Foraminiferes , nummilites ,coral , brachiopod?
Foraminiferes , nummilites ,coral , brachiopod?
Hello ,
This is my first participation ,I want to identify some fossils especially sea invertebrate I will begin by this:
Place (North-East) North Africa 1200 m above sea water sea coast distance by flight 100 Km.Carboniferous - Cretaceous field.
1-Found more than 40 pcs smallest have diam:5 cm ,the biggest seen more than 40 cm but broken not complete the major of them have between 10 and 15 cm thickness between 0.5 and 1 cm .Here is I observe two specimens found in same area ,one with bulb imprint in centre (photos 1-2)other like a fish fin(photo 4) ,small one 5 cm (photo 3)
Fossils are humanity heritage we are only the depositary.
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Re: Foraminiferes , nummilites ,coral , brachiopod?
Hey,
Indeed, the first thing that came to mind when I saw these pictures was: Nummulites!
However, although Nummulites can reach enourmous sizes for forams, there is no way that they reach sizes above 8 cm, let alone 40 cm. To my knowledge, there are absolutely no forams that reach these sizes.
Furthermore, almost all of the bigger Nummulites are of Eocene age, not Palaeozoic or Mesozoic.
Hence, these rocks must be something completely different.
It is hard to identify the material from a photograph, but one option that comes to mind is that these rocks are gypsum cristals. One often sees these kind of structures in desert areas (often the cristals grow in clusters, which are than called 'desert roses').
It might very well be that these cristals started growing on fossils that were present in the sediment, explaning why one finds the biological structures in the center.
Of course it is difficult to judge these rocks from a photograph, but at this point this is the most likely option I can think of.
greatings,
Johan
Indeed, the first thing that came to mind when I saw these pictures was: Nummulites!
However, although Nummulites can reach enourmous sizes for forams, there is no way that they reach sizes above 8 cm, let alone 40 cm. To my knowledge, there are absolutely no forams that reach these sizes.
Furthermore, almost all of the bigger Nummulites are of Eocene age, not Palaeozoic or Mesozoic.
Hence, these rocks must be something completely different.
It is hard to identify the material from a photograph, but one option that comes to mind is that these rocks are gypsum cristals. One often sees these kind of structures in desert areas (often the cristals grow in clusters, which are than called 'desert roses').
It might very well be that these cristals started growing on fossils that were present in the sediment, explaning why one finds the biological structures in the center.
Of course it is difficult to judge these rocks from a photograph, but at this point this is the most likely option I can think of.
greatings,
Johan
Van je hobby je beroep maken.... kan het nog beter? ;)
Re: Foraminiferes , nummilites ,coral , brachiopod?
HI Johan
Thank's for answer
My own intuition , say to me to search in coral family
[Editted by omr3 on 12-08-2009 at 22:35 GMT +1]
Thank's for answer
My own intuition , say to me to search in coral family
[Editted by omr3 on 12-08-2009 at 22:35 GMT +1]
Fossils are humanity heritage we are only the depositary.