Bled Douarah: Serravallian - Tortonian, Tunisia

List of taxa
Where & when
Geology
Taphonomy & methods
Metadata & references
Taxonomic list
unclassified
Dipodida sp.
Paleotragus robinsoni
Ouzocerus sp.
Amphibia
Amphibia indet. Linnaeus 1758
Reptilia - Crocodylia
Crocodylia indet. (Owen 1842)
Agrasar 2003 7 specimens
Reptilia
Crocodylus lloydi (Fourtau 1918)
Pickford 2000 1 specimen
recombined as Rimasuchus lloydi
locality 20; aka Rimnasuchus lloydi
Euthecodon sp. Fortau 1920
Agrasar 2003 5 specimens
Reptilia - Testudines - Trionychidae
Lower Faunal Level
    = Trionychidae indet. Gray 1825
Alroy 2006
Mammalia - Proboscidea - Gomphotheriidae
Gomphotherium angustidens Burmeister 1837
Upper Faunal Level
Tetralophodon longirostris (Kaup 1832)
Upper Faunal Level
Mammalia - Sirenia - Sirenia
Sirenia indet. Illiger 1811
Mammalia - Carnivora - Amphicyonidae
Afrocyon sp. Arambourg 1961
Upper Faunal Level
Mammalia - Carnivora - Mustelidae
Mustelidae indet. Fischer 1817
Upper Faunal Level
Mammalia - Carnivora - Hyaenidae
Tungurictis sp. Colbert 1939
Lower Faunal Level
Mammalia - Carnivora - Felidae
Machairodus sp. Kaup 1833
Upper Faunal Level
Mammalia - Creodonta - Hyaenodontidae
Hyaenodontidae indet. Leidy 1869
Lower Faunal Level
Mammalia - Bovidae
Gazella sp. Blaineville 1816
Antilopini spp.
2 species- both hypsodont
Pachytragus solignaci Robinson 1972
Robinson 1972 520 specimens
from Lower Faunal Level only
Protoryx solignaci (Robinson 1972)
original and current combination Pachytragus solignaci
Mammalia - Suidae
Nyanzachoerus cf. syrticus (Leonardi 1954)
Pickford 1990 specimens
original and current combination Sivachoerus syrticus
Total of 58 suid specimens
Nyanzachoerus cf. devauxi (Arambourg 1968)
Pickford 1990 specimens
original and current combination Propotamochoerus devauxi
Mammalia - Hippopotamidae
Kenyapotamus sp. Pickford 1983
Pickford 1990 3 specimens
from Upper and Lower Faunal Levels
Mammalia - Anthracotheriidae
Merycopotamus anisae
Black 1972 160 specimens
from Upper and Lower Faunal Levels
Mammalia - Perissodactyla - Equidae
Hipparion primigenium (von Meyer 1829)
Forsten 1972 180 specimens
recombined as Hippotherium primigenium
Upper Faunal Level only
Mammalia - Perissodactyla - Rhinocerotidae
Rhinocerotidae indet. Gray 1821
1 specimen
Upper Faunal Level
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
Stratigraphic resolution:formation
Stratigraphy comments: No radiometric dates. Originally described as Vindobonian in age. NOW database lists age as 12.5-9.5 Ma.

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",fine,white poorly lithified silty,sandy sandstone
Secondary lithology:yellow poorly lithified sandy sandstone
Includes fossils?Y
Includes fossils?Y
Lithology description: Beglia formation is 135 meters thick at Bled Douarah, and has two known fossiliferous levels. Older level (Lower Faunal Level) at the base of the formation is fine white sands, well sorted and rounded. Contains mud concentrations and cross-stratification, suggesting river deposits. Younger level from top of the formation is yellow sands with lenses of limonite nodules that can be greater than 50 cm long. Some of these lenses also contain fossil wood. The upper unit (Upper Faunal Level) can be divided into two subunits- upper and lower.
Environment:fluvial indet.
Geology comments: There are many fossil localities at 'Beglia' numbered from 1-28 (or more?). Unfortunately, locality data is not reported, so the relative ages and stratigraphic setting of each is difficult to reconstruct.
Taphonomy
Modes of preservation:body
Size of fossils:macrofossils,mesofossils,microfossils
Spatial orientation:random
Disassociated major elements:many
Disassociated minor elements:many
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: Abundance data is incomplete, therefore collection size is an estimate.
Fossils come from many localities, but it is often not reported from which. This collection reports fossils from all localites. Other PBDB collections report fauna known from specific localities. Hipparion is present in the upper yellow sands, but not in the lower white sands.
Taxonomic list comments:Probably requries some updating. Some identifications come from the NOW database (NOW # 20144).
Metadata
Also known as:Bled ed Douarah, Beglia Formation
Database number:35277
Authorizer:A. Behrensmeyer, J. Alroy Enterer:S. Cote, J. Alroy
Modifier:G. Varnham Research group:vertebrate
Collections that are a subset of this one:35279, 35280, 35281
Created:2003-11-23 12:01:37 Last modified:2022-01-25 07:22:20
Access level:the public Released:2003-11-23 12:01:37
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:

9486ETE E. L. Agrasar. 2003. New fossil crocodilians from the Middle/Upper Miocene of Tunisia. Annales de Paleontologie 89:103-110 [A. Behrensmeyer/S. Cote/S. Cote]
18120 J. Alroy. 2006. Synonymies and reidentifications of North American fossil vertebrates. [J. Alroy/J. Alroy/J. Alroy]
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]
9494ETE M. Pickford. 1990. Decouverte de Kenyapotamus en Tunisie. Annales de Paleontologie 76(4):277-283 [A. Behrensmeyer/S. Cote/S. Cote]
9495ETE M. Pickford. 1990. Revision des suides de la formation de Beglia (Tunisie). Annales de Paleontologie 76(2):133-141 [A. Behrensmeyer/S. Cote/S. Cote]
9496ETE M. Pickford. 2000. Crocodiles from the Beglia Formation, Middle/Late Miocene Boundary, Tunisia, and their significance for Saharan palaeoclimatology. Annales de Paleontologie 86(1):59-67 [A. Behrensmeyer/S. Cote/S. Cote]
9491ETE P. Robinson. 1972. Pachytragus solognaci, a new species of Caprine bovid from the late Miocene Beglia Formation of Tunisia. Notes du Service Geologique de Tunisie. Travaux geologiques tunisiennes 37(6):73-94 [A. Behrensmeyer/S. Cote/S. Cote]
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]