Santo Domingo (Miocene of Chile)

Where: Valdivia, Chile (39.9° S, 73.2° W: paleocoordinates 40.2° S, 70.9° W)

• coordinate stated in text

When: Santo Domingo Formation, Late/Upper Miocene (11.6 - 5.3 Ma)

• Overlying Formation: Unknown. Underlying Formations: Unconformably overlies the Paleozoic metamorphic rocks of the Bahía Mansa complex. It also overlies the Pupunahue-Catamutún formation, although it is not clear whether the contact with this unit is gradational or if there is a discontinuity, as suggested by the abrupt transition from a coal-bearing unfossiliferous succession to a silty, fossil-rich unit that can be observed in bore holes drilled at the Catamutún mining area southeast of Valdivia. (Alfaro et al., 1990; Elgueta et al., 2000; Feldmann et al., 2010). Thickness: Maximum thickness of the unit at Cuesto Santo Domingo is 110 m, but this must be considered as a minimum estimate because there is no place where a complete section can be measured.

Environment/lithology: submarine fan; brown, gray, sandy siltstone and medium-grained sandstone

• The benthic foraminifera assemblage includes both shallow-water and deep-water indicators. The mixed-depth association indicates downslope displacement to lower bathyl depths (2000-4000 m). (Enicnas et al., 2008a).
• The sedimentary succession of Cuesta Santo Domingo consists almost exclusively of sandy siltstone; a few medium-grained sandstone beds are also present. The siltstone is dark gray when fresh and light gray to orange-brown when weathered. It is slightly fissile, massive, and usually breaks in large blocks. Bivalves, gastropods, crustaceans, and echinoderms are common. (Encinas et al., 2008a).

Size class: macrofossils

Preservation: cast, mold/impression

Primary reference: R. M. Feldmann, C. E. Schweitzer, and A. Encinas. 2010. Neogene Decapod Crustacea from Southern Chile. Annals of Carnegie Museum 78(4):337-366 [J. Wolfe/A. Lynch/A. Lynch]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 228523: authorized by Joanna Wolfe, entered by Arthur Lynch on 11.12.2022

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

Show authors, comments, and common names
Malacostraca
 Decapoda - Trichopeltariidae
Trichopeltarion levis
Trichopeltarion levis Casadio et al. 2004 crab
 Decapoda - Carcinidae
Archaeogeryon navidad
Archaeogeryon navidad Feldmann 2005 crab