| Luning Formation | |
|---|---|
| Stratigraphic range: Carnian | |
| Type | Formation |
| Location | |
| Region |  Nevada |
| Country |  United States |
The Luning Formation is a geologic formation in Nevada. It preserves fossils dating back to the Triassic period.
| Luning Formation | |
|---|---|
| Stratigraphic range: Carnian | |
| Type | Formation |
| Location | |
| Region | Nevada |
| Country | United States |
The Luning Formation is a geologic formation in Nevada. It preserves fossils dating back to the Triassic period.
The Luning Formation contains significant fossils of invertebrate fauna such as ammonites, bivalves and brachiopods. The site is known for its ichthyosaur fossils.
| Vertebrates reported from the Luning Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Actinopterygii | West Union Canyon. [1] | S. kerri ammonoid zone. [1] | Small fish bones. [1] | An indeterminate bony fish. | ||
| Chondrichthyes | West Union Canyon [1] | K. macrolobatus ammonoid zone. [1] | An elasmobranch fin spine. [1] | An indeterminate cartilaginous fish. | ||
| Metapolygnathus | M. primitius | Pilot & Cedar Mountains. [2] | Conodont elements. [2] | A conodont. | ||
| Shonisaurus | S. popularis | West Union Canyon, Berlin–Ichthyosaur State Park. [1] | Remains of approximately 40 individuals. [3] | A large ichthyosaur. |  | |
| Vertebrata indet. | West Union Canyon. [1] | S. kerri ammonoid zone or above. [1] | Indeterminate bone fragments. [1] | |||
| Arthropods reported from the Luning Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Platypleon | P. nevadensis | A fragmentary specimen containing two pleonal segments and the proximal portion of the left uropods. [4] | A decapod. | |||
| Pseudoglyphea | P. mulleri | Carapace. [4] | A litogastrid decapod. | |||
| Rosagammarus | R. minichiellus | Shoshone Mountains. [4] [5] | Right half of a tail. [4] | A lobster-like decapod, originally misidentified as a giant amphipod. [5] | ||
| Brachiopods reported from the Luning Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Balatonospira? | B.? cf. B. lipoldi | Dunlap Canyon & Cinnabar Canyon. [6] | Lower Member. [6] | Numerous specimens. [6] | A spiriferidan. | |
| Plectoconcha | P. aequiplicata | Berlin-Ichthyosaur state park & Pilot Mountains. [6] | Limestone and secondary dolomite member, & Lower Member. [6] | Numerous specimens. [6] | A terebratulid. | |
| P. newbyi | Dunlap Canyon & Cinnabar Canyon. [6] | Lower Member. [6] | Numerous specimens. [6] | A terebratulid. | ||
| Rhaetina | R. gregaria | Cinnabar & Dunlap Canyons, & Berlin–Ichthyosaur State Park. [6] | Lower Member & limestone and secondary dolomite member. [6] | Around 10 specimens. [6] | A terebratulidan. |  |
| Spondylospira | S. lewesensis | Dunlap Canyon & Berlin–Ichthyosaur State Park. [6] | Lower Member. [6] | 3 complete specimens, 1 brachial & 2 pedicle valves. [6] | A spiniferidan. | |
| Zeilleria | Z. cf. Z. elliptica | Dunlap & Cinnabar Canyons. [6] | Lower Member. [6] | Over 12 specimens. [6] | A zeilleriid. |  |
| Zugmayerella | Z. uncinata | Dunlap Canyon & Cinnabar Canyon. [6] | Lower Member. [6] | Numerous specimens. [6] | A spiniferidan. | |
| ?Z. sp. | 14.5 km east of Mina, Nevada. [6] | Probably Lower Member. [6] | A pedicle valve (UMIP 6952). [6] | A spiniferidan. | ||
| Cephalopods reported from the Luning Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Guembelites | G. clavatus | Pilot Mountains & Shoshone Mountains. [2] | An ammonite. | |||
| G. jandianus | Pilot Mountains & Shoshone Mountains. [2] | An ammonite. | ||||
| G. philostrati | Pilot Mountains & Shoshone Mountains. [2] | An ammonite. | ||||
| Pararcestes | P. sp. | Mustang Canyon locality & Dunlap Canyon. [2] | An ammonite. | |||
| Stikinoceras | S. kerri | Pilot Mountains & Shoshone Mountains. [2] | An ammonite. | |||
| Thisbites | T. sp. | Pilot Mountains & Shoshone Mountains. [2] | An ammonite. | |||
| Cnidarians reported from the Luning Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Ampakabastrea | A. cowichanensis | Dunlap Canyon, Mina vicinity & Mineral County, Nevada. [2] | 6 specimens. [2] | A stony coral also found in the Osobb Formation. | ||
| Areaseris | A. nevadaensis | Dunlap Canyon. [2] | Multiple specimens. [2] | A stony coral also found in California. | ||
| Astraeomorpha | A. confusa | Dunlap Canyon. [2] | 2 specimens. [2] | A stony coral. | ||
| Ceriostella | C. martini | Pilot Mountains & east of Mina. [2] | 6 specimens. [2] | A stony coral also found in the Osobb Formation. | ||
| C. parva | Pilot Mountains. [2] | 3 specimens. [2] | A stony coral also found in Alaska. | |||
| Curtoseris | C. dunlapcanyonae | Dunlap Canyon. [2] | UMIP 17010. [2] | A stony coral also found in Alaska & Peru. | ||
| Distichomeandra | D. cf. minor | Cedar Mountains (Dicalite Summit). [2] | UMIP 26869. [2] | A stony coral. | ||
| Flexastrea | F. serialis | Mineral County, Nevada. [2] | 4 specimens. | A stony coral. | ||
| Khytrastrea | K. cuifiamorpha | Dunlap Canyon. [2] | UMIP 7465 & 7480. [2] | A stony coral. | ||
| K. silberlingi | Dunlap Canyon. [2] | UMIP 17002-1. [2] | A stony coral also found in the Osobb Formation. | |||
| Margarogyra | M. silberlingi | Mineral County, Nevada. [2] | A stony coral also found in the Osobb Formation. | |||
| Margarophyllidae undetermined genus | East of Mina, Pilot Mountains. [2] | Fragmentary, recrystallized specimen (UMIP 6676). [2] | A stony coral. | |||
| Meandrovolzeia | M. sp. | Pilot Mountains. [2] | A colony fragment UMIP 6720. [2] | A stony coral. | ||
| Minasteria | M. shastensis | Pilot Mountains & Mina vicinity. [2] | 7 specimens. [2] | A stony coral also found in California. | ||
| Nevadoseris | N. punctata | Dunlap & Cinnabar Canyons. [2] | Multiple specimens. [2] | A stony coral also found in the Osobb Formation. | ||
| Plectodiscus | P. berlinensis | West Union Canyon, Berlin–Ichthyosaur State Park. [7] | UCMP 38211. [7] | A chondrophore. | ||
| Retiophyllia | R. nevadae | Mineral County, Nevada. [2] | UCMP 153092. [2] | A stony coral. | ||
| R. sp. | Dunlap Canyon. [2] | Fragments of corallites. [2] | A stony coral. | |||
| Thamnasteria | T. cf. smithi | Dunlap & Cinnabar canyons. [2] | 2 specimens. [2] | A thamnasteriid coral. |  | |
| Sponges reported from the Luning Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Polycystocoelia | P. silberlingi | Garfield Hills. [8] | Lower Member. [8] | Oe specimen (UMIP 6653). [8] | A demosponge. | |
Swartpuntia is a monospecific genus of erniettomorph from the terminal Ediacaran period, with at least three quilted, leaf-shaped petaloids — probably five or six. The petaloids comprise vertical sheets of tubes filled with sand. Swartpuntia specimens range in length from 12 to 19 cm, and in width from 11.5 to 140 cm. The margin is serrated, with a 1 mm wide groove. A 14 mm wide stem extends down the middle, tapering towards the top, and stopping 25 mm from the tip. The stem has a V-shaped ornamentation on it. The original fossils were found at, and named after, the Swartpunt farm between Aus and Rosh Pinah in Namibia. The generic name comes from Swartpunt, meaning black point in reference to the colour of the rocks. The specific name germsi honours Gerard Germs, who studied the Nama formation of geological beds.
The Bear Gulch Limestone is a limestone-rich geological lens in central Montana, renowned for the quality of its late Mississippian-aged fossils. It is exposed over a number of outcrops northeast of the Big Snowy Mountains, and is often considered a component of the more widespread Heath Formation. The Bear Gulch Limestone reconstructs a diverse, though isolated, marine ecosystem which developed near the end of the Serpukhovian age. It is a lagerstätte, a particular type of rock unit with exceptional fossil preservation of both articulated skeletons and soft tissues. Bear Gulch fossils include a variety of fish, invertebrates, and algae occupying a number of different habitats within a preserved shallow bay.
Falcatus is an extinct genus of falcatid chondrichthyan which lived during the early Carboniferous Period in Bear Gulch bay in what is now Montana.
Mark A. S. McMenamin is an American paleontologist and professor of geology at Mount Holyoke College. He has contributed to the study of the Cambrian explosion and the Ediacaran biota.
The Pierre Shale is a geologic formation or series in the Upper Cretaceous which occurs east of the Rocky Mountains in the Great Plains, from Pembina Valley in Canada to New Mexico.
Aeschronectida is an extinct order of mantis shrimp-like crustaceans which lived in the Mississippian subperiod in what is now Montana. They exclusively lived in the Carboniferous, or the age of amphibians. They have been found mostly in the U.S. and in the British Isles, in 1979 species were found in the Madera Formation in New Mexico. Aeschronectida was first identified appearing in Continental Europe in around 2014. While sharing similar characteristics to Stomatopoda, they lack certain physical characteristics of that taxon. The first species of Aeschronectida is accredited to Frederick R. Schram. They diverge substantially from typical hoplocaridan morphology by having more unmodified thoracopods. It's theorized that these thoracopods evolved to become more specialized, making them potential ancestors to Stomatopoda.
The Marjum Formation is a Cambrian geological formation that overlies the Wheeler Shale in the House Range, Utah. It is named after its type locality, Marjum Pass, and was defined in 1908. The formation is known for its occasional preservation of soft-bodied tissue, and is slightly younger than the Burgess Shale, falling in the Ptychagnostus praecurrens trilobite zone.
The Hoko River Formation is a Late Eocene marine sedimentary geologic formation. The formation is exposed in outcrops along the Strait of Juan de Fuca on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state, USA. It is known for containing numerous fossils of crabs. It overlies the older Lyre Formation and underlies the younger Makah Formation.
Blepharipodidae is a family of sand crabs (Hippoidea), comprising the two genera Blepharipoda and Lophomastix. They are distinguished from the other families in the superfamily Hippoidea by the form of the gills, which are trichobranchiate (filamentous) in Blepharipodidae, but phyllobranchiate (lamellar) in Albuneidae and Hippidae. Fossils belonging to the genus Lophomastix have been found in rocks dating back to the Eocene.
Paleontology in Oklahoma refers to paleontological research occurring within or conducted by people from the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Oklahoma has a rich fossil record spanning all three eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. Oklahoma is the best source of Pennsylvanian fossils in the United States due to having an exceptionally complete geologic record of the epoch. From the Cambrian to the Devonian, all of Oklahoma was covered by a sea that would come to be home to creatures like brachiopods, bryozoans, graptolites and trilobites. During the Carboniferous, an expanse of coastal deltaic swamps formed in areas of the state where early tetrapods would leave behind footprints that would later fossilize. The sea withdrew altogether during the Permian period. Oklahoma was home a variety of insects as well as early amphibians and reptiles. Oklahoma stayed dry for most of the Mesozoic. During the Late Triassic, carnivorous dinosaurs left behind footprints that would later fossilize. During the Cretaceous, however, the state was mostly covered by the Western Interior Seaway, which was home to huge ammonites and other marine invertebrates. During the Cenozoic, Oklahoma became home to creatures like bison, camels, creodonts, and horses. During the Ice Age, the state was home to mammoths and mastodons. Local Native Americans are known to have used fossils for medicinal purposes. The Jurassic dinosaur Saurophaganax maximus is the Oklahoma state fossil.
The Gravel Point Formation is a geologic formation in western Michigan. It preserves fossils dating back to the middle Devonian period and correlates with the Long Lake Limestone and Alpena Limestone.
The Norway Point Formation is a geologic formation in Michigan. It preserves fossils dating back to the middle Devonian period.
The Osobb Formation is a geologic formation in Nevada. It preserves fossils dating back to the Triassic period.
The Merrimack Formation is a geologic formation in Quebec. It preserves fossils dating back to the Silurian period.
The Gun River Formation is a geologic formation in Quebec. It preserves fossils dating back to the early Silurian period.
The Jupiter Formation is a geologic formation in Quebec, well-exposed in the southern third of Anticosti Island and lying in the St Lawrence River Valley. It preserves fossils dating back to the Silurian period.
The Solvik Formation is a geologic formation in the central Oslo Region of Norway. It preserves fossils dating back to the early Silurian period.
The Waukesha Biota is an important fossil site located in Waukesha County and Franklin, Milwaukee County within the state of Wisconsin. This biota is preserved in certain strata within the Brandon Bridge Formation, which dates to the early Silurian period. It is known for the exceptional preservation of soft-bodied organisms, including many species found nowhere else in rocks of similar age. The site's discovery was announced in 1985, leading to a plethora of discoveries. This biota is one of the few well studied Lagerstätten from the Silurian, making it important in our understanding of the period's biodiversity. Some of the species are not easily classified into known animal groups, showing that much research remains to be done on this site. Other taxa that are normally common in Silurian deposits are rare here, but trilobites are quite common.
Schizophoria is an extinct genus of brachiopod belonging to the superfamily Enteletoidea. Specimens have been found in Devonian through Permian beds in North America, Australia, central and southeast Asia, and eastern Europe.
Pulchratia is an extinct genus of brachiopods which lived in marine habitats during the Upper Carboniferous period. Its fossils have been found in North America.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)  | This article about a specific stratigraphic formation in Nevada is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 | This article related to the Triassic period is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |