Gamka Formation (1st Sandstone), Grootrivier (Devonian of South Africa)

Where: South Africa (32.6° S, 19.4° E: paleocoordinates 62.5° S, 150.5° W)

• coordinate stated in text

• local area-level geographic resolution

When: Gamka Formation (Bokkeveld Group), Late/Upper Emsian (402.5 - 391.9 Ma)

• Latest Emsian. Age call from ref. 9618.

• formation-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: marine; fine-grained, medium, intraclastic sandstone

• Ref. 9618 gives interpretation of Bokkeveld Group as a series of shallowing-upward packages, with argillaceous unit below and arenaceous unit above. The shallowing upward sequence is interpreted as representing environments from the shelf up to deltaic systems. Most fossils come from lower mudstones, often in lenses.
• Ref. 9616 refers only to "sandstone". Ref. 9617, for formation as a whole, cites "Sandstone, fine- to medium-grained, thin- to thick- bedded, parallel laminated, planar cross-bedded, thin intraclast lenses, fossiliferous lenses"

Primary reference: R. D. F. Oosthuizen. 1984. Preliminary catalogue and report on the biostratigraphy and palaeogeographic distribution of the Bokkeveld fauna. Transactions of the Geological Society of South Africa 87:125-140 [M. Foote/M. Foote/M. Foote]more details

Purpose of describing collection: biostratigraphic analysis

PaleoDB collection 35599: authorized by Michael Foote, entered by Michael Foote on 30.12.2003

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

Show authors, comments, and common names
unclassified
  -
"Trigaria" gydoensis, Othozecrinus royi n. gen. n. sp.
Othozecrinus royi n. gen. n. sp.
Acanthodii
  -
? Acanthodii indet.
? Acanthodii indet. spiny fish
listed as Acanthodian spine?
Crinoidea
  -
Crinoidea indet.
Crinoidea indet. Miller 1821 Sea lily
 Cyathocrinida - Thalamocrinidae
Thalamocrinus arenaceus
Lophophorata
 Tentaculitida - Tentaculitidae
Tentaculites desuetes
Rhynchonellata
 Spiriferida - Hysterolitidae
Australospirifer antarcticus
 Rhynchonellida - Leptocoeliidae
Australocoelia tourteloti
Strophomenata
 Strophomenida - Chonetidae
Notiochonetes falklandicus
Bivalvia
 Cardiidia - Grammysiidae
Cardiomorpha cf. colossea
 Nuculanida - Cucullellidae
Nuculites sp.
Nuculites sp. Conrad 1841 clam
Gastropoda
 Bellerophontida - Plectonotidae
"Bellerophon ? africanoides" = Ptomatis africanoides, "Bellerophon ? laticarinatus" = Plectonotus laticarinata
"Bellerophon ? africanoides" = Ptomatis africanoides Reed 1925 snail
"Bellerophon ? laticarinatus" = Plectonotus laticarinata Knod 1908 snail