot make out enough detail to be sure. The ten "arms" pretty much nails it down. 1 Mark. Fossil hunting is easy -- they don't run away when you shoot at them!
stats Posted January 11, 2020 Posted January 11, 2020 On 11/13/2019 at 7:47 PM, Rockpit said: Thanks! It's great to be normal (sometimes). Lucky for me I have an extra refrigerator for bulk items such as orange juice, apples, oranges and, concretions! Whatever it is I think it is one of my favorites. I have a freezer just for concretions... Cheers, Rich
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