See more from this Division: Topical Sessions
See more from this Session: Field and Quantitative Paleontology, Micropaleontology, and Taxonomy: A Memorial to Roger L. Kaesler
Abstract:
As part of a joint research project, Lower Cretaceous ostracods (microcrustaceans with a calcified shell) of the Lakota (Black Hills, SD) and Cedar Mountain formations (San Rafael Swell, UT) were taxonomically revised and tested for their potential for biostratigraphical application. Despite some remaining taxonomical problems, a supraregional correlation with well dated contemporary European strata strongly suggests that the most probable maximum age of the lower part of both these formations is upper Berriasian to lowermost Valanginian, and therefore considerably older than other published lines of evidence have indicated. Thereby, the Upper Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous hiatus would be reduced to a time interval less than 10 Ma, if not less than 5 Ma. However, that is not the end of the matter. Ostracods are considered to have the potential to improve both intra- and interformational correlations, and along with an integration with other stratigraphical methods and an application of ostracod biostratigraphy to other formations, it is possible to further improve the Lower Cretaceous stratigraphy in the Western Interior.
See more from this Division: Topical Sessions
See more from this Session: Field and Quantitative Paleontology, Micropaleontology, and Taxonomy: A Memorial to Roger L. Kaesler