Bled Douarah- Upper Faunal Level, upper subunit: Serravallian - Tortonian, Tunisia

List of taxa
Where & when
Geology
Taphonomy & methods
Metadata & references
Taxonomic list
Pisces
Pisces indet. Linnaeus 1758
Greenwood 1972 8 specimens
synonym of Osteichthyes
locality 19
Mammalia - Perissodactyla - Equidae
Hipparion primigenium (von Meyer 1829)
Forsten 1972 182 specimens
recombined as Hippotherium primigenium
localities 4,16, 14, 7, 2, 6, 28
Mammalia - Anthracotheriidae
Merycopotamus anisae n. sp.
Black 1972 71 specimens
localities 2, 4, 6, 14, 16
Mammalia - Hippopotamidae
Kenyapotamus sp. Pickford 1983
2 specimens
localities 2,4
Reptilia - Crocodylia
Crocodylia indet. (Owen 1842)
Reptilia - Struthioniformes - Struthionidae
Struthio sp. Linnaeus 1758
Vickers-Rich 1972 1 specimen
locality 2
Actinopteri - Siluriformes
Siluriformes indet.
Greenwood 1972 72 specimens
localities 2, 4, 6, 19, and 16
Siluriformes sp. A
Greenwood 1972 3 specimens
locality 2
Siluriformes sp. B
Greenwood 1972 3 specimens
localities 2, 16
Siluriformes sp. C
Greenwood 1972 6 specimens
localities 2, 16
Actinopteri - Siluriformes - Clariidae
Clariidae indet. Bonaparte 1846
Greenwood 1972 10 specimens
localities 2, 6, 16
Actinopteri - Cypriniformes - Cyprinidae
? Barbus sp. Cuvier and Cloquet 1816
Greenwood 1972 1 specimen
locality 16
Actinopteri - Centropomidae
Lates sp. Cuvier 1828
Greenwood 1972 32 specimens
localities 2, 4, 6, 16
Cladistia - Polypteriformes - Polypteridae
Polypterus sp. Lacépède 1803
Greenwood 1972 1 specimen
locality 6
Chondrichthyes - Lamniformes - Odontaspididae
Odontaspis sp. Agassiz 1838
Greenwood 1972 6 specimens
localities 2, 16
Chondrichthyes - Lamniformes - Lamnidae
Lamna sp. Cuvier 1816
Greenwood 1972 3 specimens
localities 2, 16
see common names

Geography
Country:Tunisia State/province:Gafsa
Coordinates: 34.0° North, 8.0° East (view map)
Paleocoordinates:33.7° North, 7.5° East
Basis of coordinate:estimated from map
Geographic resolution:local area
Time
Period:Neogene Epoch:Miocene
Key time interval:Serravallian - Tortonian
Age range of interval:13.82000 - 7.24600 m.y. ago
Stratigraphy
Formation:Beglia
Local section:Unit 13 Local bed:Unit 13
Local order:bottom to top
Stratigraphic resolution:bed
Stratigraphy comments: Beglia Formation is divided into units. Two fossiliferous levels have been identified. The Upper Faunal Level is subdivided into two units- upper and lower subunits. The age of the formation is estimated to be 12.5-9.5 Ma. No more specific dating is available, however Hipparion is present in both subunits of the Upper Faunal Level.

Mannaï-Tayech 2009: underlying Beglia sands were dated Serravallian to Lower Tortonian, based on their vertebrate faunal contents (Robinson and Black, 1974; Mannaï-Tayech and Otéro, 2005).
Lithology and environment
Primary lithology:"cross stratification",yellow poorly lithified conglomeratic sandstone
Includes fossils?Y
Lithology description: Units 13 is a yellow sand, cross-laminated with lateral lenses of coarse conglomerate with mudballs.
Environment:lacustrine indet.
Geology comments: Fossils collected from several localities, thought to be approximately the same age. Localities in the upper subunit of the Upper Faunal Level are 2,4,6,9,14, 16, and 28.
Taphonomy
Modes of preservation:body
Size of fossils:macrofossils,mesofossils
Disassociated major elements:some
Disassociated minor elements:some
Collection methods and comments
Collection excludes:some macrofossils
Collection methods:bulk,surface (float),surface (in situ),field collection
Reason for describing collection:taxonomic analysis
Collection method comments: Information on stratigraphic level is only available for some taxa.
Taxonomic list comments:Incomplete, because stratigraphic information is not available for all taxa. See PBDB record # 35277 for complete list of known Beglia Fauna.
Metadata
Also known as:Bled el Douarah, yellow sands
Database number:35279
Authorizer:A. Behrensmeyer Enterer:S. Cote
Modifier:G. Varnham
Subset of collection #:35277
Created:2003-11-24 06:39:50 Last modified:2022-01-25 07:25:18
Access level:the public Released:2003-11-24 06:39:50
Creative Commons license:CC BY
Reference information

Primary reference:
9487.ETE P. Robinson and C. C. Black. 1969. Note preliminaire sur les vertebres fossiles du Vinodobonien (formation Beglia), du Bled Douarah, Gouvernorat de Gafsa, Tunisie. Notes du Service Geologique Tunisie. Traveaux de Geologie Tunisienne 31(11):67-70 [A. Behrensmeyer/S. Cote/S. Cote]

Secondary references:

9489ETE C. C. Black. 1972. A new species of Merycopotamus (Artiodactyla: Anthracotheriidae) from the late Miocene of Tunisia. Notes du Service Geologique de Tunisie. Traveaux de Geologie Tunisienne. 37(2):5-40 [A. Behrensmeyer/S. Cote/S. Cote]
9492ETE A.-M. Forsten. 1972. Hipparion primigenium from southern Tunisia. Notes du Service Geologique de Tunisie, Traveaux Geologiques Tunisiennes 35(5):7-28 [A. Behrensmeyer/S. Cote/S. Cote]
9490ETE P. H. Greenwood. 1972. New fish fossils from the late Miocene of Tunisia. Notes du Service Geologique de Tunisie. Travaux de Geologie Tunisienne 37(6):41-72 [A. Behrensmeyer/S. Cote/S. Cote]
37957 B. Mannai-Tayech. 2009. The lithostratigraphy of Miocene series from Tunisia, revisited. Journal of African Sciences 54:53-61 [M. Uhen/M. Uhen/G. Varnham]
9493ETE P. Vickers-Rich. 1972. A fossil avifauna from the upper Miocene Beglia Formation of Tunisia. Notes du Service Geologique de Tunisie. Travaux de Gelogie Tunisienne 35(5):29-64 [A. Behrensmeyer/S. Cote/S. Cote]