I spent four hours Monday at my nearby spot with the Amherstburg and Lucas Fm material, and likely split the last remaining viable rocks in the former that could potentially have bugs. The rest is pretty much stromatoporoidal Lucas Fm trash. A really sad split. This would have been a fairly good sized Trypaulites sp. pygidium, but it just wasn't worth taking home. And so ends what was once a very productive location. I hoovered it well, draining it of its bugs. There may be some stragglers in some of the harder, more blank material, so it will remain my site of last resort. It lasted for well over 100 visits, and it has been very kind to me in giving up 7 different species of trilobite, 3 of which were new to my collection, and 2 of those being exceptionally rare lichids, and one dalmanitid that has never been reported in Ontario rocks. I never found anything complete, but I came close twice. The Devonian in Ontario is a big tease. I'm fairly thorough and persistent, and so can say I've emptied two honey holes in my immediate vicinity. But a new one cropped up today. I've been meaning to have a look-see at this very large location for a while. It is certainly filled with layers upon layers of sand alternating with water-worn rock that spans the lower to middle Devonian, interspersed with lots of igneous and metamorphic gumbo. At a depth of about 300-500 feet, it is steady waves of glacial backwash. You'd likely have to dig a mile to hit bedrock in this town. Devonian formations present include Bois Blanc, Onondaga, Dundee, and even some paper shale filled with Leiorhynchus that you find in the Hungry Hollow Member in Arkona. I started finding pretty sad Eldredgeops rana bits, but that was a sign of more to come. This was only meant to be a quick recon, but this place is massive and takes a while to traverse. To the highlights, then... This is the only E. rana I picked up and will show here. Why, because it's a roan red rana, that's why. This appeared in some Dundee material that is just littered with tiny red brachs all the way through, like the rock is infested with fat mites. The same process of mineralization that turned them red seemed to have worked its magic on this pygidium. This battered bug bit is not even worth focusing the camera on. If, as my field comrade Kevin says, E. rana is the cockroach of the Devonian, Pseudodechenella may be a close contender for that title. Both of these have a very long stratigraphic range. No, I didn't take this one home. Now this is where I get excited. Dalmanitids. These are not bad at all in terms of preservation, and possibly a bit better than how they come out in the material at my secret Onondaga spot. These both came out of the same rock. In fact, all the following Anchiopsis anchiops were found in it. This was truly a good rock that seemed to be a moulting ground. The tails come paired with heads. The one on the left is sadly just an impression. The one on the right is likely complete, and I just need to do some cleaning and light scribing to reveal it in full. I've never found a full cephalon of this species before. More bits and pieces. No, it is not a fossilized chihuahua head, but an impendent hypostome belonging to Anchiopsis anchiops. This is the better of the two I found. This was a great rock. If I could find a lot more of it, I would be splitting all day. And what is that pustular bit in the centre? Likely a Coronura bit, so make that species number four at this location.
So that was a nice three hours of exploring. I do plan on going back, of course, and it's nice to add another hot spot to the prospect list. I am hopeful my new backpack comes soon as I'm not sure if my current one will hold up for another adventure. Although my tactical pack is barely a year old, it is torn in a lot of places, and the straps have had to be tied and knotted to other hoops and loops several times. It doesn't help that I carry around about 30 or so pounds of tools in it, and then add another 20 pounds of rock. The thing was bulging at the seams, threatening to burst. Not what you want to have happen in the field, far away from home. Site knowledge: it's a Devonian buffet. There is no sense in creating a trilobite list associated with the stratigraphy because the rocks are transport erratics from all over. In other fossil news, I have created a fantastic prospecting field document for Silurian trilobites of Ontario, and am eager to get on the road to trial its effectiveness. Obviously I won't post that here unless my goal was to ensure others would scoop up everything first. But, a few of my field comrades will hopefully benefit. Tomorrow looks like a rainy, ice-pellety day. A good one to do a bit of prep. On Friday it is back to my secret Bois Blanc spot to do a whole day's work. Stay tuned!
Noah
10/14/2020 09:02:30 pm
Hey, I'm new to fossil hunting and i'm having trouble finding good spots in essex county. Any tips to know where to look? Comments are closed.
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Kane Faucher
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February 2024
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