Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Stratigraphy, Paleoenvironments, And Correlation Of The Upper Ordovician Tate Member Of The Ashlock Formation At Point Leavell, Kentucky, N. Flores, Benjamin Dattilo, S. Mosser, J. Mosser, P. Bremer, J. Moffett, M. Harrison

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

Shales And Shell Beds, Storms And Starvation, Substrate And Fossils: Exploring The Ecological And Evolutionary Impact Of Mud Sedimentation In The Cincinnati Ordovician, Benjamin Dattilo, D. Meyer, M. Harrison

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

The Importance Of Peritidal Muds And Siliciclastic Phase Reversal In Understanding Cincinnatian Cyclogenesis, Benjamin Dattilo, S. Mosser, N. Flores, M. Harrison, J. Moffett

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

Escape Traces Associated With Rafinesquina Alternata, An Upper Ordovician Strophomenid Brachiopod From The Cincinnati Region, Ohio, Indiana, And Kentucky, Benjamin Dattilo, D. Meyer, K. Dewing, M. Gaynor

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

Stratigraphy, Paleoenvironments And Correlation Of The Lower Part (C2-C3 Boundary) Of An Outcrop Of Upper Ordovician Rocks Near Fredericktown, Kentucky, S. Mosser, Benjamin Dattilo, N. Flores, J. Moffett, J. Mosser, P. Bremer

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

Taphonomy Of The Joanna Track Site, Cretaceous Glen Rose Formation: Is The Shrimp Mightier Than The Dinosaur?, Michael Blair, Benjamin Dattilo, Lydia Mark, James Farlow, Jerry Jacene, Shelley Mcfadin

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Dinosaur trackways are common in the Cretaceous Glen Rose Formation of central Texas. While the trackways in Dinosaur Valley State Park are well known, many other sites can be found in this region. Recently, a new track site was discovered during construction in Glen Rose, Texas. The Joanna Track Site features tridactyl tracks which have been partly obliterated by invertebrates burrowing through the thick mud which buried them.

We measured and described the interval from 0.3 m below the track layer through 2.7 m above it in a vertical outcrop directly adjacent to the track site. Samples were collected in …

Microstratigraphic Analysis Of Burrow-Reworked Dinosaur Track Bed At Joanna's Track Site, Cretaceous Glen Rose Formation, Glen Rose, Texas, Michael Blair, Benjamin Dattilo, Anthony Martin, James Farlow

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Although dinosaur trackways are common in the Cretaceous Glen Rose Formation of Texas, the recently discovered Joanna track site illustrates a unique ichnological relationship where dinosaur tracks were disrupted by invertebrate burrows made long after burial. In an effort to document the precise sequence of events, we described the interval from 0.3 m below the track layer through 2.7 m above it in a vertical outcrop adjacent to the track site, focusing on the 70-cm of strata immediately above the track horizon. An 8-meter N-S cross-section of this 70-cm interval was power-washed, examined for trace fossils, body fossils, and lithology …

Early Ordovician Mitrates And A Possible Solute (Echinodermata) From The Western United States, Colin Sumrall, James Sprinkle, Thomas Guensburg, Benjamin Dattilo

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Two new kirkocystid mitrate stylophorans (Echinodermata, Homalozoa) and a new possible solute (Echinodermata, Homalozoa) are described from the Early Ordovician of the western United States. The mitrates are among the earliest members of their clade to appear near the beginning of the Ordovician Radiation. Anatifopsis ninemilensis new species comes from the Ninemile Shale in central Nevada and the McKelligon Canyon Formation in west Texas. Anatifopsis fillmorensis new species comes from the middle Fillmore Formation in western Utah and a Ninemile Shale equivalent limestone bed in southern Nevada. The possible solute Drepanocystis dubius new genus new species from the lower Wah …

Push Me – Pull You: Experimental Biomechanics Of Immobile Suspension Feeders On Soft Substrates, Roy Plotnick, Benjamin Dattilo, Joshua Corrie, Daniel Piquard, Jennifer Bauer

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Immobile suspension feeders on soft substrates (ISOSS; Thayer 1979) although rare in modern marine habitats, were relatively common in the Paleozoic. Numerous Paleozoic taxa have been interpreted as dwelling on soft unconsolidated sediments and possessing morphologic features that either anchor them to the sea floor (e.g., crinoid holdfasts) or prevent them from sinking in (strophomenid brachiopods). Thayer (1975) reviewed the morphologic adaptations for forms living on soft-muddy bottoms and provided a quantitative expression of the static stresses involved. The same quantitative expression can also be used to describe the forces involved in anchoring. With the exception of Leighton and Savarese …

Stratigraphic Resolution And Perceptions Of Cycle Architecture: Variations In Meter-Scale Cyclicity In The Type Cincinnatian Series, Arnold Miller, Steve Holland, Benjamin Dattilo, David Meyer

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

An Unusual Association Of Pseudolingula And Rafinesquina From The Upper Ordovician Of Ohio, Benjamin Dattilo, Rebecca Freeman, Bryan Utesch, Steve Felton, John Pojeta

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Late Ordovician members of Order Lingulida, for the most part, resemble modern lingulids in their infaunal habits and marginal habitats. Pseudolingula, a common Cincinnatian form, is often found preserved in burrows in life position, and as such, it could probably escape moderate sediment accumulations. An unusual association of thousands of specimens of the lingulate Pseudolingula and hundreds of the strophomenid Rafinesquina in the Upper Ordovician of the Cincinnati, Ohio region presents an interesting case. This association occurs on 4-square-meter exposure of a 10 cm shell bed in the Fairview Formation at Harsha Lake, Ohio. The bed is covered with Rafinesquina …

Stirred Not Shaken: Using Taphonomy To Reconstruct Paleoecological Succession And Taphonomic Feedback In A Cincinnatian (Ordovician, Ohio) Storm-Disturbed Shell Bed, Rebecca Freeman, Benjamin Dattilo, Aaron Morse, Michael Blair, Steve Felton, John Pojeta

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Walker and Alberstadt’s 1975 idea that a single shell bed contains a record of ecological succession has seemingly been refuted through stratinomic studies. These studies suggest that fossils are destroyed and accumulations are reworked by storms to the point of obliterating any record of successional-scale changes in faunas. Therefore storm-disturbed shell beds are not considered ideal for reconstruction of paleoecological succession.

Nevertheless, a storm-winnowed shell bed from the Fairview Formation, Ohio preserves a wide variety of shells in a range of taphonomic conditions that reveal succession-like changes. Exceptionally-preserved lingulid brachiopods found as intact pyrite-lined spar-filled shells rule out the final …

Chapter 33—Sauk Iii-Iv Interval In The American Quasar Horse Heaven-State 16-21a Well, Confusion Range, West-Central Utah, Kevin Evans, James Miller, Benjamin Dattilo

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

Revising Rafinesquina: New Insights On A Familiar Fossil, Benjamin Dattilo

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

Facies Mosaics Vs. Sequence Stratigraphy: Using Fine Scale Stratigraphic Correlations To Decode Sedimentary Facies In The Cincinnatian, Maysvillian Stage, T Schramm, C Brett, Benjamin Dattilo

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

The Curse Of Rafinesquina: Negative Taphonomic Feedback Exerted By Strophomenid Shells On Storm-Buried Lingulids In The Cincinnatian (Katian, Ordovician) Series Of Ohio, Rebecca Freeman, Benjamin Dattilo, Aaron Morse, Michael Blair, Steve Felton, John Pojeta

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Thousands of lingulid brachiopods were found clustered beneath hundreds of individual valves of the strophomenid brachiopod Rafinesquina in the Upper Ordovician of Ohio. This association suggested a relationship between the two brachiopods, but the nature of this relationship was unclear. We utilized serial thin sectioning to examine these brachiopods and to determine the origin of the bed in which they were found. Sedimentary structures, mixed taphonomies, and stratigraphic and paleogeographic setting suggest that the lingulids occupied a hiatal concentration that had previously been reworked, but not significantly transported, by tropical storms. The final burial event was a storm that exhumed …

Remarkable Preservation Of A New Genus And Species Of Limuline Horseshoe Crab From The Cretaceous Of Texas, U.S.A., Rodney Feldman, Carrie Schweitzer, Benjamin Dattilo, James Farlow

Benjamin F. Dattilo

A single specimen, part and counterpart of a carapace, of a horseshoe crab from the Lower Cretaceous (Albian) Glen Rose Formation in north-central Texas, forms the basis for the definition of a new genus and species, Crenatolimulus paluxyensis. The discovery represents only the fifth limuline known from the Cretaceous. Its preservational style is remarkable in that the carapace exterior is faithfully replicated by a massive overgrowth of serpulid worms.

Conodont Biostratigraphy Across A Conformable Sauk–Tippecanoe Megasequence Boundary, Western Central Utah., Raymond Ethington, James Miller, Benjamin Dattilo, Rebecca Freeman

Benjamin F. Dattilo

The Sauk–Tippecanoe Megasequence boundary is a major unconformity in cratonic Laurentia and in the Appalachians. In contrast, the western margin of Laurentia in west-central Utah preserves a thick, continuously deposited record of the Whiterockian Regression at the top of the Sauk Megasequence (Middle Ordovician). Relevant strata include the Lehman Formation (limestone, shale), Watson Ranch Quartzite (sandstone, limestone, shale), and Crystal Peak Dolomite (dolomite, limestone).

Prominent facies changes occur in the Watson Ranch Quartzite, which is all sandstone near Ibex (southern Barn Hills), is sandstone with sandy carbonate and carbonate interbeds 12 miles SW near Crystal Peak (southern Confusion Range), and …

Coral Reefs, Benjamin Dattilo

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

Occurrence And Features Of Dinosaur Trackways Of The Paluxy River Valley (Lower Glen Rose Formation, Lower Cretaceous), Somervell County, Texas, James Farlow, Benjamin Dattilo, Glen Kuban, Peter Falkingham, Anthony Martin, Mike O'Brien

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

The “Passive Implanter” Strategy Of The Adult Ordovician Brachiopod, Platystrophia Ponderosa., Sadye Howald, Benjamin Dattilo

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Platystrophia ponderosa is found throughout the Maysvillian Strata of the Cincinnati Ordovician. This species thrived in a high energy environment with only muddy shell gravels, and no solid substrates for pedicle attachment. Our growth-series studies show juveniles of this species had large pedicle openings, thin shell, small size, nearly flat shape, and shallow sinus/sulcus. In contrast, the adults had relatively small pedicle openings obstructed by a large beak, secondary thickening of the pedicle valve making it considerably thicker than the brachial valve, large size (up to 4cm in diameter), spherical shape, and deep sinus/sulcus. The morphological characteristics of the adult …

A Quantitative Paleoecological Approach To High-Resolution Cyclic And Event Stratigraphy: The Upper Ordovician Miamitown Shale In The Type Cincinnatian, Benjamin Dattilo

Benjamin F. Dattilo

No abstract provided.

Possible Sources For Nickel And Chromium In The Middle Part Of The Fillmore Formation In West-Central Utah, Rachel Nyznyk, Benjamin Dattilo

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Nickel and chromium are not commonly found in carbonate or mixed carbonate depositional environments. All lithologies from a 100-meter section in the middle part of the Lower Ordovician Fillmore Formation at a single locality, the “Pyramid Section”, contain anomalous levels of nickel and chromium. Preliminary data has also shown that there is significantly more nickel in the matrix of two FPCs (range of 0.22 – 0.24 ppm) from the pyramid section than found in the other lithologies at that section (0.05 – 0.10 ppm). However, at a separate locality, “Section C”, in the lower part of the Fillmore Formation neither …

How Many Track Horizons Are Exposed At Dinosaur Valley State Park? Stratigraphy Of The Cretaceous Glen Rose Formation Track Sites Of The Paluxy River, Glen Rose, Texas, Benjamin Dattilo, Sadye Howald, James Farlow, Anthony Martin

Benjamin F. Dattilo

The dinosaur tracks of the Glen Rose Formation in the Paluxy River at Dinosaur Valley State Park are among the best preserved and most abundant in the world. While many track sites are easily correlated to the Main Tracksite, others, especially those at the extreme ends of the park, are differently preserved and not obviously correlated. To count track horizons, several stratigraphic sections were measured along the river from upstream at the McFall Ledge Site to 7.6 km downstream at the County Road 1001 crossing (3.1 km linear distance). These reveal 6 meters of strata separating two track-bearing horizons exposed …

Provenance, Sorting, And Secular Variation In Late Cambrian And Early Ordovician Carbonate Flat-Pebble Conglomerates In West-Central Utah, Rachel Nyznyk, Benjamin Dattilo, Kevin Evans

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Flat-pebble conglomerates (FPCs) are deposits that include tabular clasts of carbonate facies in shallow marine successions. They are common features in Cambrian and Ordovician successions and are more rarely preserved in post-Ordovician strata. Traditional interpretations suggest they are storm deposits, but more recently, they have interpreted as cycle caps and products of sea-level change. Examining FPCs in detail may further our understand of possible origins, including major Earth events such as meteorite impacts, seismic events, superstorms, slope failures, and mass wasting events. This study, which is in its initial phase, examines FPCs based on intrinsic features and seeks to document …

Stop Clinging! –How The Ordovician Brachiopod (Fka Platystrophia) Vinlandostrophia Ponderosa Outgrew Its Mid-Life Attachment Crisis, Benjamin Dattilo, Sadye Howald

Benjamin F. Dattilo

The high-energy nearshore environment and muddy shifting shell gravels recorded in Maysvillian strata of the Cincinnati Ordovician might seem particularly inhospitable to brachiopods, which generally require solid surfaces for attachment. Nevertheless, Vinlandostrophia ponderosa thrived and even characterizes these facies. A preliminary study of growth series suggests that, like the full-grown stages of related species, smaller V. ponderosa were attached by pedicle. Smaller specimens have a large pedicle opening, a nearly flat shape, thin shell, and a shallow sinus/sulcus, leaving the commissure nearly flat. These characteristics are consistent with strong, erect pedicle attachment, even stronger than found in related species, whose …

The Mollusk-Rich Ordovician Miamitown Shale Mapped From Cincinnati To The Bluegrass: Probing Contemporaneous Peritidal Deposits To Decipher The Paleobathymetric Problem Of A Puzzling Pelite., Benjamin Dattilo, Thomas Schramm, Sasha Mosser, Lydia Mark, William Ward

Benjamin F. Dattilo

While most Upper Ordovician (Katian stage) strata in the Cincinnati region can be characterized as mixed carbonates and mudstones, there are a few carbonate-poor silty mudstone units including the Maysvillian Miamitown Shale and the Richmondian Waynesville Formation. These are characterized by molluscan faunas that contrast with the typical brachiopod-bryozoan fauna of the Cincinnatian, or, for that matter, of the Lower Paleozoic in general. The paucity of more widespread common taxa makes it difficult to use such assemblages in determining paleoenvironmental conditions, particularly water depth. Thus, combined with the lack of distinctive sedimentological indicators, it is difficult to say if these …

Sedimentology And Microstratigraphy Of A Cincinnatian Edrioasteroid Obrution Deposit., Aaron Morse, Benjamin Dattilo, David Meyer, Lydia Mark, Michael Harrison

Benjamin F. Dattilo

The Manchester edrioasteroid pavement is a shell layer in mudrock from the Corryville Formation (U. Ordovician, Maysvillain). No previous studies have examined sediments that buried Cincinnatian edrioasteroid pavements. To address this problem, a 16 cm thick stratigraphic sample measuring 90 cm by 30 cm was collected with a plaster jacket, dried for 2 years, then encased in fiberglass for dry cutting into slabs 2-4 cm thick. These were hardened with epoxy and polished dry with sandpaper. A prepared slab was sent to Bruker AXS for analysis using the M4 Tornado µ-XRF.

Delicate colonies of bryozoans, embedded in mudrock were found …

High-Resolution Correlation And Sedimentology Of Carbonate-Shale Cycles In The Type Cincinnatian (Upper Ordovician; Katian): Implications For A Revived "Layer Cake Stratigraphy", Carlton Brett, Benjamin Dattilo, Patrick Mclaughlin, Thomas Schramm

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Strata of the type Cincinnatian Series form an exemplar of the denigrated notion of “layer cake stratigraphy”; Edward Oscar Ulrich, founder of the “Cincinnati School” of paleontology (ca. 1910s), argued that the stratigraphic record is composed of stacks of continuous, far-traceable layers. This view was fostered by observations of limestone-shale strata, then-exposed on the hillsides and riverbanks of Cincinnati. Subsequently, most geologists rejected this notion and favored a “mosaic” view of strata as local patches, based on studies of modern marine environments. Cincinnati reference sections such as those of Eden and Fairview Parks are now largely overgrown or under concrete. …

An Enigmatic Lobate Mat-Like Fossil(?) In The Kope Formation (Upper Ordovician), Kenton County, Kentucky, Ron Fine, Carlton Brett, Benjamin Dattilo, David Meyer

Benjamin F. Dattilo

A new, enigmatic, large fossil(?) object from a thin silty mudstone bed (up to 3 cm thick) underlain by siltstone was excavated from the lower Kope Formation (Economy Member, basal Pioneer Valley submember) near Covington, KY. The excavated object is roughly elliptical in outline, over 2 m long, with a parallel-fluted structure at one end that terminates in a complex of conjoined, flattened, ellipsoidal or spatulate concretion-like lobes at the other end. The lobes are about 10 cm and range to 45 cm long. Internally, some lobes show lamination, sometimes convoluted. The most perplexing feature of the lobe-like structures is …