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Fossil hunting in Ireland

starn

Portmarnock beach is excellent for finding fossils from the Caronifourous period Ive found excellent examples of Echinoids, Crinoids, Colonial Coral, Bryzoans and Braciopods. Can anyone recommend anywhere else where fossils can be easily found

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Galvasean

Did some rummaging and found a great post in another thread taht you guys might find useful:

http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=57322757&postcount=4

The Paws

Thanks Galvasean,

I just saw my message in my PM. Thanks again!

mark302

Portmarnock beach is quite long, can you tell me the best spots along the beach to look? Went walking there last weekend and all i found was a nice large crab claw (not fossilized) lol

stravinsky

There are a lot of fossils embedded in the rock at Low Rock, Malahide (between Portmarnock and Malahide, near the bathing hut). I'm no expert, and I never found anything removable.

Photograph here: http://www.malahidelive.ie/forum/132/fossils-low-rock-malahide

Any help identifying would be appreciated.

Previously (a year or more ago) I saw a lot of oval-ish fossils, an inch or two wide, all the same distinctive shape. No phot unfortunately. Don't find them now. Maybe I'm looking in a different place, or maybe someone has cut them out, which would be a shame.

Wibbs

Looks like a brachiopod. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PlatystrophiaOrdovician.jpg The rock there is very tough. The fossils can be ok, but not great preservation IIRC.

stravinsky

Thanks Wibbs,
Yeah, these fossils are on the exposed beach so subject to a regular drenching which must take its toll over the millenia.

Mal-Adjusted

Wibbs wrote: »

Looks like a brachiopod. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PlatystrophiaOrdovician.jpg The rock there is very tough. The fossils can be ok, but not great preservation IIRC.

The limestone rocks around east clare are good for brachiopods!

rccaulfield

Is Balbriggan known for good fossil hunting? From the beach toward bremore where they are going to build Dublin Port has alot of exposed and loose rock. How can i find out whether its legal to hammer down there?

Galvasean

I would imagine writing to the local County Council. I think they are under Fingal County Council's juristiction.

jimmyhamster

Hi
I wonder if you guys could help
I purchased a derelict cottage in Roscommon last year and immediately
noticed what looked like fossils lying around the back garden.
I now am doing some demolition work and have noticed that the stones I am taking down from the walls also have these fossils.I am not very well versed in identifying what I am looking at but they look like tubes of various sizes along with other stuff with no real description.The local farmer seems uninterested in my finds but he said to me that I should uncover the mound on his land and have a look.I couldn't wait so as soon as he headed off I started to pull back the grass and moss from the mound and underneath is a huge piece of rock maybe
6to 8foot across and about 4 foot out of the ground its full of uniformed holes and creases and has what look like tree limbs or bones coming out from within
I thought it may be a tree stump which has been fossilized
is it normal to find this amount of fossils in rural Ireland especially in a 300 year old house wall

rccaulfield

rccaulfield wrote: »

Is Balbriggan known for good fossil hunting? From the beach toward bremore where they are going to build Dublin Port has alot of exposed and loose rock. How can i find out whether its legal to hammer down there?

Nope

:D all the rocks there are volcanic in nature(not sedimentary so only what the sea washes up really! Although theres exposed earth banks that run for miles that may have good recent stuff in there stretching down the the Bremore passage graves!

jimmyhamster wrote: »

Hi
I wonder if you guys could help
I purchased a derelict cottage in Roscommon last year and immediately
noticed what looked like fossils lying around the back garden.
I now am doing some demolition work and have noticed that the stones I am taking down from the walls also have these fossils.I am not very well versed in identifying what I am looking at but they look like tubes of various sizes along with other stuff with no real description.The local farmer seems uninterested in my finds but he said to me that I should uncover the mound on his land and have a look.I couldn't wait so as soon as he headed off I started to pull back the grass and moss from the mound and underneath is a huge piece of rock maybe
6to 8foot across and about 4 foot out of the ground its full of uniformed holes and creases and has what look like tree limbs or bones coming out from within
I thought it may be a tree stump which has been fossilized
is it normal to find this amount of fossils in rural Ireland especially in a 300 year old house wall

Wow what happened with this?

Alvin T. Grey

First and formost, know your rocks:

http://www.docstoc.com/docs/53891478/Geology-of-Ireland

dolano

Steedagh Point in Sligo , a huge amount of fossils to be found on the rocks there

Step23

There are no formal fossil collecting groups in Ireland, which is a shame (this also applies to minerals), considering there are loads of small collecting groups and regular trading fairs/shows in England it really puts Ireland to shame in this regard.

However, for those interested in learning more about geology and fossils I would strongly advise joining the Irish Geological Assocation.
http://www.geology.ie/

Or send me a PM if you want any futher information on collecting locations in Leinster.

Guyett

Portmarnock has a lot of fossils.
In the area around the martello tower I have seen Crinoids, bryzoa, smaller brachiopods and even a shark tooth
Moving towards Malahide I found more crinoids, solitary corals, more brachiopods (some encrusted with colonial corals.
I also saw a section of an Orthoconic Nautaloid.

I found a large amount of gastropods alongside colonial corals.

Some overturned corals further, evidence of bioturbation.

in the area near robswall there are a load of what look like oysters that cemented to the bed that have corals beside them.

steddyeddy

Fossil hunting In Ireland will really pay off when/if they discover neanderthal or some earlier hominid here. That would be cool!

Wibbs

For that S, I say look in the extreme south west. Cork, Kerry that sort of area. Where the ice didn't do it's worst.

Galvasean

A neanderthal? In Ireland? Oh Wibbs, dont you know that's impossible! Why? because the man said so, that's why! :pac:

Step23

steddyeddy wrote: »

Fossil hunting In Ireland will really pay off when/if they discover neanderthal or some earlier hominid here. That would be cool!

The only neanderthals in Ireland are the ones running the country

upandover

Hi, Could anyone advise on whether an 8 year old and her non-palaeontologist dad would be able to hunt fossils in the Dublin area with any success? The last thing I want to do is kill her interest by spending a day finding nothing. Any suggestions very welcome.

Galvasean

Myself and Guyett went down to Portmarnock beach about a week ago and saw loads of fossils. Of course Guyett is a geologist and was able to point stuff out to me. It's weird; once you know what you're looking for they're handy enough to spot. Getting used to spotting them in the first place is the tricky bit. I'd recommend have someone witha bit of experience showing you the ropes first.

Guyett

I'm sure you'd be more than able to do that now Sean haha

Feardorca

I found some in my own back yard !! In stone chippings delivered from a rock quarry.

Galvasean

Guyett wrote: »

I'm sure you'd be more than able to do that now Sean haha

Ah, but getting me out of the house is the first trick! :P

Feardorca wrote: »

I found some in my own back yard !! In stone chippings delivered from a rock quarry.

Ooh.... Any chance of a few pics so our panel of 'esteemed experts' can identify them?

Ziphius

Galvasean wrote: »

I'd recommend have someone witha bit of experience showing you the ropes first.

Absolutely agree with this. In college I went on a few geology field trips around Dublin Bay. Having an expert show you what to look for definitely improves the experience. Dublin Bay has some very interesting geology and the DART makes it very accessible. The fossils, however, aren't terribly impressive. Although maybe that's because my guides didn't focus on them too much.

For people outside of Dublin I'd recommend Hook Head in county Wexford. Plenty of crinoids, brachiopods, byozoans and so on to find. And many in suitable chunks that can be taken home. I think it's mostly carboniferous in age but apparently there is evidence of Edicaran Jellyfish which would be much older (perhaps from another location in Wexford).

The book Leinster by Stillman and Sevastopulo has a few self guided excursions around the province including Dublin.

Happy hunting!

Guyett

I know Sevastopulo, he's a nice guy, he lectures in Trinity.
Yeah Hook head has tonnes of fossils in the carboniferous limestone around it and you can walk along the shore towards Hook head looking at fossils from different geological period as you're walking from precambrian to carboniferous.

There is also an ancient fault at tomhaggard if those things interest you, lots of mylonite there.

chopper6

Anybody got an pics of fossils they've found here in Ireland?

Wibbs

I've a shedload I collected as a kid. I'll root them out and take pics later today.

chopper6

Wibbs wrote: »

I've a shedload I collected as a kid. I'll root them out and take pics later today.

Splendid.

i collected a few myself but god knows where they are now..my favourite was a complete fossilised cockle.

MeteoritesEire

St Johns Point near Killybegs is coming down with fossils.A friend showed me recently.Now I didn't get all the way out to the end but I have highlighted the area we stopped at and the fossils were everywhere.I have some in situ pics somewhere I'll dig out but here are the bigger pieces.I don't know what they are and wasn't aware of No-hammer laws but these were jostled out by hand.There are some big ammonite looking spirals which are cemented right into the rock of the shorefront.

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4B5D8C8C863A46D89DA8BF81D73ADE50-0000355662-0003500826-00800L-818A6C3CAA9442CCA8734C2662FEF964.jpg

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this is the spot--where the road runs right alongside the seafront
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couldn't resist putting this up.It's a huge orthoceras I got a few years ago.Originally from Morocco.It's about 2 feet long
87FCB140C016465CB61875B76363E542-0000355662-0003500858-00800L-737C4287685549E6B0A1C0A75700D3B7.jpg

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