Jump to content

Chalk Fossils - June 4 2012


Kosmoceras

Recommended Posts

Went to a chalk quarry yesterday and came back with a lot of fossils. I have a lot of prep ahead of me. It rained on the way to the quarry, but when there it was decent weather so I could collect without getting wet. This morning I was preparing a few brachiopod shells. They need some matrix taken off, and some clearing out with a fine needle, but other than that I think they are looking good. As more fossils get done I will update this topic.

All the best,
Thomas.

post-4683-0-85434500-1338890398_thumb.jpg

post-4683-0-97333600-1338890408_thumb.jpg

post-4683-0-83641900-1338890415_thumb.jpg

post-4683-0-84914100-1338890426_thumb.jpg

Edited by Kosmoceras
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Very nice.. not a lot of prep needed.......... any chance you found any trilos on your hunt..........

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Very nice.. not a lot of prep needed.......... any chance you found any trilos on your hunt..........

Thanks. I am not sure if trilos can be found in Cretaceous chalk, but I would love to find trilos some day. Maybe in Sweden this summer I will find some.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If you find an indisputable Mesozoic trilobite, it will be the discovery of the millennium!

"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

If you find an indisputable Mesozoic trilobite, it will be the discovery of the millennium!

Haha, yes. Got some rare chalk stuff, but not that rare!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A couple of examples of a burrow - Terebella lewesiensis which are lined with fish scales.

post-4683-0-06715500-1338908792_thumb.jpg

post-4683-0-15952200-1338908828_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A couple of examples of a burrow - Terebella lewesiensis which are lined with fish scales.

Lined with scales? Cool! Do they know what sort of critter made the burrows?

"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

Lined with scales? Cool! Do they know what sort of critter made the burrows?

Hi Chas, Terebella lewesiensis was a worm I believe. They sometimes used fish bones/scales, and sometimes plants to line their burrows. I have a couple more examples I will post, but they have not been taken out of the bag yet.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Excellent brachiopods. I have a soft spot for their diversity

Thanks, came back with about 50 yesterday. Most are free of matrix, but I prefer ones sitting in a small block.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A chalk ammonite - Schloenbachia sp. Ammonites are rare from Totternhoe, but I managed to get a fragment.

post-4683-0-34321000-1338922349_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Brachiopods are also few and far between in the Texas chalk. Maybe a half dozen(?) species in the entire Texas Cretaceous. You have two nice ones there. Are there other genera & species besides those two?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Brachiopods are also few and far between in the Texas chalk. Maybe a half dozen(?) species in the entire Texas Cretaceous. You have two nice ones there. Are there other genera & species besides those two?

There are several species, some of which I have found are - Gibbithyris semiglobosa, Carneithyris sp, Tetrahynchia tetrahedria, Epithyris oxonica There might be a couple more.

Edited by Kosmoceras
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some really nicely preserved brachiopods. Congratulations on a successful hunt.

Thanks Lloyd, it was a very successful hunt. Attached is a picture before packing the load into the car.

post-4683-0-89147100-1339067559_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Lloyd, it was a very successful hunt. Attached is a picture before packing the load into the car.

That looks like a heavy load, hope you didn't have to hike far with all that! Nice pictures, is this on the coast?

Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.
-Albert Einstein

crabes-07.gif

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Chas, Terebella lewesiensis was a worm I believe. They sometimes used fish bones/scales, and sometimes plants to line their burrows. I have a couple more examples I will post, but they have not been taken out of the bag yet.

I always wondered what these were , never really thought that they might be a lined burrow.I always assumed they were the excrement of larger fish or possibly from a seal. Thanks for that

heres a photo of similar things that i have but not as old.

post-1182-0-87711300-1339370582_thumb.jpg

Edited by Dave pom Allen
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dave,

If the cross section shows that the coarse material runs throughout your items, they could well be coprolites (it seems unlikely to my mind that an empty burrow would fill with debris like that, but I suppose it's possible). If the coarse material is limited to the outer walls, then I would vote for it being a lined burrow.

"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

That looks like a heavy load, hope you didn't have to hike far with all that! Nice pictures, is this on the coast?

Thanks, it was only about a mile of so, not too far. An no, this is not on the coast, it is inland UK at a quarry, 72 miles to be exact.

I always wondered what these were , never really thought that they might be a lined burrow.I always assumed they were the excrement of larger fish or possibly from a seal. Thanks for that

heres a photo of similar things that i have but not as old.

It does look similar I must say, but I would agree with auspex, if it is fish scaled lined throughout, it is most likely a coprolite, if only on the other edge, a burrow which has been lined with fish scales.

Edited by Kosmoceras
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Time for some more pictures:

Various fish bones and scales

post-4683-0-46162200-1339617438_thumb.jpg

post-4683-0-55073300-1339617463_thumb.jpg

Plant Fragments

post-4683-0-04658500-1339621065_thumb.jpg

Burrows

post-4683-0-71227800-1339621085_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...