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Forest Marble Formation

{{Short description|Jurassic geological formation in England}}

{{Infobox rockunit

| name = Forest Marble Formation

| image = East_face_of_Kirtlington_quarry_geograph_org_uk.jpg

| caption = Forest Marble Formation exposed in Kirtlington Quarry, Oxfordshire

| type = Geological formation

| age = Bathonian {{fossilrange|168|164.7}}

| period = Bathonian

| prilithology = Mudstone, Limestone

| otherlithology = Siltstone, Sandstone

| namedfor = Wychwood Forest

| namedby =

| region = Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Dorset

| country = United Kingdom

| coordinates =

| unitof = Great Oolite Group

| subunits =

| underlies = Cornbrash Formation

| overlies = White Limestone Formation, Athelstan Oolite Formation, Chalfield Oolite Formation, Corsham Limestone Formation, Frome Clay

| thickness = Up to 5m thick in Buckinghamshire, 10 to 30m in Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire, 30 to about 50m in north Dorset, 30 to 75m in south Dorset

| extent =

| area =

| map =

| map_caption =

}}

The Forest Marble is a geological formation in England. Part of the Great Oolite Group, it dates to the late Bathonian stage of the Middle Jurassic.Weishampel, David B; et al. (2004). "Dinosaur distribution (Middle Jurassic, Europe)." In: Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; and Osmólska, Halszka (eds.): The Dinosauria, 2nd, Berkeley: University of California Press. Pp. 538–541. {{ISBN|0-520-24209-2}}.

Lithology

The primary lithology of the formation typically consists of greenish grey variably calcareous silicate mudstone, with lenticular cross bedded limestone units deposited in a marine setting.{{Cite web |url=https://www.bgs.ac.uk/Lexicon/lexicon.cfm?pub=FMB |title=Forest Marble Formation |last=British Geological Survey |website=BGS Lexicon of Named Rock Units |access-date=1 November 2018}}

Paleobiota

Despite the formation being nearly entirely marine, at several localities abundant remains of terrestrial microvertebrates are found, the primary locality being the Kirtlington Mammal Bed (designated 3p) in Kirtlington Quarry near Kirtlington, Oxfordshire.{{cite web |last= |first= |date= |title=Kirtlington 3p (Mammal Bed) |url=https://paleobiodb.org/classic?a=basicCollectionSearch&collection_no=39075 |access-date=28 August 2018 |work=Paleobiology Database |publisher= |quote=}} Another important locality is Watton Cliff near Eype in Dorset.{{cite web |last= |first= |date= |title=Watton Cliff (West Cliff), Dorset |url=https://paleobiodb.org/classic?a=basicCollectionSearch&collection_no=57124 |access-date=28 August 2018 |work=Paleobiology Database |publisher= |quote=}}

= Fish =

class="wikitable" align="center" width="100%"
colspan="7" align="center" |Fish of the Forest Marble Formation{{Cite journal |last=Rees |first=Jan |last2=Underwood |first2=Charlie J. |date=January 2008 |title=Hybodont Sharks of the English Bathonian and Callovian (Middle Jurassic) |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1475-4983.2007.00737.x |journal=Palaeontology |language=en |volume=51 |issue=1 |pages=117–147 |doi=10.1111/j.1475-4983.2007.00737.x |issn=0031-0239}}
Genus

! Species

! Location

! Stratigraphic position

! Abundance

! Notes

! Images

Hybodus

|Hybodus obtusus

| rowspan="3" |Watton Cliff

|

|

| rowspan="3" |A hybodont shark

|

Egertonodus

|Egertonodus duffini

|

|

|

Secarodus

|Secarodus polyprion

|

|

|

Strophodus

|Spp.

|

|

|

|A hybodont shark, formerly considered to be Asteracanthus

|

Lonchidion

|Indeterminate

|

|

|

| rowspan="3" |A hybodont shark

|

Parvodus

|Parvodus pattersoni

|

|

|

|

Lissodus

|Lissodus leiopleurus

|

|

|

|

Palaeocarcharias?{{Cite journal |last=Underwood |first=Charlie J. |last2=Ward |first2=David J. |date=May 2004 |title=Neoselachian sharks and rays from the British Bathonian (Middle Jurassic) |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.0031-0239.2004.00386.x |journal=Palaeontology |language=en |volume=47 |issue=3 |pages=447–501 |doi=10.1111/j.0031-0239.2004.00386.x |issn=0031-0239}}

|Indeterminate

|

|

|

|Possibly the oldest lamniform shark

|

= Dinosaurs =

== Ornithischians ==

{{paleobiota-key-compact}}

class="wikitable" align="center" width="100%"
colspan="7" align="center" |Ornithischians of the Forest Marble Formation
Genus

! Species

! Location

! Stratigraphic position

! Abundance

! Notes

! Images

style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

AlocodonListed as "cf. Alocodon sp." in "10.11 Oxfordshire, England; 6. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

Indeterminate

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

  • Oxfordshire

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

| rowspan="99" |

HylaeosaurusListed as "?Hylaeosaurus sp." in "10.13 Wiltshire, England; 3. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.

|

Indeterminate

|

  • Wiltshire"10.13 Wiltshire, England; 3. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.

|

|

|Dubious

IguanodonListed as "?Iguanodon sp." in "10.11 Oxfordshire, England; 6. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.

|

Indeterminate

|

  • Oxfordshire"10.11 Oxfordshire, England; 6. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.

|

|

|Dubious, probably indeterminate ornithischian

== Saurischians ==

{{paleobiota-key-compact}}

class="wikitable" align="center" width="100%"
colspan="7" align="center" |Saurischians reported from the Forest Marble Formation
Genus

! Species

! Location

! Stratigraphic position

! Material

! Notes

! Images

rowspan="2" style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

Bothriospondylus"10.11 Oxfordshire, England; 6. Forest Marble Formation" and "10.13 Wiltshire, England; 3. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

B. robustus"10.13 Wiltshire, England; 3. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

  • Wiltshire

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

"Dorsal vertebra.""Table 13.1," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 270.

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

Reassigned to Marmarospondylus

| rowspan="100" |

File:Cetiosaurus.jpg]]File:Proceratosaurus_NT.jpg]]

style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

Indeterminate"10.11 Oxfordshire, England; 6. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

  • Oxfordshire

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

Cardiodon

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

C. rugulosus

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

  • Wiltshire

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

|style="background:#E6E6E6;" |

Cetiosaurus"10.11 Oxfordshire, England; 6. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 538, 540.

|

C. oxoniensis

|

  • Oxfordshire

|

|

|

A cetiosaurid sauropod.

"Cetiosaurus"

|

C. glymptonensis

|

  • Oxfordshire

|

|

"Caudal vertebrae.""Table 13.1," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 265.

|Actually indeterminate theropod remains.

Dromaeosauridae{{Cite journal |last1=Wills |first1=S. |last2=Underwood |first2=C. J. |last3=Barrett |first3=P. M. |year=2023 |title=Machine learning confirms new records of maniraptoran theropods in Middle Jurassic UK microvertebrate faunas |journal=Papers in Palaeontology |volume=9 |issue=2 |at=e1487 |doi=10.1002/spp2.1487|doi-access=free }}

|Indeterminate

|

  • Oxfordshire

|

|"Teeth"

|Remains represent three species. Same species also present in the Chipping Norton Limestone. Other authors have questioned the attribution to dromaeosaurs.{{Cite journal |last=Yu |first=Yilun |last2=Yi |first2=Hongyu |last3=Wang |first3=Shiying |last4=Pei |first4=Rui |last5=Zhang |first5=Chi |last6=Xu |first6=Xing |date=December 1, 2023 |title=A Jurassic Tibetan theropod tooth reveals dental convergency and its implication for identifying fragmentary fossils |url=https://www.the-innovation.org/en/article/doi/10.59717/j.xinn-geo.2023.100040 |journal=The Innovation Geoscience |language=en |volume=1 |issue=3 |pages=100040–10 |doi=10.59717/j.xinn-geo.2023.100040 |issn=2959-8753|doi-access=free }}

Marmarospondylus

|

|

|

|Dorsal verebra

|Dubious genus of sauropod

rowspan="2" style="background:#f3e9f3;" |

MegalosaurusWeishampel, et al. (2004). Pages 539-540.

|style="background:#f3e9f3;" |

M. bucklandii"10.3 Gloucestershire, England; 4. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 538.

|style="background:#f3e9f3;" |

  • Gloucestershire

|style="background:#f3e9f3;" |

|

|

style="background:#f3e9f3;" |

Indeterminate"10.7 Dorset, England; 2. Forest Marble Formation" and "10.11 Oxfordshire, England; 6. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Pages 539-540.

|style="background:#f3e9f3;" |

  • Dorset"10.7 Dorset, England; 2. Forest Marble Formation," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 539.
  • Oxfordshire

|style="background:#f3e9f3;" |

|style="background:#f3e9f3;" |

|style="background:#f3e9f3;" |

Actually indeterminate theropod remains.

Proceratosaurus

|P. bradleyi

|

  • Gloucestershire

|

|

|A proceratosaurid theropod. The geological formation that this species comes from is disputed, and other authors have attributed the strata to the White Limestone Formation.{{cite web |last=Carrano |first=Matthew |date=2004 |title=Minchinhampton reservoir (BMNH R4860) (Jurassic of the United Kingdom) |url=https://paleobiodb.org/classic/basicCollectionSearch?collection_no=45883&is_real_user=1 |website=The Paleobiology Database}}

= Amphibians =

class="wikitable" align="center" width="100%"
colspan="7" align="center" |Amphibians reported from the Forest Marble Formation
Genus

! Species

! Location

! Stratigraphic position

! Material

! Notes

! Images

Anoualerpeton

|A. priscus

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Albanerpetontid

|

Eodiscoglossus

|E. oxoniensis

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Frog, probably not closely related to type species of genus.

|File:Eodiscoglossus NT.jpg]]

Marmorerpeton

|M. kermacki, M. freemani

|Kirtlington, Watton Cliff

|

|

|Neotenic stem-group salamander (Caudata) belonging to Karauridae

|

Caudata

|Indeterminate

|Kirtlington

|

|

|2 distinct taxa, one common one small, referred to as Kirtlington Salamander A and B, respectively

|

= Turtles =

class="wikitable" align="center" width="100%"
colspan="7" align="center" |Turtles reported from the Forest Marble Formation
Genus

! Species

! Location

! Stratigraphic position

! Material

! Notes

! Images

Paracryptodira{{Cite journal|last=Scheyer|first=Torsten M.|last2=Anquetin|first2=Jérémy|date=March 2008|title=Bone histology of the Middle Jurassic turtle shell remains from Kirtlington, Oxfordshire, England|journal=Lethaia|volume=41|issue=1|pages=85–96|doi=10.1111/j.1502-3931.2007.00044.x|issn=0024-1164|url=http://osf.io/kejz5/}}

|Indeterminate

|Kirtlington

|

|Shell fragments, basisphenoid

|

|

= Choristoderes =

class="wikitable" align="center" width="100%"
colspan="7" align="center" |Choristoderes reported from the Forest Marble Formation
Genus

! Species

! Location

! Stratigraphic position

! Material

! Notes

! Images

Cteniogenys

|Indeterminate

|Kirtlington

|

|

|A small, lizard like choristoderan. Oldest record of the group

|

= Pterosaurs =

class="wikitable" align="center" width="100%"
colspan="7" align="center" |Choristoderes reported from the Forest Marble Formation
Genus

! Species

! Location

! Stratigraphic position

! Material

! Notes

! Images

"Rhamphorhynchoidea"

|Indeteriminate

|Kirtlington

|

|

|

|

= Lepidosauromorphs =

class="wikitable" align="center" width="100%"
colspan="7" align="center" |Lepidosauromorphs reported from the Forest Marble Formation
Genus

! Species

! Location

! Stratigraphic position

! Material

! Notes

! Images

Balnealacerta

|B. silvestris

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Scincomorph lizard

|

Bellairsia

|B. gracillis

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Squamate

|File:Bellairsia skull diagram.png

Eophis

|E. underwoodi

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Stem-snake

|

Marmoretta

|M. oxoniensis

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Basal Lepidosauromorph

|File:Marmoretta.svg

Oxiella

|O. tenuis

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Squamate

|

Parviraptor

|cf. estesi

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Stem-snake

|

Saurillodon

|S. marmorensis

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Paramacellodid lizard

|

Rhynchocephalia

|Indeterminate

|Kirtlington

|

|

|

|

= Crocodyliformes =

class="wikitable" align="center" width="100%"
colspan="7" align="center" |Crocodyliformes reported from the Forest Marble Formation
Genus

! Species

! Location

! Stratigraphic position

! Material

! Notes

! Images

cf. Goniopholis

|Indeterminate

|Kirtlington

|

|

|

|File:Goniopholis BW.jpg]]

cf. Theriosuchus

|Indeterminate

|Kirtlington

|

|

|

|

= Mammaliamorphs =

class="wikitable" align="center" width="100%"
colspan="7" align="center" |Mammaliamorphs reported from the Forest Marble Formation
Genus

! Species

! Location

! Stratigraphic position

! Material

! Notes

! Images

Amphitherium

|Indeterminate

|?Kirtlington, Watton Cliff

|

|

|The first Mesozoic mammal to be described. Initially believed to be a marsupial. Close relative of Palaeoxonodon and Peramuridae.

|

|

Borealestes

|B. serendipitus

|Kirtlington, Watton Cliff

|

|molar fragments

| rowspan="2" |Docodonta

|

Dobunnodon

|B. mussetti

|Kirtlington

|

|molar fragments

|

Gobiconodon

|G. bathoniensis

|Kirtlington, Watton Cliff

|

|

|Gobiconodontid

|

Hahnotherium

|H. antiquum

|Kirtlington, Watton Cliff

|

|

|Multituberculate

|

Kermackodon

|K. multicuspis, K. oxfordensis

|Kirtlington, Watton Cliff

|

|

|Allotherian belonging to the family Kermackodontidae, K. oxfordensis previously placed in separate genus Eleutherodon.

|File:Kermackodon.png

Kirtlingtonia

|K. catenata

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Haramiyid

|

Krusatodon

|K. kirtlingtonensis

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Tegotheriid docodontan

|

Millsodon

|M. superstes

|Kirtlington, Watton Cliff

|

|

|Haramiyid

|

Morganucodon

|M. tardus

|Watton Cliff

|

|

|Morganucodontidae

|File:Morganucodon.jpg]]

Palaeoxonodon

|P. ooliticus

|Kirtlington, Watton Cliff

|

|

|Amphitheriid

|File:Palaeoxonodon.jpg

Paritatodon

|P. kermacki

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Docodontan or Shuotheriidae

|

Peraiocynodon

|P. major

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Docodontidae

|

Phascolotherium

|P. simpsoni

|Kirtlington, Watton Cliff

|

|

|Amphilestidae

|

Simpsonodon

|S. oxfordensis

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Docodonta

|

Shuotherium

|Indeterminate

|Kirtington

|

|

|Shuotheriidae

|

Stereognathus

|S. ooliticus

|Kirtlington, Watton Cliff

|

|

|Tritylodontidae

|

Stylidens

|S. hookeri

|Watton Cliff

|

|

|Morganucodontidae

|

Wareolestes

|W. rex

|Kirtlington

|

|

|Morganucodonta

|

Allotheria

|Indeterminate

|Kirtlington

|

|

|

|

Haramiyida

|Indeterminate

|Kirtlington

|

|

|

|

Dryolestida

|Indeterminate

|

|

|Lower molars

|

|

Peramuridae

|Indeterminate

|Watton Cliff

|

|

|

|

See also

{{Portal|Earth sciences|Paleontology|Dinosaurs||}}

Footnotes

{{Reflist}}

References

  • Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; and Osmólska, Halszka (eds.): The Dinosauria, 2nd, Berkeley: University of California Press. 861 pp. {{ISBN|0-520-24209-2}}.

Category:Geologic formations of England

Category:Middle Jurassic Europe

Category:Jurassic England

Category:Bathonian Stage

Category:Jurassic System of Europe