Bird's River (C-Dt II) (Triassic of South Africa)

Where: Eastern Cape, South Africa (31.5° S, 26.8° E: paleocoordinates 62.4° S, 7.2° W)

• coordinate based on unpublished field data

When: Molteno Formation (Stormberg Group), Carnian (237.0 - 228.0 Ma)

Environment/lithology: lacustrine - small; lithified, gray, yellow shale

• "transient lake in back swamp" (Anderson and Anderson 1985 (ref. 6188)). Karoo basin.
• "yellowish grey, very well laminated shale" (Anderson and Anderson 1985 (ref. 6188))

Size classes: macrofossils, mesofossils

Preservation: mold/impression

Collected by E. F. Riek, Heidi & John Anderson

Collection methods: quarrying,

• The Tennant family prepared the site by drainage of a significant storage dam, followed by removal of the weathered overburden so that the party could commence, immediately, to excavate productive sediment of this relatively rich insect horizon

Primary reference: E. F. Riek. 1976. A new collection of insects from the Upper Triassic of South Africa. Annals of the Natal Museum 22(3):791-820 [M. Clapham/J. Karr/M. Clapham]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 115196: authorized by Matthew Clapham, entered by Jered Karr on 30.08.2011

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

• habitat described as "Sphenobaiera closed woodland" (Anderson and Anderson 2000 (ref. 6625))
Insecta
 Odonata - Triassolestidae
Triassoneura andersoni n. gen. n. sp., "Triassoneura heidiae n. sp." = Afrotriassothemis heidiae, "Triassoneura ? heidiae" = Afrotriassothemis heidiae, "Triassoneura regularis n. sp." = Afrotriassothemis regularis
Triassoneura andersoni n. gen. n. sp. Riek 1976 dragonfly
C-Dt II 763
"Triassoneura heidiae n. sp." = Afrotriassothemis heidiae Riek 1976 dragonfly
C-Dt II 791, 762, 759, 758
"Triassoneura ? heidiae" = Afrotriassothemis heidiae Riek 1976 dragonfly
C-Dt II 794, 793, 871, 757
"Triassoneura regularis n. sp." = Afrotriassothemis regularis Riek 1976 dragonfly
C-Dt II 760
 Dicondylia - Triadotypidae
Triassologus biseriatus n. gen. n. sp.
Triassologus biseriatus n. gen. n. sp. Riek 1976 winged insect
C-Dt II 764
 Ephemerida - Litophlebiidae
"Xenophlebia optata n. gen. n. sp." = Litophlebia optata
"Xenophlebia optata n. gen. n. sp." = Litophlebia optata Riek 1976 mayfly
C-Dt II 752ab, 754ab, 755ab
 Coleoptera - Ademosynidae
Ademosyne reducta n. sp. Riek 1976 beetle
C-Dt II 780, 777, 795
 Mecoptera - Mesopsychidae
Mesoses optata n. gen. n. sp., Mesoses magna n. sp.
Mesoses optata n. gen. n. sp. Riek 1976 scorpionfly
C-Dt II 774, 778
Mesoses magna n. sp. Riek 1976 scorpionfly
C-Dt II 789
 Blattaria - Caloblattinidae
Samaroblatta parvula n. sp. Riek 1976 cockroach
C-Dt II 765, 785
 Hemiptera - Scytinopteridae
Scytinoptera distorta n. sp. Riek 1976 true bug
C-Dt II 782
 Hemiptera - Protopsyllidiidae
Protopsyllidiidae "nymph" Becker-Migdisova 1960 true bug
C-Dt II 786
 Hemiptera - Tettigarctidae
Leptoprosbole lepida n. gen. n. sp.
Leptoprosbole lepida n. gen. n. sp. Riek 1976 hairy cicada
C-Dt II 790
 Hemiptera - Mesogereonidae
Triassogereon distinctum n. gen. n. sp.
Triassogereon distinctum n. gen. n. sp. Riek 1976 true bug
C-Dt II 783
 Hemiptera - Dunstaniidae
Dunstania petrophila n. sp. Riek 1976 true bug
C-Dt II 781
 Hemiptera - Palaeontinidae
"Fletcheriana magna n. sp." = Karoontina magna
"Fletcheriana magna n. sp." = Karoontina magna Riek 1976 true bug
C-Dt II 784
 Hemiptera - Dysmorphoptilidae
Tennentsia protuberans Riek 1974 true bug
C-Dt II 787, 788
 Orthoptera - Proparagryllacrididae
Dordrechtia robusta n. gen. n. sp.
Dordrechtia robusta n. gen. n. sp. Riek 1976 grasshopper
Bp/2/20995 (C-Dt II 792)
 Dicondylia - Triassoblattidae
Triassoblatta simplex n. sp. Riek 1976 winged insect
C-Dt II 770, 352, 768, 772, 353, 769
 Dicondylia - Subioblattidae
Samaroblattella revelata n. gen. n. sp.
Samaroblattella revelata n. gen. n. sp. Riek 1976 winged insect
C-Dt II 766
 Dicondylia -
Blattodea indet. Latreille 1810 cockroach
C-Dt II 870
 Plecoptera - Euxenoperlidae
Euxenoperla clara n. sp. Riek 1976 stonefly
C-Dt II 773