FOSSILS ON THE BEACH!!

BeachComber7

Sr. Member
May 12, 2012
461
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Treasure Coast-Florida
Detector(s) used
Bounty Hunter Pioneer and Tesoro deLeon
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting

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hey good going.. those are fairly large 4 beach finds during calm weather like we have now. make sure you check that area again during full moon tides especially when there's rough seas. it's really hard to tell in photos but my best guess is they are both sections of turtle shell. the lighter colored 1 being part of the rolled section where the upper and lower shell meet. the other looks like a part off the top shell down towards the back. the second 1 the black 1 is definitely fossil. the other looks comparatively new. pretty sure I still see bone material
 

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Yes they are both bone and my largest ones to date. The very black one was actually sitting in a shell pile. Some nice sea glass in those shell piles today too, especially the nice blue shard. I also found something else, will post it. Maybe you can tell me what it is.
 

that's where you will find most of the fossils on the beach. either in the shell lines themselves.. or I like to look a little further down the slope of the beach towards the water. since fossil are dense. just to be clear. a fossil is no longer a bone. at that point in the case of our florida beach found fossils... minerals have completely replaced the bone material. so what you have is really a rock in the shape of the original bone. like I said about that 1 piece I still see bone material. that means it has not yet become a fossil.
 

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well I just learned something new! They are cool nonetheless!

Careful, 'BeachComber7', you cannot trust everything you're told. In this case, 'GatorBoy/AlwaysLearning' has unnecessarily confused the issue by volunteering incorrect information.

"Fossilized" is a near meaningless term. The term is often substituted for "mineralized" in describing a bone or tooth. But, fossilized doesn't always equate to mineralized because many fossils are not perfused or replaced by minerals.

Even in Florida where mineral-laden groundwater impregnates most bone fossils with SiO[SUB]2 [/SUB] it is possible to find fossil bone that is not mineralized. All that remains in such a situation is the skeleton of hydroxyapatite, the crystalline structure of the bone. The other component of living bone, collagen, has decomposed.

It is in the spaces of the hydroxyapatite crystal latticework (wherein the collagen resided) that SiO[SUB]2[/SUB] accumulates.

Having said that, I should also say that bone that not mineralized does not fare well in a high-energy environment (like surf). Your bones are likely to be mineralized. The black one may be giant tortoise shell, but I cannot say for certain. The other bone appears to be a rib, but I cannot say from which animal.
 

these people are not computer programs.nobody thinks or speaks in those terms. I talk to people like people. you regurgitate wikipedia down to them.
 

I bet you can not even provide a single photo of yourself holding a fossil can you since you dont actualy do any fossil hunting.
 

Hi Harry, thanks for helping ID the two bones. Since my long bone is a bit curved, it's probably a rib bone. One thing I know for sure, both of them are DEFINITELY bones! LOL! They look good in my meager collection!
 

ha ha ha... Harry... I just looked at your album on fossil forum.com all computer downloads there too
 

Hey Bill, even if his stuff is pc downloads, he is a very good researcher, you have to admit. Harry almost always has a way of ID'ing things as far away as Ohio either with similar pics or a link to assist us newbies to the field of fossils and such. I think both of you are very good at what you do and I think there is a generation gap between you. You both always have the answers. Maybe Harry does his from a desk for one reason or another, whereas you are in the trenches (avoiding heatstroke of course 8-) ) Just two different ways of looking at the same subject and I think we all appreciate the feedback. It helps us understand what we dug up and brought home!
 

that's all fine and good... I will just say this then I am done.. why would he post..." I found this" then upload an image from a random website?
 

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that's all fine and good... I will just say this then I am done.. why would he post..." I found this" then upload an image from a random website?


I don't post images of other collectors' fossils, then claim them as my own. I guess that you didn't notice the copyright claim on The Fossil Forum images.

When the facts are not on your side in a disagreement, the easy recourse is to launch an ad hominem attack . . . even if you have to fabricate a story.

My ambition is to improve the scope and accuracy of information exchanged on whichever forum I choose to participate. I learn, and perhaps someone else picks up some reliable information. That ambition occasionally puts me in conflict with someone who wants to substitute imagination for information.
 

Harry .. I have a question for you. do you still believe that the megladon died out beacause it couldn't get enough skunk ape...ha ha... that was priceless. still cracks me up
 

Harry .. I have a question for you. do you still believe that the megladon died out beacause it couldn't get enough skunk ape...ha ha... that was priceless. still cracks me up

I'm glad you enjoyed the story. The best response I have had to it has been on a forum of professional paleontologists -- they were familiar enough with the actual science to appreciate the satire. Collectors just didn't seem to get it.

Here's a link to the story: WHATEVER HAPPENED TO CARCHAROCLES MEGALODON - General Fossil Discussion - The Fossil Forum
 

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