LORI TOBIAS/The Oregonian
Scientists think a fossilized tortoise found along the beach in Lincoln County may be 20 million years old. The domed back of the stone, which measures roughly 30 inches long by 24 inches wide, suggests it was a land turtle.
If I had seen the above, I would have simply dismissed it as a very large concretion. Even looking at the full size image (click to double the size), I'm not seeing any features that jump out and say "fossil." But I'm not a paleo guy, even less of a vertebrate paleo guy, and know absolutely nothing about chelonian paleo. So I'm willing to assume that
Hanschumaker and Orr know what they're talking about.
Very Cool!
This really doesn't look like a turtle to me judging by this photo. The size doesn't bother me but the texture of the "tortoise shell" does. It is likely just a concretion, which are fairly common. I can see how an untrained observer would think it was a turtle. I don't consider myself an expert, but I have spent a lot of time looking at fossil turtle bones.
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