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October 6, 2008

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Central S.C. Se...

Central S.C. Sea Shells ?

12/9/2004 10:17:28 PM

legacyForum

725 posts

Central S.C. Sea Shells ?

I have recently discovered a large find of Sea Shells in central S.C. . Any idea how old these shells could be?
I have noticed an interesting thing, about half of the
shells have one small hole in them. None of them have more than one hole, so I doubt it is from ware. The holes are about the size of a tooth pick. My guess is something was feasting on these shells. What could have been eating them?

Stan in Central S.C.

12/15/2004 3:14:34 PM

legacyForum

725 posts

RE: Central S.C. Sea Shells ?

I found what was eatting those Bivalves. It was the Urosalpinx, commonly called the Oyster Drill. I found a number of their shells in the same area. For more info see: http://www.enature.com/fieldguide/showSpeciesRECNUM.asp?recnum=SS0064

(be sure to copy both of the above lines)

Stan

2/8/2006 11:45:09 AM

legacyForum

725 posts

RE: Central S.C. Sea Shells ?

Stan- I grew up in Augusta, Ga and went to a place near Waynesville called Shell Bluff as a kid. It was a huge outcropping of giant oyster shells (10 inches in length). All of this coastal region of the southeast has experienced vast time periods of oceanic transgressions. At the height of glacial melt sea level was 100 meters higher and during periods of glacial expansion sea level was 100 meters lower. Since the ice sheets are a result of evaporation (from the ocean), that water is locked up on land and sea level falls. The reverse is true as glaciers melt. Sea level has been as high as to put the southeast coast on a line from Raleigh, NC down through Camden and Columbia SC, through Augusta and Macon, Ga. It has also been as low as to put the coast 50 to 100 miles further out than it is currently. Its not surprising that you would find shallow water fossils in central SC. How about this story! I have a friend that spear fishes out of Beaufort SC. They were 75 miles offshore in the gulf stream and diving a shoal that was only 40 feet of water. In the sand, half burried, they spotted a curved, tapered, golden brown solid "tube" shape. They fanned the sand, uncovered it, and hauled it on board. It was 6-7 feet long. They sent pix to the Smithsonian and it was a mammoth tusk. Clearly that area was at some time a terrestrial habitat. Lee

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