Prince Creek Formation | |
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Stratigraphic range: Latest Campanian ~73 ma | |
![]() General location of the Prince Creek Formation, in red | |
Type | Geological formation |
Unit of | Colville Group |
Sub-units | Kikak-Tegoseak Quarry, Kogosukruk Tongue, Ocean Point, Coleville River Bluff |
Underlies | Sagavanirktok Formation |
Overlies | Schrader Bluff Formation |
Lithology | |
Primary | Sandstone, mudstone [1] |
Other | siltstone, carbonaceous shale, ash-fall [1] |
Location | |
Coordinates | 70°00′N151°30′W / 70.0°N 151.5°W |
Approximate paleocoordinates | 80°N115°W / 80°N 115°W |
Region | Alaska |
Country | United States |
The Prince Creek Formation is a geological formation in Alaska with strata dating to the Late Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation. [2]
The PCF ranges from Late Cretaceous (Campanian) to Paleogene in age. Due to a slight structural dip, the unit becomes progressively younger downriver (northward). Biostratigraphic analyses from the upper, vertebrate-bearing portion of the unit near Ocean Point indicate a temporal range from as old as late Campanian to as young as late Maastrichtian. Although previous radiometric dating suggested an early Maastrichtian age, more recent work indicates the fossiliferous beds near Ocean Point to be late Campanian in age (Druckenmiller et al. 2023). [3]
During the time when the Prince Creek Formation was deposited, Earth was going through a global cooling phase. [4] The Prince Creek Formation depositional environment includes tidally influenced meandering rivers, anastomosed distributary channels, crevasse splays, levees, lakes, ponds, and mires. [5] Large amounts of plants material are represented by peridonoid dinocysts, algae, fungal hyphae, fern and moss spores, projectates, Wodehouseia edmontonicola , bisaccate pollen, taxodiaceous pollen, and pollen from trees, shrubs, and herbs. Preserved woody trunks show trees did not exceed 20cm in diameter and canopy heights were estimated to have been around 5-6 meters tall. Frequent false rings observed in the dendrochronology of the stumps were deduced to have been caused by sudden drops in temperature during the growing season to between 6–10 °C (43–50 °F) suggestive of more sub-arctic summer conditions. These trees were compared to the modern Picea mariana which is common throughout the modern North American Taiga. Another similarity to modern boreal forests is the presence of charcoal indicating frequent forest fires in the depositional environment. [6] Emerging methodologies using oxygen-18 isotope values from fossil vertebrate remains to estimate average meteoric water temperature have yielded highly accurate results. When applied to the Prince Creek Formation it estimated a mean annual temperature around 0 °C (32 °F). [7] Mean annual precipitation was around 1,300 millimetres (51 in). [8] The paleolatitude of the formation at the time of deposition was around 80°N, high in the Arctic Circle, and would have likely experienced 120 days of winter darkness. [9] [10]
Indeterminate tyrannosaurid remains are present, mostly in the form of teeth. The teeth are from the Kikak-Tegoseak Quarry, Liscomb Quarry, and Byers Bed, totaling 8 teeth. [11] Fossils of crown or near-crown birds as well as members of Hesperornithes and Ichthyornithes have been reported in 2025, providing the oldest evidence of birds nesting at polar latitudes reported to date. [12]
Color key
| Notes Uncertain or tentative taxa are in small text; |
Theropods of the Prince Creek Formation | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Abundance | Notes | Images |
Liscomb Quarry [11] Kikak-Tegoseak Quarry [11] Byers Bed [11] | Fossilized teeth [11] | A dromaeosaur. | |||
Ornithomimosauria indet. [14] | Indeterminate [14] | Old Bone Beach | Distal metatarsal IV | Possibly an ornithomimid. | |
Saurornitholestinae indet. [15] | Indeterminate | Pediomys Point - Liscomb Quarry [15] | Small dentary tip from a juvenile. [15] | A new species of dromaeosaurid closely related to Saurornitholestes . [15] | |
N. hoglundi [16] | Kikak-Tegoseak Quarry [16] | One partial skull including a bone near the front of the maxilla and the front of the lower jaw. [16] | Nanuqsaurus is a tyrannosaurid closely related to Lythronax , Tyrannosaurus , and Tarbosaurus . [16] | ||
Old Bone Beach [11] | Teeth [11] | A dromaeosaur. | |||
Kikak-Tegoseak Quarry [16] Liscomb Quarry [11] Byers Bed [11] Magical Mystery Bar [17] | Dental remains, [16] including teeth. [11] Braincases have also been found. [17] | Remains of T. sp. are approximately 50% larger than specimens from Alberta and Montana. [16] Remains were previously assigned to T. formosus. [13] The most abundant theropod. [17] As of 2011, a dubious genus. [18] | |||
Color key
| Notes Uncertain or tentative taxa are in small text; |
Ornithischians of the Prince Creek Formation | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Abundance | Notes | Images |
A. gangloffi [19] | Kogosukruk Tongue [20] | A squamosal, and the back of the dome. [21] | The first pachycephalosaurine from Alaska discovered. [21] | ||
Kikak-Tegoseak Quarry [22] | An abundance of skeletal remains, [22] including an immature juvenile. [23] | The youngest of the Pachyrhinosaurus species, found in one of the highest latitudes of centrosaurine discoveries. [22] A discovery in the Kikak-Tegoseak Quarry was identified in 2013 as a juvenile of Pachyrhinosaurus perotorum. This discovery shows that the crest started to develop in the front of the snout, then extending farther back until it reaches the eye. [23] | |||
Thescelosaurinae indet. [24] | Indeterminate | Teeth [24] | Remains previously attributed to Thescelosaurus. [24] | ||
Leptoceratopsidae [9] | Indeterminate | Remains of adult and juvenile individuals [9] | |||
E. cf. regalis [26] | Disassociated parts from multiple juveniles | Originally identified as a distinct genus (Ugrunaaluk), recent studies have found it ontogenetically indistinguishable from Edmontosaurus. [25] [26] | |||
Lambeosaurinae indet. [27] | Indeterminate | Liscomb Bonebed | A supraoccipital | The first confirmed lambeosaurine in the Prince Creek Formation. | |
Ornithopoda indet. [24] | Indeterminate [24] | One tooth [24] | A single "hypsilophodontid" cheek tooth not attributable to Parksosaurus or Thescelosaurus. [24] | ||
Mammals of the Prince Creek Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Abundance | Notes | Images |
Cimolodon [28] | C. cf. nitidus | Lower Maastrichtian | Isolated teeth | A small multituberculate. | ||
Gypsonictops [28] | G. sp. | Lower Maastrichtian | Isolated teeth | A small eutherian. | ||
Multituberculata indet. [28] | Indeterminate | Lower Maastrichtian | Isolated teeth | |||
Marsupialia indet. [28] | Indeterminate | Lower Maastrichtian | Most common in the Prince Creek Formation | |||
Sikuomys [29] | S. mikros | Lower Colville River. | Upper Campanian | A tiny eutherian. | ||
Unnuakomys [30] | U. hutchisoni | Pediomys Point | Lower Maastrichtian | Over 60 specimens | A small metatherian. |
Cartilaginous fishes of the Prince Creek Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Abundance | Notes | Images |
Squatina | S. sp. | An angelshark. [31] | ![]() |
Ray-finned fishes of the Prince Creek Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Abundance | Notes | Images |
Acipenseridae indet. | A sturgeon. [31] | |||||
Archaeosiilik [31] | A. gilmulli | A esocid salmoniform | ||||
?Beryciformes indet. | Acanthomorph remains reminiscent of beryciforms. [31] | |||||
Cypriniformes indet. [31] | A cypriniform, the oldest record of this order. [31] | |||||
Horseshoeichthys | H. armaserratus | An armigatid ellimmichthyiform. [31] | ||||
Neopterygii indet. | A potential basal neopterygian, known from a scale similar to Belonostomus . [31] | |||||
Nunikuluk [31] | N. gracilis | A esocid salmoniform | ||||
Oldmanesox | O. canadensis | An esocid salmoniform. [31] | ||||
Polyodontidae indet. | A paddlefish, potentially represented by two distinct forms. [31] | |||||
Sivulliusalmo [31] | S. alaskensis | A salmonid salmoniform, the oldest record of this family. |
A Reinvestigation of the Parataxodium-type flora has revealed the assemblage was far more diverse than previously thought. However, this sedimentary block’s stratigraphic origins are uncertain. No other in situ limestone blocks comparable to the Parataxodium-type flora have been located along the Colville River. Rivers upstream from the point of discovery cut through Upper Cretaceous deposits that range in age from Late Albian to Cenomanian. The diversity of flora present is more consistent with the Tuluvak Formation, which is dated to the Turonian-Coniacian. [32]
Color key
| Notes Uncertain or tentative taxa are in small text; |
Plants of the Prince Creek Formation [33] | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Abundance | Notes | Images |
P. wigginsii [20] | Kogosukruk Tongue? [20] | Previously thought to represent a single taxon, now shown to have included many distinct conifer morphotypes. [20] [32] | |||
Oncophoraceae indet. | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | A Dicranalean moss. [32] | |||
Osmundastrum [32] | O. cinnamomeum [32] | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | |||
Ginkgo [32] | G. adiantoides [32] | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | |||
Pityophyllum [32] | P. nordenskioldii [32] | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | Pinaceous needles. [32] | ||
Sequioideae indet. | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | Previously included in Parataxodium. [32] | |||
Taiwanioideae indet. | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | Previously included in Parataxodium. [32] | |||
Cryptomerioideae indet. | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | Previously included in Parataxodium. [32] | |||
Athrotaxoideae indet. | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | Previously included in Parataxodium. [32] | |||
Archeampelos [32] | A. sp. | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | |||
Cf. Cercidiphyllum | cf. C. sp. | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | |||
Dicotyledon indet. | Morphotype 2 | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | |||
Morphotype 3 | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | ||||
Morphotype 4 | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | ||||
Monocotyledon indet. | Kogosukruk Tongue? [32] | ||||
H. quercifolia [20] | Kogosukruk Tongue? [20] | Leaves [20] | An angiosperm, known from leaves. [20] | ||
Q. angulata [20] | Kogosukruk Tongue? [20] | An aquatic angiosperm. [20] | |||
E. sp. [20] | Kogosukruk Tongue? [20] | A sphenophyte. [20] | |||
P. krempii | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
cf. Proteacidites | cf. P. sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | |
cf. P. reduncus | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
P. sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
O.? sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
O. sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
O. parvus | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
O. arcticus | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
O. wellmanii | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Common in the Early Maastrichtian. Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
M.sp. indet. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
M. pseudosenonicus | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
L. sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
L. dissolutum | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
Indeterminate | Coleville River Bluff | Septate fungal hypha. | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
L."stellata" | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Common in the Early Maastrichtian. Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
L. magnus | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
L. sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Indeterminate remains are abundant in the Early Maastrichtian and still numerous in the Late Maastrichtian. Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
L. sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
K. trispissatus | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
I.sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
I.sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
I. tappaniae | Coleville River Bluff | Samples of distinct pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
I. marylandensis | Coleville River Bluff | Samples of distinct pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
H. scollardensis | Coleville River Bluff | Samples of distinct pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
H. amplus | Coleville River Bluff | Samples of distinct pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
G. senonicus | Coleville River Bluff | Samples of distinct pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
Fsp. | Coleville River Bluff | Samples of distinct pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
F. undulosus | Coleville River Bluff | Samples of distinct pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
F. scabratus | Coleville River Bluff | Samples of distinct pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
cf. E. accuratus | Coleville River Bluff | Samples of distinct pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
E. procumbentformis | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
D. sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
D. sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Preserved pollen samples | Very abundant in the early Maastrichtian and Indeterminate level of the formation, becoming rarer until the Middle/Late Maastrichtian. Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
C. fragilis | Coleville River Bluff | Samples of distinct pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
cf. C. apisulacea | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen samples | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
cf. C.sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Specimens of preserved pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
C.sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Preserved pollen samples | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
C.sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen samples | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
cf. C. congruens | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
C. bialatus | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen samples | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
C.sp. 1 | Coleville River Bluff | Distinct pollen remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
C.sp. 2 | Coleville River Bluff | Preserved pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
cf. C. dorogensis | Coleville River Bluff | Fossilized pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
C.sp. | Coleville Bluff Formation | Pollen spores | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
C. ambigens | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen specimens | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
Coleville River Bluff | Pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | |||
Indeterminate | Coleville River Bluff | Bissacate gymnosperm pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
B. sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen spore remains | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
cf. A. cribrata | Coleville River Bluff | Carbonized pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
A. trialatus | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
A.sp. 2 | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
A.sp. 3 | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
cf. A. dentatus | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
A. amygdaloides | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen | Numerous in the Late Campanian, becoming abundant in the Maastrichtian. Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
A.sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
A.sp. 1 | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
A.sp. 2 | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
A. clavate | Coleville River Formation | Pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
cf. A. spinulosus | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
A.sp. | Coleville River Bluff | Pollen | Also found in the Schrader Bluff Formation. | ||
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