What would cause the rock to look like this

There is a working geologist among our membership, but you might have to wait a while for him to see this thread and respond.

Yeah, Farmer boy is quite the stoner.

Some of the rocks in Newfoundland are extremely old and date back to the ediacaran period. There may have been large circular organisms like jellyfish which might leave circular fossils.

But circular formations in rocks can come from a number of sources, like magma bubbles or lava tubes.

To know more about this particular formation it would help to know it's precise location. Then we could probably figure out it's rock-type and narrow it down from there.

this was found about 10 feet higher up the cliff
http://i.imgur.com/p8JJ4nT.jpg
i found this in conception bay newfoundland on bell island canada
there are 3 iron ore veins on the island that go out under the ocean the island contains fossiliferous Lower Ordovician shales and sandstones, with many intercalated oolitic hematite beds

Ive got several pubs of the Avalon Peninsul nd the gradational sequences.There are evidences in the Pre Cambrian units of turbidite deposits and Im only guessing that the structure we see here is a relict of a mega conchoidal like structure from a turbidite. The other units that grade from pC to Paleozoic are ell documented (WITH THE EXCEPTION of the oolitic hematite deposits. Can you point me to some pub that defined the map unit showing those oolites? Itd actually be worth a field trip cause the enrgy budgets (as I think you know) vary quite a bit from turbidite(flysch" through marine sediments through oolitic deposits.
Im going to go look up some information on oolites in the Avalon (Conception/Avalonian/etc etc)
This is interesting

http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/e82-087
http://i.imgur.com/3CMZBbg.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/8NeUyxA.jpg

very nifty, thanks. The entire Avalonian subcontinent is a neat province for looking at many of these Gondwana subunits.

After I posted last evening I saw some examples of the oolitic hematite layers. Are you working in the field or are you a collector?

I am a photographer with a side passion for rocks and the secrets they might hide

can you get a picture of the oolitic layer(s)?
Try to place something in the picture (like a coin or compass ) for scale?

The reason I said those conchoidal fractures looked like structure is because, if you look, it appears that the structure cuts through several layers , whereas a fossil would be defined by that structure and the "crack"would be contained pretty much within the layer that contains it.

Yes i will get back down and grab some shots today if i can

Thank you. OOlites are interesting energy indicators

I'm envious of all the cool fossils you have in your area. Here in New Hampshire we've got nothing, just glacial erratic's all over the place.

http://i.imgur.com/tXqSR5w.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/v5zrGeV.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/THHoM0Z.jpg
best i could get today weather is not nice out and the waves were not helping either .It does go through multiple layers though

Sorry, no comment about the rocks, except for oh look they are freaking awesome, just chiming in my god I love Newfoundland. I've only been twice. The second time, just a few years back was for ten days, all over the place. Not long enough, not by a long shot. Hope to do it again some time. Trip of a lifetime! It is so damn beautiful.

sometime you oughta go around Newfoundland by water. Its gorgeous. We did a partial around from Argenti to Lqnse Aux Meadows number of years ago and we went around the south through Belle Isle strait. MAN, WAZ THAT LIKE A CAFFEINE HIGH.

Heres a pic of the Gros Morne lighthouse in the Long Range along the W border of Newfoundland. Its a beautiful fjord-like structure (Its not quite a fjord due to tectonics)

Found a map of our route you can see Gros Morne as the red spot on the left.

We ferried into Port aux Basque from NS (it was hell - no cabin
and out of Argentia (a lot better with a berth). It was a road trip that time, with a few boat tours in various places, but what I wouldn't give to be able to do the whole trip by boat. I think I would die to do it.
.

Gros Morne is just mind blowing. I could have spent ten days just there.