fossilover Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 Hi guys, I've got a few fossils that I cannot figure out the ID of. I've picked all these up within the past month in the spoil piles near the museum. Please bear with me, I do not have a good camera for taking pics of micros (or anything for that matter!), so I tried holding a 30x jewelers loop up to the lense. I know I need better lighting, so if you need a better pic I can try during the day tomorrow. The first pic is of a tooth. I am thinking it might be a whale shark tooth. It does not look like any other shark teeth I have, and I've never seen a whale shark tooth in person so I'm hoping for a confirmation on this. It's only 4mm long and maybe 3mm wide at the root. It's tiny. The next pics is of a piece that is 1" long and 3/4" wide. When I first found it, it was really muddy and I thought it was a fragment of a large tooth. After I washed and dried it off, I realized it was a portion of some type of jaw. In the pics (hopefully) you can see a few teeth and empty sockets where some teeth used to be. The teeth still in it appear to be round, but worn on the surface. I do not notice any enamel on any of the teeth, and the teeth are the same color as the jaw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barefootgirl Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 I love that little tooth! Sorry, I cant help you with the ID. In formal logic, a contradiction is the signal of defeat: but in the evolution of real knowledge, it marks the first step in progress toward victory. Alfred North Whithead 'Don't worry about the world coming to an end today. It's already tomorrow in Australia!' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilover Posted May 27, 2009 Author Share Posted May 27, 2009 This last set of pics is of a fossil that reminds me of a molar. Don't know if that's what it is or not. It's hard getting a good picture of this one - it doesn't seem to be very photogenic. It is 7mm wide and 9mm tall. The top looks like it has a chewing surface and the base appears to have roots. One of the roots is broken and the "tooth" is hollow inside. The last pic is the top of the tooth, what looks like the chewing surface. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hieronymus Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 This last set of pics is of a fossil that reminds me of a molar. Don't know if that's what it is or not. It's hard getting a good picture of this one - it doesn't seem to be very photogenic. It is 7mm wide and 9mm tall. The top looks like it has a chewing surface and the base appears to have roots. One of the roots is broken and the "tooth" is hollow inside. The last pic is the top of the tooth, what looks like the chewing surface. Could you please make some pictures from other sides of the little tooth? It could help saying what species it is! Especially a picture from the lingual and labial side could come in handy. Greetz http://rhaetianlorraine.webs.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cole Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 Really cool finds! The first thing that came to mind when I saw that small tooth in the first picture is some type of cat. I could be completely wrong but it does resemble perhaps a bobcats tooth. Very interesting stuff. Good luck! Cole~ Knowledge has three degrees-opinion, science, illumination. The means or instrument of the first is sense; of the second, dialectic; of the third, intuition. Plotinus 204 or 205 C.E., Egyptian Philosopher Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hieronymus Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 Really cool finds! The first thing that came to mind when I saw that small tooth in the first picture is some type of cat. I could be completely wrong but it does resemble perhaps a bobcats tooth. Very interesting stuff. Good luck! Cole~ It's certainly not the tooth from a cat... It's the tooth from a small shark like, by example, Squatina. To be sure I would like some other views on the tooth, like stated before. http://rhaetianlorraine.webs.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Sharks Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 I agree that the first tooth looks as though it could be a whale shark (Rhincodon typus) with a missing/very eroded root. I also agree that pics of more angles would help confrm the ID. There's no limit to what you can accomplish when you're supposed to be doing something else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaleoRon Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 I would go with whale shark on the tooth and the "molar" looks like a piece of bird bone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hieronymus Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 I agree that the first tooth looks as though it could be a whale shark (Rhincodon typus) with a missing/very eroded root. I also agree that pics of more angles would help confrm the ID. Indeed, I was doubting between that and a Squatina from a lateral position (they look kind off squeezed together). More pics! http://rhaetianlorraine.webs.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilover Posted May 27, 2009 Author Share Posted May 27, 2009 The root of the little tooth appears to be broken, I just don't know how much is missing. I will post more pics soon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 I would go with whale shark on the tooth and the "molar" looks like a piece of bird bone. Distal end of a carpometacarpus (wing bone before the "wrist"). "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 More sharing options...
Hieronymus Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 I've done a little research and I stick with Squatina sp. for the tooth. Right here on elasmo http://www.elasmo.com/genera/pics/neogene/ds1269m-web.jpg the second view of the tooth resembles a lot with the tooth that is shown. Especially the little bulb on the bottom right of the mesial view(second view on the picture) resembles a lot with the same "bulb" on the root of the tooth shown in the picture. Just my 2 cents ofcourse;) http://rhaetianlorraine.webs.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilover Posted May 27, 2009 Author Share Posted May 27, 2009 Distal end of a carpometacarpus (wing bone before the "wrist"). Awesome. I knew as soon as someone mentioned bird bone you would know what it was. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilover Posted May 27, 2009 Author Share Posted May 27, 2009 Okay, here are different views of that tiny tooth. The first 2 pics are of the lingual? side of the tooth (the tip is pointing at the camera). The 3rd pic is of the labial side. The next 2 pics is a view of each of the sides of the tooth. The last one is a shot of the root, but I don't think you can really see much. Auspex, for documentation purposes, is there any way to tell what kind of bird that bone is from? Thanks everyone!! Oh, and sorry, I still couldn't get very good lighting. Took the pics outside, and of course it's cloudy and has been raining off and on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hieronymus Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 Okay, here are different views of that tiny tooth. The first 2 pics are of the lingual? side of the tooth (the tip is pointing at the camera). The 3rd pic is of the labial side. The next 2 pics is a view of each of the sides of the tooth. The last one is a shot of the root, but I don't think you can really see much. Auspex, for documentation purposes, is there any way to tell what kind of bird that bone is from? Thanks everyone!! Oh, and sorry, I still couldn't get very good lighting. Took the pics outside, and of course it's cloudy and has been raining off and on. Pictures are good enough, they all point to Rhincodon. Nice find! http://rhaetianlorraine.webs.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpbowden Posted May 27, 2009 Share Posted May 27, 2009 Wow, do I love micros! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilover Posted May 27, 2009 Author Share Posted May 27, 2009 Ok, so we've established that #1 is a whale shark tooth and #3 is a piece of bird bone. Any guesses on #2??? I'm not even sure if it's part of a jaw - the teeth look as if they may be fused to the bone. I really have no idea on this one. I took a couple more pics so maybe you can see it a little clearer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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