Cucaracha Formation

Cucaracha Formation
Stratigraphic range: Early Burdigalian-Mid Langhian (Hemingfordian-Barstovian) 19–14  Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Type	Formation
Underlies	Pedro Miguel & La Boca Formations
Overlies	Culebra Formation
Thickness	~125 m (410 ft)
Lithology
Primary	Sandstone, conglomerate
Other	Claystone
Location
Coordinates	9°00′N79°36′W / 9.0°N 79.6°W / 9.0; -79.6
Approximate paleocoordinates	8°24′N77°30′W / 8.4°N 77.5°W / 8.4; -77.5
Region	Panamá Province
Country	Panama
Extent	Panama Basin
Cucaracha Formation (Panama)

The Cucaracha Formation (Tca) ^[1] is a geologic formation in Panama. It preserves vertebrate and plant fossils dating back to the Neogene period; Early to Middle Miocene epochs (Hemingfordian). ^[2] Fossils of the crocodylian Centenariosuchus , the turtle Rhinoclemmys panamaensis and the artiodactyl Paratoceras have been found in the formation. ^[3]

The Cucaracha Formation is approximately 125 metres (410 ft) thick, ^[4] and dated to 19 to 14 Ma. ^[5]

Fossil content

Color key Taxon Reclassified taxon Taxon falsely reported as present Dubious taxon or junior synonym Ichnotaxon Ootaxon Morphotaxon		Notes Uncertain or tentative taxa are in small text; crossed out taxa are discredited.

Mammals

Bats

Bats reported from the Cucaracha Formation
Genus	Species	Presence	Material	Notes	Images
Americanycteris [6] [7]	A. cyrtodon	Centenario Bridge & Hodges Hill	Partial jaw & right premolar	A leaf-nosed bat, first reported as a new "large insectivorous phyllostomine"

Carnivorans

Carnivorans reported from the Cucaracha Formation
Genus	Species	Presence	Material	Notes	Images
Bassaricyonoides [6]	B. sp.	Gaillard Cut		A procyonid
Daphoenodon [6]	cf. D. sp.	Gaillard Cut		A bear dog
Hemicyonidae indet. [8]	Indeterminate	Gaillard Cut	Radius & ulna fragment	A bear
Tomarctus [6] [8]	T. brevirostris	Gaillard Cut	Jaw & teeth	A borophagine dog

Rodents

Rodents reported from the Cucaracha Formation
Genus	Species	Presence	Material	Notes	Images
Nototamias [6]	N. sp.	Gaillard Cut		A ground squirrel
Petauristodon [6]	P. sp.	Gaillard Cut		A flying squirrel
Proheteromys [6]	P. sp.	Gaillard Cut		A heteromyid
Texomys [6] [9]	T. stewarti	Pedro Miguel Lock & Gaillard Cut	Teeth	A jimomyid

Ungulates

Ungulates reported from the Cucaracha Formation
Genus	Species	Presence	Material	Notes	Images
Anchitherium [6] [8] [10]	A. clarencei	Gaillard Cut & Centenario Bridge	Mandible fragment, upper cheek tooth & maxilla	An equid
Archaeohippus [6] [8]	A. sp.	Gaillard Cut	Calcaneus & tooth	An equid
Cynorca [6] [11]	C. occidentale	Gaillard Cut, Centenario Bridge & Hodges Hill	Jaw elements with teeth	Species reassigned to the genus Tedfordhyus [12]
Floridaceras [6] [8]	F. whitei	Gaillard Cut	Jaws, teeth & femur fragment	A rhinoceros
Floridatragulus [6]	cf. F. nanus	Gaillard Cut		A camelid
Machaeromeryx [6]	cf. M. sp.	Gaillard Cut		A moschid
Menoceras [6] [8]	M. barbouri	Gaillard Cut	Teeth & limb elements	A rhinoceros
Merycochoerus [6] [8]	M. matthewi	Gaillard Cut	Skull elements	An oreodont
Parablastomeryx [6]	cf. P. sp.	Gaillard Cut		A moschid
Paratoceras [6] [8] [13]	P. coatesi	Gaillard Cut, Centenario Bridge, Hodges Hill & Cartagena Hill	Skull elements, teeth & limb fragments	A protoceratid, first reported as P. wardi
	P. wardi	Gaillard Cut	Skull elements, teeth & limb fragments	Remains reassigned to P. coatesi
Tedfordhyus [6] [11]	T. occidentalis	Gaillard Cut, Centenario Bridge & Hodges Hill	Jaw elements with teeth	A peccary, originally named Cynorca occidentale

Reptiles

Birds

Birds reported from the Cucaracha Formation
Genus	Species	Presence	Material	Notes	Images
Accipitridae indet. [14]	Indeterminate	West side of the Panama Canal	Talon	A large eagle, talon resembles those of the crowned eagle and martial eagle

Crocodilians

Crocodilians reported from the Cucaracha Formation
Genus	Species	Presence	Material	Notes	Images
Centenariosuchus [15]	C. gilmorei	Hodges Hill	Skull & jaw	A caiman
	cf. C. gilmorei	Centenario Bridge	Right angular	A caiman
Dadagavialis [16]	D. gunai	East margin of the Panama Canal	Partial snout	A gavialid
	cf. D. gunai	Centenario Bridge	Partial mandible	A gavialid
Eusuchia indet. [15]	Indeterminate	Panama Canal Zone	Headless skeleton	Osteoderms comparable to those of gavialids such as Gavialosuchus , but crocodilian osteoderms are non-diagnostic

Squamates

Squamates reported from the Cucaracha Formation
Genus	Species	Presence	Material	Notes	Images
Boa [17]	B. cf. B. constrictor	Cartagena Hill & Hodges Hill	Incomplete vertebrae	A boid snake

Turtles

Turtles reported from the Cucaracha Formation
Genus	Species	Presence	Material	Notes	Images
Podocnemididae indet. [18]	Incertae sedis	Centenario Bridge	Right epiplastron	A side-necked turtle
Rhinoclemmys [18]	R. panamaensis	Centenario Bridge	Shell elements	A geoemydid turtle
	R. sp.	Centenario Bridge & Culebra Reach	Isolated bones	A geoemydid turtle
Staurotypus [18]	S. moschus	Centenario Bridge	Peripheral part of shell	A kinosternid turtle
Testudinidae indet. [18]	Incertae sedis	Culebra Reach	Shell & limb elements	A tortoise
Trionychidae indet. [18]	Incertae sedis	Centenario Bridge	Right costal	A softshell turtle

Plants

Plants reported from the Cucaracha Formation
Genus	Species	Presence	Material	Notes	Images
Ampelorhiza [19]	A. heteroxylon	Culebra Cut	Roots	A member of Paullinieae
Antrocaryon [20]	A. panamaensis	Lirio East	Endocarps	A member of Anacardiaceae
Dracontomelon [20]	D. montesii	Lirio East	Endocarps	A member of Anacardiaceae
Guazumaoxylon [21]	G. miocenica	Hodges Hill	Wood	A member of Malvaceae, similar to Guazuma
Mammea [22]	M. paramericana	Northern Lirio East	Stem	A member of Calophyllaceae
Oreomunnea [23]	O. grahamii	Lirio East	Nuts	A member of Juglandaceae
Panascleroticoxylon [24]	P. crystallosa	Hodges Hill	Wood	A member of Malpighiales
Parinari [25]	P. panamensis	Lirio East, Gold Hill & Empire sites	Endocarps	A member of Chrysobalanaceae
Parinarioxylon [25]	P. panamensis	Lirio East	Wood	A member of Chrysobalanaceae
Periplanetoxylon [21]	P. panamense	Hodges Hill	Wood	A member of Malvaceae
Prioria [26]	P. canalensis	Hodges Hill	Wood	A legume
	P. hodgesii	Hodges Hill	Wood	A legume
Rourea [27]	R. blatta	Northern Lirio East site	Wood	A liana belonging to the Connaraceae
Spondias [20]	S. rothwellii	Lirio East	Endocarps	A member of Anacardiaceae

See also

• List of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Panama

References

1. Geologic Map, 1980
2. Cucaracha Formation at Fossilworks.org
3. Centenariosuchus at Fossilworks.org
4. Kirby et al., 2008, p.9
5. Kirby et al., 2008, p.11
6. MacFadden, Bruce J.; Bloch, Jonathan I.; Evans, Helen; Foster, David A.; Morgan, Gary S.; Rincon, Aldo; Wood, Aaron R. (March 2014). "Temporal Calibration and Biochronology of the Centenario Fauna, Early Miocene of Panama". The Journal of Geology. 122 (2): 113–135. Bibcode:2014JG....122..113M. doi: 10.1086/675244 . ISSN   0022-1376.
7. Morgan, Gary S.; Czaplewski, Nicholas; Rincon, Aldo F.; Bloch, Jonathan Ivan (November 2023). "A new early Miocene bat (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae) from Panama confirms middle Cenozoic chiropteran dispersal between the Americas" . Journal of Mammalian Evolution. 30 (4): 963–993. doi:10.1007/s10914-023-09690-4.
8. Macfadden, Bruce J. (2006). "North American Miocene Land Mammals from Panama" . Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 26 (3): 720–734. doi:10.1671/0272-4634(2006)26[720:NAMLMF]2.0.CO;2. ISSN   0272-4634. JSTOR   4524616.
9. Slaughter, Bob H. (1981). "A New Genus of Geomyoid Rodent from the Miocene of Texas and Panama" . Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 1 (1): 111–115. Bibcode:1981JVPal...1..111S. doi:10.1080/02724634.1981.10011884. ISSN   0272-4634. JSTOR   4522841.
10. MacFadden, Bruce J. (2009). "Three-Toed Browsing Horse Anchitherium (Equidae) from the Miocene of Panama" . Journal of Paleontology. 83 (3): 489–492. Bibcode:2009JPal...83..489M. doi:10.1666/08-155.1. ISSN   0022-3360. JSTOR   29739113.
11. Macfadden, Bruce J.; Kirby, Michael X.; Rincon, Aldo; Montes, Camilo; Moron, Sara; Strong, Nikki; Jaramillo, Carlos (March 2010). "Extinct peccary "Cynorca" occidentale (Tayassuidae, Tayassuinae) from the Miocene of Panama and correlations to North America". Journal of Paleontology. 84 (2): 288–298. Bibcode:2010JPal...84..288M. doi:10.1666/09-064R.1. ISSN   0022-3360.
12. PROTHERO, DONALD R. (2021-05-28). THE SYSTEMATICS OF NORTH AMERICAN PECCARIES (MAMMALIA: ARTIODACTYLA: TAYASSUIDAE). New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science.
13. Rincon, Aldo F.; Bloch, Jonathan I.; Macfadden, Bruce J.; Jaramillo, Carlos A. (2015-09-03). "New early Miocene protoceratids (Mammalia, Artiodactyla) from Panama" . Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 35 (5): e970688. Bibcode:2015JVPal..35E0688R. doi:10.1080/02724634.2015.970688. ISSN   0272-4634.
14. Steadman, David. W.; MacFadden, Bruce J. (2016). "A large eagle (Aves, Accipitridae) from the early Miocene of Panama" . Journal of Paleontology. 90 (5): 1012–1015. Bibcode:2016JPal...90.1012S. doi:10.1017/jpa.2016.103. ISSN   0022-3360. JSTOR   48572611. S2CID   132732768.
15. Hastings, Alexander K.; Bloch, Jonathan I.; Jaramillo, Carlos A.; Rincon, Aldo F.; Macfadden, Bruce J. (2013). "Systematics and biogeography of crocodylians from the Miocene of Panama". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 33 (2): 239. Bibcode:2013JVPal..33..239H. doi:10.1080/02724634.2012.713814. ISSN   0272-4634.
16. Salas-Gismondi, Rodolfo; Moreno-Bernal, Jorge W.; Scheyer, Torsten M.; Sánchez-Villagra, Marcelo R.; Jaramillo, Carlos (2019-06-18). "New Miocene Caribbean gavialoids and patterns of longirostry in crocodylians". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 17 (12): 1049–1075. Bibcode:2019JSPal..17.1049S. doi:10.1080/14772019.2018.1495275. ISSN   1477-2019.
17. Head, Jason J.; Rincon, Aldo F.; Suarez, Catalina; Montes, Camilo; Jaramillo, Carlos (2012-10-31). "Fossil evidence for earliest Neogene American faunal interchange: Boa (Serpentes, Boinae) from the early Miocene of Panama" . Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 32 (6): 1328–1334. Bibcode:2012JVPal..32.1328H. doi:10.1080/02724634.2012.694387. ISSN   0272-4634.
18. Cadena, E.; Bourque, J.R.; Rincón, A.F.; Bloch, J.I.; Jaramillo, C.A.; MacFadden, B.J. (2012). "New turtles (Chelonia) from the late Eocene through Late Miocene of the Panama Canal Basin". Journal of Paleontology. 86 (3): 539–557. Bibcode:2012JPal...86..539C. doi:10.1666/11-106.1.
19. Jud, Nathan A.; Allen, Sarah E.; Nelson, Chris W.; Bastos, Carolina L.; Chery, Joyce G. (2021-04-07). Wong, William Oki (ed.). "Climbing since the early Miocene: The fossil record of Paullinieae (Sapindaceae)". PLOS ONE. 16 (4): e0248369. Bibcode:2021PLoSO..1648369J. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0248369 . ISSN   1932-6203. PMC   8026063 . PMID   33826635.
20. Herrera, Fabiany; Carvalho, Mónica R.; Jaramillo, Carlos; Manchester, Steven R. (July 2019). "19-Million-Year-Old Spondioid Fruits from Panama Reveal a Dynamic Dispersal History for Anacardiaceae". International Journal of Plant Sciences. 180 (6): 479–492. doi:10.1086/703551. ISSN   1058-5893.
21. Rodríguez-Reyes, Oris; Falcon-Lang, Howard; Gasson, Peter; Collinson, Margaret; Jaramillo, Carlos (October 2014). "Fossil woods (Malvaceae) from the lower Miocene (early to mid-Burdigalian) part of the Cucaracha Formation of Panama (Central America) and their biogeographic implications". Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology. 209: 11–34. Bibcode:2014RPaPa.209...11R. doi:10.1016/j.revpalbo.2014.05.006. ISSN   0034-6667.
22. Nelson, Chris W.; Jud, Nathan A. (2017-03-01). "Biogeographic Implications of Mammea paramericana sp. nov. from the Lower Miocene of Panama and the Evolution of Calophyllaceae" . International Journal of Plant Sciences. 178 (3): 241–257. doi:10.1086/689618. ISSN   1058-5893. S2CID   89714823.
23. Graham, Alan; Montiel, Olga Martha; Raven, Peter H.; Stevens, Warren Douglas (2014). "Fruits of Oreomunnea (Juglandaceae) in the early Miocene of Panama". Paleobotany and biogeography :a festschrift for Alan Graham in his 80th year. Missouri Botanical Garden. pp. 124–133.
24. Rodriguez-Reyes, Oris; Gasson, Peter; Thornton, Carolyn; Falcon-Lang, Howard J.; Jud, Nathan A. (2017-12-06). "Panascleroticoxylon crystallosa gen. et sp. nov.: a new Miocene malpighialean tree from Panama". IAWA Journal. 38 (4): 437–455. doi:10.1163/22941932-20170178. ISSN   0928-1541.
25. Jud, Nathan A.; Nelson, Chris W.; Herrera, Fabiany (2016-02-10). "Fruits and wood of Parinari from the early Miocene of Panama and the fossil record of Chrysobalanaceae". American Journal of Botany. 103 (2): 277–289. doi:10.3732/ajb.1500425. ISSN   0002-9122. PMID   26865122.
26. Rodríguez-Reyes, Oris; Gasson, Peter; Falcon-Lang, Howard J.; Collinson, Margaret E. (November 2017). "Fossil legume woods of the Prioria-clade (subfamily Detarioideae) from the lower Miocene (early to mid-Burdigalian) part of the Cucaracha Formation of Panama (Central America) and their systematic and palaeoecological implications". Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology. 246: 44–61. Bibcode:2017RPaPa.246...44R. doi: 10.1016/j.revpalbo.2017.06.005 .
27. Jud, Nathan A.; Nelson, Chris W. (May 2017). "A liana from the lower Miocene of Panama and the fossil record of Connaraceae". American Journal of Botany. 104 (5): 685–693. doi:10.3732/ajb.1700080. ISSN   0002-9122. PMID   28500228.

Bibliography

• Kirby, Michael Xavier; Jones, Douglas S.; MacFadden, Bruce J. (2008), "Lower Miocene Stratigraphy along the Panama Canal and Its Bearing on the Central American Peninsula", PLoS ONE , 3 (7): 1–14, Bibcode:2008PLoSO...3.2791K, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0002791 , PMC   2464738 , PMID   18665219
• Stewart, R.H.; Stewart, J.L.; Woodring, W.P. (1980), Geologic Map of the Panama Canal and Vicinity (PDF), USGS, p. 1, retrieved 2019-02-09
• Woodring, W.P (1957), Geology and Paleontology of Canal Zone and Adjoining Parts of Panama - 306A Geology and description of Tertiary mollusks (Gastropods: Trochidae to Turritellidae) (PDF), USGS, pp. 1–186, retrieved 2019-02-09