Vogtle Electric Generating Plant (Eocene of the United States)

Where: Burke County, Georgia (33.1° N, 81.8° W: paleocoordinates 33.7° N, 70.3° W)

• coordinate based on nearby landmark

• small collection-level geographic resolution

When: NP 16 nannofossil zone, Blue Bluff Formation, Lutetian (47.8 - 41.3 Ma)

• Hulbert et al (1998) state that the age is latest Lutetian or Bartonian, NP 16. Geisler & Beatty (2010) state that it it Lutetian.

• bed-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: deep subtidal shelf; poorly lithified, concretionary, gray, argillaceous lime mudstone

• upper part of an 8 m bed that "was soft and poorly indurated" with "small concretions""relatively shallow but open water. A shelf environment is inferred...""Aragonitic mollusks and anthozoans are preserved either as external or internal molds, but calcitic shells appear unaltered"
• gray argillaceous calcilutite

Size class: macrofossils

Preservation: original calcite

Primary reference: R. C. Hulbert, R. M. Petkewich, G. A. Bishop, D. Bukry, and D. P. Aleshire. 1998. A new middle Eocene protocetid whale (Mammalia: Cetacea: Archaeoceti) and associated biota from Georgia. Journal of Paleontology 72(5):907-927 [J. Alroy/J. Alroy/M. Uhen]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 4868: authorized by John Alroy, entered by John Alroy on 27.08.1999

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

unclassified
  -
Dinomastigota indet. Margulis 1996
"at least two unidentified dinoflagellates"
Coccolithophyceae
 Prymnesiophycidae - Prymnesiophycidae
Discoaster sp. Tan 1902
"six-rayed"
Braarudosphaera bigelowii Gran and Braarud 1935
Pontosphaera sp. Lohmann 1961
Zygrhablithus bijugatus Deflandre and Fert 1954
Coccolithus formosus Kamptner 1963
Coccolithus pelagicus Wallich 1877
Zygolithus dubius Deflandre and Fert 1954
  -
Sphenolithus moriformis Bronnimann and Stradner 1960
 Syracosphaerales - Rhabdosphaeraceae
Rhabdosphaera sp. Haeckel 1894
"narrow and wide tubes"
  -
 Coccolithales - Coccolithaceae
Chiasmolithus modestus Perch-Nielsen 1971
Chiasmolithus solitus Bramlette and Sullivan 1961
 Isochrysidales - Noelaerhabdaceae
  -
Transversopontis sp. Hay et al. 1966
Reticulofenestra
  -
Helicosphaera
  -
Foraminifera
 Globigerinina - Truncorotaloididae
Anthozoa
  -
Anthozoa indet. Ehrenberg 1834
Cirripedia
  -
Cirripedia indet. barnacle
"barnacles"
Bryozoa
  -
Bryozoa indet. Ehrenberg 1831
Bivalvia
 Ostreida - Ostreidae
Cubitostrea sellaeformis Conrad 1832 oyster
 Ostreida - Pinnidae
Pinnidae indet. Leach 1819 oyster
 Cardiida - Anatinellidae
Pteropsella lapidosa Conrad 1846 clam
Gastropoda
 Cerithioidea - Turritellidae
"Turritella carinata" = Haustator carinata, Turritella nasuta
"Turritella carinata" = Haustator carinata Lea 1833 turret shell
Turritella nasuta turret shell
Osteichthyes
 Acipenseriformes -
Cylindracanthus rectus Agassiz 1843 ray-finned fish
Mammalia
 Cetacea - Protocetidae
Georgiacetus vogtlensis n. gen. n. sp.
Georgiacetus vogtlensis n. gen. n. sp. Hulbert et al. 1998 whale
Chondrichthyes
 Carcharhiniformes - Carcharhinidae
Triaenodon sp. Mueller and Henle 1837 requiem shark
Carcharhinus cf. macloti Muller and Henle 1839 requiem shark
 Lamniformes - Mitsukurinidae
"Carcharias macrota" = Striatolamia macrota
"Carcharias macrota" = Striatolamia macrota Agassiz 1838 goblin shark
 Myliobatiformes - Myliobatidae
Myliobatidae indet. Bonaparte 1838 eagle ray