P11, Torre Picchio section, S. Maria di Ciciliano Fm, Montecastrilli, Umbria (Pliocene to of Italy)

Also known as Torre di Picchio

Where: Umbria, Italy (42.7° N, 12.5° E: paleocoordinates 42.6° N, 12.4° E)

• coordinate based on nearby landmark

• outcrop-level geographic resolution

When: Santa Maria di Ciciliano Formation, Pliocene to Pliocene (5.3 - 0.0 Ma)

• A number of samples within the section were taken and each has been entered separately. Date based on Macromammals and molluscs - thought to be Early Pleistocene in age, but some taxa are Pliocene, indicating either longer survival in Italy than elsewhere, or that the Formation is slightly earlier than previously thought (in which case it marks the first appearance of some Early Pleistocene taxa).

Environment/lithology: fluvial

• Three separate deposits in the section - lowermost is two meters of coarse sands which are yellow, cross-stratified with levels or lenses of clayey pebbles, fine sand, silt and clay. Oxidised crusts and fossil wood stumps are common features. Thought to be a meandering channel deposit. Above it is one meter of silts and clays, the first 35 cm of which are silty, brownish, with evident root traces and therefore considered a palaeosol formed in a swampy environment. The last 70 cm are grey clays refered to a lacustrine environment.
• Outcrop of sandy, clayey and silty sediments.

•P11 is from a horizon of muddy sand.

Size classes: macrofossils, mesofossils, microfossils

Collection methods: bulk, peroxide, sieve,

• Plant remains indicate a Mean Annual Temperature of 12 +_1 Centigrade (close to modern temps for Umbria) with higher precipitation than at present, and no marked summer drought. Cooler temps than those idicated by Late Pliocene plant remains from the same area.

Primary reference: O. Girotti, L. Capasso Barbato, D. Esu, E. Gliozzi, T. Kotsakis, E. Martinetto, C. Petronio, R. Sardella, and E. Squazzini. 2003. The section of Torre Picchio (Terni, Umbria, Central Italy): A Villafranchian site rich in vertebrates, molluscs, ostracods and plants. Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia 109(1):77-98 [A. Turner/H. O'Regan/H. O'Regan]more details

Purpose of describing collection: biostratigraphic analysis

PaleoDB collection 51757: authorized by Alan Turner, entered by Hannah O'Regan on 16.06.2005, edited by Wolfgang Kiessling

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

• Vertebrates are given as one list for the whole outcrop. Plant remains and molluscs are subdivided/subsampled and have been entered as subcollections.
unclassified
  -
Pyracantha sp.
endocarp.
Nupar cf. canaliculatum
frequent. seed.
Carpolithes
  -
Carpolithes sp. Schlotheim 1820
Carpolithes ssp. 3 unidentified species.
Polypodiopsida
 Salviniales - Polypodiidae
Azolla cf. filiculoides
very frequent. megaspores.
Angiospermae
 Fagales - Betulaceae
Alnus sp. Miller 1754 alder
amentum (catkins)
Corylus avellana hazel
fruit.
 Fagales - Juglandaceae
Pterocarya cf. limburgensis wingnut
endocarp.
Juglans bergomensis walnut
endocarp. Squazzini collection.
 Rosales - Rosaceae
Prunus sp. Linnaeus 1753 plum
endocarp.
 Rosales - Ulmaceae
Zelkova sp. Spach 1841 zelkova
fruit.
 Vitales - Vitaceae
Vitis cf. sylvestris grapevine
seed.
Dicotyledoneae
 Ericales - Styracaceae
Styrax sp. Linnaeus 1753 storax
seed.
 Myrtales - Lythraceae
Decodon cf. gibbosus
frequent. seed.
 Myrtales - Onagraceae
Ludwigia cf. palustris water-purslane
seed.
Angiospermae
 Solanales - Solanaceae
Physalis sp. Linnaeus 1753 nightshade
seed.
 Aquifoliales - Aquifoliaceae
Ilex cf. protogea holly
seed.
 Apiales -
Oenanthe aquatica
frequent. fruit.
 Saxifragales - Haloragaceae
Myriophyllum sp. Linnaeus 1753 water milfoil
endocarp.
 Saxifragales - Hamamelidaceae
Liquidambar sp. Linnaeus 1753 sweetgum
fruiting head.
 Ranunculales - Ranunculaceae
Ranunculus sceleratus Linnaeus 1753 buttercup
frequent. fruit.
 Ceratophyllales - Ceratophyllaceae
Ceratophyllum demersum Linnaeus 1753 hornwort
fruit.
 Poales - Typhaceae
Typha sp. Linnaeus 1753 bulrush
seed.
 Typhales - Commelinidae
Sparganium cf. neglectum bur-reed
endocarp.
 Alismales - Alismaceae
Alisma sp. Linnaeus 1753 water-plantain
fruit.