Texas fossil....unclear?????????

[bravowhiskey]

Found in creek bed. Looks like a hoof, or a cast of one? I'm sure it is something completely different. One side/tip/end? broken in antiquity. All help appreciated.

view from the other side with tip broken off, note ridge running between two sides.
here is a clearer view of the material in between...it is fossilized as well, but appears to be some different.....

The cleft in the rock was filled with dirt, but after cleaning a space cleared out that just outlined the outer edge of the object.

I've only ever found water borne fossils in this area, so for this to have belonged to a land dweller would come as some surprise.

It is about the size of a tennis ball

Thanks folks,
BW

 

[timekiller]

Hey bravowhiskey,not sure about hoof but to me It looks like a fossilized clam,or some type of shellfish.Good find Though!Not sure maybe someone else will let you know
Timekiller!

 

[Harry Pristis]

Hey bravowhiskey,not sure about hoof but to me It looks like a fossilized clam,or some type of shellfish.Good find Though!Not sure maybe someone else will let you know
Timekiller!

'Timekiller' is correct. This is a steinkern, an internal cast of a bivalve. All the shell material is dissolved away. What's left is a cast of the interior, the hinge, etc.

 

[bravowhiskey]

Harry, timekiller....

Thanks for the ID. I found this about 10 years ago and just never saw anything like it.
After a google search I see that Steinkern is a generic term for what I have. Would either one of you know the particular bivalve? It would be interesting to see a complete representation.

Good on you both,
BW

 

[Tylocidaris]

You might check out some species of Arctica. It's a Lower Cretaceous bivalve. Sometimes they're known as "hoof" or "heart" clams. My guess is that you found this somewhere in Central Texas...?