Texas Echies - Another Round

[Uncle Siphuncle]

I decided to poke around South TX this morning tracing the Walnut formation, which is so thin that it isn't mapped separately in the Atlas of TX map series for my area. I think they lump it with the Edwards fm. Basically I traced the contact between the Edwards and Glen Rose fms which relegated me to working the numerous hills in the Hill Country. I believe I was looking at the Bee Cave Marl and I always knew when I hit the right zone by the presence of numerous Ceratostrean oysters. Dominant finds were Coenholectypus planatus, but I also grabbed a few Heterasters, Loriolia (texana?), and a single Phymosoma texanum. While the Glen Rose has wide aerial extent down here, certain echie genera like Coenholectypus tend to show squashed in that fm. It was nice to find them in perfect form for once. Best yet, I think many, many, many hills within a reasonable driving radius have this Bee Cave Marl zone present. It could take years to ferret out all these exposures.

Being Mothers Day weekend and all I got an early start so I could get home early. I kicked things off about 2 hours before daylight with a lantern and 21 foot extension ladder. I only rode the ladder down the slope once! Echies were popping out immediately in the dark. I had a blast and have included a few in situ shots below. One of the images shows 3 echies in the same frame in situ, a C. planatus lower right, L. texana lower left, and C. planatus upper left. The exposures I worked are now thirsty for hard rain, but I look forward to prospecting for additional sites in the future.

[Roz]

You snared some good ones.

I love that road with exposures on both sides.

Have you ever been stopped by anyone that sees you in the dark with a lantern, on any hunt?

[Guest solius symbiosus]

I only rode the ladder down the slope once!

Yeeha!!!

I would pay to see a video of that.

Nice finds ... as always.

[NJ Mary Ann]

Wowee, what fun you must have had!!! Nice finds! I can just picture you out in the dark with your lantern, LOL!

[Uncle Siphuncle]

Once upon a time a buddy and I were stopped by a highway worker at 2 a.m. as we were collecting Macrasters and Holasters from a highway project. We were in the median having a good old time doing some bonus hunting on the way to our main event which would begin at dawn. Anyway, I think the guy's intention was to run us out, but I gave him a Macraster and asked him if he wanted to join us. At that he left us to go about our business.

I love night collecting, not only to tag bonus collecting time onto my adventure, but also because some fossils show up well at night. I found my biggest Mac at a big construction site a few years ago in the glow of my lantern. In areas where fossils are dusted with pyrite things are actually quite easy to see. Shark teeth too glare back at you at night. A couple years ago I studied a geo map and decided that a certain creek would be worth a look en route to a morning collecting venue. I had never been there before but was comfortable scouting it at 2 or 3 a.m. After I nudged big catfish out of the way on the bottom of the spring fed creek, I ended up clobbering some very respectable ammonites. I'm not sure what it is about night collecting, but it seems reasonable to believe that a flashlight or lantern forces you to focus all attention on a smaller area at any given instant, perhaps leading to thorough scrutiny without other distractions.

I'll tell you what though. Maintaining that sort of schedule really whips me out. It is midnight here in TX, the family has been asleep for hours, I've been up since 3:45 collecting, prepping, etc. ; I'm going to bed!

[Guest solius symbiosus]

I think you have just convinced me to buy a headlamp.

Do you use a gas lantern, or electric?

[Uncle Siphuncle]

I use a Craftsman rechargeable lantern which came with a drill and circular saw as a set. I'm way too clumsy to be taking a gas lantern up on a ladder at night. That would qualify me for the Darwin awards! I like a bright lantern which throws a broad glow as opposed to a flashlight with its focused beam. Sometimes the you can pick up pyrite reflections inthe periphery of the lantern glow which you wouldn't see as readily with a focused beam.

I originally bought the set for the saw, which I use to cut through soft chalks and shales in the field. I just use the standard blade to cut rock, sounds insane but it is cheap and effective. Rips through Green River limestone as well.