Our Fossil Finds

 Here are some of the things we found during our fossil hunt
at Flag Ponds Nature Park 

We found some brain coral.

 

 Some stingray teeth.

 Yes, they have teeth.

 And of course some shark teeth.

22 shark teeth to be exact.

This was the best find.

It's from a Snaggletooth Shark.

It 's a shark that is extinct,

though there are similar Snaggletooth sharks living 

in the Indo-West Pacfic.

 Some of our teeth were from Hammerheads.

 Lemon Sharks

And Thresher Sharks.

I'm anxious to see what all I can find this weekend at Shark Tooth Island.
Big E is going to make some sifters for us to use
similar to the ones we borrowed from friend for our trip to Flag Ponds.

I can't wait to go hunting again!

The Hunt for Shark Teeth

Once we found our first shark tooth,

we had the shark tooth hunting fever.

Typically we search an area on the Rappahanock River 

that the Brat Child calls Shark Tooth Island.

This summer, my mom learned of an area in Calvert County, MD

that is know for its shark teeth.

So, in a final summer hurrah,

we took a day trip to Flag Ponds Nature Park.

The beach with Calvert Cliffs in the distance

The weather wasn't the greatest.

It was overcast when we arrived,

and after we took a lunch break, the wind and rain moved in 

and we opted to head home.

But not before visiting the Visitor's Center.

They have quite a collection of teeth

and other fossils.

We managed to find 22 shark teeth Saturday

plus some stingray teeth

and some brain coral.

Tooth identification and photos to come!

Shark Week Finale That Wasn't

I had some ideas of what I wanted to post for Friday, but my Friday plans got interrupted with this:

That's right, I left work early Friday

and on the way home a guy crossed the double yellow

came into my lane and hit my car.  

I was lucky enough to see him start to come over

so I was lucky enough to avoid a head on collision

which would have been nasty at 55 MPH.

So, I'm hoping to have an even better shark week finale

after this coming weekend's family day trip.

In the meantime, 

there's an interesting/amusing/can't believe this actually happened 

story that I'll be sharing this week.  

Stay tuned.

Shark Teeth

I've really come to love looking for shark teeth. 

 As I mentioned in yesterday's post, 

it's sometimes difficult spotting teeth on the beach with everything looking like it might be a tooth.  

Though I've watched people walk along the sand and pick them up.

I've had my luck using a simple sand sifter.

 These are the teeth we found a couple of years ago.

The largest was actually found sitting on the sand and was identified as 

a fossilized tiger shark tooth.  

The other two are fossilized sand shark teeth found using a sifter.

This year I walked a long stretch of beach looking for any teeth just sitting there waiting to be picked up.  Yeah, I was hoping for the Holy Grail of teeth- a megalodon tooth, but I saw nothing.

Upon my return to the group, I learned that my mother had found a decent sized tooth using the sifter.

So the Brat Child and I followed suit.  After about 15 minutes, we got lucky and found a tooth that was nearly identical to my mother's.  

Shortly after I found another smaller tooth.

The two larger teeth are from a Sand Tiger Shark

  Despite looking mean and ferocious, 

Sand Tiger Sharks are actually docile attacking humans only when provoked.  

They grow to 6.5 to 10.5 feet

and are the only sharks known to come to the surface and gulp air.

They store the air in their stomach to allow them to float motionless while looking for prey.

Sand Tigers give birth to live young called pups who are able to swim and eat immediately.

They are considered a threatened species because of low reproductive rates.

Finding Fossils

 We took another trip over to Shark Tooth Island

(named by the Brat Child- It's not an island 

unless you consider the whole of North and South America an island)

We went looking for shark teeth.

I still have hopes for finding a Megalodon tooth,

more so after seeing the size of a tooth a local guy found 

on the very same beach we were walking.

 

 The Brat Child used his sifter to check the sand near the waters edge.

While I went walking along the stretch of beach looking along the sand.

 There's so many rocks and shell pieces

that it's hard to see what is there.

Everything looks like a tooth.

We did find 3 teeth.

Photos and more about them tomorrow!

Megalodons: Still Here?

 
     Last year, I touched upon the idea of the possibility of  Megalodon sharks still existing in the oceans today (It's Shark Week ).  Really, there isn't much fact to base that theory on.  I referenced a fictional story about a Megalodon in present day, but it was just that: fictional.  I also brought up a couple of facts about various fisherman/experienced watermen being afraid of large sharks they had encountered. I brought up examples of newly discovered species and species that were once thought to be extinct that were later found to be alive (this is called the Lazarus Taxon). 

Big E and The Brat Child demonstrating the size of a Meg's jaws.

     So can there still be Megalodons swimming in the oceans?  I imagine anything is possible, but it isn't probable.  Look at the Megalodons size.  Their teeth are 7 inches long.  They are thought to grow to around 60 feet in length.  A school bus is 36-39 feet long so a Meg is bigger than a school bus.I read a quote in an article that said, "A great white is about the size of the clasper, or penis, of a male megalodon," Peter Klimley, a shark expert at the University of California at Davis.  Can you imagine a shark with a willy the size of a 20 foot Great White?  An animal that size would need to eat a lot of fish, and I don't think anchovies are going to satisfy a Megalodon.  So in reality, there really isn't enough food to sustain a Meg population, and you would need a population in order for them to still be surviving (there is no supernatural 4 million year old shark swimming around).  And with all seriousness, there is more evidence supporting the existence of Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster than a Megalodon. 

So, sadly, I'd have to say that no, Megalodons are not swimming around.  Could there be larger than average Great White sharks swimming around? I'd say that's a big possibility. 

But I'm not going to buy that bigger boat just yet.

Shark Week: The Submarine

It's that time of year again, folks.  Time to discuss all things shark.  Only here on this blog, we don't make up stuff and pass it off as fact to raise our ratings.

The Malta Shark

Several months ago, I came upon a story about a shark that supposedly lived off the coast of South Africa that the locals dubbed "The Submarine".  It was said this shark was 30+ feet in length and was blamed for several attacks on boats and people in the 70's and 80's.  While there have been reports of Great Whites growing to 7-9 meters (22-29 feet), there is no actual documentation.  Research of large Great Whites revealed squid parts in their stomachs rather than seals indicating that they live far offshore and far away from public view.  It's possible this is the reason why there is no documentation of a 22-29 foot Great White even though there have been sightings and reports of them.

The average Great White grows to around 5 meters or 16.5 feet length.  There have been larger Great Whites captured.  One was caught off the coast of Malta, Italy and measured 6.8 meters (22 feet) long.  It is the largest captured Great White that has been accurately measured and recorded.

After doing a little research, I came to the conclusion that The Submarine was probably not 30 feet long.  Out in open waters it would be extremely difficult to judge the length of a shark, especially if it's swimming or attacking.  In fact in the Daily Mail there was an article with the headline "Tourist Killed by 'Dinosaur Sized' Great White Shark Off South African Beach".  One witness to the attack referred to the shark as "dinosaur huge" and "larger than a mini bus".  But another person judged the shark to be about 5 meters (16.5 feet) long which is really the average full size of a Great White.  Nothing dinosaur about it.  This just proves that people either exaggerate or don't accurately judge the size of something, and I think the stress of witnessing an attack would add to this issue.  Further research into The Submarine revealed that some local reporters in South Africa were discussing the gullibility of their readers one evening and hatched the plan to test their theories.  They made up a story about a large shark and people immediately started reporting sightings.  And thus, the urban legend of The Submarine began.  Was there a large shark causing problems in the 70's and 80's that could have been a real "Submarine" definitely yes, just not a 30 foot shark.

So, with all this talk about sharks in South Africa, you're thinking you don't have anything to worry about in Virginia or the Chesapeake Bay.  Aren't you cute.

Last year a 12 foot Great White was caught at the mouth of the Bay and a 15 foot Great White was caught in Coastal Waters by the Bay.  Earlier this year, several dolphins were found with large chunks missing.  A professor emeritus with VIMS (Virginia Institute of Marine Science) concluded is was a Great White bite and that the shark was about 10 feet in length.  And Mary Lee a 3.500 pound Great White fitted with a Ocearch surveillance tag was recorded hanging out in the Hatteras Inlet and the mouth of the Bay. 

Happy swimming!

Great Mother's Teeth

After my grandmother passed away, 

my dad and his siblings found a box she had in her dresser

marked "sharks teeth".

Inside were several old teeth.

My dad thought it was something the Brat Child would like to have 

to remember his "Great Mother" by.

We were all a little perplexed

over why in the world she would have a box of shark teeth 

in her jewelry box.

After reading up on all the fossil teeth in the area of the Rappahannock

and seeing the condition of the teeth (they look pretty old and beat up),

I'm fairly certain they're teeth she and my grandfather found.

The Brat Child, 

well, he thinks it would be cool to pull out his own teeth and replace them with these.

Fake Facts

I came across this article online about Discovery's shark week show

 Megalodon: The Monster Shark Lives

Apparently, the Discovery Channel felt ratings were a bigger priority 

than maintaining their usual standards of scientific reporting.

And people are pissed.

I don't blame them.

So, just remember, 

Discovery Channel Mock-u-drama 

on Megalodon

FAKE.

My blog post on Megalodon

FACT.

Did Megalodons Roam the Rappahannock?

The quick answer is: yes.

The Rappahannock River is part of the area known as The Yorktown Formation

which includes the Rappahannock, Potomac, Piankatank, York and James Rivers.

It is highly fossiliferous 

(that's an actual word. I love it).

While the most common fossils found are those from bivalves 

(clams, oysters, mussels, scallops,etc)

there are those lucky people who have managed to find Meg teeth

(Currently there is a megalodon tooth from the Rappahannock

 for sale on eBay for $2,300).

So far, the only teeth I've managed to find
were small ones
but I'm still hoping for that big Meg tooth find.

It's Shark Week

Let's start with Megalodons.

Smithsonian Natural History Museum Washington, DC

I realize I'm sort of copying the Discovery Channels premise that Megalodons could actually still be alive in the earth's warmer oceans.

But it's a thought I personally have had for several years.

Not that I'm any kind of shark expert

or have seen an ominous 60 foot dark shape swimming by my boat

(seriously, if that happened I'd crap my pants if not die of a fatal heart attack right there).

But I did once read a book of fiction written by Steve Alten

called Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror.

The novel was about a diver who sees a Megalodon 

while on a top secret deep sea dive to the Mariana Trench.

He isn't believed so he becomes a paleontologist to try to prove what he saw.

Everyone thinks he's a kook

until he goes on another dive to the trench, is attacked by a male Meg,

has his friend eaten and ends up getting the Meg tangled in some cables.

As he's dragging the male Megalodon to the surface, a female (you saw this coming right?)

attacks the body of the male.

She follows the warm blood of the male up through the "cold water barrier"

(the bottom of the trench is warmed by geothermal ducts, Megs thrive in warm tropical water and the novel claims that the Megs are kept at the bottom of the trench by the cold water zone between the trench and the warmer surface waters).

Of course the female goes on a feeding rampage

eating whales, boats and the protagonist's ex wife. 

The female gives birth, the baby is captured and that's the end of that book.

There are more in the series, but I didn't read them. 

So is this a plausable thing?

Can Megalodon still be alive?

In 1875, 2 Megalodon teeth were dredged up during the expedition of the HMS Challenger.

They were dated as only 10,000-15,000 years old-

meaning their extinction (if it happened) happened within the age of modern man.

In 1918- several fisherman in Australia refused to work after a giant shark destroyed their gear and age their catch.

These men were experienced fishermen, familiar with the areas sharks and whales.

So what scared them so bad they refused to return to the water?

Recently, the History Channel's MonterQuest team 

went in search of a monster shark in the Sea of Cortez. 

It's been reported a large shark is decimating the marine mammal population.

While they didn't see a Megalodon,

many believe that it's the perfect area for one to thrive in.

Is it really possible they could still be alive today?

Who really knows, but some points to ponder:
We've only recently begun to see photos and video of the Giant Squid.

The Megamouth shark was only discovered in 1975

and the coelacanth was thought to have gone extinct 65 million years ago until one was caught in 1938.

This is known as the Lazarus Taxon which is when a species is  thought

 to have gone extinct but is eventually found alive. 

This typically happens when there's just a small population of the animal/fish

and locals are familiar with it but scientists haven't bothered to officially identify it.

There have been many reports of a giant shark.

Netting a Shark

As a child, one of the greatest adventures while in Deltaville was bringing in the gill net.  As an adult I'm flabbergasted shocked mildly surprised that I though such hard work was actually enjoyable.  But when you're a kid, the prospect of catching something good got you going at 4:00 A.M. We'd stumble out of bed, pull on clothes and make our way bleary-eyed to Pepop's dock to climb aboard his green boat Pigpen.

While sticking our heads over the side of the boat and letting the waves soak our heads was great fun, the real thing that brought us out at the butt crack of dawn was the prospect of finding something spectacular in the gill net- namely- a shark.  

We always had hopes that we'd pull the net in and find ourselves face to face with Jaws.

Unfortunately, all we managed to find were small dogfish and some sandbar sharks.

While I've heard shark is "good eatin'", I'm not a fan of eating fish.  

Also, sharks seem to be in a different category than your everyday run of the mill spot or croaker.  

So we chopped them up and used them as crab bait.  

It isn't easy trying to crab with a hefty piece of shark meat on the end of the line.

Sharks at Haven Beach

This old fisherman caught a juvenile sand shark one evening as we were enjoying the beach (I have no clue why I didn't pull out my camera to take a photo of it).  He let the Brat Child touch its skin and told us he had caught about 12 sharks that week in total fishing from the rocks at Haven Beach.  We watched as he gently let the shark go back to the Bay.

  This was in sharp contrast to the gentleman who caught a juvenile sand shark this past August.  He did show it to my mother and the Brat Child as they walked by, and then he proceeded to gut it right there on the beach.  Now, I've heard that you have to clean a shark pretty soon after catching it if you want to use it for your supper.  However, I think throwing the guts into the area where people swim is slightly rude.  Especially when there were people actually swimming there.  Nothing says relaxation more than watching seagulls fly off with shark intestines dangling from their beaks.
You're welcome for that image.

Sharks of the Chesapeake

If you weren't already slightly nervous about what types of things are swimming below the surface of the water at your favorite swimming spot, I'm about to make you that way.  

Here is a list in order of their threat to humans level (lowest to highest).

Smooth Dogfish-

Prefers shallow water where it scavenges and feeds on crustaceans and small fish.

Average 3-4 ft in length.

One of the most abundant sharks on the East Coast.

The dogfish poses no threat to humans due to its small size and blunt teeth.

 Hammerhead Shark-
Average size of 2-4ft though some range 6-13 ft.
Favorite food is stingrays.
Not considered a threat to humans.

Sandbar Shark caught by my mother

Sandbar Shark-

Found in grassy, shallow protected areas and sandbars.

Grows to 7ft but the juveniles that are typically found in the Bay are about 2-3 ft.

Visits the Chesapeake in the Summer and Autumn months.

Primarily found in the Virginia waters of the Bay but sometimes found in Maryland waters.

Most common shark found in the Bay.

The Chesapeake is the most important Sandbar Shark nursery on the East Coast.

There are very few reports of unprovoked attacks on humans.

Atlantic Sharpnose Shark-

Feeds on small bony fish, worms, and crabs.

Their mature size is around 3 feet long.

 They are considered a moderate threat to humans as they often come into contact with humans due to their habitat.

 However, most bites inflicted on humans by this shark are nonfatal and not serious.

Dusky Shark-

Migrates towards the Bay in the summer months.

One of the most sought after sharks for the fin trade.

Averages about 12ft in length.

Preys primarily on bluefish but feeds on many other species of fish, stingrays and crustaceans.

Considered a threat to humans due to its size.  

The International Shark Attack Files lists it as responsible for six attacks on people and boats, three of them unprovoked and one fatal (none in the Bay).

Nurse Shark-

Average size of 7-10ft but can reach 14ft.

They are nocturnal and are often found resting on the sea floor during the day.

Their diet consists of crustaceans, mollusks, small fish and stingrays.

They are bottom feeders.

Nurse sharks usually are non-aggressive and swim away rather than bite.

However, there have been unprovoked attacks reported by swimmers and divers.

Their bite is powerful and has a vice-like grip capable of serious injury.

Tiger Shark-
Named for the dark vertical stripes seen on juveniles.
Grow to 10-14 ft and live for 50 years.
Referred to as the "wastebasket of the sea" because of its reputation for eating anything, including trash.
Know as man-eaters, they are second only to Great Whites for number of attacks on humans.
And because they aren't picky eaters, they're less likely to swim away after biting a human unlike the Great White.

(We found a Tiger Shark tooth on the beach of Shark Tooth Island so they're around)

Bull Shark-
Average size is 7-12 ft.
Bull Sharks are known to be aggressive and are known to frequent shallow water.
They also spend time in brackish and freshwater and are probably responsible for most near-shore shark attacks attributed to other species.
Because bull sharks dwell in shallow water, they may be more dangerous to humans than any other sharks and along with Tiger sharks and Great Whites its among the top three sharks species most likely to attack humans.
Before you try to tell yourself Bull sharks couldn't possibly be found in the Chesapeake Bay, read this article about two 8ft Bull Sharks that were caught in the Potomac River.

According to the International Shark File, Virginia has had 5 total reports of unprovoked shark attacks with 1 of those being a fatal attack of a 10 year old boy back in 2001.  The attack occurred in the Atlantic Ocean near Virginia Beach in approximately 4 feet of water.  It's thought the shark was a Bull shark.

Happy Swimming!