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Click the thumbnails for more information.
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2 3/8" carcharocles auriculatus shark tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles auriculatus |
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From the moment I first laid eyes on this tooth, I knew it had tip dingage and then some. But is so pretty, and since I have so few of these teeth, this one sneaks in. It does have a fabulous bourlette, though. Notice again the round root lobes and cusps that point away from the tip of the tooth.... |
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1" Eocene Mako Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Isurus praecursor |
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This isn't the biggest I. Praecursor I've ever seen, but it’s the best I've found to date. The last time I went to the mine I found one, but it was pitted all over the root so I couldn't bring myself to put up a closeup. This one is killer, though, and is a good representative specimen. The red on the tip is kinda cool looking.... |
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BIG scores at Lafarge today
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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I found it hard to fall asleep on Friday night because of my anticipation for the Lafarge trip. We've had so much rain lately that the mine would surely produce big. In our excitement to get to the new part, thA duDe and I headed straight down the first giant hill toward the other side. There is a big ditch at the bottom that is full of water and fine silt. I looked for a place to cross where my boots wouldn't sink, but thA duDe just took the plunge. He sunk DEEP, too. Past his knee. His boot fi... |
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BIG scores at Lafarge today
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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I can't believe the luck df has! While my brother and I were scurrying down the first hill like crack fiends to a buy, df was casually combing the side of the hill. He yells out - "WEEZ! I just found a 4 incher!" I yell back how cool that was and that I would see it later as I pulled my brother from the mud hole he was stuck in to his thighs. I didn't see df again for a few hours, but he had found another beauty, this one around 3 inches. And he had another 2 inch tooth, too. I couldn't belie... |
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BIG scores at Lafarge today
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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t$ also went to Lafarge today and found some really great stuff. It was a hard day to find anything because there were so many people. The place gets hunted out in an hour with so many people, but its still worth going. ... |
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No encore
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA |
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Almost the whole gang was down today for the Columbus day dig - T-moNey, da f0ssZ, thA duDe, and I went to the ditch in hopes of some lower water finds. If not, we would dig the chandler. We met f0ssZ there, and by the time we arrived, he had already scored 2 nice angustidens doing the patented f0ssZ shovel sift. We went our own way and immediately started on the CB. I bounced from spot to spot, favoring those places where the Wando sat right on top of the CB layer. There were plenty of spots bl... |
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No encore
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA |
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Sunday night, da f0ssZ called and said he would meet us at the big ditch. That's cool. We needed to pillage that place, and with df's eagle eyes, we would surely accomplish it. He actually beat us down there even though he lives 100 miles from the ditch and we only like 2.5 miles from it. He's more dedicated, I guess. When we got there, though, he already had two nice ones. Jealous but determined, we went off to seek our own fortunes while he continued to strike it rich. In the photo, top lef... |
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No encore
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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We took a pit stop at the Bell and continued on to the Golf Course ditch. I thought that after my success on Saturday that I would fare well at this spot. We chiseled at the hardening edges for quite a while without anything noteworthy. I came up with a few ok teeth - a small angy with a nick on the root lobe and a small mako with some nice color. T-moNey did pretty well there, though. He found a nice small angy and a cool lookin isurus desori tooth. No repeat performances today, but as we all k... |
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That was a short dry streak
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA |
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Tropical Storm Kyle, which had been parked off the US coast for like a month finally decided to head our way yesterday. It poured all morning long, and in some places, it dumped 10 inches of rain. My house was one of those places, and you know what that means ;-) Yep, a trip to the big ditch. We had originally wanted to dive today, but the rain really filled the Edisto to the rim, and diving when levels are high is basically suicide. Imagine looking for teeth in the ripping current and a tree sl... |
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That was a short dry streak
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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I still had another place to go. I drove over to the golf course to walk the ditch. I know it rained hard there because I work really close to there. And that ditch doesn't retain water, so by the time I arrived, the water level was low and the layer was exposed and well rinsed. Well, not as well rinsed as I would have liked, but it was good enough. I took my shovel just in case I needed to dig some immense tooth out of the wall. I walked in and found where the layer started, but I was really no... |
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1/2" thresher shark tooth
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA - Alopias latidens |
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a perfect little blue and white specimen.... |
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5 1/16" Megalodon Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles megalodon |
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Megs are so cool. The first time I held this in my hand I was in awe. Just like the first time I hold every meg in my hand. The colors on this tooth are exquisite! White, orange, yellow, tan, there are too many to name. The serrations are still fairly sharp which is rare for land teeth. The bourlette is mostly intact, which is really surprising. And the root is even whole. I'm amazed by that because the location where this tooth came from is very acidic. Most teeth are really eaten up. There is ... |
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1 3/4" Great White shark tooth
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharodon carcharias |
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Its been a while since I've found a carcharias tooth. This one was just smiling at me from the bottom of the ditch when I found it. It was easy to see because it was highlighted against the white sand. It’s a nice tooth - the root is 95% complete. It would be 100% but there are a few flakes missing. The serrations are nice, too.... |
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5/8" carcharocles auriculatus shark tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles auriculatus |
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This is a decent little either sympheseal or button tooth. The blade is rockin and the cusps are intact, too. There is a little ding in the root, but as of today, I still have not ever found a perfect rick.... |
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There's nothing left
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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Today, thA duDe and I left with the intentions of hitting the rapids - a spot in the river where the current has been ripping so hard the past few weeks that you can't keep your spot when you wear 60 pounds of lead. We were hoping that a week without rain would have slowed the flow. How wrong we were. The spot was still raging and one look at it was all we needed before we decided that there were other spots we could find. So we headed back up river until we found a good candidate. We parked the... |
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The streak comes to an end
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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I was being real today. I knew the killer streak I've been on couldn't last. But still I went as you expect I would have. It was cool, though. Diving is always fun. Da f0ssZ and I hit the river today with images of giant angys shimmering in our head lights. We went to the spot with the whale again so I could show df. The river was up high again, and the current was raging. On top of it, it was cold! The sky was covered with low, dense clouds and there was a breeze blowing all day. Perfect diggin... |
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I'll take quality over quantity any day
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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Lately, excitement has been building earlier and earlier in the week for the Saturday foray into the river. This week, it hit me about Tuesday. I've had an incredible run of luck lately, and my expectations are getting higher every time. Today was no exception. thA duDe and I were at the boat landing by 9:45, but we couldn't dive yet. We had a piece of business to attend to. You see, I recently bought a boat and it had to be christened (see the tools page for the low-down; I think its one of the... |
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I'm quickly becoming spoiled
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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Again today, I went diving in the Edisto. The currents were raging, so I found it hard to stay in one place, but I managed. The river levels have been higher than normal the past few weeks, so a little extra erosion and reworking of the bottom has taken place. I dove today the same place that I did the week after da f0ssZ and I started diving this river. I didn't really think I was going to find anything. After all, I already covered it pretty well back then. Oh, was I wrong. With all the extra ... |
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7/8" Sympheseal Snaggletooth shark tooth
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA - Hemipristis serra |
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This strange looking tooth is a lower sympheseal hemi. It’s the only position in the mouth that looks like that. It looks very similar to the same position in the Goblin Shark, but since I don't hunt cretaceous deposits, it has to be hemipristis.... |
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4 9/16" Angustidens Shark Tooth
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles angustidens |
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Today I found a new king of my angy collection. This beast of a tooth is definitely a great find. I was diving over a spot where I had been once before a few weeks ago, but all the extra water flowing through the river really turned the bottom upside down. The spot was littered with teeth, and this beauty was in plain view for anyone to find. I just happened to luck up on it first. When I first saw it, I couldn't really believe it. Its just not common to find a tooth of this size and quality jus... |
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3 1/4" Squalodon Whale tooth
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA - Squalodon atlanticus |
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I almost passed this beauty right by. I saw it out of the corner of my mask and I thought it was a bone fragment. There are lots of bones on the bottom in this spot, so I disregarded it and went on. Then it hit me that it could have been a whale tooth, so I swam back over. Sure enough, it was. And its in great shape, too.... |
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3 3/4" Angustidens Shark Tooth
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles angustidens |
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I still can't believe I found a tooth of this quality. Large angustidens teeth are seldom found intact. I don't know why, but I think it has something to do with the geology. First, the tooth has to fall out of the shark's mouth without feeding damage. In case you hadn't noticed, sharks aren't generally too careful with their teeth. Lets say the tooth made it to the ocean bottom intact. Then, it lies there for 28 - 30 million years (in this tooth's case, anyway) while the ocean receeds and flood... |
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Wait till you see THIS!
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA |
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Man, I was dying to get out and find some teeth today. Its in my blood, you know? I was up at the crack of dawn - 5:30 to be exact. I still had a sore throat left over from weekend illness, but it didn't matter. If I didn't find some teeth, I was gonna bust. It rained Sunday, and I just found out about a construction site they are actively working. Trouble is, they start working at 7, so I had to be there early. With flashlight in hand, I combed the muddy field. There was NOTHING! What a dis! We... |
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Wait till you see THIS!
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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After having eaten breakfast, I made a decision. Days off are few and far between. I had to go one more place. Yep - diving. With the rain, though, I didn't think it was going to be worth the trip. Rain generally makes the Edisto cloudy, and vis is pretty important there. I called up T-Money, but he was already down at the big ditch. Poor him. Oh well... I hitched up the boat, packed my gear, rented a tank, and went on my way. I pull into the landing and found out that I forgot my oars. CRUD! If... |
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Boating woes
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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Once again my pal da f0ssZ braved the gators, snakes, bugs, and raging current to liberate fossils from the Edisto River. This is how the story was told to me. df went with a dude from his office. they hit the water in the morning and drove around the river until they found a suitable place to dive. They were a few miles away and they hit a chunk of limestone in a shallow part. It snapped the shaft of the motor. Yup. The most harsh punishment the river can dish out without killing you. They w... |
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1 1/16" Giant Thresher Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Alopias grandis |
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This little beauty came from a dump! All the other teeth were literally mangled, but somehow this little beauty escaped. These are rare teeth, and I consider myself very fortunate to find such a beautiful specimen. Look at the back photo. Man, its cool looking! Greens, oranges, browns, etc. Nice stuff!... |
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2 3/4" Angustidens Shark Tooth
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles angustidens |
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I've really been doing well diving lately, but today I set the bar a little higher. This tooth is a gem! When I saw it just laying labial side up in plain view, all I could say was "DUDE!" Along with just being a huge upper tooth, its in fantastic condition. Tip, cusps, serrations, cusps, root, enamel, bourlette, they are all there. C'est magnifique!... |
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The best angustidens I've found in a year and a half
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA |
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If you read my posts from last week, you know that there has been an inordinate amount of rain that has fallen on my area. And the best places to go after good rain are places that erode nicely. The big ditch is one of those places. I'd been keeping an eye on it, but its been too high to go. You'd need scuba gear! In fact, the ditch overflowed. Yes, it overflowed. I know that because of all the debris that is up on the banks. It must have been a site to see. The giant concrete slabs that the cou... |
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t$ Tackles the Edisto
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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t$'s first trip down under the murky depths of the Edisto. Not a bad haul, huh? ... |
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The Jem
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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I guess I gave up on the germanic pit too soon. You see, its been raining all week. Every day, it has poured down rain, so even though the grass is growing, there are still spots in the pond that are eroding, and there are still lots of teeth to be found. And I found all these in an hour at lunch today. Not bad, eh? Then, I found the Jem. This little angy is perfect in any way. It is one of just two teeth I have ever found that is worthy to be a necklace for my wife. I just have to get some gold... |
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1 1/2" Angustidens Shark Tooth, aka. "The Jem"
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles angustidens |
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This little beauty is as perfect as they get. Not a scratch, nick, chip, ding, or anything. It is such high quality that I will make it into a necklace for my wife. Only 2 teeth I have ever found have been good enough for her to want to wear them, and this is one of them.... |
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2 1/6" Narrow-toothed Mako shark tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Isurus desori |
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I had all but given up hope on finding anything good at lunch today. I had walked for 45 minutes, and there was nothing great to show for my efforts, when I spied a root poking out of the mud. Yes, the day's redeeming tooth! It’s a bottom tooth with a fantastic root and blade. Look closely at the lingual (display) side photo at the right root lobe. There's this funky design on it. It almost looks like a rune! It's like, coolsville, daddio.... |
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Another one bites the dust
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Its so hard to find a good place to hunt fossils. You finally come across one that produces, and you kindof get used to hunting there. Its like a safety net. It’s a beautiful day, you're gonna fossil hunt! Where ya gonna go? You never have to ask that question because you just know. Then, all the sudden, the work is finished and they put grass all over the new spot to keep the edges from eroding. Sure, if it rains once or twice soon after the terrible grassing, you can pick up a few more ... |
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What did we do to deserve such luck?
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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Da f0ssZ rolled into town today and we hit the Edisto like a vengence. The day started of with a bad omen - f0ssZ's bag fell off and he almost lost it. Total suckage, but he found it and there was no damage done. J of the golden shovel showed up and we had a mad fossil fest. We were all over this one spot almost the whole day, and for good reason. Check out the haul! We were picking up teeth every few seconds. At one point when we were both on the surface, da f0ssZ said one of those things that ... |
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What did we do to deserve such luck?
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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da f0ssZ went with me to the Edisto river and found loads of goodies. He was cool enough to send me pictures of his best stuff to add to the web site. I made a little e-collage with them with my photo editor. Not bad, huh? That Angustidens on the upper left is gigantic. He said it was 4 1/4" long, and the tip is broken off. It would have easily been over 4 1/2" long which is HUGE for an angy. Right below that are two horse teeth he found.... |
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To boldly go where no man has gone lately…
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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Ok, our thinking was that if we can find piles of teeth where we had been looking, then we can most likely find piles of teeth other places, too. So we developed this grand scheme to search a stretch of the river by raft. I used GIS software to plot the length of the river we would search, and I concluded that it would take about 2 hours to float from spot a to spot b. Oh, how wrong I was. Try 4 hours. But this isn't a site about rafting, it’s a site about FOSSIL HUNTING! And that's what we did.... |
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Another fun day on the Edisto
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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Once we find a new spot, we can't leave it alone. We got up early today so we could have maximum bottom time. And once again, the weather was beautiful. Well, at least it was sunny. It was also dreadfully hot, but when you're in the water, that doesn't matter as much. So let's just say it was nice! The last two outings really tipped us off to what we could expect from this spot, so yesterday I went out and bought a boat so we could access other parts of the river not previously reachable on foot... |
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My new one day record!
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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Early this afternoon, we set out to the Edisto River. thA duDe has been jonesin all week to get out there since he heard about last week. Again, the weather was perfect, and we were in the water by noon. We went a little further than we did last week, and it was well worth it! I just couldn't quit picking up teeth. They were everywhere down there. I've never found more than I did today. I really didn't find that much quality, though. I came away with one nice Mako, which was cool. As long as I h... |
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2 1/2" Mako Shark Tooth
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA - Isurus hastalis |
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Its been a while since I found a Mako this big! I was on the bottom of the river fanning the sand, and this puppy just popped out. Underwater, everything looks 25% larger than above water, so when I first saw it, it was giant! And its in great shape, too. No real defects on this one.... |
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Another lunchtime fossil hunt
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Something must be going on because its early August and the high temperature today was only 85, and the humidity was like 37%. For coastal South Carolina at this time of year, that's unheard of. I had no choice but to hunt teeth at lunch. So for an hour, I went out to the pond and walked the edges. I didn't find anything spectacular, but I did ok. Lots of lamp teeth (that's what I call the small perfect teeth. I have this clear glass lamp and my goal is to fill it with perfect small teeth. Its a... |
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A spot to secure the future
Colleton County, South Carolina, USA |
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Since the developments are nearing completion, I feared the end of toothing. Such fear sent me on a mad hunt for a new place to find teeth. After weeks of driving and researching, da f0ssZ and I took the plunge and decided to try our luck in a new place. We mapped out several possible locations and headed off with the sifting gear to try our luck. The first spot we tried was where we would spend the rest of the day. We got into the water and stuck the shovel in, and within minutes, we struck fos... |
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1 1/4" Snaggletooth Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Hemipristis serra |
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This is one of those teeth that you pick up and can instantly tell that it's something special. This has got to be one of the best hemis I've ever seen. I still can't believe how sharp the tip is and how completely without wear the tooth is. I found it right in the upper Chandler Bridge, though, and I'm guessing that's why its in such good shape. And the color is sweet, too.... |
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1 11/16" Angustidens Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles angustidens |
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This tooth isn't huge, nor is it in museum condition. It has a little wear and a tiny clam bore in the root that you can see in the picture. Other than that, its complete, though. The reason it made it to the collection is because it’s a lateral tooth, and I rarely find those in decent condition. I'm not sure exactly what position in the mouth this one occupied because there isn't any reference for angustidens anywhere. I know there was an associated set of angys found in New Zealand, but as far... |
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déjà vu
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Last Wednesday and Thursday afternoons we had serious rain storms right as I got off work, and this week was a repeat performance. How odd! I'm not complaining or anything, I just think its weird. Anyway, I scored some more nice teeth from the edge of the pond. They were so adamant about no one digging up their pond once they had graded it, but now its seriously eroded from all the rain. They're going to have to grade it all over again before they grass it now. I don't care though, because the m... |
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There must be something about Wednesdays
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Like clockwork, it started pouring down rain right as I got off work. I
called thA duDe and tipped him off, and then I left work. I got soaked
on the way to my truck, I had to drive slower on the way home to avoid
hydroplaning to my death, and I got soaked when I went home. I cooked
some dinner (we ate shark, coincidentally!) and then asked my wife if
she minded if I went out to the field, since there was such great rain,
and she gave me the nod. Of course, I washed the dishes before I lef... |
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2 1/2" Angustidens Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles angustidens |
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Until I found this tooth, the day had been a wash. I hadn't found
anything to make the outing worthwhile. Then I came across this little
beauty (its actually not so little!). Its one of those that you just
pick up and say "dang!" Look at the marbling! Its orange with the
lightning streaks all over it. Every serration is intact, as is the
bourlette. There is a tiny bit of wear on the back of the root, but the
display side is awesome.... |
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2 7/16" Pathologic Angustidens Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles angustidens |
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This was the last tooth I found today, and when I first saw it, the only
thing I could think was "what a shame". It was almost dark, and the tooth was covered with dirt,
but to me it looked like the tip was snapped off. I put it in my pocket and just
continued on. It wasn't until I
cleaned it up and really looked closely at it that I realized how wrong
I was! The tip isn't snapped off - it's pathologic! Yep, sure is! Look
closely at the tip photo and you'll see what I mean. There are TWO t... |
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1 13/16" Mako Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Isurus hastalis |
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This tooth is as close to perfect as land teeth get where I come from. And the coolest part is that Wednesday when I walked the pond where I found this tooth, I walked right past it. My footprint was 6 inches from this tooth, and today I just happened to see it while I was taking a drink. The root on this baby is supreme. It has these little ears that extend over the blade that really give it a cool look.... |
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One last ditch effort to harvest fossils from Wednesday's rain
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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We were originally going to the river today to scout some new places where we might actually be able to sift, but my success the past few outings changed my mind. With that many teeth just lying around out there on the ground, why should we go scout new places? RIGHT! I couldn't think of a reason either. So, we waited until the afternoon so the workers would all be gone for the day and headed off to the pond to walk. When we got there, wouldn't you know it? There was still some dudes working, so... |
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I shouldn't be this lucky
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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This morning I woke up early. I have no idea why, but the first thing that crossed my mind was that I could go walk the ditch before work. After all, my wife told me that it had rained steadily all day yesterday. I quickly prepared to go, and within 20 minutes of waking up, I was in the ditch. The first thing I noticed was that there was scum all over the bottom. Had there been any substantial rainfall, this place would have been relatively scumless. Rather than waste time, I decided to go to th... |
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2" Angustidens Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles angustidens |
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This is the last of the three beauties I found today. I had just found the 3 15/16" megalodon mere minutes before, and I was still reeling from my own success. Then I saw this little gem sticking up blade first into the sky. This is a musuem piece if I've ever seen one. It has every single serration, a perfect root, and a 100% complete bourlette. And the colors are amazing - orange, yellow, and white. Just a dazzling tooth.... |
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Whale Ear Bone
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Unidentified - Whale |
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This is the most complete ear bone I've ever found. The thin outer part that kindof makes these things look like conch shells that is usually gone was still intact on this fossil. You know what's amazing? This was laying right in a bulldozer track? I can't believe it survived!... |
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1 7/8" Angustidens Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles angustidens |
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This is the best tooth I found today - It’s a beauty! It’s a deep orange, almost red color. It has great serrations, a perfect root, complete bourlette, and sharp cusps. The tip isn't dinged, but it’s a tiny bit worn. It doesn't detract from the tooth at all, though.... |
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Score!
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Timing was on my side today. I was sitting at work and it was about 3:30 when it just started POURING down rain. And it rained sheets for well over an hour. I was salivating. I couldn't wait until 5, because I just knew that that there would be lots of stuff laying around out at the field because a new pond went in about a week ago, and it hadn't rained since. I got off, and I was the first one there! OH MAN! I thought it would already have been crawling with other scavengers like myself, but I ... |
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Success at the sizzler
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Once every 3 months, Lafarge opens its pit to the fossil collecting public. The owner of this place are so great - I just had to give a big thanks to them before I did anything else. Anyway, today, the weather was HOT. And Lafarge has very little in the way of shade. I think the air temperature was about 95, but the heat index (humidity factored in with heat) was about 110. I was drenched with sweat from head to toe within 30 minutes, and I had drank my 2 quarts of water within 3 hours. I walked... |
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Raw sewage and a mud hole
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Doesn't the title of my trip today just make you wanna get out there and hunt for some teeth? Well, I generally don't get into the idea of playing in that stuff either, but we really didn't know what we were in for when the day began. I say we because da f0ssZ came down and so did the earthbeater from up way up north in arctic Pennsylvania. I told him some time ago that I would take him to find some teeth, and I figured he would do better sifting than digging, so we hit the old creek first. We a... |
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Raw sewage and a mud hole
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Next, we went off to the field where they spread the dirt from the pond where thA duDe and I went last week. There wasn't much to be had there, so we hit the back edge of the pond for a few minutes. We were already drained from sifting, and the heat and humidity were stifling, so we didn't dig long. Maybe 45 minutes and we called it a day. The best things I found were a gigantic sperm whale tooth and the biggest thresher I've ever found, and only the second or third biggest I've ever seen. You'l... |
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1 1/2" Giant Thresher Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Alopias grandis |
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I actually found this tooth by following an impulse earlier this week. After lunch one day, I had about 20 minutes until I had to be back at work, so I decided to go check out this new section of a development. Well, they hadn't done any more work there, but they did mow the grass earlier in the week. I thought to myself that it had been a while since I had walked that ditch, so I decided to hop out and give it a go. I'm so glad I did! This this is monstrous! It’s by far the biggest I've ever fo... |
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6 1/4" Sperm Whale Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Scaldicetus |
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From out of the edge of a pond we gave up on came this beast - just about the biggest whale tooth I've ever seen. I'm sure there are bigger ones somewhere, but I've never seen one. And the colors on this baby are sweet, too. The cap is a little dinged up; if it wasn't, this tooth would be 6 1/2" long at least!... |
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2 1/4" Mako Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Isurus desori |
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This is the best thing I found from a pond where I was the first digger. Its not a bad one. Its seen some wear, but all in all its nice. Its got nice color and a pretty good root. The blade is pretty sharp, too.... |
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Back in the saddle again
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Man, its been a while. Family vacation, fun though it was, is over. Its time to get back to some serious toothin. This is my week's lunch finds from over at the germanic pit. No nice teeth really, but the vertebra is HUGE. It’s the biggest intact one I've found to this point.... |
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Back in the saddle again
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Earlier this week, a friend and I found a new pond and the layer was NICE. We walked the piles a little bit then but didn't find anything. thA duDe and I went out there today ready to come back filthy. The pond was small - probaby only 10 yards by 30 yards. So it was easy enough to dig the whole thing out in a single day. I found a few nice ones, but he had an awesome day. He found a little benedeni, 2 complete serrated 4" megs, a perfect 2" angy, and probably other stuff I can't remember now. O... |
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A Cooper Classic!
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA |
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My pal da f0ssZ went out to the Cooper River for some diving and had a spectacular day! Its one of those days you dream about having. He was cool enough to snap some photos of his best finds for me to put up on the site. He was actually lucky enough to find the actual fossil bearing layer under water, and now you can see why everyone looks for it! ... |
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My first dive of 2002
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA |
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I got kindof a late start this year with the diving. We had a late cold shot that put us off until now. At any rate, my dad got his boat fixed and I bought a new regulator, and we were both ready to try them out. The Boy and thA duDe were also itching to get in the water. No, not because they needed to bathe, its just exciting, you know? Anyway, everything was on schedule and we were in the water. The boat started right up! A miracle! Normally we are sitting at the dock 20 minutes before it runs... |
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1 1/4" Arrowhead
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA |
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This is the first arrowhead I ever found diving. It came from the Cooper river from under about 36 feet of water. Its one of the strangest arrowheads I've ever seen. It looks normal from the first photo, but look at the second photo. It’s a photo taken from the tip. Its twisted! I've seen others like this before, but never to this degree. From what I've been told, the purpose was so that the arrow rotated as it went in so it did more damage. Its not that spectacular, otherwise. But since these a... |
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2 1/16" Mako Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Isurus hastalis |
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The condition of this tooth is really great considering the layer I found it in. Giant rocks mixed in with sandy clay normally make for pummeled teeth, but this tooth somehow survived intact. The colors are awesome - yellow with white marbling. The edges are sharp, and the root is complete as well.... |
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Baked Weezil
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Since I found a great spot to dig that was not dependent on the absence of construction crews, I decided to make the most out of it. Every day this week (except Thursday) I went digging at lunch. Man, it was HOT! On Monday, it was 96 degrees, and I thought I was going to die. It got a few degrees cooler as the week went on, but nevertheless, it was still scorching. One day, I even pulled a move out of the neophyte fossil hunter's book - I fell down the side of the ditch. While I didn't find the ... |
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Stealth mode
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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After the incident last week with getting kicked out and all, we (T money and I) decided to employ a little stealth in our operation. There are these dirt roads that connect the two sides of the development, so we parked in the woods and walked to the pond. We ducked behind piles and hid behind giant dirt boulders as the pond gestapo patrolled the area looking for rogue toothers. Believe it or not we got tired of the area because we weren't finding anything, so we headed off back down the dirt r... |
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2 1/8" Mako Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Isurus hastalis |
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This is surely the first of many teeth to come from a promising new ditch. From what I can tell, everything there will be really light colored like this tooth. Its SWEET! The marbling is killer. Brown and orange lines criss-cross the white root and blade. There is a little wear, but if you had seen the size of the gravel in this new spot, you'd wonder how this tooth made it out in one piece!... |
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Finally!! Some REAL rain!
Berkeley County, South Carolina, USA |
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You hard core fossil hunters are going to love this one - yesterday, as I sat in the training seminar at work, I watched out the window for the forecasted rain every spare moment I had. I told my wife that I might stop by the field on the way home Thursday (yesterday) if we got any good rain. But the rains never came. At least not in the quantity I wanted, anyway. When I got home, though, I found out that the rains had been more than ample at home. There were flooded streets everywhere! Surely I... |
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Something new from a lousy spot
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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The other day, I ran into these guys at lunch and I asked them if I could walk the piles for teeth. The lead guy says no, but only because of liability reasons. But he said that I could go out on weekends, and it would be ok. So I make plans for the weekend. Da f0ssZ is coming down, thA duDe, T-moNey. Its gonna be a diggin party. WELL! We showed up at 8 and started digging. Within 10 minutes this fat slob rides up and yells "Alright! EVERYONE out of the pond!" This guy was there when the head du... |
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1 1/8" Tapir Molar
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Tapirus veroensis |
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This is a beautifully colored Tapir molar from a land site. While the enamel is perfectly preserved and completely intact, the root is missing. Pleistocene fossils are hard to come by around here, though, so its common for them to be damaged. This is only the second of this kind of fossil I've ever found. Its pretty cool, don't ya think?... |
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Someone must love tooth hunters
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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Today started off EARLY! We all got up at 5 because we had a yard sale. We emptied our garage in hopes that wouldn't have to carry it back when the sale was over. That wasn't the case, but we made enough to make it worth doing. And my garage is now MUCH cleaner. Perhaps a boat will soon call it home?? Anyway, we carried the stuff left over to Goodwill, and by the time we got home, we could see a storm blowing in. I was planning on going to check out some recently dredged ditches with this dude f... |
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2" Mako Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Isurus hastalis |
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This tooth has the most amazing colors! The root has a little wear, but the blade is great. The edges are sharp and so is the tip. To believe I found this on a road where giant track hoes routinely drive. Its amazing that this tooth is still whole.... |
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2 1/4" Angustidens
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles angustidens |
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Here's another gorgeous specimen. A perfect root, 99% complete bourlette, knife-like serrations, and awesome color distinguish this tooth. It’s a beautiful orange-grey color. The Chandler Bridge produces some beautiful teeth.... |
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1 1/2" Angustidens Shark Tooth
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA - Carcharocles angustidens |
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These teeth are very rare, and this one is a gem on top of that. The color is amazing, and everything about this tooth is perfect. Every serration is intact, the tip is sharp, both cusps are perfect, the bourlette is 100% complete, and the root is without flaw. Finding teeth like this make this hobby totally worth all the mud, snakes, bugs, and heat.... |
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1 7/8" Arrowhead
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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This little puppy kinda snuck up on me. My brother and I were on the way back to the truck, and I saw this about 3 feet from him. His response - "I always forget to look for those". Its not a bad one, either. The tip is missing, but the rest is there, and the edges are nice and sharp. I wish I knew more about these things. Maybe someday I'll buy a book.... |
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A new spot
Charleston County, South Carolina, USA |
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Going on the high from last week's finds, we headed back to the Blackberry ditch first thing today. Not to beat the crowds that would undoubtedly be there (crowds of mosquitoes!), but because I had other stuff to do this afternoon. We dug and dug, but didn't really find anything worthwhile. I found an ok little meg, but it was really worn. The picture shows you the summation of my finds for two and a half hours of digging. It was hot and bug infested, so we decided that we wanted to hit Taco Be... |
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A new spot
Dorchester County, South Carolina, USA |
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After a hearty mexican feast, we hit this spot a friend of mine told me about a while back. It had rained some, so I thought we might come across some stuff walking the piles. There were a few teeth, but the major find of the day was information. I talked to a weezil-friendly resident, I found out that this little hole in the ground was soon to be a large pond. OH YAH! A new spot. Then, on the way back to the truck, I found an arrowhead. Not the best one in my collection, but its still cool. I'l... |
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A day of almosts
Charleston County, South Carolina, USA |
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Let me just start out by stating that I am not complaining. That said, I set out early afternoon on my own for the first time in a while. Not that I don't like hunting with other people - don't get me wrong. My first stop was the big ditch. I've known for a while that some work they did a while back exposed some layer, but I really don't like digging there. The teeth are few and far between, and usually very worn. I was right - there was some nice layer, but nothing very nice in it. I did meet s... |
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Just what HAVE I been up to lately??
Charleston County, South Carolina, USA |
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Its been a while since I've made a post, so, even though I didn't really do that well today, I'm making a post. thA duDe and I went to this new spot that I call the Blackberry ditch. We only dug for 2 hours, though, because we spent most of the day looking for new spots to hunt. We knew that we couldn't go home empty handed, though, so we came here to try our luck. I've known about this spot for a while, but because of the great hunting we've been accustomed to, we haven't been back since we fir... |
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My Pilgrimage to Fossil Mecca
Lee Creek Mine, Aurora, North Carolina, USA |
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I've been excited about it for months, and the day finally arrived when I could collect on hallowed ground - the PCS mine in Aurora, NC. We arrived at the parking lot at about 8 and struggled to keep warm, but at the same time, you could feel the excitement as grizzled veterans traded war stories of collecting seasons past. Everyone knew that somewhere out there, there were megs, and we all had an equal chance to find one. We piled on the bus at 8:30 and sat through the lecture - stay away from ... |
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15/16" Pathologic Bull Shark Tooth
Lee Creek Mine, Aurora, North Carolina, USA - Carcharhinus obscurus |
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While this is a perfect specimen, its not the reason it made it into my collection. See the pathology on the right side? I've got a soft side for pathologic teeth.... |
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Click the page numbers to see additional items.1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
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