Ascot Formation (older), Perth Basin (Pliocene of Australia)

Where: Western Australia, Australia (32.1° S, 115.9° E: paleocoordinates 34.1° S, 114.8° E)

• local area-level geographic resolution

When: Ascot Formation, Late/Upper Pliocene (3.6 - 2.6 Ma)

• STRATIGRAPHIC RELATIONS: Unconformably overlies Albian-Cenomanian Osborne Fm (Cockbain 1980). Minor transitional units (Balme 1980) separate the top of the Ascot Fm from both the Bassendean Sand and the Guildford Fm (Low 1971; Playford et al. 1976) THICKNESS: Approximately 20 m in figure well logs. AGE: Extended discussion of age in text (Kendrick et al., 1991), but generally regarded as Late Pliocene on the basis of molluscan and foraminiferal biostratigraphy, well-dated presumed correlatives and the age of bounding units. STRATIGRAPHIC POSITION: From "older" Ascot Formation, presumably lower in the stratigraphic succession, or encountered in wells further up dip.

• bed-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: coastal; unlithified, brown, gray, yellow, calcareous sandstone

• ENVIRONMENT: Environmental data not reported. Presumably shallow water, siliciclastic fauna.
• SPECIFIC LITHOLOGY: Very coarse, grey to yellow-brown quartz sands with subordinate carbonate and less frequently quartzose calcarenites. LITHIFICATION: Presumed to be unlithified given age, siliciclastic nature and limited carbonate.

Size class: macrofossils

Preservation: original aragonite, original calcite

Collection methods: quarrying,

• COLLECTOR: Faunal list is a composite of decades of collecting effort, including that reported by Darragh and Kendrick (1971), Kendrick (1981), Ponder (1985), and Kendrick unpublished data. REPOSITORY: Collection assembled from material reposited in Western Australian Museum (WAM).

Primary reference: G. W. Kendrick, K.-H. Wyrwoll, and B.J. Szabo. 1991. Pliocene-Pleistocene coastal events and history along the western margin of Australia. Quaternary Science Reviews 10:419-439 [A. Miller/A. Hendy]more details

Purpose of describing collection: biostratigraphic analysis

PaleoDB collection 63352: authorized by Austin Hendy, entered by Austin Hendy on 11.08.2006

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

• COMPLETENESS: Not exhaustive (stated to be selective, presumably on the basis of biogeographic utility of taxa), but certainly comprehensive. NOMENCLATURE: Not an authoritative publication, but nomenclature appears modern with extensive subgeneric and species-level assignments.
unclassified
  -
Gastropoda
 Trochoidea - Skeneidae
Solariorbis sp. n. sp. Conrad 1865 snail
 Trochoidea - Solariellidae
 Trochoidea - Trochidae
Leiopyrga "sp. A" Adams 1863 top snail
 Lepetellida - Haliotidae
 Epitonioidea - Janthinidae
Hartungia dennanti snail
Subspecies: H. dennanti chavani
 Cerithioidea - Cerithiidae
Cerithium sp. n. sp. Bruguière 1789 cerith snail
 Cerithioidea - Litiopidae
 Sorbeoconcha - Struthiolariidae
Tylospira sp. n. sp. Harris 1897 snail
 Neogastropoda - Olividae
Oliva sp. n. sp. Bruguière 1789 olive snail
 Neogastropoda - Nassariidae
Nassarius sp. Duméril 1806 snail
 Neogastropoda - Muricidae
Bedeva paivae Crosse 1864 murex snail
 Neogastropoda - Volutidae
Amoria cf. undulata volute
Subspecies: Amoria cf. undulata masoni
 Sorbeoconcha - Ranellidae
Cabestana ? tabulata triton shell
Subspecies: C. tabulata tabulata?
 Sorbeoconcha - Naticidae
Polinices (Conuber) balteatella Tate 1893 moon snail
Natica gualteriana Récluz 1843 moon snail
 Sorbeoconcha - Rissoidae
Bivalvia
 Arcida - Noetiidae
 Arcida - Arcidae
"Arca ? ventricosa" = Lamarcka ventricosa
"Arca ? ventricosa" = Lamarcka ventricosa Lamarck 1819 clam
 Arcida - Cucullaeidae
Cucullaea corioensis McCoy 1876 clam
 Arcida - Glycymerididae
Glycymeris "sp. A" Da Costa 1778 clam
 Arcida - Limopsidae
 Lucinida - Lucinidae
 Cardiida - Veneridae
Placamen sp. Iredale 1925 venus clam
Chioneryx cardioides Lamarck 1818 venus clam
Tawera sp. n. sp. Marwick 1927 venus clam
 Cardiida - Mactridae
Mactra "sp. A" Linnaeus 1767 clam
Zenatia (Zenatiopsis) sp. Darragh 1965 clam
 Cardiida - Donacidae
 Cardiida - Tellinidae
"Tellina (Pseudarcopagia) basedowi" = Macomona basedowi, Strigilla sp. n. sp., "Tellina (Quadrans) parvitas" = Quadrans, Tellina (Semelangulus) subdiluta
"Tellina (Pseudarcopagia) basedowi" = Macomona basedowi Tate 1901 tellin clam
Strigilla sp. n. sp. Turton 1822 tellin clam
"Tellina (Quadrans) parvitas" = Quadrans tellin clam
 Carditida - Carditidae
Carditidae indet. Fleming 1820 clam
 Nuculida - Nuculidae
 Nuculanida - Nuculanidae
Nuculana (Scaeoleda) sp. n. sp. Iredale 1924 pointed nut clam
Nuculana (Scaeoleda) crassa pointed nut clam