K 8399 - Courbaril Member, Point Courbaril (Pliocene of Trinidad and Tobago)

Where: Trinidad and Tobago (10.2° N, 61.6° W: paleocoordinates 10.2° N, 60.9° W)

• coordinate based on nearby landmark

• outcrop-level geographic resolution

When: Courbaril Member (Morne l'Enfer Formation), Early/Lower Pliocene (5.3 - 3.6 Ma)

• Collection is from the Courbaril Sand and Clay Member of the Upper Morne l'Enfer Formation. The Courbaril fauna is considered to be of early Pliocene age and is probably slightly older than the Matura fauna.

• bed-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: shoreface; poorly lithified sandstone and claystone

• The assemblage as a whole points to a nearshore environment, with some brackish influence (compared with Melajo Clay assemblages).
• Poor reporting of lithologies. Named as the "Courbaril Sand and Clay Member", so these lithologies are assigned.

Size class: macrofossils

Reposited in the PRI, USNM

Collection methods: quarrying,

• All material descibed in this report is reposited in the Naturhistorisches Mueum, Basel, or the USNM. Additional material collection from this unit is found at PRI.

Primary reference: P. Jung. 1969. Miocene and Pliocene mollusks from Trinidad. Bulletins of American Paleontology 55(247):293-697 [A. Miller/A. Hendy]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 60659: authorized by Austin Hendy, entered by Austin Hendy on 19.05.2006

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

• Exhaustive for Mollusca. Crab claws, corals, fish teeth, and scarce foraminifera also exist in the unit, though are not listed. Van de Bold (1963) also lists ostracords from several localities.
Bivalvia
 Nuculanida - Nuculanidae
"Nuculana (Saccella) ludificans" = Saccella
"Nuculana (Saccella) ludificans" = Saccella pointed nut clam
 Ostreida - Ostreidae
Ostrea sp. Linnaeus 1758 oyster
 Arcida - Arcidae
 Arcida - Noetiidae
Noetia (Eontia) centrota Guppy 1867 clam
 Carditida - Carditidae
Carditamera (Carditamera) sp., "Carditamera (Bryssomera) aff. affinis" = Carditamera affinis
"Carditamera (Bryssomera) aff. affinis" = Carditamera affinis Sowerby 1823 clam
 Cardiida - Cardiidae
 Cardiida - Semelidae
Semele proficua Pulteney 1799 clam
Abra cf. aequalis Say 1822 abra
 Cardiida - Tellinidae
"Eurytellina melajoensis" = Tellina (Eurytellina), Eurytellina punicea, "Moerella (Moerella) elinguis" = Tellina (Moerella)
"Eurytellina melajoensis" = Tellina (Eurytellina) tellin clam
Eurytellina punicea Born 1778 tellin clam
"Moerella (Moerella) elinguis" = Tellina (Moerella) tellin clam
 Cardiida - Donacidae
Donax striatus Linnaeus 1767 clam
 Cardiida - Chamidae
Chama cf. macerophylla Gmelin 1791 jewel box
[entered as Chama macrophylla]
 Cardiida - Veneridae
Chione (Nioche) veatchiana Maury 1912 venus clam
"Chione (Lirophora) sanctidavidis" = Lirophora venus clam
 Pholadida - Corbulidae
 Lucinida - Lucinidae
Scaphopoda
 Dentaliida - Dentaliidae
Gastropoda
 Neogastropoda - Muricidae
 Neogastropoda - Melongenidae
Melongena melongena Linnaeus 1758 snail
 Neogastropoda - Nassariidae
 Sorbeoconcha - Vermetidae
Serpulorbis decussatus Gmelin 1791 worm shell
 Sorbeoconcha - Naticidae
"Natica (Naticarius) aff. canrena" = Naticarius canrena
"Natica (Naticarius) aff. canrena" = Naticarius canrena Linnaeus 1758 moon snail
 Vanikoroidea - Eulimidae
Eulima "sp. A" Risso 1826 snail
 Cerithioidea - Turritellidae
Turritella (Broderiptella) bifastigata Nelson 1870 turret shell
Subspecies: T. (B.) bifastigata
 Cerithioidea - Cerithiidae
Cerithium harrisi cerith snail
 Neritoidea - Neritidae
"Neritina (Vitta) cf. virginia" = Neritina virginea
"Neritina (Vitta) cf. virginia" = Neritina virginea Linnaeus 1758 snail