Tuscahoma Formation | |
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Stratigraphic range: Thanetian to earliest Ypresian, | |
Type | Formation |
Unit of | Wilcox Group |
Sub-units | Bells Landing Member, Greggs Landing Member |
Underlies | Bashi Formation |
Overlies | Nanafalia Formation |
Lithology | |
Primary | Sandstone |
Location | |
Region | Mississippi, Alabama |
Country | United States |
The Tuscahoma Formation or Tuscahoma Sand is a geologic formation in Mississippi and Alabama, USA. It preserves fossils dating back to the early Paleogene period, from the Late Paleocene and Early Eocene. [1] It was primarily deposited in a marine habitat, but one Wasatchian-aged locality near Meridian, Mississippi was deposited in an estuarine habitat that preserves a significant terrestrial vertebrate fauna, known as the "Red Hot local fauna". [2] [3] It preserves one of the most diverse early Eocene mammalian faunas from eastern North America, roughly contemporaneous with the Willwood Formation of Wyoming. [3] [4]
Based on the Paleobiology Database: [5]
Ray-finned fishes of the Tuscahoma Formation | ||||||
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Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
Albula | A. eppsi | Lauderdale County, Mississippi | Early Eocene | A bonefish. | ||
A. oweni | ||||||
Brychaetus | B. muelleri | A bonytongue. | ||||
Egertonia | E. isodonta | A phyllodontid. | ||||
Lepisosteus | L. sp. | A gar. Assigned to the European species L. suessionensis (itself a junior synonym of L. fimbriatus ), but this is unlikely due to their differring ranges. [6] | ||||
Palaeocybium | P. proosti | A mackerel. | ||||
Phyllodus | P. toliapicus | A phyllodontid. | ||||
Pycnodus | P. bowerbanki | A pycnodont. | ||||
Trichiurides | T. sagittidens | A cutlassfish. |
Based on the Paleobiology Database: [4] [7]
Reptiles of the Tuscahoma Formation | ||||||
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Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
Palaeophis | P. casei | Meridian, Mississippi | Early Eocene | A marine palaeophiid snake. | ||
P. littoralis | ||||||
P. virginianus | ||||||
Tuscahomaophis | T. leggetti | Late Paleocene | An alethinophidian snake. |
The Tuscahoma Formation preserves a diversity of earliest Eocene-aged mammals. Almost all mammals are known only from isolated teeth. There appear to be significant differences in the faunal composition between the Tuscahoma Formation and the contemporaneous Bighorn Basin of the western US, indicating some level of provincialism in North American mammal species assemblages of the time. The formation appears to have been biased against the preservation of large-sized mammals, meaning that the majority of mammal remains from the formation are of smaller taxa. [3]
Based on the Paleobiology Database and Dawson & Beard (2009): [4] [3]
Metatherians of the Tuscahoma Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
Mimoperadectes | M. sowasheensis | Meridian, Mississippi | Early Eocene | A peradectid. | ||
Peratherium | P. mcgrewi | A herpetotheriid. |
Cimolestans of the Tuscahoma Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
Coryphodon | C. sp. | Meridian, Mississippi | Early Eocene | A pantodont. | ||
Naranius | N. americanus | A cimolestid. Type locality of species. | ||||
Palaeosinopa | P. aestuarium | A pantolestid. Type locality of species. |
Macroscelideans of the Tuscahoma Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
Haplomylus | H. meridionalis | Meridian, Mississippi | Early Eocene | An apheliscid. |
Ungulates of the Tuscahoma Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
Diacodexis | D. sp. | Meridian, Mississippi | Early Eocene | An even-toed ungulate. | ||
Ectocion | E. nanabeensis | A phenacodont. Type locality of species. | ||||
Hyracotherium | H. sp. | An odd-toed ungulate. |
Ungulates of the Tuscahoma Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
Eogale | E. parydros | Meridian, Mississippi | Early Eocene | A miacid carnivoramorph. Type locality of genus and species. | ||
Gracilocyon | G. igniculus | A carnivoraform. | ||||
" Miacis " | "M." sp. | A carnivoramorph. | ||||
Prototomus | P. sp. | A sinopid hyaenodont. | ||||
Uintacyon | U. sp. | A carnivoraform. | ||||
Vassacyon | V. sp. | A carnivoraform. | ||||
Viverravus | V. laytoni | A viverravid carnivoramorph. | ||||
Viverriscus | V. omnivorus | A viverravid carnivoramorph. Type locality of genus and species. |
Eulipotyphlans of the Tuscahoma Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
Colpocherus | C. mississippiensis | A sespedectid. Type locality of genus and species. | ||||
Diacocherus | D. dockeryi | An erinaceoid. Type localiy of species. | ||||
Plagioctenodon | P. dormaalensis | A nyctitheriid. | ||||
Talpavoides | T. dartoni | A stem-erinaceid. [8] | ||||
Wyonycteris | W. primitivus | A nyctitheriid. Type locality of species. |
Apatotherians of the Tuscahoma Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
Apatemys | A. pygmaeus | Meridian, Mississippi | Early Eocene | An apatemyid. Type locality of species. |
Rodents of the Tuscahoma Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
Corbarimys | C. nomadus | Meridian, Mississippi | Early Eocene | An ischyromyoid. [9] | ||
Franimys | F. actites | An ischyromyid. | ||||
Paramys | P. dispar | An ischyromyid. | ||||
Tuscahomys | T. major | A cylindrodontid. Type locality of genus and species. | ||||
T. medius | ||||||
T. minor |
Primates of the Tuscahoma Formation | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
Choctawius | C. foxi | Meridian, Mississippi | An omomyid. Type locality of genus and species. | |||
Teilhardina | T. magnoliana | An omomyid. |
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