Sea Plant Id Needed

[BevoLJ]

Hello,

I unexpectedly found my first fossil today. It is the first time I have seen such a fossil outside of the big Natural Science Museum in Austin. It has really amazed me, and I would love to learn more about it. I will try to be descriptive of the area and what I have learned about it today on the internet. Please understand I know zero about paleobotany and all I have learned is from today on the computer. So I am sorry if I am not much help, but I would LOVE to find out more about it. Although I did just find out that the University of Texas in Austin has an Identification Day twice a year where people in Texas can take their fossils and find out more about them. The next one is in August though.

Some info on where I found it and what I have learned about it. I found it on my Dad's farm just outside of Austin, Texas. Central Texas is Limestone. There is some granite too but mostly Limestone. There are also some old extinct volcanoes in the area that existed over 80 million years ago around Austin. Also Central Texas has from time to time been underwater. The fossil I found I believe to be some sort of sea plant. Or it could be a mushroom. I don't know. The plant is about 6 or 7 inches long.

I do think I found out how it was made. Something called a "Cast and Mold". It was covered by a type of clay that was low in oxygen. It took a long time to die and when it did that created a void in the clay. Years later that void was filled by something else and created a perfect mold of the plant. How amazing is that!?! =) I find that so amazing that something could create such a perfect copy of a plant over such a long time, and that copy can survive millions of years until I found it this weekend. Just amazing!

Here is the picture, and thank you all for your time and help.

Edited April 15, 2012 by BevoLJ

[Auspex]

Congratulations on your first find (and kudos for putting in the research time and effort)!

You have a nice impression of a palm frond

[piranha]

Very nice Sabal (Sabalites), which is a Palm. The upper Cretaceous Aguja Formation is a good starting point for research and evaluation. Thanks for posting

[BevoLJ]

Wow a palm. That I did not guess. =)

I have been looking at hundreds of pictures and wasn't even close. lol. Thank y'all very much for helping me.

I am going to learn a lot more about the Aguja Formation. I just Googled it and it sounds very cool, and something fun to learn more about. Thanks again!

Edited April 15, 2012 by BevoLJ