Whitecliff Bay, Barton Beds (Bed 11) Isle of Wight (Eocene of the United Kingdom)

Where: England, United Kingdom (50.7° N, 1.1° W: paleocoordinates 48.5° N, 5.0° W)

• coordinate based on nearby landmark

• local area-level geographic resolution

When: Barton Beds Formation, Bartonian (41.3 - 38.0 Ma)

• This bed is part of the "London Clay" sequence recognized by Prestwich and Bowerbank. I'm using Prestwich's numbering system for the unit (Bowerbank numbers it 12). I have correlated it with Bosma's naming system as the Barton Beds. When adding the occurrences from Gardner et al., this is a best-guess (based on fossil occur.) in correlating this bed with their Lower Barton fossils.

• bed-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: marine; pebbly, shelly/skeletal, sandy, calcareous claystone and concretionary, green, calcareous sandstone

• This bed is massive light and dark-coloured slightly calcareous greensand with small soft white calcareous concretions, the upper half has numerous shells and teeth. This unit in general is clay with sands and marls, in places it has pebble or shell beds.

Size class: macrofossils

Primary reference: J. S. Bowerbank. 1839. On the London and Plastic Clay Formations of the Isle of Wight. Transactions of the Geological Society of London, series 2 6:169-172 [J. Alroy/E. Leckey/P. Wagner]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 40523: authorized by John Alroy, entered by Erin Leckey on 24.06.2004

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

Foraminifera
 Nummulitacea - Nummulitidae
Gastropoda
 Neotaenioglossa - Calyptraeidae
Trochita aperta1 Solander 1766 slipper shell
 Cerithioidea - Turritellidae
"Turritella sulcifera" = Ispharina sulcifera2
"Turritella sulcifera" = Ispharina sulcifera2 Deshayes 1832 turret shell
 Neogastropoda - Mitridae
Mitra parva1 mitre shell
 Neogastropoda - Buccinidae
Buccinum solandri1 true whelk
 Neogastropoda - Nassariidae
 Neogastropoda - Turridae
"Pleurotoma exorta" = Turris1
"Pleurotoma exorta" = Turris1 turrid
 Neogastropoda - Muricidae
"Typhis pungens" = Typhis (Typhis) pungens1
"Typhis pungens" = Typhis (Typhis) pungens1 Solander in Brander and Brander 1766 murex snail
 Neogastropoda - Volutidae
"Voluta luctatrix" = Athleta (Volutospina) luctator1, "Voluta scabricula" = Volutocorbis scabricula1
"Voluta luctatrix" = Athleta (Volutospina) luctator1 Sowerby 1823 volute
"Voluta scabricula" = Volutocorbis scabricula1 Linnaeus 1758 volute
 Opisthobranchia - Bullidae
Bulla sp.1 Linnaeus 1758 snail
Bivalvia
 Pectinida - Anomiidae
Anomia striata2 Brocchi 1814 jingle
 Pectinida - Pectinoidae
"Pecten cornea" = Lentipecten corneus2
"Pecten cornea" = Lentipecten corneus2 Sowerby 1818 scallop
 Ostreida - Ostreidae
"Ostrea plicata" = Cubitostrea plicata1
"Ostrea plicata" = Cubitostrea plicata1 Solander 1766 oyster
 Pholadida - Corbulidae
 Cardiida - Veneridae
Venus sp. Linnaeus 1758 venus clam
 Cardiida - Cardiidae
Nemocardium turgidum1 Solander 1766 cockle
 Cardiida - Psammobiidae
 Solenida - Solenidae
"Solen obliquus" = Solen (Solena) obliquus
"Solen obliquus" = Solen (Solena) obliquus Spengler 1794 clam
 Carditida - Carditidae
"Venericardia planicostata" = Venericor planicosta2
"Venericardia planicostata" = Venericor planicosta2 Lamarck 1801 clam
 Carditida - Crassatellidae
Crassatella sulcata1 Solander 1866 clam
 Nuculida - Nuculidae
"Nucula similis" = Nucula (Pronucula) similis2
"Nucula similis" = Nucula (Pronucula) similis2 Cossmann and Pissarro 1904 nut clam
 Nuculanida - Nuculanidae
"Leda minima" = Nuculana1
"Leda minima" = Nuculana1 pointed nut clam
Scaphopoda
 Dentaliida - Dentaliidae
Dentalium striata1 tusk shell