Many moons ago, before our forefathers first stepped foot upon this land, the waters had not yet retreated from what is now called Florida. Great fishes swam and lived over the part of land where we humans now live. Over many years some of their teeth turned into stone. These teeth waited for the day when they would be collected by eager men digging and sifting in the rain.
As the rain poured down and the river waters rose the intrepid explorers fearlessly searched for fossils. They delicately slammed their shovel into the ground, pouring its contents onto a fine metal screen. Sifting through the rocks, mud, glass, bottle caps, and twigs, they searched for their treasure. After an hour of backbreaking labor they found only one small tooth; it was an impressive specimen but barely worth the cost of the flight, Russian guide, pack mules, and dynamite needed for the expedition.
Their dynamite was soaked by the rain so it was worthless. They had no access to the deepest and most plentiful specimens; they sufficed with the finesse of shovel and screen. After another hour of labor they had uncovered only part of a canine's jaw (with teeth intact) and a vertebrate of some unfortunate animal, probably the now extinct Spitting Ungil, a relative of the Five-toed Siamese Horse. Their time was up, if they did not leave they would be washed away in the rising flood.
Grabbing their single specimen they raced the raging waters with pack mules in tow and Olev, their Russian guide, nowhere to be seen. As the swollen river collapsed the bank around them, the explorers leaped to safety, watching in dismay as their mules were swept downstream, lost in the flood. Having no time to mourn the loss of their mules and with no time to search for Olev, the explorers raced to their chartered plane - a small Cessna - only to discover they lost the shark tooth. Their expedition was a failure! With nothing to show for their endeavors, the explorers returned home dejected and despondent until they discovered a pouch someone had placed in their plane. It contained numerous shark teeth and other fossils, including a beautiful echinoid. Their mysterious benefactor would remain anonymous. It was a great find. The fossils offset, somewhat, the loss of Olev and the mules.
Today my friend Daniel and I went hunting for fossilzed shark teeth. It really was raining. We ended up soaked and a bit cold (although the high today was 70). We did watch as the river water level rose. We did dig and sift but we found lots of shark teeth (and other fossils) - they are relatively easy to find. Pictured below are the largest and/or prettiest specimens. We were very happy to find the fossilized echinoid (sand dollar).
As the rain poured down and the river waters rose the intrepid explorers fearlessly searched for fossils. They delicately slammed their shovel into the ground, pouring its contents onto a fine metal screen. Sifting through the rocks, mud, glass, bottle caps, and twigs, they searched for their treasure. After an hour of backbreaking labor they found only one small tooth; it was an impressive specimen but barely worth the cost of the flight, Russian guide, pack mules, and dynamite needed for the expedition.
Their dynamite was soaked by the rain so it was worthless. They had no access to the deepest and most plentiful specimens; they sufficed with the finesse of shovel and screen. After another hour of labor they had uncovered only part of a canine's jaw (with teeth intact) and a vertebrate of some unfortunate animal, probably the now extinct Spitting Ungil, a relative of the Five-toed Siamese Horse. Their time was up, if they did not leave they would be washed away in the rising flood.
Grabbing their single specimen they raced the raging waters with pack mules in tow and Olev, their Russian guide, nowhere to be seen. As the swollen river collapsed the bank around them, the explorers leaped to safety, watching in dismay as their mules were swept downstream, lost in the flood. Having no time to mourn the loss of their mules and with no time to search for Olev, the explorers raced to their chartered plane - a small Cessna - only to discover they lost the shark tooth. Their expedition was a failure! With nothing to show for their endeavors, the explorers returned home dejected and despondent until they discovered a pouch someone had placed in their plane. It contained numerous shark teeth and other fossils, including a beautiful echinoid. Their mysterious benefactor would remain anonymous. It was a great find. The fossils offset, somewhat, the loss of Olev and the mules.
Today my friend Daniel and I went hunting for fossilzed shark teeth. It really was raining. We ended up soaked and a bit cold (although the high today was 70). We did watch as the river water level rose. We did dig and sift but we found lots of shark teeth (and other fossils) - they are relatively easy to find. Pictured below are the largest and/or prettiest specimens. We were very happy to find the fossilized echinoid (sand dollar).
This second photo is essentially a repeat of the first but I included it because I like the contrast of the black and white.
Below are the rest of what we found.
Yes, we did find part of a dog's jaw (with three teeth on it) and an animal vertebrae, maybe the dog's? We had a great time. Anyone want to come with us next time?
3 comments:
I don't think that was posted by "Kristi". :)
Good job! We have shark teeth here, too. The kids would love to go exploring.
I think the piece in the bottom right is a fossilized gator scute.
We need a shark tooth tutorial. We dug for an hour and found nothing, but I wouldn't let my kids jump in the water (we weren't prepared for that). Maybe that's the trick.
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