USGS D1982. Redbird (Cretaceous of the United States)

Also known as Pierre Shale (USGS D1982, D1983, D1984)

Where: Niobrara County, Wyoming (43.3° N, 104.3° W: paleocoordinates 49.7° N, 79.1° W)

• coordinate estimated from map

• small collection-level geographic resolution

When: Baculites baculus ammonoid zone, upper unnamed shale Member (Pierre Shale Formation), Early/Lower Maastrichtian (70.6 - 66.0 Ma)

• Pierre shale, about 260' above top of Kara member; was 93 in bed/horizon.

• bed-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: offshore; lithified, gray, silty shale and limestone

• "Shale, silty. weathers light medium gray; contains brown weathering very fossiliferous ls concretions as much as 1.5 ft thick and 4 ft diam."

Size class: macrofossils

Reposited in the USGS

Collection methods: mechanical,

Primary reference: J. R. Gill, W. A. Cobban, and P. M. Kier. 1966. The Red Bird Section of the Upper Cretaceous Pierre Shale in Wyoming. United States Geological Survey Professional Paper 393-A:1-73 [J. Alroy/M. Sommers/A. Clement]more details

Purpose of describing collection: biostratigraphic analysis

PaleoDB collection 1586: authorized by John Alroy, entered by Mike Sommers on 17.05.1999, edited by Pete Wagner

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

• "The fossils are ordinarily well-preserved. Most of the cephalopod shells and the inner nacreous layer of Inoceramus are aragonitic, especially specimens from above the Red Bird Silty Member. Shell material and specimens from the Red Bird member and the upper 50' of the underlying Mitten Member is partially transformed to calcite...Ammonites...of the [mid-upper third] of the Mitten Member are...entirely aragonite whereas shell material [of underlying material] is completely transformed to calcite."
unclassified
  -
Polychaeta
 Serpulimorpha -
? Diploconcha sp.
originally entered as "? Diploconcha sp."
Cephalopoda
 Ammonitida - Baculitidae
Baculites baculus Meek and Hayden 1861 ammonite
 Ammonitida - Scaphitidae
Discoscaphites sp. Meek 1870 ammonite
sp. nov.
Acanthoscaphites sp. Nowak 1911 ammonite
 Nautilida - Nautilidae
Bivalvia
 Nuculida - Nuculidae
Nucula planimarginata Meek and Hayden 1857 nut clam
 Nuculanida - Nuculanidae
Nuculana evansi pointed nut clam
 Mytilida - Crenellidae
Crenella sp. Brown 1827 clam
sp. nov.
 Mytilida - Mytilidae
"Modiolus meekii" = Modiolus meeki
"Modiolus meekii" = Modiolus meeki Evans and Shumard 1857 mussel
 Pectinida - Anomiidae
Anomia sp. Linnaeus 1758 jingle
 Pectinida - Oxytomidae
Oxytoma nebrascana Evans and Shumard 1857 scallop
 Pectinida - Entoliidae
Syncyclonema sp. Meek 1864 scallop
 Pectinida - Pectinoidae
Pecten nebrascensis scallop
(Chlamys)
 Ostreida - Pteriidae
"Pteria linguaeformis" = Phelopteria linguaeformis
"Pteria linguaeformis" = Phelopteria linguaeformis Evans and Shumard 1854 pearl oyster
 Ostreida - Ostreidae
Ostrea sp. Linnaeus 1758 oyster
 Myalinida - Inoceramidae
? Inoceramus cf. fibrosus Meek and Hayden 1857 clam
originally entered as "? Inoceramus cf. fibrosus"
 Arcida - Cucullaeidae
"Idonearca shumardi" = Cucullaea (Idonearca)
"Idonearca shumardi" = Cucullaea (Idonearca) clam
 Pholadomyida - Pholadomyidae
Pholadomya sp. Sowerby 1823 clam
 Pholadida - Corbulidae
"Corbula crassimarginata" = Varicorbula crassimarginata
"Corbula crassimarginata" = Varicorbula crassimarginata Meek and Hayden 1860 clam
 Cardiida - Cardiidae
Protocardia sp. Beyrich 1845 cockle
 Cardiida - Veneridae
Dosiniopsis deweyi Meek and Hayden 1856 venus clam
Gastropoda
 Heterostropha - Ringiculidae
 Opisthobranchia - Scaphandridae
 Vanikoroidea - Vanikoridae
 Neogastropoda - Maturifusidae
 Neogastropoda - Melongenidae
Serrifusus ? dakotensis Meek and Hayden 1856 snail
originally entered as "Serrifusus ? dakotensis"
 Sorbeoconcha - Aporrhaidae
Drepanocheilus evansi snail
originally entered as "Drepanochilus evansi"
 Sorbeoconcha - Naticidae
Scaphopoda
 Dentaliida - Dentaliidae