Beach hunt and a fossil in my scoop

[treasurefiend]

I was waist deep water on a Chicago beach today and not finding anything but trash and got another bottle cap signal so when I brought the scoop up I found this fossil (oh and the beer cap too LOL) Any idea what its from or how old it might be. Is solid and like a black rock so its totally fossilized. I can't remember ever hearing of fossils being found on Chicago beaches but then fossils have to be everywhere right?
Thanks for looking and any info would be awesome, HH everybody.

 

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[yaxthri]

I think you have a fossil barbed fish spine. Compare it with this one



discussed here: Ray Barb Or Spine - Fossil Hunting Trips - The Fossil Forum

There's a fossil section on TNet, try posting it there. I know about fossils but I have no special knowledge on your american fossils...
Nice find anyway.

 

[treasurefiend]

I think you are right, thanks for the info bud. How long would it take to fossilize? What I mean is it is like stone and jet black where I would imagine they are white/bone color when they are new and probably semi flexible as bone. Happy hunting.

 

[bilt46]

Wow...nice...

 

[John_Deere]

Woah, that's cool! Congrats and HH!

 

[MUD(S.W.A.T)]

Awesome fossil or jaw bone, maybe from a Barracuda ?

Keep @ It and HH !!

 

[yaxthri]

Sure, could be a jaw bone, too. But you have the University of Chicago Paleontology department over there with Paul Sereno, kind of a paleontology "star". There should be somebody willing to check out and id your find if you want to. And if you don't like contacting the Uni you should be able to find a layman fossil collector happy to help you out.
Well fossilization usually takes at least a couple of millions of years to happen, the finds in Illinois are mainly some hundreds of millions of years old. So this is a very old piece of rock history you have found.

 

[OBN]

Kool treasure, never know what will be in the next scoop...........

 

[g-olden years]

Wow, my own jawbone has dropped to the floor in amazement at this one! Whether jaw or spine, it appears to be the find of a lifetime!

Congrats! Andi

 

[DDancer]

Just goes to show you never know what you'll dig up! Hahh Cool Find

 

[CA_Vermonster]

Very nice!!!!