Eumeralla Formation

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Eumeralla Formation
Stratigraphic range: Aptian–Albian
ETRW vertebrate deposit.jpg
Eric the Red West fossil locality, with AS and ES representing Anchor Sandstone and ETRW Sandstone respectively
Type Geological formation
Unit of Otway Group
Sub-unitsWindermere Sandstone Member, Heathfield Sandstone Member
Underlies Sherbrook Group
Overlies Katnook Sandstone, Laira Formation (Crayfish Subgroup)
ThicknessUp to 3,000 m (9,800 ft)
Lithology
Primary Volcanilithic sandstone, siltstone, mudstone, conglomerate
Location
Coordinates 38°48′S143°18′E / 38.8°S 143.3°E / -38.8; 143.3
Approximate paleocoordinates 74°48′S115°48′E / 74.8°S 115.8°E / -74.8; 115.8
RegionFlag of Victoria (Australia).svg  Victoria
CountryFlag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia
Extent Otway Basin
Type section
Named for Eumeralla River
Named byReynolds, M.A
Year defined1971
Eumeralla and Wonthaggi locations.jpeg
Exposure of the Eumeralla Formation in green at the bottom-left

The Eumeralla Formation is a geological formation in Victoria, Australia whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous. It is Aptian to Albian in age. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation, particularly from the Dinosaur Cove locality. [1]

Contents

Geology

The Eumeralla Formation was deposited within the Otway Basin, which at the time of deposition was part of an extensional rift valley system formed between Australia and Antarctica. The lithology primarily consists of fluvially deposited siliciclastics derived from volcanic material. The strata of the Eumeralla Formation are folded as a result of northwest–southeast crustal compression during the Neogene, which also reactivated some Cretaceous aged normal faults. [2] It is one of three major fossiliferous deposits in Victoria dating to the Early Cretaceous, including the older Wonthaggi Formation and the Koonwarra fossil bed (which some authors have considered part of the Eumeralla Formation). [3]

Paleobiota

Invertebrate traces named as Skolithos sp. and Arenicolites sp. , [4] as well as indeterminate ornithischian tracks are present in Victoria, Australia. [1] Indeterminate ornithopod remains are present at Eric the Red West locality and Elliot River, including material that possibly belongs to a new taxon. [5] Indeterminate theropod and possible indeterminate dromaeosaurid remains are present in Victoria, Australia. [1] An indeterminate unenlagiine is known from the formation. [6] [7]

Dinosaurs

Ornithischians

Ornithischians of the Eumeralla Formation
GenusSpeciesPresenceMaterialNotesImages
Ankylosauria [8] IndeterminateDinosaur CoveDorsal vertebra

Atlascopcosaurus [1]

A. loadsi [1]

  • Dinosaur Cove
  • Eric the Red West locality [5]

"Maxilla [and] teeth." [9]

Elasmarian ornithopod
Atlascopcosaurus loadsi.JPG

Diluvicursor [2]

D. pickeringi [2] Eric the Red West localityPartial postcranial skeleton. [2] Elasmarian ornithopod
Diluvicursor life restoration.png
cf. Galleonosaurus G. dorisae [5] Eric the Red West localityMaxillaeElasmarian ornithopod
Leaellynasaura [1] L. amicagraphica [1]
  • Dinosaur Cove
  • Eric the Red West locality [5]
Skull fragments, teeth, maxillae. Postcranial remains associated with the taxon cannot be confidently referred to itElasmarian ornithopod
Leaellynasaura BW.jpg

Theropods

Dinosaurs of the Eumeralla Formation
GenusSpeciesPresenceMaterialNotesImages
cf. Australovenator [10] cf. A. wintonensisEric the Red West locality"two teeth, two manual unguals, and a right astragalus" Megaraptoran theropod
Australovenator reconstruction.jpg

Aves [11]

Indeterminate

Footprints belonging to a crane-sized bird, determined to be an ornithurine or enantiornithe.

Possibly from a species also found at the Wonthaggi Formation (single furcula).
Elaphrosaurinae [12] IndeterminateEric the Red West localitySingle cervical vertebra

Megaraptora [13] [14]

IndeterminateDinosaur Cove

Known from a left ulna.

Probably a megaraptorid. Previously referred to Megaraptor. [15]
Megaraptoridae [10]

Indeterminate

Eric the Red West localityKnown from a single cervical vertebra.Previously thought to be a Baryonyx -related spinosaurid. [16]
Australian Spinosaurid.png
Timimus [1] T. hermani [1] Dinosaur CoveFemurPossible tyrannosauroid theropod

Other fossils

Other taxa of the Eumeralla Formation
GenusSpeciesPresenceNotesImages
Ceratodus C. nargunA lungfish
Ceratodus Ceratodus.jpg
Ceratodus
Kryoryctes K. cadburyiDinosaur CoveA monotreme
Sundrius S. ziegleriA monotreme
Otwayemys O. cuniculariusDinosaur CoveA meiolaniform turtle
Pterosauria IndeterminateDinosaur Cove
Plesiosauria IndeterminateDinosaur Cove
Mesoeucrocodylia IndeterminateDinosaur Cove [17] Distinct from other known Australian crocodilians

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Leaellynasaura</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Leaellynasaura is a genus of small herbivorous ornithischian dinosaurs from the late Aptian to early Albian stage of the Early Cretaceous, around 118-110 million years ago. It was first discovered in Dinosaur Cove, Australia. The only known species is Leaellynasaura amicagraphica. It was described in 1989, and named after Leaellyn Rich, the daughter of the Australian palaeontologist couple Tom Rich and Patricia Vickers-Rich who discovered it. The specific name, amicagraphica, translates to "friend writing" and honours both the Friends of the Museum of Victoria and the National Geographic Society for their support of Australian paleontology.

<i>Atlascopcosaurus</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Atlascopcosaurus is a genus of herbivorous basal iguanodont dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Eumeralla Formation of Australia.

<i>Tenontosaurus</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Tenontosaurus is a genus of iguanodontian ornithopod dinosaur. It had an unusually long, broad tail, which like its back was stiffened with a network of bony tendons.

<i>Timimus</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Timimus is a genus of small coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous of Australia. It was originally identified as an ornithomimosaur, but now it is thought to be a different kind of theropod, possibly a tyrannosauroid.

<i>Fulgurotherium</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Fulgurotherium is a dubious genus of ornithischian dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian) Griman Creek Formation. It lived in what is now Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winton Formation</span> Geological formation in Australia

The Winton Formation is a Cretaceous geological formation in central-western Queensland, Australia. It is late Albian to early Turonian in age. The formation blankets large areas of central-western Queensland. It consists of sedimentary rocks such as sandstone, siltstone and claystone. The sediments that make up these rocks represent the remnants of the river plains that filled the basin left by the Eromanga Sea - an inland sea that covered large parts of Queensland and central Australia at least four times during the Early Cretaceous. Great meandering rivers, forest pools and swamps, creeks, lakes and coastal estuaries all left behind different types of sediment.

<i>Macrogryphosaurus</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Macrogryphosaurus is a genus of elasmarian dinosaur from the Coniacian age Upper Cretaceous Sierra Barrosa Formation of Argentina in Patagonia. It was described by Jorge Calvo and colleagues in 2007, with M. gondwanicus as the type and only species.

The Cerro Barcino Formation is a geological formation in South America whose strata span the Early Cretaceous to the earliest Late Cretaceous. The top age for the formation has been estimated to be Cenomanian. Earlier estimates placed the formation until the Campanian.

The Toolebuc Formation is a geological formation that extends from Queensland across South Australia and the Northern Territory in Australia, whose strata date back to the Albian stage of the Early Cretaceous. Dinosaurs, pterosaurs, plesiosaurs, ichthyosaurs, protostegid turtles, sharks, chimaeroids and bony fish remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.

The Allaru Formation, also known as the Allaru Mudstone, is a geological formation in Queensland, Australia, whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.

The Griman Creek Formation is a geological formation in northern New South Wales and southern Queensland, Australia whose strata date back to the Albian-Cenomanian stages of the mid-Cretaceous. It is most notable being a major source of opal, found near the town of Lightning Ridge, New South Wales. Alongside the opal opalised fossils are also found, including those of dinosaurs and primitive monotremes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wonthaggi Formation</span>

The Wonthaggi Formation is an informal geological formation in Victoria, Australia whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous. It is part of the Strzelecki Group within the Gippsland Basin. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation. It is partially equivalent to the Eumeralla Formation.

<i>Australovenator</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Australovenator is a genus of megaraptoran theropod dinosaur from Cenomanian -age Winton Formation of Australia. Some specimens from the Albian-aged Eumeralla Formation may belong to Australovenator. It is known from partial cranial and postcranial remains which were described in 2009 by Scott Hocknull and colleagues, although additional descriptions and analyses continue to be published. It is the most complete predatory dinosaur discovered in Australia. It has been suggested that Australovenator is a sister taxon to Fukuiraptor, although some phylogenetic analyses find it to be a more derived member of the Megaraptora, possibly being part of the main Megaraptoridae family itself.

<i>Wintonotitan</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Wintonotitan is a genus of titanosauriform dinosaur from Cenomanian -age Winton Formation of Australia. It is known from partial postcranial remains.

The Molecap Greensand is a Late Cretaceous geologic formation, located in the state of Western Australia in Australia.

The Oum ed Diab Member is a middle-upper Albian geologic member, part of the Ain el Guettar Formation of Tunisia. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.

<i>Kryoryctes</i> Extinct genus of monotremes

Kryoryctes is a genus of prehistoric monotreme mammal from the Early Cretaceous (Albian) Eumeralla Formation of Victoria, Australia from the Otway Group of Dinosaur Cove. It is known only from a partial right humerus, estimated at 106 million years old, and contains one species, Kryoryctes cadburyi. The holotype, NMV P208094, was described in 2005 and is currently housed in the Museums Victoria Palaeontological Collection.

<i>Diluvicursor</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Diluvicursor is a genus of small ornithischian from the Lower Albian of Australia. It is known from one species, the type species D. pickeringi. The two known specimens, a vertebra and a partial juvenile postcranium discovered in 2005 from the Eumeralla Formation, are known, and they were named in early 2018.

<i>Galleonosaurus</i> Extinct genus of dinosaurs

Galleonosaurus is a genus of basal ornithopod dinosaur from the Wonthaggi Formation of the Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia. The type and only species is Galleonosaurus dorisae.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Weishampel, David B; et al. (2004). "Dinosaur distribution (Early Cretaceous, Australasia)." In: Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; and Osmólska, Halszka (eds.): The Dinosauria, 2nd, Berkeley: University of California Press. Pp. 573-574. ISBN   0-520-24209-2.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Herne, M. C.; Tait, A. M.; Weisbecker, V.; Hall, M.; Nair, J. P.; Cleeland, M.; Salisbury, S. W. (2018-01-11). "A new small-bodied ornithopod (Dinosauria, Ornithischia) from a deep, high-energy Early Cretaceous river of the Australian–Antarctic rift system". PeerJ. 5: e4113. doi: 10.7717/peerj.4113 . PMC   5767335 . PMID   29340228.
  3. McLoughlin, Stephen; Pott, Christian (February 2019). "Plant mobility in the Mesozoic: Disseminule dispersal strategies of Chinese and Australian Middle Jurassic to Early Cretaceous plants". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 515: 47–69. Bibcode:2019PPP...515...47M. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2017.12.036.
  4. Milanesia Beach tracksite at Fossilworks.org
  5. 1 2 3 4 Duncan, Ruairidh J.; Evans, Alistair R.; Vickers-Rich, Patricia; Rich, Thomas H.; Poropat, Stephen F. (2021-05-04). "Ornithopod jaws from the Lower Cretaceous Eumeralla Formation, Victoria, Australia, and their implications for polar neornithischian dinosaur diversity". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 41 (3). Bibcode:2021JVPal..41E6551D. doi:10.1080/02724634.2021.1946551. ISSN   0272-4634. S2CID   238672791.
  6. Benson, Roger B. J.; Rich, Thomas H.; Vickers-Rich, Patricia; Hall, Mike (2012-05-16). "Theropod Fauna from Southern Australia Indicates High Polar Diversity and Climate-Driven Dinosaur Provinciality". PLOS ONE. 7 (5): e37122. Bibcode:2012PLoSO...737122B. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0037122 . ISSN   1932-6203. PMC   3353904 . PMID   22615916.
  7. Brougham, Tom; Salisbury, Steven W.; Bell, Phil R. (2018). "Non-avian theropod diversity in Cretaceous Australia: evidence from the fossil tooth record". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 38 (Supplement 1): 97–98. Archived from the original on 2018-10-22. Retrieved 2020-10-14.
  8. Barrett, Paul M.; Rich, Thomas H.; Vickers-Rich, Patricia; Tumanova, Tat'yana A.; Inglis, Matthew; Pickering, David; Kool, Lesley; Kear, Benjamin P. (September 2010). "Ankylosaurian dinosaur remains from the Lower Cretaceous of southeastern Australia". Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology. 34 (3): 205–217. Bibcode:2010Alch...34..205B. doi:10.1080/03115511003655430. ISSN   0311-5518. S2CID   128882257.
  9. "Table 18.1," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 394.
  10. 1 2 Poropat, Stephen F.; White, Matt A.; Vickers-Rich, Patricia; Rich, Thomas H. (2019-07-04). "New megaraptorid (Dinosauria: Theropoda) remains from the Lower Cretaceous Eumeralla Formation of Cape Otway, Victoria, Australia". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 39 (4): e1666273. Bibcode:2019JVPal..39E6273P. doi:10.1080/02724634.2019.1666273. ISSN   0272-4634. S2CID   208603798.
  11. Martin, Anthony J.; Vickers-Rich, Patricia; Rich, Thomas H.; Hall, Michael (2013). "Oldest known avian footprints from Australia: Eumeralla Formation (Albian), Dinosaur Cove, Victoria". Palaeontology. 57: 7–19. doi: 10.1111/pala.12082 .
  12. Poropat, Stephen F.; Pentland, Adele H.; Duncan, Ruairidh J.; Bevitt, Joseph J.; Vickers-Rich, Patricia; Rich, Thomas H. (2020-08-01). "First elaphrosaurine theropod dinosaur (Ceratosauria: Noasauridae) from Australia — A cervical vertebra from the Early Cretaceous of Victoria". Gondwana Research. 84: 284–295. Bibcode:2020GondR..84..284P. doi:10.1016/j.gr.2020.03.009. ISSN   1342-937X. S2CID   218930877.
  13. Smith, Nathan D; Makovicky, Peter J; Agnolin, Federico L; Ezcurra, Martín D; Pais, Diego F; Salisbury, Steven W (2008-06-10). "A Megaraptor-like theropod (Dinosauria: Tetanurae) in Australia: support for faunal exchange across eastern and western Gondwana in the Mid-Cretaceous". Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 275 (1647): 2085–2093. doi:10.1098/rspb.2008.0504. ISSN   0962-8452. PMC   2603215 . PMID   18544511.
  14. Benson, Roger B. J.; Carrano, Matthew T.; Brusatte, Stephen L. (2009-10-14). "A new clade of archaic large-bodied predatory dinosaurs (Theropoda: Allosauroidea) that survived to the latest Mesozoic". Naturwissenschaften. 97 (1): 71–8. doi:10.1007/s00114-009-0614-x. ISSN   1432-1904. PMID   19826771. S2CID   22646156.
  15. Smith, Nathan D; Makovicky, Peter J; Agnolin, Federico L; Ezcurra, Martín D; Pais, Diego F; Salisbury, Steven W (2008-09-22). "A Megaraptor-like theropod (Dinosauria: Tetanurae) in Australia: support for faunal exchange across eastern and western Gondwana in the Mid-Cretaceous". Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 275 (1647): 2085–2093. doi:10.1098/rspb.2008.0504. ISSN   0962-8452. PMC   2603215 . PMID   18544511.
  16. Theropod Fauna from Southern Australia Indicates High Polar Diversity and Climate-Driven Dinosaur Provinciality Roger B. J. Benson, Thomas H. Rich, Patricia Vickers-Rich, Mike Hall 2012
  17. AUSTRALIA’S OLDEST AND HIGHEST PALEOLATITUDE CROCODYLOMORPHS FROM THE LOWER CRETACEOUS EUMERALLA FORMATION (UPPER APTIAN–LOWER ALBIAN) OF DINOSAUR COVE, VICTORIA [ permanent dead link ] PARAGNANI, Cassia P., Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, Australia; POROPAT, Stephen F., Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, Australia; VICKERS-RICH, Patricia, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, Australia; RICH, Thomas H., Museum Victoria, Melbourne, Australia SVP conference abstracts 2019