RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 14, 2022 16:12:11 GMT -5
That reminds me, I have to get some insulated hose bib covers to keep from freezing up. There's supposed to be a serious cold wave coming next week.
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RWA3006
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Member since March 2009
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 13, 2022 19:57:11 GMT -5
Payment received and poo on it's way. I was able to dig out the coprolite just in the nick of time before a big snowstorm buried them. All's well.
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 13, 2022 7:40:08 GMT -5
TURD TUESDAY Here is a good way to cut coprolite specimens for maximum beauty.
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 12, 2022 14:46:45 GMT -5
That certainly does look like the structure of coprolite, but those colors are fantastic! I'd be happy to display a piece like that! The colors are magnificent and uncommon in my experience. I believe that structure and contrast is a more reliable indicator of coprolite from the American southwest. If you get a chance put a UV lamp on it because most coprolite from this area will glow a yellow - green.
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 11, 2022 22:41:33 GMT -5
Thanks for donating that precious poop to a good cause, RWA3006 ! I was expecting this one might go a little higher, so I bumped the amount up to what I thought it should have been and sent the contribution to stonemon 's fund. brian you are a good human. Some of the best humans I know are on this forum. I've only met two of them in person, Dave and Lynn of Cedar City, but I'm certain so many others are of this high caliber.
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 11, 2022 19:39:03 GMT -5
Funny story. Over three decades ago I was involved with the US Biathlon team which involves cross country skiing, an extremely aerobic sport. One year the top female biathlete, Olympic caliber material, became well known for her favorite hydration drink..... Dr. Pepper.
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 11, 2022 19:25:27 GMT -5
My thoughts are with you Jean.
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 11, 2022 17:04:23 GMT -5
Congratulations to brian for the winning bid and thank you to everyone for participation. Brian, kindly PM me your address and I'll get treasure headed your way. Thanks again. Randy Thanks for donating that precious poop to a good cause, RWA3006! I was expecting this one might go a little higher, so I bumped the amount up to what I thought it should have been and sent the contribution to stonemon's fund. brian you're awesome and thank you to everyone who participated. Brian, I hope you'll share on the coprolite thread what you discover when you cut these puppies open.
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 11, 2022 11:00:03 GMT -5
Congratulations to brian for the winning bid and thank you to everyone for participation. Brian, kindly PM me your address and I'll get treasure headed your way. Thanks again. Randy
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 10, 2022 10:48:29 GMT -5
Dang jasoninsd You're getting really good at this wrapping stuff. I'm impressed. I wrapped some barbed wire around an old juniper post once. Somehow it didn't look like what you do.
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 9, 2022 22:58:04 GMT -5
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 9, 2022 22:54:37 GMT -5
That's very beautiful and if it's coprolite I'd rate it as museum grade as jasoninsd indicated. My opinion is it's definitely not bone and if it's wood it would probably be some kind of vascular plant or some oddball species. At first I thought it was cycad or something weird, but after really looking at it I have to opine that it's coprolite because of the dung beetle burrows that filled with red agate. The rest of the specimen is hard to identify, but the bug tunnels are so blatantly stereotypical of such that I conclude they are the smoking gun that points to coprolite. If you look at the shape and other characteristics of beetle burrows in poop you will begin to notice they have certain ratios and traits that are mostly exclusive compared to other rocks. Another thing that really points to coprolite is you will notice that some of the tunnels go around the edges of discrete structures within the specimen. I know that these turds were not perfectly homogeneous but had components that were less digested than the matrix surrounding them. An example would be a less digested limb within the softer poo surrounding it. When beetles burrow and encounter a tougher tree limb they will be deflected to burrow past the side of the limb rather than try to cut through it. I'm fairly confident I can see this in your specimen. Congratulations on a very nice piece and my opinion is it has more value as a specimen displaying an entire cross section than if you were to cut it up. I would also be inclined to believe it came from that band of country that goes from Las Vegas eastward towards the Colorado border, very likely from just South of the Henry mountains in Utah.
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 8, 2022 22:38:52 GMT -5
I had a long day manufacturing ammunition.
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 8, 2022 22:25:57 GMT -5
Condolences. Glad you got to see the good side of humanity. Like you, I've been able to see many wonderful people in action and it reminds me that the sensational bad hijacks too much of our attention and energy. God works in mysterious ways.
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RWA3006
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Member since March 2009
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 8, 2022 14:31:42 GMT -5
That last one is a beauty! The size of the ghost limb has me thinking again. Always a dangerous proposition, but here goes my thought. The size of the ghost limbs relative to the overall size of the coprolites can be impressively large and I would imagine difficult to pass. Could it be that the original dropping was significantly larger than the fossilized coprolite? These dinos must have had strong digestive tracts to support their diets, but the size of some of the limbs seems very large to pass through. On the other hand, the pelletized poops where the pellets are visible from the exterior would suggest that the final fossilized poop was pretty much unaltered from the original. But then you wouldn’t have those large limb ghosts in the small pellets. And the pelletized poo would suggest that the pellets may be harder (less water content) than the other types of poop. I’m thinking the difference between deer pellets and a cow patty on that one. If the poops with limb ghosts are wetter than the pelletized poo, then it could stand to reason that the coprolite is not necessarily the same as the fresh dropping given the chance to erode or shrinkage due to drying. Clearly spending way to much time pondering prehistoric poo… Exactly. And now you've got me thinking... I'm not sure I can remember big limbs occuring within specimens that are highly pelletized. Now I have an excuse to go back through the collection and see.
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 8, 2022 7:53:06 GMT -5
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 7, 2022 9:43:48 GMT -5
Nice way to sweeten the pot! The one in the photo above is on loan to a science department, but I'll select rough that has full potential to be as high of caliber as that one. Of course, coprolites are like a box of chocolates. You never know what will be inside till you cut it.
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RWA3006
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Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,230
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 7, 2022 8:00:22 GMT -5
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RWA3006
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Posts: 4,230
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 7, 2022 8:00:00 GMT -5
I really appreciate everyone's participation in this auction. I have a special pile of coprolite rough where I've placed only the best material with the highest potential of museum grade specimens.
I will be pulling the auction winner's prize from this pile and there will be duds in the box but there is also bound to be something really special that will go in the MFRB.
The photo below is what I consider to be a museum grade specimen.
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RWA3006
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Member since March 2009
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Post by RWA3006 on Dec 6, 2022 20:37:15 GMT -5
Did you guys notice all the stuff going on in this last one? It looks like there was a void in the middle that started to fill in as evidenced by the chalcedony fortification lines, then it finished filling with calcite crystal. I also noticed the reddish plug of dung beetle poo that was left in the cavity that I suppose was made by a bug. A coprolite within a coprolite, as it were.
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