Yellow Hammer News has a story about an unexpected catch on a family fishing trip in Alabama. They found a 32 million year old (Oligocene) turtle in the bank of the river. It turns out the animal was not known to science and has now been named for their family, Coleman… Ueloca colemanorum. The animal’s description was published in the journal Palaeodiversity.

A South Alabama family stumbled onto quite the discovery while fishing along a riverbank — the fossilized shell of a 32-million-year-old leatherback sea turtle, according to a news release issued jointly by the McWane Science Center, Poarch Creek Indians, and the Learning Campus.

The specimen, nearly four feet long and three feet wide, represents a new genus and species and is among the most complete fossils of its kind ever found.

Adam and Adrienne Coleman, along with their children Talah and Corey, often combine fishing with fossil hunting — a pastime passed down from Adam’s father.

“My dad got me into collecting fossils when I was a kid,” Adam said. “Now we look for them every time we’re on the river.”

During a 2021 outing, the family noticed a massive dome-shaped object embedded in limestone. “I’d never seen anything like it,” Adrienne recalled. Unsure of its significance, the Colemans kept the discovery secret, often returning to visit the mysterious fossil.

Over a year later, Adam contacted Dr. Andrew Gentry, a paleontologist in south Alabama. Gentry was stunned when he examined the find. “When I saw the fossil for the first time, it was hard to believe what I was seeing,” he said. “It was absolutely breathtaking.”

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Thanks for the contribution, Jeff Allen!