animal skull id

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Let's see first off in case you didn't know I have been collecting skulls and skeletons for about 13 years. Now from an underside shot it is really difficult to say what exactly you have so we have to rule out a couple of things. Good work on googling skulls to see what it might be. Second here's a couple of sites to try and investigate further.

www.skullsunlimited.com
www.digimorph.org

Those should be really helpfull. Looking at it I can rule out mammals. I can rule out birds. I can say that It is either some kind of monitor lizard or a chain pickeral which are native to your area. You're right that you don't have pike or muskie, but you do have chain pickeral. That's more than likely what it is. How big was the skull? It doesn't look like the palat is solid enough to be the monitor lizard so I am sticking with chain pickeral. Looks like the skull is rather small. Regardless without a top shot I can't say much of anything. Usually best way to identify a skull is a top and side view shot. I am about 60-75% on saying it's the pickeral, or depending or where it's at a small baracuda that has swam into fresh which happens on ocassion. Could also be something totally different that someone dumped into there. Definitely not an alligator, or opposum. I have a tiny muskie skull that I can look at when i get home from work in 3 days for comparison, but I dont have it here with me so it doesn't do me much good. Good luck!
 
Oh yeah other thing I was wondering. Is there any other bones in that group besides fish bones? The other two skeletons look complete so if it is anything other than a fish you will see long bones such as legs and toes, and pelvis, ect laying next to it.
 
after further examination I have concluded that this is definitely a fish in the family Esocidae. I was looking at the skull and noticed that the mandibles and the hyoidal structures are all there, and they look exactly like the small muskie that I had. Everything is there. If I was a betting man I would say 90% now on the Chain pickerel Esox niger. Hope that helps.
 
here's a barracuda and a pike skull. Similar to what you found both of them.

baracuda.jpg

Esox_luciusZZ.jpg
 
the trust,,,your :screwy: :grinno:

necrocanis
monitor lizards have teeth like that?
i dont think chain pickeral here at the bottom of fl. ;)
size of it not sure,6-8"?
small baracuda
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na,its a small pond fed by a ditch a few months a year.
it is far from saltwater also.
Oh yeah other thing I was wondering. Is there any other bones in that group besides fish bones? The other two skeletons look complete so if it is anything other than a fish you will see long bones such as legs and toes, and pelvis, ect laying next to it
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whats in pics is all i found/seen.
didnt think it was an odd skull so didnt check it out much more.
Similar to what you found both of them.
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similar and "the same" are 2 different things :D

thanks for the replies tho.
i might have to go back now.lol
but fwc might want to see also.
those teeth dont look like anything ive seen around here.
 
stotty;1026878; said:
Yep thats what we require ;)
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lol, I'm still betting Chain pickeral. More pics just remember that's the bottom and we need top, front, back, and side shots to be 100%, and so that you know all species in that family have almost identicle skulls. Just look at the fish. I just threw in barracuda for comparison I seriously doubt that one, but if it's nothing that's been posted yet than it's an exotic of some sort.
 
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