Cerro del Castillo, Trelew: Aquitanian - Burdigalian, Argentina
List of taxa
Where & when
Geology
Taphonomy & methods
Metadata & references
Taxonomic list
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Mammalia
- Cetacea
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Cetotherium moreni n. sp.
Lydekker 1894
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Lydekker 1894 | 1 specimen | ||||||||
| recombined as Aglaocetus moreni | ||||||||||
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Mammalia
- Cetacea
- Balaenidae
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Morenocetus parvus n. gen., n. sp.
Cabrera 1926
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2 specimens | |||||||||
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Mammalia
- Cetacea
- Balaenopteridae
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Plesiocetus dyticus n. sp.
Cabrera 1926
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| recombined as Protororqualus dyticus | ||||||||||
| MDLP 5-13 | ||||||||||
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Mammalia
- Cetacea
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Phoberodon arctirostris n. gen., n. sp.
Cabrera 1926
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1 specimen | |||||||||
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Prosqualodon australis n. gen., n. sp.
Lydekker 1894
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Gaetán et al. 2019 | 2 specimens | ||||||||
| (1 measurement) | ||||||||||
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Reptilia
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Chubutodyptes biloculata n. gen., n. sp.
Simpson 1970
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Simpson 1970 | 1 specimen | ||||||||
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Palaeospheniscus bergi n. sp.
Moreno and Mercerat 1891
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Moreno and Mercerat 1891 | |||||||||
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Palaeospheniscus rothi
Ameghino 1905
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Simpson 1946 | |||||||||
| synonym of Palaeospheniscus bergi | ||||||||||
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Palaeospheniscus gracilis
Ameghino 1899
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Simpson 1946 | |||||||||
| synonym of Palaeospheniscus bergi | ||||||||||
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Palaeospheniscus medianus
Ameghino 1905
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Simpson 1946 | |||||||||
| synonym of Palaeospheniscus bergi | ||||||||||
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Neculus rothi
Ameghino 1905
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Simpson 1946 | |||||||||
| synonym of Palaeospheniscus bergi | ||||||||||
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Palaeospheniscus patagonicus n. sp.
Moreno and Mercerat 1891
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Moreno and Mercerat 1891 | |||||||||
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Palaeospheniscus interruptus
Ameghino 1905
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Simpson 1946 | |||||||||
| synonym of Palaeospheniscus patagonicus | ||||||||||
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Palaeospheniscus affinis
Ameghino 1905
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Simpson 1946 | |||||||||
| synonym of Palaeospheniscus patagonicus | ||||||||||
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Palaeospheniscus menzbieri n. sp.
Moreno and Mercerat 1891
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Moreno and Mercerat 1891 | |||||||||
| synonym of Palaeospheniscus patagonicus | ||||||||||
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Reptilia
- Spheniscidae
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Palaeospheniscus antarcticus n. gen., n. sp.
Moreno and Mercerat 1891
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Simpson 1946 | |||||||||
| recombined as Paraptenodytes antarcticus | ||||||||||
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Palaeospheniscus robustus
Ameghino 1894
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Simpson 1946 | |||||||||
| recombined as Paraptenodytes robustus | ||||||||||
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Treleudytes crassus
(Ameghino 1905)
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Simpson 1946 | |||||||||
| synonym of Paraptenodytes robustus | ||||||||||
| see common names | ||||||||||
Geography
| Country: | Argentina | State/province: | Chubut |
| Coordinates: | 43.3° South, 65.3° West (view map) | ||
| Paleocoordinates: | 44.0° South, 59.2° West | ||
| Basis of coordinate: | estimated from map |
Time
| Period: | Neogene | Epoch: | Miocene |
| 10 m.y. bin: | Cenozoic 5 | ||
| Key time interval: | Aquitanian - Burdigalian | ||
| Age range of interval: | 23.03000 - 15.98000 m.y. ago | ||
| Age estimate: | 19.8 to 18.2 Ma (other) |
Stratigraphy
| Formation: | Gaiman | ||||
| Stratigraphic resolution: | formation | ||||
| Stratigraphy comments: formacion patagonica marina; early Miocene date form Fordyce (2002); In the area of the type locality of M. parvus, the lower part of Gaiman Formation overlies the continental Sarmiento Formation, which contains a mammal fauna correlating with the Colhuehuapian South American Land Mammal Age [51,52]. The latter was dated to 19.8-20.9 Ma, based on 40Ar/39Ar dating [53], thus providing a maximum age of ca. 20 Ma (earliest Burdigalian) for the lower part of the Gaiman Formation in this area. Since virtually all vertebrate material recovered so far originated from the lowermost levels of the Gaiman Formation, close to its contact with the Sarmiento Formation (Cozzuol 2010, pers. comm.), the age of Morenocetus is here assumed to be early Burdigalian. (Fordyce & Marx, 2013)
Both MLP 5-11 and 5-11 were originally reported to have come from the Patagonian Marine Formation [40]. The latter corresponds to the partially correlated Monte León and Gaiman formations, exposed in Santa Cruz (e.g. Garn Bajo de San Juan) and the lower Chubut river valley near Trelew (e.g. at Bryn Gwyn/ Loma Blanca), respectively [42]. In the area around Trelew, the lower part of Gaiman Formation overlies the continental Sarmiento Formation, which contains a mammal fauna correlating with the Colhuehuapian South American Land Mammal Age [43, 45]. The latter has been 40Ar/39Ar dated to 20.9– 19.8 Ma [46], thus providing a maximum age of 19.8 Ma (earliest Burdigalian) for the lower part of the Gaiman Formation in this area. Since virtually all vertebrate material recovered so far originated from the lowermost levels of the Gaiman Formation, close to its contact with the Sarmiento Formation [Cozzuol 2010, pers. comm.], an early Burdigalian age (19.8–18.2 Ma) is here assumed for M. parvus. (Marx & Fordyce, 2015) | |||||
Lithology and environment
| Primary lithology: | argillaceous sandstone |
| Includes fossils? | Y |
| Lithology description: a mixture of sand and clay, including a stratum of sand capped by volcanic sand | |
| Environment: | shallow subtidal indet. |
| Geology comments: The holotype of A. moreni was found in “a mixture of sand and clay, including a stratum of sand capped by volcanic sand.” ([39]:1). The original description further explained that ”an apparently contemporaneous bed in Santa Cruz, also containing cetacean bones, has yielded oysters of an extinct species (Ostrea patagonica), and one skull from Chubut has one of the same oysters attached” [39: 1-2]. MLP 5-14 was later discovered at the same locality, described as “Castillo, frente a Trelew, Chubut” [40: 369], and reported to have come from the Patagonian Marine Formation (“formación patagónica marina”, [40: 364]).
The Patagonian Marine Formation corresponds to the partially correlated Monte León and Gaiman formations, exposed in Santa Cruz (e.g. Garn Bajo de San Juan) and the lower Chubut river valley near Trelew (e.g. at Bryn Gwyn/ Loma Blanca), respectively [42]. The Gaiman Formation consists of layers of marine sandstones and mudstones, as well as tuffs and tuffaceous sandstones. In addition, the lower part also contains occasional thin layers of Ostrea and bones of marine vertebrates [43]. Thus, the portion of the Gaiman Formation exposed near Trelew provides a likely match for the unit that yielded A. moreni [39, 40, 44]. 11 In the area around Trelew, the lower part of Gaiman Formation overlies the continental Sarmiento Formation, which contains a mammal fauna correlating with the Colhuehuapian South American Land Mammal Age [43, 45]. The latter has been 40Ar/39Ar dated to 20.9– 19.8 Ma [46], thus providing a maximum age of 19.8 Ma (earliest Burdigalian) for the lower part of the Gaiman Formation in this area. Since virtually all vertebrate material recovered so far originated from the lowermost levels of the Gaiman Formation, close to its contact with the Sarmiento Formation [Cozzuol 2010, pers. comm.], an early Burdigalian age (19.8–18.2 Ma) is here assumed for A. moreni. (Marx & Fordyce, 2015) Shows a shallow, storm-dominated marine environment with significant sea level oscillations. | |
Taphonomy
| Modes of preservation: | body,original phosphate |
| Size of fossils: | macrofossils |
Collection methods and comments
| Reason for describing collection: | taxonomic analysis |
Metadata
| Database number: | 47303 | ||
| Authorizer: | M. Uhen | Enterer: | M. Uhen |
| Modifier: | M. Uhen | Research group: | vertebrate |
| Created: | 2005-02-22 11:25:32 | Last modified: | 2019-05-30 11:33:25 |
| Access level: | the public | Released: | 2005-02-22 11:25:32 |
| Creative Commons license: | CC BY |
Reference information
Primary reference:
| 12654. | A. Cabrera. 1926. Cetaceos fossiles del Museo de La Plata. Revista del Museo de La Plata 29:363-411 [M. Uhen/M. Uhen/M. Uhen] |
Secondary references:
| 37374 | M. R. Buono, M. T. Dozo, and M. A. Cozzuol. 2010. Balaenidae (Mammalia, Cetacea, Mysticeti) del Mioceno de Patagonia: antecedentes, nuevos registros y proyecciones. Ameghiniana 46(4 Sup.):66R [M. Uhen/M. Uhen] | |
| 61705 | C. M. Gaetán, M. R. Buono, and L. C. Gaetano. 2019. Prosqualodon australis (Cetacea: Odontoceti) from the Early Miocene of Patagonia, Argentina: Redescription and phylogenetic analysis. Ameghiniana 56(1):1-27 [M. Uhen/B. Shipps/M. Uhen] | |
| 12338 | R. Lydekker. 1894. Cetacean skulls from Patagonia. Anales del Museo de la Plata II:1-13 [M. Uhen/M. Uhen/M. Uhen] | |
| 55050 | F. G. Marx and R. E. Fordyce. 2015. Baleen boom and bust: a synthesis of mysticete phylogeny, diversity and disparity. Royal Society Open Science 2:140434 [M. Uhen/M. Uhen] | |
| 29788 | F. P. Moreno and A. Mercerat. 1891. Catálogo de los pájaros fósiles de la República Argentina conservados en el Museo de La Plata [Catalogue of the fossil birds from the Argentine Republic housed in the Museo de La Plata]. Anales del Museo de La Plata. Paleontología Argentina 1:7-71 [M. Uhen/M. Uhen/M. Carrano] | |
| 25128 | G. G. Simpson. 1946. Fossil Penguins. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 87(1):1-100 [M. Uhen/M. Uhen] | |
| 25175 | G. G. Simpson. 1970. Miocene penguins from Victoria, Australia, and Chubut, Argentina. Memoirs of the National Museum of Victoria 31:17-24 [M. Uhen/M. Uhen] |