Garfield Hills (north-east flank): Late Triassic, Nevada

List of taxa
Where & when
Geology
Taphonomy & methods
Metadata & references
Taxonomic list
Chlorophyceae - Dasycladales - Triploporellaceae
Holosporella magna n. sp.
FA-81A [MHNG-GEPI-2020-0073]
see common names

Geography
Country:United States State/province:Nevada
Coordinates: 38.5° North, 118.2° West (view map)
Paleocoordinates:15.2° North, 54.3° West
Time
Period: Triassic Epoch: Late Triassic
10 m.y. bin: Triassic 3-4
Key time interval: Late Triassic
Age range of interval: 237 - 201.4 m.y. ago
Stratigraphy
Formation:Luning Member:Upper
Stratigraphic resolution:member
Stratigraphy comments: Middle Norian (based on Conodonts)
Lithology and environment
Primary lithology: lithified wackestone
Secondary lithology: lithified packstone
Lithology description: The Luning Formation crops out in a wide area of Western Nevada and is part of the Luning Allochthon, a series of nappes composed of Triassic and Jurassic sedimentary rocks and Permian to Triassic volcanic rocks (Oldow 1981). The thickest succession of the Luning Formation is located north of the Pilot Mountain (Tab. 1) where it shows a total thickness exceeding 2000 m (Sandy & Stanley 1993), divided in three members: Lower, Middle and Upper. The Lower Member is an alternation of shales and coral and sponge biostromes, while the middle member is fully terrigenous, showing alternation of shales, sandstones and conglomerates. The Upper (algae-bearing) Member shows a regular alternation of lagoonal-peritidal facies, with abundant bivalves, gastropods and megalodonts, alternated with decimeter-thick coral horizons and nodular marls. Muller & eFrguson (1936) had already evidenced the abundance of fossils in the Upper Member of the Luning Formation. Preliminary conodont results indicate a middle Norian age for this portion of the formation. The presence of a thick terrigenous member, around 600 m (Sandy & Stanley 1993) plus the occurrence of marls with variable percentage of clay minerals, might suggest that the Luning Formation was probably deposited close to the American continental margin and not in the middle of Panthalassa.
Environment:lagoonal/restricted shallow subtidal
Geology comments: Lagoonal-peritidal facies (cycles) with abundant bivalves including megalodontids, and gastropods, alternated with decimetric corals horizons and nodular marls, probably deposited on a broad carbonate platform.
Taphonomy
Modes of preservation:body,original aragonite,replaced with calcite
Size of fossils:mesofossils
Collection methods and comments
Collection excludes:all macrofossils
Reason for describing collection:taxonomic analysis
Metadata
Database number:234364
Authorizer:W. Kiessling Enterer:T. Jujihara
Research group:marine invertebrate
Created:2024-04-05 13:38:34 Last modified:2024-04-05 13:38:34
Access level:the public Released:2024-04-05 13:38:34
Creative Commons license:CC BY
Reference information

Primary reference:

87972. I. I. Bucur, S. Rigaud, N. Del Piero, A. Fucelli, E. Heerwagen, C. Peybernes, G. Peyrotty, C. Verard, J. Chablais and R. Martini. 2020. Upper Triassic calcareous algae from the Panthalassa Ocean. Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia 126(2):499-540 [W. Kiessling/T. Jujihara]