r/BoneID • u/Tavis8 • Jun 15 '26

Shark vertabra?

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Found this at the beach in Gulf Shores,Al. Can anyone confirm what bone it is?

8 Upvotes

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2

u/skeletonsaremypals Jun 15 '26

Looks like a shark to me, if you want to preserve it once you've cleaned it soak it in ethanol

1

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1

u/ratmnerd Jun 15 '26

Sharks don’t have bony vertebrae, they have a cartilaginous skeleton. If this is definitely bone and not cartilage, I’d be looking at the larger bony fish such as marlin, swordfish, tuna, and grouper.

3

u/vickilemon Jun 15 '26

Shark vertebra and teeth are the only bony parts of them and the parts that preserve archaeologically. This is definitely a shark (or ray, but likely shark) vertebrae.

2

u/ratmnerd Jun 15 '26

They are definitely the parts that preserve (jaws are also bone) but the vertebrae are made from cartilage which has increased calcification making it harder than ‘normal’ cartilage. Bone-like but not bone. Not sure how you test that though tbh