Dinosaurs: Fossil shows 'different appearance' says expert
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Siddak Singh Jhamat discovered the fossil while using a hunting gift given to him at Christmas. Vish Singh, Siddak’s father, said he identified the fossil’s history through a Facebook group, and wants to share the discovery with Birmingham University’s Museum of Geology.
After hunting for answers online, Mr Singh was told the fossil’s markings on the relic indicated it was most likely a Rugosa coral, estimated to be between 251 to 488 million years old.
Siddak said he was “excited” to find the fossil in his garden, as he was only digging for worms.
He said: “I was just digging for worms and things like pottery and bricks and I just came across this rock which looked a bit like a horn, and thought it could be a tooth or a claw or a horn, but it was actually a piece of coral which is called horn coral.
“I was really excited about what it really was.”
Mr Singh told PA he and his son “were surprised” they found the Rugosa coral.
He said: “He found a horn coral, and some smaller pieces next to it, then the next day he went digging again and found a congealed block of sand.
“In that there were loads of little molluscs and sea shells, and something called a crinoid, which is like a tentacle of a squid, so it’s quite a prehistoric thing.”
The Rugosa coral existed in the Paleozoic Era, “between 500 and 251 million years ago” according to Mr Singh
Explaining more about the rare find, Mr Singh shared “England at the time was part of Pangea, a landmass of continents”, adding that “England was all underwater as well”.
The family also shared they do not live in an area known for its fossils – like the Jurassic Coast in the south of England – but that they do have a lot of natural clay in the garden where the fossils were found.
Mr Singh added: “Lots and lots of people have commented on how amazing it is to find something in the back garden.
“They say you can find fossils anywhere if you look carefully enough, but to find a significantly large piece like that is quite unique.”
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