Kota Formation | |
---|---|
Stratigraphic range: Jurassic ~ | |
Type | Geological formation |
Sub-units | Lower & Upper members |
Underlies | Unconformity with the Gangapur Formation and Chikiala Formation |
Overlies | Dharmaram Formation |
Thickness | 550–600 m (1,800–1,970 ft) |
Lithology | |
Primary | Mudstone, sandstone |
Other | Limestone |
Location | |
Coordinates | 18°54′N80°00′E / 18.9°N 80.0°E |
Approximate paleocoordinates | 31°36′S31°54′E / 31.6°S 31.9°E |
Region | Telangana |
Country | ![]() |
Extent | Pranhita-Godavari Basin |
Type section | |
Named for | Kota Village |
![]() |
The Kota Formation is a geological formation in India. The age of the Kota Formation is uncertain; it is commonly considered to date to the Early Jurassic, but some studies have suggested it may extend into the Middle Jurassic or even later. It conformably overlies the Lower Jurassic Upper Dharmaram Formation and is unconformably overlain by the Lower Cretaceous Gangapur Formation. It is split into a Lower Member and Upper Member. The Lower Member is approximately 100 m thick while the Upper Member is 490 m thick. Both subunits primarily consist of mudstone and sandstone, but near the base of the upper unit there is a 20-30 metre thick succession of limestone deposited in a freshwater setting. [1]
The lower boundary of the Kota Formation is made of pebbly sandstone, covering the topmost clay seen in the Dharmaram Formation. [2] The Kota Formation has been traditionally divided into 2 main members, the Lower and Upper members, yet more recent work have redivided it into 3. [3] The Lower member can be seen at locations such as Adamilli, Kamavarapukota and Sudikonda, being made of sandstones, with clay clasts, with greater or lower stratification. [4] The Middle Member is well developed along the Continental Gondwana basin, specially towards the northwestern part, and is made of medium to fine white sandstone with clay and concretionary limestone, suggesting the development of paleosols associated with alluvial floodplains. [3] The last member is mostly made of broad sandstone sheets with large clay casts associated with fluvial channels, and has an extension that can be easuly seen on several continuous kilometers. [4] [5] The Uppermost section of the unit is mostly made of limestones and is overlain on an angular unconformity by the Gangapur Formation. [3]
The age of the Kota Formation is controversial. There are no magmatic rocks or volcanic ash beds associated with the Kota Formation, which means that its age cannot be determined directly through radiometric dating. [6] [7] The maximum age of the Kota Formation is constrained by the underlying Upper Dharmaram Formation, which is Early Jurassic, probably Hettangian or Sinemurian, in age. [8] [7] Various researchers have attempted to date the Kota Formation using biostratigraphy. Krishnan (1968), Jain (1973), and Yadagiri and Prasad (1977) favored an Early Jurassic age based on the fish fauna. Govindan (1975) suggested a Middle Jurassic age based on ostracods. In 2006, Bandyopadhyay and Sengupta argued that the fish fauna suggested a Toarcian age for the Upper Kota Formation, possibly extending into the Aalenian, and in turn estimated the Lower Kota to be Sinemurian to Pliensbachian in age. [9] Guntupalli V. R. Prasad, along with various coauthors, has argued for a younger age. In 2001, Vijaya and Prasad proposed based on palynological evidence that the Kota Formation was deposited between the Callovian age of the Middle Jurassic and the Barremian age of the Early Cretaceous. [10] In 2002, Prasad and Manhas argued that the mammal genus Dyskritodon , known only from the Kota Formation and the Early Cretaceous of Morocco, provides evidence for a young age for the Kota Formation. [11] In 2020, Prasad and Parmar argued that the similarity of the dinosaur fauna of the Kota Formation to that of the Middle Jurassic of the United Kingdom supported a Middle Jurassic age for the Kota Formation. [12]
The Kota Formation represents mostly a Continental succession related to a continental rift basin, the Pranhita-Godavari Gondwana Basin of peninsular India. [13] The associated facies of sandstone and limestones are likely related to playa-type lake, with nearby fluvial currents, part of low gradient hanging wall alluvial fans, being deposited on it´s margin. There have been records of freshwater lue green algal stromatolites and oncolites, suggested to be deposited on low energy and low bathymetry lacustrine settings. [14] More recent works have proven the basin hosted in the Early Jurassic a freshwater carbonate wetland marked by the presence of limestones. [1] The environmental model proposed include a depositional cycle marked by several facies types, A for the sublittoral zones of shallow water bodies, followed by palustrine environments, including surfaces with abundance of influence of both plants and animals, specially rhizobrecciation indicating active colonization of the margins by plants, having a similar deposition to the modern Las Tablas de Daimiel wetlands. [1] Associated with the lacustrine facies have recovered microbial bioherms and lacustrine spring mounds, shallow ephemeral ponds with carbonated mud and Phyllopods, pedogenic calcrete under arid seasons and short-lived distributary channels. [13] The depositional setting may have been partially sheltered from the input of siliciclastic materials, except on flooding seasons. Microbial biomats likely developed on shallow waters, while rhizoliths increased it´s presence of abandoned channel fills and pedogenic facies indicate drought seasons. [13]
The carbonate layers with iron-rich grains and mudstones suggest a transition zone between a lake margin and wetland in a rift valley, in a marsh that experienced periodic influxes of iron-rich and barium-rich waters through faults. [15] These waters briefly increased acidity but were neutralized by mixing with alkaline surface water, allowing carbonate formation. Iron-oxidizing microbes likely helped deposit iron oxides, cementing the sediment. During high water flow, these deposits were eroded and transported to deeper waters, forming iron-rich coatings. Thin sandy layers suggest that freshwater influxes occurred, forming carbonate bodies near water discharge points. As the water returned to being more alkaline, carbonates could form again, supporting freshwater Bivalvia, similar to modern geothermal areas of New Zealand. [15]
Color key
| Notes Uncertain or tentative taxa are in small text; |
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
C. sp. |
|
| Six carapaces | A freshwater ostracodan of the Family Pontocyprididae. | ||
C. sp. |
|
| Fourteen incomplete carapaces | A freshwater ostracodan of the Family Palaeocytheridae. | ||
D. cf.sarytirmenensis |
|
| More than 200 carapaces and valves | A freshwater ostracodan of the Family Darwinulidae. The most dominant genus locally and the main indicator of both fluvial and lacustrine settings | ||
D. kingi |
|
| Around 120 carapaces and valves | A freshwater ostracodan of the Family Darwinulidae. | ||
D. spp. |
|
| Nineteen Carapaces | A freshwater ostracodan of the Family Darwinulidae. | ||
E. sp. |
|
| Eight incomplete carapaces | A freshwater ostracodan of the Family Candoninae. | ||
L. spp. |
|
| Three complete carapaces | A freshwater ostracodan of the family Limnocytheridae. | ||
?S. sp. |
|
| Single incomplete carapace | A freshwater ostracodan of the family Cyprididae. | ||
T. digitalis |
|
| Twenty complete carapaces and thirty-six partly broken carapaces. | A freshwater ostracodan of the family Limnocytheridae. | ||
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
E. alibadadensis |
|
| Valves | A freshwater clam shrimp of the family Estheriininae. The most abundant Estheriid in the region and the key element of the Estheriina biozone | ||
E. indijurassica |
|
| Valves | A freshwater clam shrimp of the family Estheriininae. | ||
E. bullata |
|
| Valves | A freshwater clam shrimp of the family Estheriininae. | ||
E. pranhitaensis |
|
| Valves | A freshwater clam shrimp of the family Estheriininae. | ||
L. kotaensis |
|
| Valves | A freshwater clam shrimp of the family Lioestheriidae. The second key element of the Estheriina biozone | ![]() | |
L. crustabundis [18] |
|
| Valves | A freshwater clam shrimp of the family Lioestheriidae. | ||
L. ssp. [18] |
|
| Valves | A freshwater clam shrimp of the family Lioestheriidae. | ||
P. spp. |
|
| Valves | A freshwater clam shrimp of the family Estheriininae. | ||
P. andhrapradeshia |
|
| Valves | A freshwater clam shrimp of the family Lioestheriidae. | ||
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
A. shiva | Tasch outcrop K-2 bed 8 |
| Right forewing tegmen | |||
Blattodea [21] [18] | Indeterminate | Tasch outcrop K-l, K-2, K-4 and K-5 |
| Isolated wings | Indeterminate Blattodean remains | |
Coleoptera [21] [18] | Indeterminate | Tasch outcrop K-l, K-2 and K-5 |
| Isolated wings | Indeterminate Beetle remains | |
C. sp. | Kota limestone ridge |
| Isolated wings | An Indeterminate Coleopteran. | ||
Ephemeroptera [21] [18] | Indeterminate | Tasch outcrop K-l, K-2 and K-5 |
| Isolated wings | Indeterminate Mayfly remains | |
Hemiptera [21] [18] | Indeterminate | Tasch outcrop K-l & K-2 |
| Isolated wings | Indeterminate Hemipteran remains | |
Heteroptera [21] [18] | Indeterminate | Tasch outcrop K-l & K-2 |
| Isolated wings | Indeterminate Heteropteran remains | |
Neuroptera [21] [18] | Indeterminate | Tasch outcrop K-l, K-2 and K-5 |
| Isolated wings | Indeterminate Neuropteran remains | |
K. frankmortoni | Sirpur Taluka, Tasch's K1 outcrop bed 2(A) |
| MCZ 11909, Isolated wing | |||
P. lakshmi | Kota Formation outcrop K-2 |
| MCZ 3046, Isolated wing | |||
T. bharataja | Sirpur Taluka, Tasch's K1 outcrop bed 3(A) |
| No.2013(3013), part and counterpart of well preserved wing | |||
T. tulyabhijana | Sirpur Taluka, Tasch's K1 outcrop bed 2(A) |
| No. 5034, well preserved wing | |||
X. alexandri | Kota Formation outcrop K-2 |
| MCZ 11831, well preserved wing | |||
Taxon | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
I. robustus |
|
|
| A robust freshwater coelacanth of the family Latimeriidae. Represents the largest member of the local freshwater fauna, measuring up to 70 cm. [26] | ||
L. deccanensis |
|
|
| A freshwater neopterygian of the family Lepisosteiformes. | ![]() | |
L. spp. |
|
| Isolated remains | A freshwater neopterygian of the family Lepisosteiformes. | ||
L. indicus |
|
|
| A freshwater elasmobranch of the family Lonchidiidae. | ||
P. egertoni |
|
|
| A freshwater neopterygian of the family Dapediidae. | ||
P. kingi |
|
|
| A freshwater neopterygian of the family Pholidophoridae. | ||
P. indicus |
|
|
| A freshwater neopterygian of the family Pholidophoridae. | ||
P.? sp. |
|
|
| A freshwater elasmobranch of the family Polyacrodontidae. | ||
Indeterminate |
|
|
| A freshwater neopterygian of the family Pycnodontidae, originally classified as Perciformes, yet suggested to be very similar to the Cretaceous pycnodont Stephanodus . | ||
Indeterminate |
|
|
| A freshwater neopterygian of the family Semionotiformes. | ||
T. oldhami |
|
|
| A freshwater neopterygian of the family Dapediidae. | ![]() | |
Taxon | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Indeterminate |
|
|
| Indeterminate frog remains, originally referred to Pelobatidae due to be compared with younger Creteaceous Indian frog material | ||
Indeterminate |
|
|
| Indeterminate caudatan remains, originally referred to Sirenidae due to be compared with younger Creteaceous sirenid material | ||
Taxon | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Indeterminate | Paikasigudem village |
| Isolated lower molar | A mammal of the group Australosphenida, resembling the south american genus Asfaltomylos | ||
D.? indicus | Paikasigudem village |
| VPL/JU/KM/13, lower left molar | A dubious mammal of the group Eutriconodonta. This Genus is known from the Early Cretaceous of Morocco, what has been used to suggest a minimum Berrasian age for the Upper Kota Formation | ||
G. dattai | Paikasigudem village |
| VPL/JU/KM 12 right lower molar | A mammal of the family Docodontidae | ||
I. pranhitai | 5 km west of Yamanapalli |
| GSI20795, right upper molar | A mammaliform of the family Morganucodontidae. Includes the informally named "Indozostrodon simpsoni". [36] | ||
I. zofiae | Paikasigudem village |
| VPL/JU/KM/20, a left upper premolar | A mammal described as an eobaatarid multituberculate, but this interpretation has been challenged. [38] | ||
K. haldanei | 5 km west of Yamanapalli |
| GSI19634, right upper molar | A mammaliform of the family Kuehneotheriidae | ||
N. paikasiensis | Paikasigudem village |
| GSI.SR/PAL/12, right upper molar | A mammal of the family Amphidontidae | ||
P. yadagirii | Paikasigudem village |
| VPL/JU/KM/10, right upper molar | A mammaliaform of the family Morganucodontidae, originally known as "Kotatherium yadagirii" | ||
T. kotaensis | Paikasigudem village |
| GSISR/PAL/10, left lower molar | A mammal of the order Symmetrodonta | ||
Taxon | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
B. rebbanensis | Paikasigudem village |
|
| A lepidosauromorph originally described as an Iguanian lizard. May actually be a sphenodontian rather than a lizard. [43] | ||
G. lateefi |
|
|
| A small sphenodontian, with a skull estimated to measure less than 20 mm | ||
P. indicus | Paikasigudem village |
|
| An indeterminate and dubious lepidosauromorph, originally suggested to be a varanoid lizard | ||
R. jaini | Paikasigudem village |
|
| A small sphenodont | ||
Indeterminate | Paikasigudem village |
|
| Distinct from Bharatagama rebbanensis; may include material formerly assigned to the dubious Kota squamate Paikasisaurus indicus. [a] | ||
Indeterminate | Paikasigudem village |
|
| Indeterminate Sphenodontidae remains | ||
Taxon | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
I. spatulata |
|
|
| Mesochelydian stem-turtle, suggested to be related with Condorchelys | ||
Indeterminate | 1 km south of Bodepalli |
| Carapace fragments | Indeterminate turtle remains | ||
Atoposaurid crocodiles are known from the unit, yet is not clear from what locality. [7]
Taxon | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Indeterminate | 1 km south of Bodepalli | Lower Member | Maxillae, dentaries, teeth | Indeterminate crocodylomorph remains, previously mixed with thyreophoran material and part of the chimaeric "Andhrasaurus" | ||
Indeterminate | Kota limestone ridge |
| Dermal scutes, with a femur and some fragments of other bones | Indeterminate material referred to crocodylomorphs similar to Teleosaurus | ||
Taxon | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
C. indicus | Kota limestone ridge |
|
| The holotype of Campylognathoides indicus, a pair of premaxillae, may represent a fish rather than a pterosaur. [51] | ||
Indeterminate |
|
|
| Indeterminate pterosaur remains | ||
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
"A. indicus" | 1 km south of Bodepalli | Lower Member | Sacral vertebra, vertebral centra, dorsal vertebrae, caudal vertebrae, parts of scapula and ilium, osteoderms | A chimaera of thyreophoran postcranial material and Crocodylomorph skull pieces. The armor was later suggested to be Ankylosauria indet. [48] And other latter works pointed out it likely belongs to an indeterminate basal thyreophoran. [54] | ||
B. tagorei |
|
|
| A sauropod dinosaur, either a Eusauropoda or more likely a Gravisauria. Represents the best-known Early Jurassic sauropod | ![]() | |
Carnosauria [56] | Indeterminate | Yamanapalli bonebed |
| Isolated Teeth | Found in the same bonebed as Kotasaurus, referred to as 'carnosaur predators' | |
D. indicus | Yamanpalli bonebed | Lower Member |
| A chimaera of large theropod bones, including and ischium and tooth, probably belonging to a carnosaur, and sauropod bones (two Kotasaurus vertebrae) | ![]() | |
Indeterminate | Paikasigudem village |
| Isolated Teeth | Five distinct morphotypes have been identified, mostly resemble coelurosaurs or dromaeosauroids. [12] | ||
"Hypsilophodontid" [58] | Indeterminate | Gorlapalli Village |
| Isolated Tooth | Identified originally as a member of Hypsilophodontidae, probably represents a tooth of a basal neornithischian. [12] | |
K. yamanpalliensis | Yamanpalli bonebed |
| Disarticulated remains of at least 12 individuals [56] | A basal sauropod | ![]() | |
Indeterminate |
|
|
| Indeterminate ornithischian material. Among the teeth, at least five distinct morphotypes have been identified. | ||
R.? spp. | Paikasigudem village |
| Isolated Teeth | Teeth similar to those of the problematic taxon Richardoestesia, of supposed coelurosaur affinities | ||
Indeterminate | Paikasigudem village |
| Scute and associated fragmentary limb bones. | Indeterminate scelidosaurid material. | ||
Sauropoda [56] | Indeterminate | Yamanpalli bonebed |
| Isolated Teeth | Found in the same bonebed as Kotasaurus, resembles Amygdalodon . |
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
A. kotaense | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Araucariaceae or Cheirolepidiaceae inside Pinales. | ||
A. chandrapurensis [61] | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Araucariaceae or Cheirolepidiaceae inside Pinales. | ||
A. santacruzense [62] | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Araucariaceae or Cheirolepidiaceae inside Pinales. | ||
Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Araucariaceae or Cheirolepidiaceae inside Pinales. | |||
A. santalense [60] | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Araucariaceae or Cheirolepidiaceae inside Pinales. | ||
A. spp. [60] |
|
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Araucariaceae or Cheirolepidiaceae inside Pinales. | ||
A. minutus |
|
| Branched shoots | Affinities with Araucariaceae inside Pinales. | ||
A. sp. |
|
| Branched shoots | Affinities with Araucariaceae inside Pinales. | ||
B. expansum |
|
| Branched shoots | Affinities with Araucariaceae or Cheirolepidiaceae inside Pinales. | ||
E. conferta | Near Kota village |
| Branched shoots | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
E. tenerrimus [61] | Near Kota village |
| Branched shoots | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
E. jabalpurensis [61] | Near Kota village |
| Branched shoots | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
E. plana [61] | Near Kota village |
| Branched shoots | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
E. sp. [61] | Near Kota village |
| Branched shoots | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
C. denticulata |
|
| Isolated fronds | Affinities with Osmundaceae in the Osmundales. | ![]() | |
|
| Isolated fronds | Affinities with Osmundaceae in the Osmundales | |||
|
| Isolated fronds | Affinities with Osmundaceae in the Osmundales | |||
|
| Isolated fronds | Affinities with Osmundaceae in the Osmundales | |||
C. kotaense | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Podocarpaceae inside Pinales. | ||
C. hymenophylloides |
|
| Isolated fronds | Affinities with Polypodiales in the Polypodiidae. Common cosmopolitan Mesozoic fern genus. Recent research has reinterpreted it a stem group of the Polypodiales (closely related to the extant genera Dennstaedtia , Lindsaea , and Odontosoria ) | ![]() | |
C. sp. [63] |
|
| Isolated fronds | Affinities with Polypodiales in the Polypodiidae. | ||
C. kotaense | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
D. falcatus |
|
| Leaflets | Affinities with Williamsoniaceae in the Bennettitales. | ||
D. kotaense [61] |
|
| Leaflets | Affinities with Williamsoniaceae in the Bennettitales. | ||
E.rajmahalensis |
|
| Isolated Stems | Affinities with Equisetaceae inside Equisetales. | ![]() | |
G. lobata |
|
| Leafs | Affinities with Ginkgoaceae inside Ginkgoopsida. | ![]() | |
G. dixii | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Ginkgoaceae inside Ginkgoopsida. | ||
H. cf. buchii | Near Kota village |
| Isolated pinnae | Affinities with Dipteridaceae in the Polypodiales. | ![]() | |
O. vemavarmensis |
|
| Leaflets | Affinities with Williamsoniaceae in the Bennettitales. | ||
P. peregrinum | Near Kota village |
| Branched shoots | Affinities with Araucariaceae or Cheirolepidiaceae inside Pinales. | ||
P. cf.peregrinum | Near Kota village |
| Branched shoots | Affinities with Araucariaceae or Cheirolepidiaceae inside Pinales. | ||
P. spp. | Near Kota village |
| Branched shoots | Affinities with Araucariaceae or Cheirolepidiaceae inside Pinales. | ||
P. indica | Near Kota village |
| Isolated pinnae | Affinities with Umkomasiaceae in the Pteridospermatophyta. | ||
P. mahabalei | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Protopinaceae inside Pinales. | ||
P. chandrapurensis | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Podocarpaceae inside Pinales. | ||
P. chiturensis [61] | Chitur village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Podocarpaceae inside Pinales. | ||
P. krauselii [63] | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Podocarpaceae inside Pinales. | ||
P. rajmahalense [63] | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Podocarpaceae inside Pinales. | ||
P. sewardii [61] | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Podocarpaceae inside Pinales. | ||
P. sp. [63] | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Podocarpaceae inside Pinales. | ||
P. sp. |
|
| Leaflets | Broad conifer leaves | ||
P. cf. fragilis |
|
| Leaflets | Affinities with Cycadales in the Cycadopsida. | ||
P. fissum |
|
| Leaflets | Affinities with Williamsoniaceae in the Bennettitales. | ||
P. acutifolium |
|
| Leaflets | Affinities with Williamsoniaceae in the Bennettitales. | ||
P. cutchense [61] |
|
| Leaflets | Affinities with Williamsoniaceae in the Bennettitales. | ||
P. cf.sahnii [61] |
|
| Leaflets | Affinities with Williamsoniaceae in the Bennettitales. | ||
P. cf.institacallum [61] |
|
| Leaflets | Affinities with Williamsoniaceae in the Bennettitales. | ||
P. sp. |
|
| Leaflets | Affinities with Williamsoniaceae in the Bennettitales. | ||
P. sahnii | Chitur village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
P. liassicum [67] | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
S. kotaensis | Near Kota village |
| Isolated Fronds | Affinities with Dicksoniaceae in the Cyatheales. | ||
T. sahnii | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
T. biradarii [61] | Chitur village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
T. antiquum [61] | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
T. sp. | Near Kota village |
| Fossil wood | Affinities with Cupressaceae inside Pinales. | ||
T. constricte |
|
| Branched shoots | ![]() | ||
Barapasaurus is a genus of basal sauropod dinosaur from Jurassic rocks of India. The only species is B. tagorei. Barapasaurus comes from the lower part of the Kota Formation, which is of Early to Middle Jurassic age. It is therefore one of the earliest known sauropods. Barapasaurus is known from approximately 300 bones from at least six individuals, so that the skeleton is almost completely known except for the anterior cervical vertebrae and the skull. This makes Barapasaurus one of the most completely known sauropods from the early Jurassic.
Dravidosaurus is a controversial taxon of Late Cretaceous reptiles, variously interpreted as either a ornithischian dinosaur or a plesiosaur. The genus contains a single species, D. blanfordi, known from mostly poorly preserved fossils from the Coniacian of southern India.
Dandakosaurus is a genus of extinct averostran theropod dinosaur from the Kota Formation, Andhra Pradesh, India. It lived 183 to 175 million years ago from the latest Pliensbachian to the late Toarcian stages of the Early Jurassic. Little is known about the genus and some paleontologists consider it to be a nomen dubium.
Kotasaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Early Jurassic period (Sinemurian–Pliensbachian). The only known species is Kotasaurus yamanpalliensis. It was discovered in the Kota Formation of Telangana, India and shared its habitat with the related Barapasaurus. So far the remains of at least 12 individuals are known. The greater part of the skeleton is known, but the skull is missing, with the exception of two teeth. Like some sauropods, it had a tail club that would have been used for intraspecific combat or interpspecific defense.
Chigutisauridae is an extinct family of large temnospondyls. The only genera recognized as belonging to Chigutisauridae at the current time are all from Gondwana. Chigutisaurids first appeared during the Early Triassic in Australia. During the Late Triassic they became widely distributed in Gondwana, with fossils found in South Africa, India and South America. Koolasuchus from the Early Cretaceous of Australia represents the youngest known temnospondyl.
Indocoelacanthus robustus is a fossil sarcopterygian. The holotype specimen was found in Lower Jurassic-aged riverine sediment of the Kota formation, in the Pranhita-Godavari valley at Boraigudem limestone ridge, about 30 kilometers southeast of Sironcha, India. The holotype is preserved in the museum of the Indian Statistical Institute.
The Upper Dharmaram Formation is an Early Jurassic geologic formation found in Telangana, India. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.
The Intertrappean Beds are a Late Cretaceous and Early Paleocene geologic formation in India. The beds are found as interbeds between Deccan Traps layers, including the slightly older Lameta Formation. The formation spans the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary, with a stratigraphic range of only a few hundred thousand years before and after the boundary, and a significant debate exists about whether specific sites belong to the Cretaceous or the Paleocene.
The Walloon Coal Measures are a Late Jurassic geologic subgroup in Queensland, Australia. Deposited within the Surat Basin, it is considered Oxfordian to early Tithonian in age based on lead-uranium dating of tuffites within the unit.
Godavarisaurus is an extinct genus of sphenodontian reptile from the Early-Middle Jurassic Kota Formation of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is known from jaw fragments. It was a small sphenodontian, with the skull estimated to be less than 2 centimetres (0.79 in) long. It is generally considered to be a relatively basal sphenodontian that lies outside Eusphenodontia.
Deccanodon is an extinct genus of dromatheriid cynodonts which existed in India during the Late Triassic. The type species is D. maleriensis, named in 2007. Deccanodon was one of the first Triassic cynodonts named from India and was found in the Maleri Formation in Adilabad district.
The Pranhita–Godavari Basin is a northwest–southeast striking geological structural basin in central India. The basin contains up to 7 kilometres of sedimentary strata of late Carboniferous/Early Permian to Cretaceous age. The basin is 400 km in length with a width of about 100 km and is terminated by the coast of the Indian Ocean on the southeast end.
The Yerrapalli Formation is a Triassic rock formation consisting primarily of mudstones that outcrops in the Pranhita–Godavari Basin in southeastern India. The Yerrapalli Formation preserves fossils of freshwater and terrestrial vertebrates as well as trace fossils of invertebrates. The tetrapod fauna includes temnospondyl amphibians, archosauromorph reptiles, and dicynodonts.
The Charmouth Mudstone Formation is a geological formation in England, dating to the Early Jurassic (Sinemurian–Pliensbachian). It forms part of the lower Lias Group. It is most prominently exposed at its type locality in cliff section between Lyme Regis and Charmouth but onshore it extends northwards to Market Weighton, Yorkshire, and in the subsurface of the East Midlands Shelf and Wessex Basin. The formation is notable for its fossils, including those of ammonites and marine reptiles and rare dinosaur remains. The formation played a prominent role in the history of early paleontology, with its Lyme Regis-Charmouth exposure being frequented by fossil collectors including Mary Anning.
Bharatagama is an extinct genus of lepidosaur from the Early Jurassic of India. It has been suggested to be one of the oldest known lizards and the oldest known iguanian. The type and only species is Bharatagama rebbanensis, named in 2002. Over one hundred fossils of Bharatagama have been found in the Kota Formation, which outcrops in the Pranhita–Godavari Basin and dates back to about 190 million years ago (Ma). Despite its abundance, Bharatagama is known only from isolated jaw bones mixed together in microvertebrate assemblages with equally fragmentary remains of fish, sphenodontians, dinosaurs, crocodylomorphs, and mammals. These fossils represent all stages of development, from hatchlings to adults. The total length of the skull in adult specimens is estimated to have been about 15 millimetres (0.59 in). Later analysis suggested that the taxon might be a member of Rhynchocephalia.
Rebbanasaurus is an extinct sphenodontian reptile known from remains found in the Early-Middle Jurassic Kota Formation of India. The type specimen is a partial jawbone which has acrodont teeth, with other known remains including fragments of the premaxilla, maxilla, and palatine. It was relatively small, with a skull estimated at 1.5–2.5 centimetres (0.59–0.98 in) long. It is generally considered to be a relatively basal sphenodontian that lies outside Eusphenodontia.
Panthasaurus is an extinct genus of large temnospondyl belonging to the family Metoposauridae that lived in India during the Late Triassic (Norian) of central India. It contains one species, Panthasaurus maleriensis from the Lower Maleri Formation of India.
The Kundaram Formation is a geological formation in India, located within the Pranhita–Godavari Basin. The unit is between 250–400 metres thick and at its base consists of sandstone-mudstone alterations, followed by a sequence dominated by red mudstone with infrequent sandstone lens beds, with minor ferruginous shale within the sandstones. It was deposited in fluvial conditions. It is considered to be Late Permian in age. An abundant terrestrial fauna is known from nodules found near the village of Golleti in the Adilabad district of Telangana, the only such fauna known from the Permian of India. The fauna found includes the dicynodonts Endothiodon, Dicynodontoides, Pristerodon and Sauroscaptor, as well the small captorhinid Indosauriscus and an indeterminate medium-sized gorgonopsid.
The Panchet Formation is an Early Triassic geological formation from the Damodar Valley of India.
The Gangapur Formation is a geological formation in Telangana, India. The Gangapur formation is Early Cretaceous in age. It forms a part of the Pranhita–Godavari Basin and overlies the Jurassic Kota Formation. The outcrops near the Gangapur village was first described in 1881 as the Gangapur beds. In 1969, the area was instituted as the Gangapur Formation. It was also determined that the Gangapur Formation extends from north of Nowgaon to the west of Gangapur and in the east up to Dharmaram and Paikasigudem. Fossils of Plants have been found in large quantities in the formation.
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