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Post by rockpickerforever on Jul 26, 2020 16:26:40 GMT -5
Decided to post these pics now and not to wait until Tuesday.
I believe this is a coprolite, but not 100 % certain. It won't hurt my feelings if you tell me it is not, I love it regardless.
This is not self collected in the wild, but pretty sure it came from an estate sale. Filled up buckets, then paid fifty cents or a dollar a lb. I just remembered something - Someone there had been watching me load my bucket, and before I had a chance to pay, he offered me $100 for the bucket! There was other good stuff in there, but maybe this is what he saw? A no brainer - I turned him down.
Dimensions are approximately 7" long X 5" deep X 4 " tall, circumference around the smaller dimension is 17 ". It weighs 6.5 lbs. (on a kitchen scale)
A hole was visible in one spot, you could see clear quartz crystal inside. There was a crack along the edge of the hole, so I cut it open along that line.
How it was sliced.
Lots of white spots.
Well, Randy, let me know what you think!
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 26, 2020 16:47:19 GMT -5
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RWA3006
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Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,701
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 26, 2020 16:50:32 GMT -5
Jean, the more I think about it I seem to remember that I might have seen one very similar to yours in the collection 1dave has when I was visiting him last month. |
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Post by rockpickerforever on Jul 26, 2020 16:55:32 GMT -5
Hmmm, you might have something there. I know the guy whose estate I got it from collected all over the southwest. When you had mentioned that there are ones with quartz crystal centers, I thought perhaps this might be one of them.
So I guess a geode of some sort. I'm glad you like it, I think it's pretty cool. Don't know that I'll ever cut it. Maybe I'll feel different about it in another five or ten years, lol.
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EricD
Cave Dweller
High in the Mountains
Member since November 2019
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Post by EricD on Jul 26, 2020 18:09:17 GMT -5
Hmmm, you might have something there. I know the guy whose estate I got it from collected all over the southwest. When you had mentioned that there are ones with quartz crystal centers, I thought perhaps this might be one of them. So I guess a geode of some sort. I'm glad you like it, I think it's pretty cool. Don't know that I'll ever cut it. Maybe I'll feel different about it in another five or ten years, lol. Sure is pretty whatever it is  |
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Post by 1dave on Jul 27, 2020 16:07:29 GMT -5
Most don't have the exterior spider webbing, so the absence of it does not rule out a good potential specimen. Here's some less prominent webbing.  Weather after deposit and before burial would have an impact on shaping and present appearance. |
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 27, 2020 20:49:58 GMT -5
Kinda hard to say ... if coprolite is known to be found in that locale the odds improve a lot. Did you find it in or near the Morrison formation? That's probably a huge factor in determining what it is. Where I find coprolites there are almost always more nearby and as I explore the countryside in Southern Utah I become more convinced that coprolites are often highly focused in specific layers of sediment.
I'm fairly certain that out of thousands of coprolites that I've found none came from before early Jurassic Period, or after late Cretaceous Period because of modern geologic mapping that makes it easier for a guy like me to determine the age of certain strata.
So back to your question, if your specimen is from these periods there's a good chance. And if there are known coprolites found in that area then the odds go up even more. If the answer to both these criteria is no, then I'd say it's likely jasper.
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oldschoolrocker
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since January 2019
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Post by oldschoolrocker on Jul 28, 2020 9:54:32 GMT -5
Man, you sure do know your sh** Randy!
thanks for starting this thread! it has sparked a new Interest for me.
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RWA3006
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Member since March 2009
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 28, 2020 17:05:02 GMT -5
Man, you sure do know your sh** Randy! thanks for starting this thread! it has sparked a new Interest for me. My buddy's kids tease me about my crappy personality! LOL Thanks, I had hoped to bring variety and fun to the forum. |
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 28, 2020 17:27:28 GMT -5
TURD TUESDAY !!!  |
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RWA3006
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Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,701
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 28, 2020 17:28:19 GMT -5
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 28, 2020 17:30:01 GMT -5
It's not uncommon to find calcite crystal growth inside the mostly agate turds. The above photo shows it well.
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kyoti
has rocks in the head
Member since June 2020
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Post by kyoti on Jul 29, 2020 17:21:28 GMT -5
Thanks for the reply Randy. My area is mostly cretaceous Austin formation chalks and Taylor marl with lots of sharks, shellfish and Mosasaurs. People hunting the river told me the coprolites are pretty common. I think I'll pretend mines a Mosy poop. More fun that way  That's a neat coprolite nodule you posted. It looks almost like a thunderegg doesn't it? |
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 29, 2020 17:46:50 GMT -5
Thanks for the reply Randy. My area is mostly cretaceous Austin formation chalks and Taylor marl with lots of sharks, shellfish and Mosasaurs. People hunting the river told me the coprolites are pretty common. I think I'll pretend mines a Mosy poop. More fun that way That's a neat coprolite nodule you posted. It looks almost like a thunderegg doesn't it? In that case I would say there's a good argument that it is indeed coprolite. And a beautiful one too. Another point of interest ... if you study the morphology (outer shape) of these turds there are definite characteristics that point to whether the thing came from a herbivore, carnivore, fish, reptile, etc. I grew up on a ranch with lots of animals domestic and wild, and even at a young age it was fairly easy to determine what critter the poo came from. The instant I saw your photo I thought "carnivore" because of the outer shape and texture. Could be just my imagination, but your coprolites morphology is unlike almost all I've found which according to my research comes almost exclusively from vegetarian hadrosaurs. Almost all my coprolites resemble poo that comes from modern large herbivores such as elephant, cows, horses, etc. I can easily envision your specimen coming from something like a mosasaur. Just my amateur speculation and overactive imagination here, so take it for what it's worth ... |
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RWA3006
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 31, 2020 20:06:29 GMT -5
I think it's time to give somebody crap. Here are some clocks made from crappy slabs.  |
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RWA3006
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Member since March 2009
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 31, 2020 20:08:17 GMT -5
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RWA3006
Cave Dweller
Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,701
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 31, 2020 20:09:54 GMT -5
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Post by hummingbirdstones on Jul 31, 2020 20:23:07 GMT -5
Those are some very cool crappy clocks!
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RWA3006
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Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,701
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Post by RWA3006 on Aug 4, 2020 19:34:34 GMT -5
TURD TUESDAY !!!  |
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