Balabansai Formation | |
---|---|
Stratigraphic range: Bathonian-Callovian ~ | |
Type | Geological formation |
Underlies | Hodzhiabad Formation [1] Cretaceous red beds |
Overlies | Igrysai Svita [1] |
Thickness | Up to 250 m (820 ft) |
Lithology | |
Primary | Sandstone, siltstone, claystone |
Other | Gravel, marl |
Location | |
Coordinates | 41°18′N72°06′E / 41.3°N 72.1°E |
Approximate paleocoordinates | 40°54′N76°12′E / 40.9°N 76.2°E |
Region | Ongtustik Qazaqstan oblysy, Jalal-Abad Region |
Country | Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Uzbekistan |
The Balabansai Formation (sometimes transcribed Balabansay, [1] also known as Balabansai Svita) is a geological formation in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan whose strata date back to the Bathonian and Callovian stages of the Middle Jurassic. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation. [2] The lithology primarily consists of variegated sandstones, siltstones, claystones, and rare gravels and marls. [3] Many taxa have been found in the formation, including amphibians [4] and mammals. [5]
Indeterminate Avialae remains located in Ongtustik Qazaqstan Oblysy, Kazakhstan. [2]
Fish of the Balabansai Formation | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Presence | Notes | |
Ferganamia | F. verzilini | A bowfin | ||
Ferganoceratodus | F. jurassicus | A lungfish | ||
Palaeobates | P. verzilini | An elasmobranch | ||
Polyacrodus | P. balabansaiensis, P. prodigialis | A hybodont |
Amphibians of the Balabansai Formation | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Presence | Notes | |
Ferganobatrachus [6] | F. riabinini | Temnospondyl | ||
Kokartus | K. honorarius | Salamander |
Turtles of the Balabansai Formation | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Presence | Notes | |
Toxocheloides | T. narynensis | |||
Xinjiangchelys | X. tianshanensis, X. latimarginalis | Xinjiangchelydae |
Lizards of the Balabansai Formation | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Presence | Notes | |
Changetisaurus | C. estesi | Relative of Dorsetisaurus | ||
Lacertilia | Indeterminate |
Choristoderes of the Balabansai Formation | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Presence | Notes | |
Choristodera | Indeterminate | Similar to Cteniogenys |
Crocodyliformes | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Presence | Notes | |
Sunosuchus | Indeterminate |
Dinosaurs | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Presence | Material | Notes | |
P. sharovi [2] | Geographically located in Ongtustik Qazaqstan Oblysy, Kazakhstan. [2] | ||||
Alpkarakush [7] | A. kyrgyzicus | Jalal-Abad Oblast, Kyrgyzstan | A partial skeleton including skull bones, partial pectoral and pelvic girdles, dorsal and sacral vertebrae, and most of the hindlimbs | A metriacanthosaurid theropod | |
Ferganasaurus [8] | F. verzilini | Located within Kyrgyzstan | Basal sauropod | ||
Ferganocephale [3] | F. adenticulatum | Located within Kyrgyzstan | Dubious taxon, Neornithischia indet. | ||
Neosauropoda indet. [3] | Family, genus and species indeterminate | Kyrgyzstan | A heavily worn tooth, the apex of a tooth crown, a left metatarsal I, and a right manual phalanx | ||
Tetanurae indet. [3] | Family, genus and species indeterminate | Kyrgyzstan | Dozens of teeth | ||
Stegosauria indet. [9] | Family, genus and species indeterminate | Kyrgyzstan | Four posterior dorsal vertebrae | May be as old as Adratiklit . Remains not diagnostic, given nomen nudum "Ferganastegos" by Roman Ulansky. |
Mammals | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Presence | Notes | |
Rhamphorhynchinae indet. [3] | Genus and species indeterminate | Kyrgyzstan |
Mammals | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Presence | Notes | |
Ferganodon | F. cf. naryensis | A eutriconodont | ||
Paritatodon | Indeterminate | A docodont or a shuotheriid | ||
Simpsonodon | Indeterminate | A docodont, multiple species present | ||
Tashkumyrodon [10] | T. desideratus | A docodont | ||
Amphilestidae | Indeterminate | |||
Amphitheriidae | Indeterminate | |||
Docodonta | Indeterminate | |||
Paurodontidae | Indeterminate | |||
Tegotheriidae | Indeterminate | |||
Tinodontidae | Indeterminate | |||
Triconodontidae | Indeterminate |
Genus | Species | Presence | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Proparreysia [11] | "P. thashkumyrica" | A bivalve | |
Sulcatapex [11] | "S. chatkalica" | A bivalve | |
Yeniella [11] | "Y. asiatica", "Y. sculpturata" | A bivalve |
Genus | Species | Presence | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Podozamites [11] | P. lanceolatus |
Genus | Species | Presence | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Cladophlebis [11] | C. whitbiensis | ||
Coniopteris [11] | C. furssenkoi, C. hymenophylloides |
Ferganocephale is a dubious genus of neornithischian dinosaur. It was from the Middle Jurassic Balabansai Svita of Kyrgyzstan. The type and only species is F. adenticulatum.
Ferganasaurus was a genus of dinosaur first formally described in 2003 by Alifanov and Averianov. The type species is Ferganasaurus verzilini. It was a sauropod similar to Rhoetosaurus. Ferganasaurus is known exclusively from the Balabansai Formation of Kyrgyzstan, which dates to the Callovian stage of the Middle Jurassic.
Ferganoceratodus is a genus of prehistoric lungfish known from the Mesozoic of Asia. Based on morphological evidence, it has either been recovered as a basal member of the Ceratodontiformes or to be the sister group of the Neoceratodontidae.
The Taynton Limestone is a geological formation in Oxfordshire in the United Kingdom. It dates to the Middle Jurassic, mid-Bathonian stage. It predominantly consists of ooidal grainstone. The term "Stonesfield Slate" refers to slaty limestone horizons within the formation that during the 18th and 19th centuries were extensively quarried for use in roof tiling within the vicinity of Stonesfield, Oxfordshire. Previously these were thought to belong to the Sharp's Hill Formation, but boreholes and shaft sections suggest that at least three horizons within the Taynton Limestone were quarried for the slate. These horizons are well known for producing a diverse set of fossils including those of plants, insects as well as vertebrates, including some of the earliest known mammals, pterosaurs as well as those of first dinosaur ever described, Megalosaurus.
Kokartus is an extinct genus of prehistoric stem-group salamander (Caudata) from the Middle Jurassic Balabansai Formation of Kyrgyzstan.
Narynsuchus is an extinct genus of giant Goniopholidid Crocodylian. Because it has not yet been formally described, it is currently considered a nomen nudum. The name was first used in 1990 for fossil material found from a formation called the Balabansai Svita, which forms a lens in site FTA-30 of the Sarykamyshsai 1 locality in the Fergana Valley of Kyrgyzstan. The formation dates back to the Callovian stage of the Middle Jurassic. The type species of "Narynsuchus" is "N. ferganensis".Being semi-aquatic it is very similar to modern crocodiles. It ranged from 7–8 metres in length, and would have had a very similar lifestyle to the American alligator or Nile crocodile.
The Murtoi Formation is a geologic formation in vicinity of Lake Gusinoye in Russia. It was deposited in the late Barremian to the mid Aptian of the Early Cretaceous.
The Ialovachsk or Yalovach Formation is a geologic formation in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan dating to the Santonian age of the Cretaceous period.
The Itat Formation is a geologic formation in western Siberia. It was deposited in the Bajocian to Bathonian ages of the Middle Jurassic. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation, including the proceratosaurid Kileskus, as well as fish, amphibians, mammals and many other vertebrates. The formation is noted for bearing significant coal reserves, with large open pit coal mines extracting lignite from the unit currently in operation.
Christian Alfred Sidor is an American vertebrate paleontologist. He is currently a Professor in the Department of Biology, University of Washington in Seattle, as well as Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology and Associate Director for Research and Collections at the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture. His research focuses on Permian and Triassic tetrapod evolution, especially on therapsids.
Paritatodon is an extinct mammaliaform which existed in Kyrgyzstan and England during the Jurassic period. It was originally the holotype specimen of Shuotherium kermacki, but Martin and Averianov (2010) argued that it resembled the genus Itatodon (Docodonta) and so renamed it Paritatodon.
Sineleutherus is an extinct genus of euharamiyids which existed in Asia during the Jurassic period. The type species is Sineleutherus uyguricus, which was described by Thomas Martin, Alexander O. Averianov and Hans-Ulrich Pfretzschner in 2010; it lived in what is now China during the late Jurassic Qigu Formation. A second species, Sineleutherus issedonicus, was described by A. O. Averianov, A. V. Lopatin and S. A. Krasnolutskii in 2011. It lived in what is now Sharypovsky District during the middle Jurassic ; its fossils were collected from the upper part of the Itat Formation. However, this is now believed to represent several euharamiyid taxa not closely related to Sineleutherus.
The Karauridae are a family of stem-group salamanders (Caudata) that are known from the Middle Jurassic to Early Cretaceous in Central Asia, Northern Asia and Western Europe. The family includes four members: Karaurus from the Middle-Late Jurassic Karabastau Formation of Kazakhstan, Kokartus from the Middle Jurassic Balabansai Formation of Kyrgyzstan, Marmorerpeton from the Middle Jurassic Forest Marble Formation of England and Kilmaluag Formation of Scotland, and Kuzbassia from the Early Cretaceous (Aptian) Ilek Formation. The members are some of the oldest known salamanders. The family is united by several morphological characters, including sculptured skull roof bones. Like some modern salamanders, karaurids were neotenic. Members of the family likely fed via suction feeding on small fish and invertebrates. The Early Cretaceous Siberian Kulgeriherpeton has been suggested to be a karaurid by some authors.
Luis María Chiappe is an Argentine paleontologist born in Buenos Aires who is best known for his discovery of the first sauropod nesting sites in the badlands of Patagonia in 1997 and for his work on the origin and early evolution of Mesozoic birds. He is currently the Vice President of Research and Collections at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and director of the museum's Dinosaur Institute. He was a postdoctoral researcher at the American Museum of Natural History, New York after immigrating from Argentina. Chiappe is currently the curator of the award winning Dinosaur Hall at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California, BBC advisor and author of scientific and popular books.
Tashkumyrodon is an extinct mammaliaform from the Middle Jurassic (Callovian) Balabansai Formation of Kyrgyzstan It is named after the town of Tash-Kömür, near where the original specimen was found. It belongs to the order Docodonta and is closely related to Sibirotherium and Tegotherium. There is only one species currently known, Tashkumyrodon desideratus.
Maiopatagium is an extinct genus of gliding euharamiyids which existed in Asia during the Jurassic period. It possessed a patagium between its limbs and presumably had similar lifestyle to living flying squirrels and colugos. The type species is Maiopatagium furculiferum, which was described from the Tiaojishan Formation by Zhe-Xi Luo in 2017; it lived in what is now the Liaoning region of China during the late Jurassic .Maiopatagium and Vilevolodon, described concurrently, offer clues to the ways various synapsids have taken to the skies over evolutionary time scales. A second species, M. sibiricum, was described from the Bathonian aged Itat Formation in western Siberia, Russia in 2019
Simpsonodon is an extinct genus of docodontan mammaliaform known from the Middle Jurassic of England, Kyrgyzstan and Russia. The type species S. oxfordensis was described from the Kirtlington Mammal Bed and Watton Cliff in the Forest Marble Formation of England. It was named after George Gaylord Simpson, a pioneering mammalologist and contributor to the Modern Evolutionary Synthesis. A second species S. sibiricus is known from the Itat Formation of Russia, and indeterminate species of the genus are also known from the Balabansai Formation in Kyrgyzstan
Mesochelydia is a clade within Pantestudines, more inclusive than Perichelydia, but less than Testudinata. The clade is known from the Early Jurassic to the Present, and contains all Jurassic representatives of Testudinata aside from Australochelys. The ancestral condition for Mesochelydia is thought to be aquatic, as opposed to terrestrial for Testudinata. They are distinguished from more basal testudinatans by the presence of the following characters: strap like pectoral girdle, supramarginals absent, reduced posterior entoplastral process, eleven pairs of peripherals, elongate processus interfenestralis, paired basioccipital tubercles, fully formed cavum tympani and antrum postoticum, single vomer, confluent external nares, lacrimals and supratemporals absent.