McGraths Flat (Miocene of Australia)
Where: New South Wales, Australia (32.2° S, 149.7° E: paleocoordinates 40.8° S, 148.5° E)
• coordinate estimated from map
• outcrop-level geographic resolution
When: Middle Miocene (16.0 - 11.6 Ma)
• The presence of palynofloras consistent with those of the Canthiumidites bellus Zone, as defined by Stover and Partridge for the Gippsland Basin and modified by Macphail for the Murray Basin, indicates a latest early to middle Miocene age (~11 to 16 Ma) for the fossiliferous deposit. Attribution of the sediments to this zone is based on the presence of Cingulatisporites ornatus, Polypodiisporites usmensis, Foveotrilites balteus, and Rugulatisporites cowrensis in association with frequently occurring Nothofagidites, Haloragacites, and myrtaceous pollen.
Environment/lithology: pond; lithified siderite
• The fine bedding of the goethite matrix, contrasted against the coarser sandstones and conglomerates underneath the deposit, indicates that the fossils may have been deposited in a low-energy water body, but that the site was a higher-energy water channel before this. A high abundance of immature phantom midges (Chaoborus, Chaoboridae, and Diptera), normally found only when predator populations are absent or low, suggests that the depositional environment was isolated enough that aquatic predators could not easily enter and leave the environment. However, the presence of the occasional fish and a variety of rheophilic insects indicates that the water body at McGraths Flat maintained some connection to a river channel, likely through overbank flows. The limited geographic distribution of the deposit, combined with the low number of larger vertebrate predators, strongly suggests that the environment of deposition was relatively small and local in scale, similar to that of an oxbow lake.
• Finely bedded goethite (ferricrete)
Size class: macrofossils
Preservation: adpression, replaced with limonite
Collection methods: Repository: Australian Museum, Sydney
Primary reference: M. R. McCurry, D. J. Cantrill, P. M. Smith, R. Beattie, M. Dettmann, V. Baranov, C. Magee, J. M. T. Nguyen, M. A. Forster, J. Hinde, R. Pogson, H. Wang, C. E. Marjo, P. Vasconcelos, and M. Frese. 2022. A Lagerstätte from Australia provides insight into the nature of Miocene mesic ecosystems. Science Advances 8(eabm1406) [M. Clapham/M. Clapham]more details
Purpose of describing collection: general faunal/floral analysis
PaleoDB collection 224044: authorized by Matthew Clapham, entered by Matthew Clapham on 08.01.2022
Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)
Taxonomic list
• Excludes Alisporites sp., listed as probably recycled from Mesozoic sediments
Show authors, comments, and common names
| unclassified | |
| Lycopsida | |
| Polypodiopsida | |
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Laevigatosporites sp. Ibrahim 1933 | |
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cf. Stenochlaena sp. Smith 1842 | |
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Cyatheacidites annulatus Cookson 1947 | |
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Lygodium sp. Swartz 1800 climbing fern | |
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Dictyophyllidites spp. Couper 1958 | |
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Verrucosisporites sp. Potonie and Kremp 1954 | |
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Gleicheniidites sp. Dettmann 1963
Gleichenia sp. Smith 1793 | |
| Pteridopsida | |
Osmundacidites sp., Cingulatisporites ornatus, Matonisporites sp., Cyathidites spp., Cyathidites palaeospora, Cyathidites splendens
Osmundacidites sp. Couper 1953
Cingulatisporites ornatus van Hoeken-Klinkenberg 1964
Matonisporites sp. Couper 1958
Cyathidites spp. Couper 1953 | |
| Equisetopsida | |
| Bryopsida | |
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Stereisporites spp. Pflug 1953 | |
Dacrydium sp., Podocarpidites ellipticus, Phyllocladidites mawsonii, Lygistepollenites florinii, Podocarpus sp.
Dacrydium sp. Soland and Lambert 1807 podocarp
Podocarpidites ellipticus Cookson 1947 podocarp
Phyllocladidites mawsonii Cookson 1947 podocarp
Lygistepollenites florinii Stover and Evans 1973 podocarp
Podocarpus sp. L'Heritier and Persoon 1807 podocarp | |
| Dicotyledoneae | |
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Myrtaceidites spp. Cookson and Pike 1960 | |
| Angiospermae | |
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Cinnamomum sp. Schaeffer 1760 cinnamon
Laurophyllum sp. Göppert 1853 laurel | |
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Chenopodipollis cf. chenopodiaceoides Truswell 1985 | |
Banksia sp., Propylipollis sp., Proteacidites pachypolus, Proteacidites spp., Proteacidites pseudomoides
Banksia sp. Linnaeus 1782
Propylipollis sp. Martin and Harris 1975
Proteacidites spp. Cookson and Couper 1953
Proteacidites pseudomoides Stover 1973 | |
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Aglaoreidia sp. Erdtman 1960 | |
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Milfordia spp. Erdtman 1960 | |
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Graminidites sp. Potonie 1960 bamboo | |
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Cupanieidites orthoteichus soapberry
Cupanieidites spp. Cookson and Pike 1954 soapberry | |
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Brachychiton sp. Schott and Endlicher 1832 | |
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Margocolporites vanwijhei Germeraad et al. 1968 legume | |
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Nothofagus sp. Blume 1850 | |
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Nothofagidites asperus Cookson 1958 | |
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Gymnostoma sp. Johnson 1980 | |
| Magnoliopsida | |
Haloragacidites harrisii, Periporopollenites demarcatus, Malvacipollis spp., Ailanthipites paenestriatus
Haloragacidites harrisii Mildenhall and Harris 1971
Periporopollenites demarcatus Stover 1973
Malvacipollis spp. Harris 1965 | |
| Lycopodiopsida | |
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Densoisporites sp. Dettmann 1963 clubmoss | |
| Dyadosporonites | |
"Dyadosporites sp." = Dyadosporonites
"Dyadosporites sp." = Dyadosporonites Hammen | |
| Dicellaesporites | |
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Dicellaesporites sp. Elsik | |
| Aves | |
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Aves indet. Linnaeus 1758 bird | |
| Actinopteri | |
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Perciformes indet. Bleeker 1859 perch-like fish | |
| Insecta | |
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Ceratopogonidae indet. Newman 1834 biting midge | |
Chaoborus abundans n. sp.1
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Riethia sp. Kieffer 1917 non biting midge AM F.146366, 145457, 145462, 145489 - four pupae in Baranov et al. 2024
Orthocladiinae indet. Lenz 1921 non biting midge AM F.146528/529, 144993, 144994 in Baranov et al. 2024
Podonominae indet. Thienemann and Edwards 1837 non biting midge
Tanypodinae indet.1 Skuse 1889 non biting midge AM F.145439, 145492, 160707 (unclear whether different from Podonominae indet. in original paper)
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cf. Platybaetis sp. Müller-Liebenau 1980 mayfly | |
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Austrogomphus sp. Selys-Longchamps 1854 clubtail dragonfly | |
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Corduliidae indet. Selys-Longchamps 1850 green-eyed skimmer | |
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Fulgoridae indet. Latreille 1807 fulgorid planthopper | |
Laopsaltria ferruginosa n. gen. n. sp.4, Burbungoides gulgongensis n. gen. n. sp.4, Tithopsaltria titan n. gen. n. sp.4
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Reduviidae indet. Latreille 1807 assassin bug | |
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Mastotermitidae indet. Desneux 1904 termite | |
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Hymenoptera indet. Linnaeus 1758 winged insect | |
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Formicidae indet. Latreille 1802 ant | |
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Polycentropodidae indet. Ulmer 1903 caddisfly | |
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Dytiscidae indet. Leach 1815 predaceous diving beetle | |
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Archostemata indet. Kolbe 1908 beetle | |
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Curculionidae indet. Latreille 1802 snout beetle | |
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Chrysomeloidea indet. Latreille 1802 beetle | |
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| Arachnida | |
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Araneae indet. Clerck 1757 spider | |
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Megamonodontium mccluskyi n. gen. n. sp.3
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| Bivalvia | |
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Unionida indet. Stoliczka 1871 clam | |
| Quintiniapollis | |
| Hymenophyllum | |
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Hymenophyllum sp. Smith 1793 | |