Nsungwe Formation | |
---|---|
Stratigraphic range: Oligocene ~ | |
Type | Geological formation |
Unit of | Red Sandstone Group (Rukwa Rift Basin) |
Sub-units | Utengule Member, Songwe Member |
Underlies | Unconformity with Lake Beds Sequence |
Overlies | Unconformity with Galula Formation |
Thickness | 400 m (1,300 ft) |
Lithology | |
Primary | Sandstone |
Other | Conglomerate, mudstone, siltstone, tuff |
Location | |
Location | Rukwa, Mbeya Region |
Region | African Great Lakes |
Country | Tanzania |
Type section | |
Named for | Nsungwe River |
Named by | Roberts et al. |
Year defined | 2010 |
Thickness at type section | ~400 m |
The Nsungwe Formation is a formation in the Rukwa Rift Basin of the East African Rift System, it is Oligocene in age based on U-Pb dating of a tuff horizon within the formation. It is part of the Red Sandstone Group along with the uncomfortably underlying Mid-Cretaceous Galula Formation It is divided into two members, the lower Utengule Member, and the upper Songwe member. It is notable for being one of the most important Paleogene fossil deposits in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The lithology of the two members are quite different, representing different fluvial environments. The Utengule member is 85 m thick and predominantly consists of red-orange sandstones and matrix to clast supported conglomerates. The overlying Songwe Member is approximately twice as thick as the Utengule member, being 310–320 m thick in the type section. It is much finer grained, consisting of red-orange and grey green claystones, siltstones, mudstones, lenticular sandstones and tuffs. The sediments of the Songwe Member are noted for their fossil content. [1]
Important fossils have come out of the formation, including the rodent Kahawamys , [2] some of the oldest records of the frog genus Xenopus , [3] the hyaenodont Pakakali , [4] the elephant shrews Oligorhynchocyon and Rukwasengi , [5] and the primates Nsungwepithecus and Rukwapithecus , some of the earliest crown catarrhines. [6]
Oligopithecus is a fossil primate that lived in Africa during the Early Oligocene. It is represented by one species, Oligopithecus savagei, known from one jaw bone found in Egypt.
Megistotherium is an extinct genus of hyaenodont belonging to the family Hyainailouridae that lived in Africa.
Oligopithecidae is an extinct basal Catarrhine family from the late Eocene of Egypt as sister of the rest of the Catarrhines. Its members were probably insectivorous, due to their simple molars and cusp arrangement.
The Jebel Qatrani Formation is a geologic formation located in the Faiyum Governorate of central Egypt. It is exposed between the Jebel Qatrani escarpment and the Qasr el Sagha escarpment, north of Birket Qarun lake near Faiyum. The formation conformably overlies the Qasr el Sagha Formation and is topped by the Widan el Faras Basalt. The age of the formation has been subject to debate, but the most recent research indicates that it covers both the latest parts of the Eocene and the Early Oligocene, spanning over the boundary between these two time periods.
Galulatherium is an extinct genus of possibly gondwanathere mammal, from the Late Cretaceous (Turonian-Campanian)-aged Galula Formation of Tanzania. It is known solely from the type specimen TNM 02067 a fragmentary fossil dentary. The short, deep bone is about 19.5 mm (0.77 in) long, but the back part is broken off. It contains a large, forward-inclined incisor with a root that extends deep into the jaw, separated by a diastema (gap) from five cheekteeth. Very little remains of the teeth, but enough to determine that they are hypsodont (high-crowned). The third cheektooth is the largest and the roots of the teeth are curved. First described in 2003, TNM 02067 has been tentatively identified as a sudamericid—an extinct family of high-crowned gondwanathere mammals otherwise known from South America, Madagascar, India, and Antarctica. If truly a gondwanathere, it would be the only African member of the group and may be the oldest. The describers could not exclude other possibilities, such as that the jaw represents some mammalian group known only from younger, Cenozoic times. In 2019 the fossil was CT scanned, which revealed additional details of the specimen.
Pakasuchus is a genus of notosuchian crocodyliform distinguished by its unusual mammal-like appearance, including mammal-like teeth that would have given the animal the ability to chew. It also had long, slender legs and a doglike nose. Fossils have been found in the Galula Formation of Rukwa Rift Basin of southwestern Tanzania, and were described in 2010 in the journal Nature. Pakasuchus is originally considered to lived approximately 105 million years ago, in the mid-Cretaceous, but later age of site is reconsidered to the late Cretaceous, Cenomanian to Campanian instead. The type species is P. kapilimai. Pakasuchus means "cat crocodile" in reference to its catlike skull.
Kahawamys is an extinct genus of thryonomyoid rodent which existed in Nsungwe Formation, Tanzania during the late Oligocene. It was first named by Nancy J. Stevens, Patricia A. Holroyd, Eric M. Roberts, Patrick M. O'connor and Michael D. Gottfried in 2009 and the type species is 'Kahawamys mbeyaensis.
Tanzanonautes tuerkayi is a species of fossil freshwater crab from Tanzania, the only species in the genus Tanzanonautes. It is the oldest known freshwater crab, and probably dates from the Oligocene; the next oldest specimens are from the Miocene. A number of fragmentary remains were discovered in the Songwe Valley part of the East African Rift in Mbeya Region, Tanzania, in fragile sandstone sediments. The animal had a carapace around 50 millimetres (2.0 in) across the widest part, which is around 15 mm (0.6 in) from the front of the carapace; the carapace is 44 mm (1.7 in) from front to back, and the slightly inward-curving rear edge of the carapace is 28 mm (1.1 in) across. The genus name refers to Tanzania, the country where the fossil was found, while the specific epithet commemorates Michael Türkay, an authority on freshwater crabs. The genus Tanzanonautes is assigned to the family Potamonautidae, although the characters mentioned in the family's diagnosis are missing from the fragmentary fossils available.
Rukwasuchus is an extinct genus of peirosaurid crocodyliforms known from the middle Cretaceous Galula Formation of southwestern Tanzania. It contains a single species, Rukwasuchus yajabalijekundu.
Rukwatitan is a genus of titanosaur sauropod dinosaur from the Galula Formation in Tanzania. It lived around 100 million years ago, during the middle Cretaceous. The species, which shared features with another southern African species, Malawisaurus dixeyi, measured 30 feet (9.1 m) from the head to the tip of the tail, and had forelimbs that were estimated around 6.5 feet (2.0 m) long. Its fossils were found embedded in a cliff face near Lake Rukwa in the Rukwa Valley, from which it gets its name.
The Rukwa Rift Basin, located in southwestern Tanzania, is an endorheic rift basin that contains Lake Rukwa. It forms part of the East African Rift system and has produced a number of Cretaceous and Oligocene fossils.
Hyaenodonta is an extinct order of hypercarnivorous placental mammals of clade Pan-Carnivora from mirorder Ferae. Hyaenodonts were important mammalian predators that arose during the early Paleocene in Europe and persisted well into the late Miocene.
Shingopana is a genus of titanosaurian sauropod from the Upper Cretaceous Galula Formation of Tanzania. It is known from only the type species, S. songwensis. Gorscak & O'Connor's phylogenetic testing suggest Shingopana is more closely related to the South American titanosaur family of Aeolosaurini than any of the titanosaurs found so far in North & South Africa.
Teratodontinae is a subfamily of extinct hyaenodonts. Fossil remains of these mammals are known from Middle Eocene to Late Miocene deposits in Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and Asia.
The Galula Formation is a geological formation located south of Lake Rukwa in Tanzania, part of the Red Sandstone Group of the Rukwa Rift Basin. Along with the unconformably overlying Oligocene Nsungwe Formation. It is divided into two members, the lower Mtuka Member and the upper Namba Member.
Mnyamawamtuka is a genus of lithostrotian titanosaur sauropod dinosaur from the Cretaceous Galula Formation in Tanzania. The type and only species is M. moyowamkia.
Apterodontinae is an extinct subfamily of hyainailourid hyaenodonts that lived in Africa and Europe during the late Eocene to middle Oligocene.
Hyainailourinae ("hyena-cats") is an extinct subfamily of hyainailourid hyaenodonts that lived in Africa, Asia, North America and Europe from the middle Eocene to middle Miocene. They appeared in Africa about 47.8 Ma ago and soon after spread as far as East Asia.
Nsungwepithecus gunnelli, the only species of the genus Nsungwepithecus, is a fossil primate. Known from a single piece of lower jaw preserving the third molar, it is believed to be the member of the Old World monkey group. It is known from the Nsungwe Formation of southwestern Tanzania, which dates to just over 25.2 million years ago. This area has also yielded the early hominoid Rukwapithecus.
Rukwapithecus fleaglei, the only species of the genus Rukwapithecus, is a fossil primate. Known from a single lower jaw preserving four teeth, it is interpreted as the earliest hominoid, a member of the group that includes gibbons, humans, and other apes. It is known from the Nsungwe Formation of south-western Tanzania, which dates to just over 25.2 million years ago. This area has also yielded the early Old World monkey Nsungwepithecus. Phylogenetic analysis places it within the group Nyanzapithecinae, related to Rangwapithecus and Nyanzapithecus.