New Fossil Find Could be Millions of Years Old!

 

Wow! What a find! There’s a new townhouse development going up just down Dorchester Road from us. From experience I know that when ground around here is dug up on a large scale there may be fossils to be found.

Two Sundays ago we went over and walked around. When I spotted this smallish sandy area at the work site, I paused to give a close look. Lo and behold this round protruding object caught my eye. I knew immediately that it is a shark vertebrae. This one is about an inch and half wide. 

I have found a number of shark teeth and vertebrae before over the years in a few miles radius from where I live. Hard to believe, but the South Carolina Lowcountry was under water (today’s Atlantic Ocean) as far west as Columbia, S.C. millions and millions of years ago. 

People sell shark teeth and vertebrae online! 

My most recent fossil find before the vertebrae was in the nearby Wescott community in November 2022. See more about this shark’s tooth here. The post also includes a photo of my fossil collection. 

How old are these shark fossils? Well, the age range is 10,000 years to 75 million years old! So says this article.

Last Sunday was another clear dry day so I went back to the construction site, thinking where there’s one fossil there’s bound to be more. I’m sure there are but just a week later the spot where I found the vertebrae had been covered with a layer of new dirt. I walked extensively around the large site but had no luck. 

I did come home with this chunk of rock that is embedded with a few small shells, fossilized I reckon. 

A new keepsake…a unique new paperweight if nothing else.

This outing did include a bird encounter. Unfortunately, I left my DSLR at home. With my iPhone I did get this image of a hawk, possibly a Red-shouldered one. 

Look closely at this image. The Hawk is perched on the thin branch above the heavy equipment. 

Here's a better view. When I first arrived at the site, I think I surprised the hawk. It was on something behind a port-a-potty and flew up to this branch as I came forward. 

Bye bye birdie!