GDawg Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 Here in coastal GA, most fossils I find are small and often just fragments. I assume that these fragments would often be unidentifiable and I am ok with that...I just enjoy hunting on the beaches and sandbars. Bone frags are always black like the shark teeth I find. Most of the time I immediately can I'd as bone, but sometimes I find frags that appear to be more compact. These I am reluctant to ID as bone. Can you always tell bone for sure. I note that periodic bones appear different than long bone. I can can see the ossification in long bone. Here are two examples that have a bone look but I am reluctant to ID as such. How can one be sure? I can provide better pics if necessary, but really want help id'ing bone on my own...right now I go off of gut instinct. Thanks. Twitter @mgadomskiSEMS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GDawg Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 (edited) Had trouble uploading Edited December 31, 2015 by GDawg Twitter @mgadomskiSEMS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 Looks like bone chip to Me. Usually You can see the cell/grain structure of the bone in a smaller piece. Some bones are very fine "grained" or dense. Tony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GDawg Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 The first one is very dense like a slate or shale. Something about it reminds me of a outer piece of long bone(slight curvature, the way it is broken). Is there a way to be sure? Twitter @mgadomskiSEMS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 Look under magnification for the cellular structure. Other than that I do not know of any way to tell if it is bone or not.. Tony 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 I did the best I could with your pictures, but, ... there is very little detail. I would go against bone on these, but what do I know? Not really a bone guy, but after 5 years of looking at it on here. doesn't look like bone. Regards, Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 IPFOTM -- MAY - 2024 _________________________________________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GDawg Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 Look under magnification for the cellular structure. Other than that I do not know of any way to tell if it is bone or not.. Tony Do you have pics of what dense cell structure looks like? Or maybe different types of cell structure to give beginners like me some help? Also, should I be able to see with a standard geology loupe? Thanks...you are most helpful. Twitter @mgadomskiSEMS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 The best thing would be to look at a known bone and compare it to what You suspect as being a bone. Tony 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GDawg Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 The best thing would be to look at a known bone and compare it to what You suspect as being a bone. Tony These don't match what I know as bone and my gut tells me they aren't. I base this on not seeing anything definitively cell structure. I am leaning towards these being bits of tooth.( Based on comparisons with teeth )The first pic possibly from the gum line of a shark tooth and the longer piece possibly a fragment from under the enamel. I would love to hear thoughts on this hypothesis. Twitter @mgadomskiSEMS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpevahouse Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 Worn fragments of bone can be tough to discern whether bone or stone. Sometimes the surface and texture can be almost identical. Paleontologist amaze me how they can identify an animal from a fragment of bone. I have a lot of maybes laying along the side of the house in my small stone garden. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcbshark Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 Some of the broken periotics that I find are like dugong rib in that it's totally solid but I imagine so could an outer piece of a large bone: ) 1 Every once in a great while it's not just a big rock down there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GDawg Posted January 1, 2016 Author Share Posted January 1, 2016 I'm not looking for an ID as I said earlier, but I thought some of you might want a closer look at what I am seeing so that you may speak with maybe a little less speculation in an attempt to educate us newbs. These are as good as I can do today...the first 2 are the piece I think may be from the gum of a shark tooth. Twitter @mgadomskiSEMS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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