Nice slab of fossil bird tracks.

[salvageon]

I'm wondering what my fossil bird tracks are worth. The slab is 18"x 30" and is full of tracks. It is as found and if I donate it to a museum I will need a value for tax purposes or for the right price I might sell it. Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks

 

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[lastleg]

Have you shown this on the Fossil Forum below?

 

[salvageon]

I showed it on the Fossil Forum website (different than this one) but didn't try to value it. I did show a different track on this forum site. I have found that bird tracks are quite common in some locals so not real valuable although you don't see this many on one slab very often.

 

[lastleg]

I've actually been through Roundup on the way to Zortman.

 

[salvageon]

I just looked back and found that I did post it here. Getting forgetful in my old age.

 

[tamrock]

You must be a coal miner. I've seen inverted dinosaur tracks pulled from the backs and actual turtles shells, clams and plants in the seams undergound. As for the value it's kind of hard to say. I did find this specimen offered at $190., but it didn't sell at that price. Fossil Shore Bird Tracks Tracks from Montana Miocene age - Yours is a better specimen imo, so maybe you could claim a value up to $500 or more without question if you donate it to a museum. Maybe you could find a rock shop in Billings and the dealer could give you an idea of what they'd be asking for it if they were selling it at retail?

 

[salvageon]

No not a coal miner just nosing around in a rock quarry. I split a different slab of tracks and found different very faint negative tracks on the back of the slab. Oddly they don't correspond to the positive side so they are from a different time. When it warms up I'm definitely going back. Thanks for the input.

 

[Geogeorge49]

I just happened to run across your description and I wanted to share a few thoughts. I'm a university paleontogist who specializes in track fossils. My guess is that these tracks are from the Fort Union Formation, sedimentary rock that covers large areas of Wyoming and Montana. It's the host sediment for the Powder River coal deposits. The age is Paleocene, approx. 65 million years old. In 1986, a young paleontologist, published a paper in the University of Wyoming publication Contributions to Geology, volume 24.The paper is titled "Paleocene bird and amphibian tracks from the Fort Union Formation, Bighorn Basin, Wyoming. Photos of the bird tracks show them to be in silty sandstone sedimentary rock that resembles the trackways you have found. Based on the age, these would be birds that were wading around not very long after the extinction of the dinosaurs. They are a great find, congratulations on your keen eye as a fossil collector. As far as I know, this is the first discovery of bird tracks in Montana.
George Mustoe
Geology Department
Western Washington University
Bellingham, WA 98225

 

[salvageon]

Thank you George for your insight. Since posting this I have found others who have recovered tracks although I don't know from where. I did find a few more before being snowed out and have one sample that has positive tracks on one side and different negative tracks in a different layer on the other. The slab is only a little over an inch thick with several layers and as you said is in silty sandstone so I don't dare split it. Anyway it's fun to explore and I'm sure more surprises await. Have fun with your classes and if you come to Montana I'll be glad to show them to you.

 

[dinojon]

Hello Salvageon
I would be interested in discussing a price for the fossil bird footprints. I am a geologist living in Canada, currently researching Miocene bird footprints. Please feel free to contact me to chat about the possible value.
thank you
Jon