RWA3006
Cave Dweller
Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,525
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Post by RWA3006 on Jul 30, 2024 8:12:26 GMT -5
This one looks quite different inside. Yep, we occasionally encounter one that's highly pelletized, much like modern sheep, deer, elk, moose, etc.
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Post by rockjunquie on Jul 30, 2024 8:45:04 GMT -5
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Post by liveoak on Jul 30, 2024 8:50:19 GMT -5
WOW ! That one is unreal.
I would never have thought it was coprolite, if I had just seen it as a slab. Pretty cool
Patty
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wpotterw
spending too much on rocks
Member since September 2016
Posts: 438
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Post by wpotterw on Jul 30, 2024 9:03:16 GMT -5
TURD TUESDAY Looks like the poop from a colossal Jurassic rabbit...
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Post by 1dave on Jul 30, 2024 9:15:14 GMT -5
Almost like Dino Bone!
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RWA3006
Cave Dweller
Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,525
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Post by RWA3006 on Aug 6, 2024 7:01:12 GMT -5
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Post by pebblesky on Aug 6, 2024 16:58:10 GMT -5
There are several beautiful extra ancient poops from Randy's slab box, and this one has a pretty unusual color to me:
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RWA3006
Cave Dweller
Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,525
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Post by RWA3006 on Aug 6, 2024 19:21:35 GMT -5
There are several beautiful extra ancient poops from Randy's slab box, and this one has a pretty unusual color to me: Holy cow, that's a nice one! Blue and green hues aren't as common in Utah coprolites.
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Post by 1dave on Aug 9, 2024 8:17:43 GMT -5
Some copper in the diet or ground water. probably pooped after 1 million A.D. when the Midas Comet hit Utah. See my book on Utah, the disturbed land.
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Post by RickB on Aug 10, 2024 5:22:01 GMT -5
Some copper in the diet or ground water. probably pooped after 1 million A.D. when the Midas Comet hit Utah. See my book on Utah, the disturbed land. ... copper plumbing.
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RWA3006
Cave Dweller
Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,525
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Post by RWA3006 on Aug 13, 2024 7:05:48 GMT -5
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Post by RickB on Aug 13, 2024 15:26:44 GMT -5
Dung Beetle Heaven
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RWA3006
Cave Dweller
Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,525
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Post by RWA3006 on Aug 13, 2024 19:02:49 GMT -5
Dung Beetle Heaven Sure looks like it. I noticed on the exterior that some of the softer parts of the stool sample weathered away leaving trails of the more durable agatized tunnels.
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RWA3006
Cave Dweller
Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,525
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Post by RWA3006 on Aug 16, 2024 19:39:25 GMT -5
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Post by RickB on Aug 17, 2024 6:34:42 GMT -5
A Dung Beetle Subdivision "Agate Lane"
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Post by rockjunquie on Aug 17, 2024 7:44:10 GMT -5
Here's a dumb question... not even sure how to put it...
The agatized lines- what percentage, do you think, are from beetles and/or from being dried up, cracked and filled?
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RWA3006
Cave Dweller
Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,525
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Post by RWA3006 on Aug 17, 2024 8:18:43 GMT -5
Here's a dumb question... not even sure how to put it... The agatized lines- what percentage, do you think, are from beetles and/or from being dried up, cracked and filled?
I think that's a really good question and I've wrestled with it for a few years. I used to think they were mostly from cracking, but after actually taking the time to study a lot of cow turds laying about in the open range of Wyoming I've modified my thinking to believe that in these coprolites they are mostly from dung beetles. The study of these coprolites is full of nuances that are subtle and difficult to explain, so a person should be careful to not jump to conclusions without carefully weighing the evidence. One of the best tell tale signs that these tunnels came from dung beetles is the debris, mostly beetle feces left within the tunnels. This is actually not too hard to recognize when one compares the structures with modern day beetles in dung or the wood boring kind. I anticipate that one of these days I'll actually find the obvious petrified remains of a beetle in a tunnel and have probably already overlooked a few just because I should be more observant.
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Post by rockjunquie on Aug 17, 2024 8:27:31 GMT -5
Here's a dumb question... not even sure how to put it... The agatized lines- what percentage, do you think, are from beetles and/or from being dried up, cracked and filled?
I think that's a really good question and I've wrestled with it for a few years. I used to think they were mostly from cracking, but after actually taking the time to study a lot of cow turds laying about in the open range of Wyoming I've modified my thinking to believe that in these coprolites they are mostly from dung beetles. The study of these coprolites is full of nuances that are subtle and difficult to explain, so a person should be careful to not jump to conclusions without carefully weighing the evidence. One of the best tell tale signs that these tunnels came from dung beetles is the debris, mostly beetle feces left within the tunnels. This is actually not to hard to recognize when one compares the structures with modern day beetles in dung or the wood boring kind. I anticipate that one of these days I'll actually find the obvious petrified remains of a beetle in a tunnel and have probably already overlooked a few just because I should be more observant. That's pretty much what I thought.
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Post by RickB on Aug 17, 2024 11:07:58 GMT -5
Randy, you've found the Hadrosaur latrine area. Have you ever found the nesting area? Egg shell, etc.
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RWA3006
Cave Dweller
Member since March 2009
Posts: 4,525
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Post by RWA3006 on Aug 17, 2024 11:44:13 GMT -5
Randy, you've found the Hadrosaur latrine area. Have you ever found the nesting area? Egg shell, etc. Nope, not even one egg fragment. I wouldn't be surprised if they migrated to breeding grounds far away and I can't help but think there should be a massive nesting ground buried in the Morrison Formation somewhere in the western USA.
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