Gallery
These photos are from my Instagram feed and get updated every week.
Small bit of petrified wood I found while on the beach with the family, it pays to always keep your eyes open. It measure about 7cm (3") - not very large but has a pleasing colour.
Concretions by moonlight... and a strong head torch! Had a blast this morning looking for fossils. Found a bit of everything including shells, cetacean bones and 2 beautiful intact crabs in a Miocene area. Oh and a geologist's hammer that was half buried!
First crab of the morning! Found it 2 minutes after I got to the beach. You can see the legs sticking out the side of the concretion and they look to be in great condition!
Early morning fossil hunt didn't disappoint! Found a nice piece of what I suspect is a fossilised cetacean bone.
This is a large fossilised vertebrae I found a couple of months ago. I'm guessing it's from a species of whale? Anyone know for sure? Area was Miocene but the river I found it in does run through a Cretaceous layer known for its plesiosaur deposits.
This concretion was in my maybe pile so decided to split it open today. Inside is a perfect crab! 100% complete, no legs sticking out at all! Glad I took a chance and brought it home. @nzfossil @sandhya_fossils
My largest and smallest crab concretions. The small one is 8cm (3") wide and weighs 225 grams (8 oz). The large one is 50cm (20") wide and weighs 70kg (150 lbs).
My favourite agate from the weekend's hunt. Has some crystals and nice lines - excited to give it a cut! Found on the beach near the Rangitata river in the pouring rain. With @chris_caine_88 Have a look on my YouTube channel for a video of the hunt.
There's something you don't see every day, a vertebrae with a rock stuck in it. Not the agate I was looking for but brought it home anyway!
My agate haul from the weekend, well happy with it! Some I will try and cut this week and see if there is anything interesting inside.
Some of the larger agates I found today, hopefully they cut well!
Miles and miles of beach to explore for agates and other cool rocks today.
Decent sized agate I found today on the beach near Ashburton.
First agate of the day. Down in South Canterbury for the weekend to stock up on some pretty rocks.
Prepping my first fossil which is also the first fossil crab I ever found. A small Tumidocarcinus Giganteus from New Zealand.
Miocene era fossil crab I found and a friend prepped for me. Species is Tumidocarcinus Giganteus.
Was out fossil hunting and saw this massive concretion on the beach. There were some septarian ones nearby as well.
Suspected fossil crab I found early this morning.
Took a chance and had this rock cut, inside was some hidden blue moss goodness! Found in Canterbury, New Zealand.
Received some of my North Canterbury jasper back after it's cut and polish. Such good colors!