Villalba de la Sierra Formation

Last updated
Villalba de la Sierra Formation
Stratigraphic range: Campanian-Maastrichtian
~84–66  Ma
Lo Hueco titanosaur excavation.jpg
Excavation of a titanosaur at Lo Hueco
Type Geological formation
Lithology
Primary Mudstone
Other Sandstone, gypsum
Location
Coordinates 40°00′N2°00′W / 40.0°N 2.0°W / 40.0; -2.0
Approximate paleocoordinates 30°42′N0°36′W / 30.7°N 0.6°W / 30.7; -0.6
Region Castilla-La Mancha
CountryFlag of Spain.svg  Spain
Extent Iberian Ranges
Type section
Named for Villalba de la Sierra
Relief Map of Spain.png
Lightgreen pog.svg
Villalba de la Sierra Formation (Spain)

The Villalba de la Sierra Formation is a Campanian to Maastrichtian geologic formation in Spain. Fossil dinosaur eggs have been reported from the formation, that comprises gypsiferous, grey, argillaceous mudstones and sandstones, deposited in a floodplain environment [1] [2] characterised by high seasonality and variability in water availability. [3]

Contents

Fossil content

The formation has provided abundant titanosaurian remains, including Lohuecotitan and Qunkasaura , the only two genera currently named. [4] [5] More than 10,000 fossil remains of various fishes, amphibians, lizards, dinosaurs ( Ampelosaurus sp. , Rhabdodon sp. ), turtles ( Foxemys mechinorum , Iberoccitanemys convenarum ), and crocodiles ( Lohuecosuchus megadontos , Agaresuchus fontisensis , Musturzabalsuchus sp. ) are also known from the site, one of the richest for the Late Cretaceous in Europe. [4] [6]

Dinosaur

Dinosaurs of the Villalba de la Sierra Formation
TaxonSpeciesPresenceMaterialsNotesImages
Lohuecotitan L. pandafilandiLo Hueco.A disarticulated partial skeletonA titanosaur.
Qunkasaura [7] Q. pintiquiniestraLo Hueco.A partial skeleton belonging to a single individual.A saltasauroid titanosaur.
Qunkasaura pintiquiniestra.png

Reptiles

Crocodiles

Crocodiles of the Villalba de la Sierra Formation
TaxonSpeciesPresenceMaterialsNotesImages
Agaresuchus A. fontisensis
Lohuecosuchus L. megadontos
Musturzabalsuchus M. sp

Turtles

Turtles of the Villalba de la Sierra Formation
TaxonSpeciesPresenceMaterialsNotesImages
Foxemys F. mechinorum
Iberoccitanemys I. convenarum

See also

Related Research Articles

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<i>Qunkasaura</i> Extinct genus of sauropod dinosaur

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References

  1. Lo Hueco, Fuentes (G1) at Fossilworks.org
  2. Weishampel et al., 2004, pp.517-607
  3. Peyrot, Daniel; Barroso-Barcenilla, Fernando; Cambra-Moo, Oscar (1 October 2013). "Paleoecology of the late Campanian/early Maastrichtian Fossil-Lagerstätte of "Lo Hueco" (Cuenca, Spain): Palynological insights". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology . 387: 27–39. Bibcode:2013PPP...387...27P. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2013.07.005 . Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  4. 1 2 Díez Díaz et al., 2016
  5. Mocho, P.; Escaso, F.; Marcos-Fernández, F.; Páramo, A.; Sanz, J. L.; Vidal, D.; Ortega, F. (2024). "A Spanish saltasauroid titanosaur reveals Europe as a melting pot of endemic and immigrant sauropods in the Late Cretaceous". Communications Biology. 7. 1016. doi: 10.1038/s42003-024-06653-0 . PMC   11375222 .
  6. Ortega et al., 2015
  7. Mocho, P.; Escaso, F.; Marcos-Fernández, F.; Páramo, A.; Sanz, J. L.; Vidal, D.; Ortega, F. (2024). "A Spanish saltasauroid titanosaur reveals Europe as a melting pot of endemic and immigrant sauropods in the Late Cretaceous". Communications Biology. 7. 1016. doi:10.1038/s42003-024-06653-0. PMC 11375222. PMID 39232208.

Bibliography