digit Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 As long as I had the camera out I thought I'd take a photo of a worn incisor-like tooth that I found a year or two ago. The enameled crown end seems to be well worn to a flat surface. It doesn't seem to be broken on this end but instead worn down from a lifetime of usage as it seems fairly flat and uniform. There is a small hole piercing the top where the wear seems to have gotten down to the nerve cavity. Given the lack of paleo-veterinarian dentists I bet this tooth gave some critter an ache. The root end is coarsely broken off giving the entire fossil an overall length of about 4.5cm with the broken root end an oval of approximately 1.5cm x 2.5cm and the worn crown measuring roughly 1.0cm x 1.5cm. This well worn tooth was fun to see come up in my sifter and still attracts some attention when I show others my collection of bits and bobs that I've pulled from the Peace. Any thoughts to its former owner would be welcome. Cheers. -Ken Side view: View of worn crown: View of broken root end: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sacha Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 Dolphin tooth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 (edited) It does resemble a dolphin tooth, but I don't think it is. 4.5 Cm and broken is awfully large for dolphin. Edited October 22, 2013 by sixgill pete Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmorefossil Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 Giant dolphin tooth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digit Posted October 22, 2013 Author Share Posted October 22, 2013 It does resemble a dolphin tooth, but I don't think it is. 4.5 Cm and broken is awfully large for dolphin. I had originally thought it might be some sort of cetacean tooth when I tried to look it up when I first found the tooth. There is a picture that looks similar on page 20 of the Byron Fink photo ID pamphlet Fossilized Shark's Teeth & Fossils that I picked up in a dive shop in Venice (Florida West). The portion of the tooth that I found is actually only about 2.5cm long though the full tooth would likely have been significantly over 4cm in length including the root. As the amount of root material is probably variable in fossils due to breakage I'd suspect that the only key dimension that remains on my fossil is the base of the enameled crown which is approximately 1.5cm x 2.0cm in size. This still seems like a large tooth for a dolphin. Does anybody know if there were other (larger) toothed whales (Odontoceti) found in the Peace River which might match this specimen if it turns out to be oversized for a dolphin? Thanks again for all input on this tooth. -Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmorefossil Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 (edited) I have seen giant dolphin teeth over 2" but the size of this tooth would be beyond that of a giant dolphin. Edited October 23, 2013 by bmorefossil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 It is an Odontocete tooth; beyond that....? "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellseeker Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 Dolphins is the first photo -- Sperm Whale in 2nd photo. Both found in the Peace River -- I think yours is a large dolphin, since the stripping on whale is distinctive. but I would depend on Bobby Bossee The White Queen ".... in her youth she could believe "six impossible things before breakfast" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rylawz Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 haha definitely not a dolphin tooth Post your Proboscidea!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sacha Posted October 22, 2013 Share Posted October 22, 2013 Here are my dolphin/porpoise teeth as identified at the U of Florida: I think they're pretty similar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixgill pete Posted October 23, 2013 Share Posted October 23, 2013 It does resemble a dolphin tooth, but I don't think it is. 4.5 Cm and broken is awfully large for dolphin. Let me clarify my post here. 4.5 cm and it is broken/worn 4.5 cm is about 1 3/4 inches. If you look at the tooth and imagine what would be added if whole, I would say about 2 more cm or a total of 6.5 cm or about 2 9/16 inches. Way to big for any dolphin I have ever seen or heard of myself. I agree with Auspex as it being Odontoceti but I would not go beyond that on an ID. I have several Lee Creek dolphin teeth in the 1 1/2 inch range that are complete, but nothing bigger. I also have some Odontoceti sp. teeth that are similar looking to dolphin that are in the 2 1/2 inch range. Bulldozers and dirt Bulldozers and dirt behind the trailer, my desert Them red clay piles are heaven on earth I get my rocks off, bulldozers and dirt Patterson Hood; Drive-By Truckers May 2016 May 2012 Aug 2013, May 2016, Apr 2020 Oct 2022 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellseeker Posted October 23, 2013 Share Posted October 23, 2013 What do you think of this tooth as a possibility: The White Queen ".... in her youth she could believe "six impossible things before breakfast" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digit Posted October 23, 2013 Author Share Posted October 23, 2013 What do you think of this tooth as a possibility: I would say it bears a striking resemblance to the tooth I found (except including the entire root). Also from the Peace River? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellseeker Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 I would say it bears a striking resemblance to the tooth I found (except including the entire root). Also from the Peace River? Interesting turn of the phrase -- bears a resemblance..... This photo provided by Harry Pristis. Yes the tooth was found in the Peace River last April. The White Queen ".... in her youth she could believe "six impossible things before breakfast" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bmorefossil Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 Interesting turn of the phrase -- bears a resemblance..... bearcanines4.JPG This photo provided by Harry Pristis. Yes the tooth was found in the Peace River last April. If you look at picture number 2 you can see distinct ridges or "blades" that are found on primitive whales. Can these also be found on bear teeth? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
worthy 55 Posted October 26, 2013 Share Posted October 26, 2013 I'll go with bear also. It's my bone!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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