Classification

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Location

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Geochronology

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Lithostratigraphy

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Dimensions

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Notes

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  • Al Halt posted a new specimen in the group Group logo of What is it?What is it? from the myFOSSIL app 3 years, 7 months ago

    3 years, 7 months ago
    3 years, 7 months ago

    Al Halt has contributed specimen mFeM 82893 to myFOSSIL!

    • @al-halt very cool find! @mackenzie-smith might be able to help with ID!

    • petrified wood, but of a different type of tree to most of the ones I’ve seen before. nice find

    • Beaver wood ?

    • I have about 200 piece assortment of wood

    • I have about 3 thousand dinosaur fossils mostly heads. It’s funny how each kind of dinosaurs have different texture and color.there where giant in those days too. It’s kind of funny how there was so many eggs and they seem to all be eating each other🧞‍♀️

    • And they all died at the exact same time . Well except for the ones that where getting ate. The rest where frozen instantly.. there mut be millions of them . It’s strange how they froze but yet there’s volcanic and meteors everywhere. And there’s no volcanoes within 1600 miles

    • @al-halt I think it is a chert nodule. Some have concentric rings like petrified wood. The outside texture and lack of any other detail is what makes me think this.

    • those are some quite wild views on prehistory. There were no giants around in the Mesozoic though, with the only mammals being small rodentlike creatures. large mammals appeared much later, after there were no dinosaurs. The dinosaurs did not die simultaneously either. stegosaurus for example, died out completely around 75 million (75 000 000)…[Read more]

    • *meant to say “scattered over the 170 million year LONG period”

    • you say there is evidence of previous volcanic eruptions in your area, but no volcano? remember volcanoes have lifespans just like a living creature. they’re born at one point, last a while, then they stop erupting forever and die out. there was most likely a volcano near you some time ago that now faded away. maybe it still exists as a covered…[Read more]

    • you could post some of your dinosaur heads you keep mentioning. We can sort out which ones are from modern animals and see which might be something ancient

    • This is a very isolated event. This is my theory. They all died at same time, so did everything else. And it is well preserved on top of 3 mountain tops covered by hundreds of caves where the entrances are all obstructed with reptilian like animals big and small and they where like they where stacked on top of each other eating one another. All…[Read more]

    • Divided by desiderata

    • Divided not decided

    • Maybe a little crazy…. but seriously though, there is no problem if you have your own beliefs on the history of earth. everyone is entitled to their own thoughts. ut makes no difference in the end anyway.

    • Cool thanks. I do have a couple almost done. I can send you what I got this evening. And some pictures also. I’m in process of freeing up a couple months time. Got three and five year old and I’m an artist out of Eureka Springs.

    • I’ll give you something tonight

FOSSIL UPLOAD

First, make sure you have a myFOSSIL account, this is required to upload your fossil information. If you are interested in seeing if your fossil can be used for research purposes, please follow through the following steps. They walk you through the information needed and why it is helpful for other scientists to use it for research questions. Even if the information you have on your fossil is not enough to be used for research purposes it will still benefit the community through educational means and help others identify their fossils.  Specimens that have sufficient information will be uploaded to iDigBio and GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility) for public accessibility.

If you have already gone through the stepwise process that explains each piece of data please click through to a summary tab where you can enter in your specimen data on a single page.

Data Quality Information Page

  • How do I know my fossil identification is correct?
    • If you are concerned, it is a good idea to post an image in the forum “What is it? And more experienced collectors and professionals can examine the specimen and help you with your identification. You can also look through some online resources. For invertebrate fossils the Digital Atlas of Ancient Life has several projects from different time periods across the continental United States with pictures to help guide you through finding fossil species.
    • If you are still having trouble with identification, send a direct message to someone who is listed as an expert on the Fossil Specialties + Contacts topic. Here are instructions on how to send a message. You could also tag the expert in a comment on your image to request help.
  • Why do we need to include phylum, class, order, family, if the species is the important part?
    • The Linnaean classification system is used to aid in communication about different groups of life on Earth. There are several organizations such as the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature that provide guidelines for the usage or complications with the naming of animals. Similarly, there is a different organization that has guidelines and rules for the naming of plant life.
  • What if I don’t remember where I found my fossil?
    • Leave the locations fields blank if you don’t remember the place you found the fossil. It likely will mean that the fossil won’t be included in the research material, but it will still be of interest to others within the FOSSIL community.
  • How do I go figuring out the age and name of the rock I was collecting in?
    • A starting place would be to ask the group or organization that you went collecting with for information on the outcrop you visited. There are also several apps for your mobile phone or other devices that can help you better estimate where you are in geologic time. Mancos costs $2.99 through the Apple Store and provides you with data on your location including geologic age, the rock formation, description of the rock, what units are above and below, and what sort of fossils you should expect to find in the rock. Rockd is free and available in the Apple Store and on Google Play. Similarly, Rockd tells you where are with latitude and longitude data, elevation, what age, what the rock type is, what rock unit you are on, and the functionality continues. You are able to check in at outcrops, use a compass, examine ancient continent arrangements, and learn about different rock forming minerals within the app.
    • Post in the Ideas for New Forums forum and suggest a new forum for geologic time and/or stratigraphy to get a community discussion going and get input from experts.
  • How do I get latitude and longitude data?
    • There are many ways to get latitude and longitude data while you are at an outcrop or at home.
    • On Apple devices, you can go to the Compass app (comes pre-downloaded on your device) and it has your latitude/longitude and elevation information
    • On both Apple and Android devices you can download the Rockd app, which loads with your location information, elevation, and more about the geology of where you are.
    • If your service is bad in while you are out in the field, you can search on Google Maps for your location and drop a pin to get latitude and longitude of the location of your outcrop.
  • What is the difference between a group, formation, and member?
    • Similar to Linnaean classification, there is a hierarchical structure to rocks. A member is a distinct part of a formation. A formation can be made up of many members. Formations form the primary basis of subdivisions of a sequence and can vary in thickness (centimeters to kilometers). A group is several formations that share similar features or characteristics in the rocks they bear.
    • Click here for more information from the British Geological Survey.
  • What tags are useful for my specimen?
    • General terms that you would use to describe your fossil to your friends and family members would be great tags. Consider them key features or descriptors that others may see in similar fossils. This could include basic terms like ‘shell’ or ‘smooth’ so when someone searches ‘smooth’ they find an image of your fossil can can help narrow down their search.
  • I’m concerned my specimen is not research grade material, does that matter?
    • Absolutely not! Not all specimens are research grade material, even those that professionals go out for weeks at a time to search for. Sometimes the fossil is too crushed or too common, so the occurrence has less impact - scientifically speaking. But these fossils are good for educational purposes. Crushed fossils help us learn about processes that affect fossils after they are buried, and abundant fossils help us think about community structure and ecosystem dynamics and would be very useful for educational purposes.