PBDB Collection

Bug Creek Anthills: Late/Upper Maastrichtian, Montana
collected by Univ. of Minnesota 1962-1964

List of taxa

Where & when

Geology

Taphonomy & methods

Metadata & references

Taxonomic list

Amphibia - Temnospondyli

	Anura indet. (Fischer von Waldheim 1813)	Estes et al. 1969	3 specimens
Amphibia - Temnospondyli - Pelobatidae

	? Eopelobates sp. Parker 1929	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen
	= cf. Eopelobates sp. Parker 1929	Gardner 2008
	UALVP 40164
Amphibia - Temnospondyli - Discoglossidae

	Discoglossidae indet. Günther 1859	Estes et al. 1969	2 specimens

	cf. Barbourula sp. Taylor and Noble 1924	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen
Amphibia - Temnospondyli

	Scotiophryne pustulosa n. gen., n. sp. Estes 1969	Estes et al. 1969	11 specimens
	MCZ 3623-3626; AMNH 26422; UALVP 40155-60
Amphibia - Temnospondyli - Palaeobatrachidae

	Palaeobatrachus occidentalis Estes and Sanchíz 1982	Gardner 2008	1 specimen
	UALVP 40163
Amphibia - Temnospondyli - Urodela

	Proamphiuma cretacea Estes 1969	Estes et al. 1969	2 specimens

	Habrosaurus dilatus Gilmore 1928	Estes et al. 1969	9 specimens

	cf. Piceoerpeton sp. Meszoely 1967	Naylor 1983	2 specimens
	UA 14918 (atlas)
	= Piceoerpeton naylori n. sp. Gardner 2012	Gardner 2012
	UALVP 14918 - type (atlantal centrum); referred specimen: UALVP 40122, trunk vertebra

	Lisserpeton bairdi n. gen., n. sp. Estes 1965		20 specimens
	some specimens were uncatalogued

	Scapherpeton tectum Cope 1876	Estes et al. 1969	61 specimens
Amphibia - Temnospondyli - Batrachosauroididae

	Opisthotriton kayi Auffenberg 1961	Estes et al. 1969	107 specimens

	Prodesmodon copei Estes 1964	Estes et al. 1969	2 specimens

	Cuttysarkus mcnallyi Estes 1964	Estes et al. 1969	2 specimens
	synonym of Prodesmodon copei
Amphibia - Temnospondyli - Albanerpetontidae

	Albanerpetontidae indet. Fox and Naylor 1982	Gardner 2000	3 specimens

	Albanerpeton nexuosus Estes 1981	Gardner 2000	1 specimen
Reptilia - Ceratopsidae

	Triceratops sp. Marsh 1889	Estes et al. 1969
Reptilia - Pachycephalosauridae

	? Pachycephalosauridae indet. Sternberg 1945	Estes et al. 1969
Reptilia

	Thescelosaurus neglectus Gilmore 1913	Estes et al. 1969
	= Orodromeus makelai Horner and Weishampel 1988	Galton 1995
Reptilia - Hadrosauridae

	Anatosaurus sp. Lull and Wright 1942	Estes et al. 1969
	synonym of Edmontosaurus
Reptilia - Theropoda

	Theropoda indet. Marsh 1881	Estes et al. 1969
Reptilia

	Paronychodon lacustris Cope 1876	Estes et al. 1969
	nomen dubium belonging to Paronychodon
Reptilia - Dromaeosauridae

	? Dromaeosauridae indet. Colbert and Russell 1969	Estes et al. 1969
Reptilia - Coeluridae

	? Coeluridae indet. Marsh 1881	Estes et al. 1969
Reptilia

	Brachychampsa montana Gilmore 1911	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen

	Leidyosuchus sternbergi (Gilmore 1910)	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen
	recombined as Borealosuchus sternbergii

	Champsosaurus sp. Cope 1876	Estes et al. 1969	2 specimens

	Coniophis precedens Marsh 1892	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen
	nomen dubium belonging to Serpentes
Reptilia - Boidae

	? Erycinae indet. Bonaparte 1825	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen
Reptilia - Xantusiidae

	Xantusiidae indet. Baird 1858	Gao and Fox 1996	1 specimen
	UALVP 29840 (gen. et sp. nov.)
Reptilia - Cordylidae

	? Cordylidae informal indet. B Gray 1837	Gao and Fox 1996	1 specimen
	UALVP 29722 (dentary)
Reptilia - Globauridae

	Contogenys sloani n. gen., n. sp. Estes 1969	Estes 1969	5 specimens
	MCZ 3682-3684; OMNH 59221; UALVP 29839
Reptilia - Chamopsiidae

	Chamops segnis Marsh 1892	Estes et al. 1969	12 specimens
	Additional specimens from Gao & Fox (1996): UALVP 29724-29726, 29730, 29737-29738 (maxilla), and 29721, 29723, 29815 (dentaries)

	Meniscognathus altmani Estes 1964	Gao and Fox 1996	4 specimens
	UALVP 29775, 29779 (maxilla), and 29776, 29831 (dentaries)

	Haptosphenus placodon Estes 1964	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen

	Leptochamops denticulatus (Gilmore 1928)	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen

	Peneteius aquilonius Estes 1969	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen

	Peneteius aquilonius n. gen., n. sp. Estes 1969	Estes 1969	1 specimen
	MCZ 3612 (holotype dentary)
Reptilia - Xenosauridae

	Exostinus lancensis Gilmore 1928	Estes et al. 1969	4 specimens
	plus specimen reported by Gao & Fox (1996), UALVP 29919 (frontal)
Reptilia

	Paraderma bogerti Estes 1964	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen

	Colpodontosaurus cracens Estes 1964	Estes et al. 1969	3 specimens
	Gao & Fox (1996): UALVP 29785-29786
Reptilia - Varanidae

	Palaeosaniwa cf. canadensis Gilmore 1928	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen
	MCZ 3665 (large vertebra)
	= Varanidae indet. Hardwicke and Gray 1824	Gao and Fox 1996
	'lack of information on the morphologies of the condylar cup, precondylar constriction, and neural spine prevents a definite referral of this specimen to Palaeosaniwa'
Reptilia

	Parasaniwa wyomingensis Gilmore 1928	Estes et al. 1969	11 specimens
	plus Gao & Fox (1996) specimens: UALVP 33357-33360 (maxilla), 33361 and several unnumbered (dentaries), 33362, 33363 (pterygoids), 33364, 33365 (parietals)
Reptilia - Anguidae

	Pancelosaurus piger (Gilmore 1928)	Estes et al. 1969	15 specimens
	recombined as Odaxosaurus piger
Reptilia - Testudines - Emydidae

	? Emydinae indet. Rafinesque 1815	Estes et al. 1969	3 specimens
Reptilia - Testudines - Trionychidae

	Trionyx sp. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire 1809	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen
	= Trionychidae indet. Gray 1825	Alroy 2006
Reptilia - Testudines - Adocidae

	Adocus sp. Cope 1868	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen
Reptilia

	Compsemys victa (Leidy 1856)	Estes et al. 1969	1 specimen
Reptilia - Baenidae

	Baenidae informal indet. undescribed genus and species 1 Cope 1882	Estes et al. 1969

	Baenidae informal indet. 2 Cope 1882	Estes et al. 1969
	"undescribed genus and species"

	Palatobaena bairdi Gaffney 1972	Gaffney 1972	2 specimens
	MCZ 3515 (right maxilla), and a specimen referred by Lyson & Joyce (2009): AMNH 8277 (complete lower jaws)

	Eubaena cephalica (Hay 1904)	Gaffney 1972	6 specimens
	MCZ 3530 (both parietals), AMNH 4948 (skull), MCZ 3510, 3511, 3512, 3519 (maxillae), MCZ 3525 (right parietal)
Acipenseriformes - Acipenseridae

	Acipenser eruciferus (Cope 1876)	Estes et al. 1969	7 elements
Acipenseriformes - Polyodontidae

	Paleopsephurus wilsoni MacAlpin 1947	Estes et al. 1969	3 elements
Actinopteri

	Teleostei indet. Müller 1846	Estes et al. 1969
	numerous vertebrae and fragments
Actinopteri - Elopiformes - Elopidae

	Elopidae indet. Bonaparte 1846	Estes et al. 1969	1 element
Actinopteri - Elopiformes - Phyllodontidae

	cf. Paralbula casei Estes 1969	Estes et al. 1969	1 element
Actinopteri - Albuliformes - Albulidae

	Coriops amnicolus Estes 1969	Estes et al. 1969	3 elements
Actinopteri - Sciaenidae

	Platacodon nanus Marsh 1889	Estes et al. 1969	2 elements
Actinopteri - Aspidorhynchiformes - Aspidorhynchidae

	Belonostomus longirostris (Lambe 1902)	Estes et al. 1969	1 element
Actinopteri - Amiiformes - Palaeolabridae

	Palaeolabrus montanensis Estes 1969	Estes et al. 1969	7 elements
Actinopteri - Amiiformes - Amiidae

	Amia sp. Linnaeus 1766	Estes et al. 1969	1 element
	not sure. perhaps Protamia

	Amia fragosa Jordan 1927	Estes et al. 1969	94 elements
Actinopteri - Lepisosteiformes - Lepisosteidae

	Lepisosteus occidentalis (Leidy 1856)	Estes et al. 1969	25 elements
	original and current combination Lepidotus occidentalis
Chondrichthyes - Rajiformes - Rhinobatidae

	Myledaphus bipartitus Cope 1876	Estes et al. 1969	1 element
Chondrichthyes - Hybodontiformes - Lonchidiidae

	Lonchidion selachos Estes 1964	Estes et al. 1969	1 element
see common names

Geography

Country:	United States	State/province:	Montana	County:	McCone County
Coordinates:	47.8° North, 106.1° West (view map)
Paleocoordinates:	54.4° North, 79.0° West
Basis of coordinate:	based on nearby landmark
Geographic resolution:	outcrop

Time

Period:	Cretaceous	Epoch:	Late/Upper Cretaceous
Stage:	Maastrichtian	10 m.y. bin:	Cretaceous 8
*Period:	Cretaceous - Cretaceous	*Epoch:	Late/Upper Cretaceous - Late/Upper Cretaceous
*International age/stage:	Maastrichtian - Maastrichtian
Key time interval:	Late/Upper Maastrichtian
Age range of interval:	72.10000 - 66.00000 m.y. ago
* legacy (obsolete) database fields

Stratigraphy

Formation:	Hell Creek
Stratigraphic resolution:	group of beds
Stratigraphy comments: upper 1/3 of formation, 80 ft below coal bed

Lithology and environment

Primary lithology:	current ripples sandstone
Includes fossils?	Y
Lithology description: "a cross-bedded stram channel"
Environment:	coarse channel fill
Geology comments: 'Coastal plain deposits'

Taphonomy

Modes of preservation:	body
Size of fossils:	macrofossils,mesofossils
Preservation of anatomical detail:	good
Disassociated minor elements:	some

Collection methods and comments

Collection excludes:	some macrofossils,some microfossils
Collection methods:	surface (float),anthill,field collection
Reason for describing collection:	taxonomic analysis
Collectors:	Univ. of Minnesota	Collection dates:	1962-1964
Taxonomic list comments:mammal fauna said to be present

Metadata

Also known as:	Bug Creek, BCA, OMNH V1173
Database number:	13142
Authorizer:	E. Fara, R. Benson, P. Mannion, M. Carrano, J. Alroy	Enterer:	E. Fara, M. Carrano, P. Mannion, R. Benson, J. Alroy
Modifier:	G. Varnham	Research group:	vertebrate
Created:	2002-01-23 07:05:23	Last modified:	2022-02-01 07:35:55
Access level:	group members	Released:	2002-04-23 07:05:23
Creative Commons license:	CC BY

Reference information

Primary reference:

4377.

5% 41840

R. Estes. 1965. A new fossil salamander from Montana and Wyoming. Copeia 1965(1):90-95 [E. Fara/E. Fara/J. Alroy]

Secondary references:

18120		J. Alroy. 2006. Synonymies and reidentifications of North American fossil vertebrates. [J. Alroy/J. Alroy/J. Alroy]
38165		J. D. Archibald and J. H. Hutchison. 1979. Revision of the genus Palatobaena (Testudines, Baenidae), with the description of a new species. Postilla 177:1-19 [P. Mannion/P. Mannion/P. Holroyd]
37920		R. Estes. 1969. Relationships of two Cretaceous lizards (Sauria, Teiidae). Breviora 317:1-8 [R. Benson/R. Benson]
12167	ETE	R. Estes. 1969. A scincoid lizard from the Cretaceous and Paleocene of Montana. Breviora 331:1-9 [M. Carrano/M. Carrano/R. Benson]
4381	5% 40240	R. Estes, P. Berberian, and C. A. M. Meszoely. 1969. Lower vertebrates from the Late Cretaceous Hell Creek Formation, McCone County, Montana. Breviora 337:1-33 [E. Fara/E. Fara/M. Carrano]
704		E. S. Gaffney. 1972. The systematics of the North American family Baenidae (Reptilia, Cryptodira). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 147(5):245-312 [J. Alroy/M. Sommers/R. Benson]
12971	ETE	P. M. Galton. 1995. The species of the basal hypsilophodontid dinosaur Thescelosaurus Gilmore (Ornithischia: Ornithopoda) from the Late Cretaceous of North America. Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie, Abhandlungen 198(3):297-311 [M. Carrano/M. Carrano/M. Carrano]
37933		K. -Q. Gao and R. C. Fox. 1996. Taxonomy and evolution of Late Cretaceous lizards (Reptilia: Squamata) from western Canada. Bulletin of the Carnegie Museum of natural History 33:1-107 [R. Benson/R. Benson]
42675		J. D. Gardner. 2000. Albanerpetontid amphibians from the Upper Cretaceous (Campanian and Maastrichtian) of North America. Geodiversitas 22(3):349-388 [M. Carrano/M. Carrano/M. Carrano]
52044		J. D. Gardner. 2008. New information on frogs (Lissamphibia: Anura) from the Lance Formation (Maastrichtian) and Bug Creek Anthills (late Maastrichtian and early Paleocene), Hell Creek Formation, USA. In J. T. Sankey & S. Baszio (ed.), Vertebrate Microfossil Assemblages: Their Role in Paleoecology and Paleobiogeography 219-249 [M. Carrano/M. Carrano/M. Carrano]
44340		J. D. Gardner. 2012. Revision of Piceoerpeton MESZOELY (Caudata: Scapherpetontidae) and description of a new species from the late Maastrichtian and ? early Paleocene of western North America. Bulletin de la Société Géologique de France 183(6):611-620 [P. Mannion/P. Mannion]
52039		J. D. Gardner and M. Böhme. 2008. Review of the Albanerpetontidae (Lissamphibia), with comments on the paleoecological preferences of European Tertiary albanerpetontids. In J. T. Sankey & S. Baszio (ed.), Vertebrate Microfossil Assemblages: Their Role in Paleoecology and Paleobiogeography 178-218 [M. Carrano/M. Carrano]
38940		B. G. Naylor. 1983. New salamander (Amphibia: Caudata) atlantes from the Upper Cretaceous of North America. Journal of Paleontology 57(1):48-52 [R. Benson/R. Benson]
31563	ETE	R. L. Nydam and B. M. Fitzpatrick. 2009. The occurrence of Contogenys-like lizards in the Late Cretaceous and Early Tertiary of the Western Interior of the U.S.A. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 29(3):677-701 [M. Carrano/M. Carrano/P. Mannion]
53515		R. E. Sloan. 1976. The ecology of dinosaur extinction. In C. S. Churcher (ed.), Athlon: Essays on Palaeontology in Honor of Loris Shano Russell. Royal Ontario Museum, Life Sciences Miscellaneous Publications 134-154 [M. Carrano/M. Carrano]
53471		J. Smit and S. van der Kaars. 1984. Terminal Cretaceous extinctions in the Hell Creek area, Montana: compatible with catastrophic extinction. Science 223(4641):1177-1179 [M. Carrano/M. Carrano]