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Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Heliophyllum Horn Coral with Attached Bryozoan

Here is a Devonian horn coral called the Heliophyllum that has a bryozoan attached. Notice the bryozoan holdfast to the right of the horn coral.


Monday, December 29, 2008

Heliophyllum venatum Horn Coral with Borings

This horn coral may have been eaten on by gastropods looking at the borings on its outer walls. It is the same fossil shown yesterday found in Louisville, Kentucky. It is a Heliophyllum venatum from the Devonian period.

Sunday, December 28, 2008

Heliophyllum venatum Horn Coral

This coral is from the Devonian period and probably from Jeffersonville Limestone. It is a Heliophyllum venatum horn coral found in Louisville, Kentucky.





Monday, December 22, 2008

Foerstephyllum vacuum? Colonial Coral

Here is a colonial coral found in Jeffersontown, Kentucky. It is from the Ordovician but what exactly it is called is sort of a mystery. It is probably a Foerstephyllum vacuum (Foerste, 1909) because that area is known for that species. In order to know for sure it needs to be thin sectioned.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Coenites reticulata Coral

Here is a coral from the Silurian period that is called Coenites reticulata. It was found in Louisville, Kentucky and came out of the Louisville Limestone layer.


Saturday, December 20, 2008

Crinoid Spine, Stems, and Calyx Plate

Here is a rock with a lot of crinoid pieces. The majority are stem pieces, a spine, and calyx plate.
It was found in Louisville, Kentucky and is probably Louisville Limestone.


Friday, December 19, 2008

Dalmanites Trilobite

Some workers were jackhammering a hole in the Louisville area and came upon a number of trilobite parts. It appears to be a Silurian trilobite called the Dalmanites. This is maybe part of the lower thorax and then the tail section.



Thursday, December 18, 2008

Cephalopod Living Chamber

I have never found a living chamber on a cephalopod fossil before. This one is just the very edge of the mold but it can be seen how the shell begins to spread out. The imprints on the shell showing rings and texture have worn away.


Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Colonial Coral: Foerstephyllum vacuum?

Here is a colonial coral that might be a Foerstephyllum vacuum (Foerste, 1909)  but it would need to be thin sectioned to really know. It is from an Ordovician coral bed in Jefferson County, Kentucky.

Monday, December 15, 2008

Cyathophylloides cf. C. burksae

Here is a close up some colonial coral from the Ordovician period. It was found in Jefferson County, Kentucky near Jeffersontown. It appears to be Cyathophylloides cf. C. burksae as mentioned in Ruth Browne's research papers when she studied this area in the 1960s.

I come to this conclusion because the corallites have 10-11 septas and tabulae are about 4 per 5 mm. After measuring a number of corallite diameters it looks like they are between 3.5-4.0 mm. This specimen was found in the Drake Formation.

Notice the septa or star like patterns in the honeycomb like shapes near the ruler.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Ordovician Bryozoan

This bryozoan was found at a road cut in Jefferson County, Kentucky. It sort of looks like a Monticulipora phylum. It might have been part of the Bardstown Reef at one time.

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Shark Tooth

Okay, this is not a Louisville fossil but I took a picture and decided to use it. I bought this as a child on a trip to Montana and North Dakota.

Friday, December 12, 2008

Shark Tooth


Here is a shark tooth that came from a rock shop in either Montana or North Dakota.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Ordovician Gastropod

Here is an Ordovician gastropod in Jefferson County, Kentucky.


Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Thamnoptychia alternans Coral

Here is a Devonian coral found in Jeffersonville, Indiana that can be found in the Beechwood Limestone. Here is Thamnoptychia alternans fragment. I really like the swirl pattern on this stem piece.