Atoothsatooth42 Posted August 30 Share Posted August 30 (edited) The horse flies were UNREAL today at the usual Potomac spot this morning. No matter how many times I re-applied bug spray, I would get swarmed by them minutes later. But that didn’t stop me from getting a good 3 hours out of the beach. I had it nearly all to myself, it had been far too long. I was worried for a while because of some dark clouds, rough swells and thunder for the first hour, but things held tough, and I came away with a great haul! It started out slow, couple sand tigers here and there as one would expect from the Aquia, tons of tinnies, tons of ray plates, but it really picked up towards the end. With the guidance of another butterfly, I was able to find a nice complete Otodus, as well as the HEARTBREAKER of 1/3rd of a chunky Otodus in the last minutes of my hunt. I also found some turtle shell frags, a tiny vert, and 2 shreds of croc teeth. Seeing that broke-todus rolling in the waves was such a rush of good and bad emotions, what an awesome find, but what could have been! It likely would be my largest Otodus in my collection. Great GREAT day regardless. I’ll happily take the smaller one as a compromise. One day I will hit on the elusive 2 inch Ottie! Edited August 30 by Atoothsatooth42 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted August 30 Share Posted August 30 Thanks for sharing. I think the only way to rid yourself of horseflies is to take along a horse to distract them 3 Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digit Posted August 30 Share Posted August 30 The fossil gods have rewarded your bravery for enduring the onslaught of biting flies with some nice finds. Friends took my wife and I out fossil hunting on the Potomac a number of years ago. One was even so kind as to bring along the sifting screens to collect some micro-matrix from the gravel along the shore. I picked through the matrix to find a number of interesting micro-chondrichthyan teeth. Next time you go back try bringing a sifting screen with 1/4" mesh to hold back the larger gravel (and shark teeth) visible to the naked eye. Below that stack another sifting screen into which you can place a loose piece of replacement window screen (mesh size on that is approximately 1/16"). The window screen lets the sand and fine silt pass through but keeps the micro-matrix between the 1/4" - 1/16" size. You can dry this out on a tarp in the sun and then pick through it a little at a time under magnification. You'll find a number of discussions about micro-matrix picking here on the forum. https://www.thefossilforum.com/topic/51286-collecting-cookiecutter-shark-micro-matrix/ https://www.thefossilforum.com/topic/95821-optimizing-my-search-technique-for-picking-fine-micro-matrix/ The best part is you can do that inside in a climate controlled environment sitting on a comfy chair and (as long as you don't leave your doors open) with NO horse flies. Cheers. -Ken 1 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaybot Posted August 30 Share Posted August 30 19 hours ago, Atoothsatooth42 said: The horse flies were UNREAL today 19 hours ago, Atoothsatooth42 said: I had it nearly all to myself Hmm I wonder why you were the only one there...... -Jay “The earth doesn't need new continents, but new men.” ― Jules Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atoothsatooth42 Posted August 31 Author Share Posted August 31 On 8/30/2024 at 4:03 AM, Ludwigia said: Thanks for sharing. I think the only way to rid yourself of horseflies is to take along a horse to distract them I should have known such a simple trick would have worked 🤦🏻♂️ I’ll remember for next time! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atoothsatooth42 Posted August 31 Author Share Posted August 31 On 8/30/2024 at 7:13 AM, digit said: The fossil gods have rewarded your bravery for enduring the onslaught of biting flies with some nice finds. Friends took my wife and I out fossil hunting on the Potomac a number of years ago. One was even so kind as to bring along the sifting screens to collect some micro-matrix from the gravel along the shore. I picked through the matrix to find a number of interesting micro-chondrichthyan teeth. Next time you go back try bringing a sifting screen with 1/4" mesh to hold back the larger gravel (and shark teeth) visible to the naked eye. Below that stack another sifting screen into which you can place a loose piece of replacement window screen (mesh size on that is approximately 1/16"). The window screen lets the sand and fine silt pass through but keeps the micro-matrix between the 1/4" - 1/16" size. You can dry this out on a tarp in the sun and then pick through it a little at a time under magnification. You'll find a number of discussions about micro-matrix picking here on the forum. https://www.thefossilforum.com/topic/51286-collecting-cookiecutter-shark-micro-matrix/ https://www.thefossilforum.com/topic/95821-optimizing-my-search-technique-for-picking-fine-micro-matrix/ The best part is you can do that inside in a climate controlled environment sitting on a comfy chair and (as long as you don't leave your doors open) with NO horse flies. Cheers. -Ken I’ve seen quite a few posts about micro fossil hunting from the deposits on the Potomac. I definitely need to give it a try! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atoothsatooth42 Posted August 31 Author Share Posted August 31 21 hours ago, Jaybot said: Hmm I wonder why you were the only one there...... Ah, you definitely could be on to something 🤔 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fin Lover Posted August 31 Share Posted August 31 On 8/29/2024 at 10:59 PM, Atoothsatooth42 said: broke-todus I like that term...I find lots of those! But, nice finds! 1 Fin Lover Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digit Posted August 31 Share Posted August 31 On 8/29/2024 at 10:59 PM, Atoothsatooth42 said: broke-todus Cousin to the frag-lodon. Cheers. -Ken 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atoothsatooth42 Posted August 31 Author Share Posted August 31 1 hour ago, Fin Lover said: I like that term...I find lots of those! But, nice finds! 28 minutes ago, digit said: Cousin to the frag-lodon. Cheers. -Ken Indeed. I certainly can’t take credit for it though. A great term none the less! I prefer when it doesn’t come to mind when I find one however! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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