Where: Trinidad and Tobago (10.6° N, 61.1° W: paleocoordinates 10.5° N, 59.6° W)
• coordinate based on nearby landmark
• outcrop-level geographic resolution
When: Melajo Clay Member (Springvale Formation), Late/Upper Miocene (11.6 - 5.3 Ma)
• The Melajo Clay Member of the Springvale Formation is correlated with the Savaneta Glaconitic Sandstone Member of the Springvale Formation, although part of it may be younger. The Melajo fauna is late Miocene in age. The Melajo Clay rests transgressively on the phyllites of the Northern Range with a basal conglomerate of about 1 m thickness. The conglomerate graes into a 1.5 m thick limestone, which is overlain by a bed of sand of about 1 m thickness. Above the sand is the Melajo Clay. The total thickness of the Melajo Clay is about 200 ft. It is unconformably overlain by Pleistocene sand and gravel deposits.
• bed-level stratigraphic resolution
Environment/lithology: offshore; unlithified, yellow, blue, silty claystone and unlithified, coarse-grained sandstone
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 60630: authorized by Austin Hendy, entered by Austin Hendy on 19.05.2006
Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)
Taxonomic list
Scaphopoda | |
Dentalium (Dentalium) divulgatum tusk shell | |
Bivalvia | |
Crassinella guppyi Dall 1896 clam | |
"Eurytellina melajoensis" = Tellina (Eurytellina), "Moerella (Moerella) elinguis" = Tellina (Moerella), Temnoconcha aff. brasiliana
"Eurytellina melajoensis" = Tellina (Eurytellina) tellin clam
"Moerella (Moerella) elinguis" = Tellina (Moerella) tellin clam
Temnoconcha aff. brasiliana tellin clam | |
Pitar (Lamelliconcha) circinatus, "Chione (Lirophora) caroniana" = Lirophora
Pitar (Lamelliconcha) circinatus venus clam
"Chione (Lirophora) caroniana" = Lirophora venus clam | |
"Mactra (Micromactra) cf. maracaibensis" = Mactrotoma
"Mactra (Micromactra) cf. maracaibensis" = Mactrotoma surfclam | |
Caryocorbula (Caryocorbula) sp. Gardner 1926 clam | |
"Anadara (Scapharca) placata" = Scapharca
"Anadara (Scapharca) placata" = Scapharca clam | |
"Nuculana (Saccella) ludificans" = Saccella
"Nuculana (Saccella) ludificans" = Saccella pointed nut clam | |
Gastropoda | |
"Calliostoma olssoni" = Calliostoma (Elmerlinia) olssoni
"Calliostoma olssoni" = Calliostoma (Elmerlinia) olssoni Maury 1925 top snail | |
Turbonilla "sp. D" Risso 1826 snail
Turbonilla "sp. B" Risso 1826 snail | |
Turritella (Broderiptella) planigyrata Guppy 1867 turret shell
Turritella (Broderiptella) aff. mimetes Brown and Pilsbry 1911 turret shell | |
Niso grandis snail | |
Epitonium (Asperiscala) rohri wentletrap | |
"Anachis (Costoanachis) obesa" = Parvanachis obesa
"Anachis (Costoanachis) obesa" = Parvanachis obesa Adams 1845 snail | |
Gordanops baranoanus Anderson 1929 snail
Nassarius (Uzita) trinitatensis Jung 1969 snail | |
Strioterebrum aff. laevifasciola Maury 1917 auger snail | |
Polystira "sp. B" Woodring 1928 turrid | |
Agladrillia ? lassula snail | |
Glyphostoma sculptile snail | |
"Olivella (Dactylidia) aff. mutica" = Olivella mutica, Olivella (Minioliva) fundarugata
"Olivella (Dactylidia) aff. mutica" = Olivella mutica Say 1822 olive snail
Olivella (Minioliva) fundarugata olive snail | |
Eupleura lehneri Jung 1969 murex snail | |
Cyclostremiscus (Ponocyclus) pentagonus Gabb 1873 snail | |
"Natica (Naticarius) canrena" = Naticarius canrena, Polinices stanislasmeunieri
"Natica (Naticarius) canrena" = Naticarius canrena Linnaeus 1758 moon snail
Polinices stanislasmeunieri Maury 1917 moon snail | |
Calyptraea centralis Conrad 1841 slipper shell | |
Carinodrillia meraca snail
Miraclathurella ralla snail |