Gebel Duwi: Cenomanian - Santonian, Egypt

List of taxa
Where & when
Geology
Taphonomy & methods
Metadata & references
Taxonomic list
Reptilia - Theropoda
Theropoda indet. (Marsh 1881)
footprint
Reptilia
Sauropoda indet. (Marsh 1878)
footprint
see common names

Geography
Country:Egypt
Coordinates: 26.1° North, 34.0° East (view map)
Paleocoordinates:6.8° North, 28.0° East
Basis of coordinate:stated in text
Geographic resolution:small collection
Time
Period:Cretaceous Epoch:Late/Upper Cretaceous
Key time interval:Cenomanian - Santonian
Age range of interval:100.50000 - 83.60000 m.y. ago
Stratigraphy
Formation:Nubian Sandstone Member:Upper
Stratigraphic resolution:member
Stratigraphy comments: Kassib et al. 2021: In Gebel Duwi (Latitude: 26 60 59.5800 N; Longitude: 34 20 22.4000 E), the Nubian Sandstone Formation rests unconformably on the basement complex (Figures 2 and 3a) and underlies a thick Upper Cretaceous variegated marine shale sequence, known as the Quseir Formation. The Nubian Sandstone Formation consists mainly of poorly to well- sorted, fine- to coarse-grained, reddish-brown to yellowish sandstone, with some siltstone and/or mudstone intercalations. Youssef (1957) suggested a Santonian age for the Nubian Sandstone Formation. It is considered by other authors to be as old as Cenomanian (Ward & McDonald, 1979). Based on fossil evidence within the overlying Quseir Formation, Issawi, Francis, Youssef, and Osman (2009) assigned a pre-Campanian age for the Nubian Sandstone Formation.
Lithology and environment
Primary lithology:wave ripples,"cross stratification" sandstone
Lithology description: Kassib et al. 2021: The upper member reaches about 100 m in thickness. The basal portion is about 40 m thick and is made of fining-upward, black to reddish-white, fine-grained sandstone. It is characterized by well- developed ripple marks (Figure 3f) and vertebrate footprints and hori- zontal invertebrate burrows. The dinosaur footprints are superimposed on the rippled surfaces. Sauropod dinosaur footprints are present in the first level of the upper member (elevation 100 m on Figure 2) and belong to different individuals. The theropod footprints are found in a higher stratigraphic level, at 110 m in the succession, and show a few isolated footprints. The rippled, fine-grained sand- stone of the lower part of the upper member grades upward into tab- ular cross-bedded sandstone intercalated with rippled siltstone and upper portion is varicolored silty shale with plant remains. The middle part of this member is composed of fining-upward cycles of reddish to greenish-yellow, tabular cross-bedded, fine-grained sandstone intercalated at the base with sandy siltstone and topped by varicol- ored silty shale. The top of the upper member consists of coarsening-upward, repeated cycles of yellow, tabular cross-bedded, well-sorted, and fine-grained sandstone interbedded with siltstone.
Environment:delta plain
Geology comments: Kassib et al. 2021: This member reflects deposition in coastal plain/shallow marine to delta plain environments. The sandy sediments of this unit grade upward into the variegated shales of the overlying Quseir Formation.
Taphonomy
Modes of preservation:mold/impression,trace
Size of fossils:macrofossils
Collection methods and comments
Reason for describing collection:taxonomic analysis
Metadata
Database number:224284
Authorizer:P. Mannion Enterer:G. Varnham
Research group:vertebrate
Created:2022-02-08 06:11:50 Last modified:2022-02-08 06:11:50
Access level:the public Released:2022-02-08 06:11:50
Creative Commons license:CC BY
Reference information

Primary reference:
79638. W. G. Kassab, G. A. Abu El-Kheir, and M. K. Abdel Gawad. 2021. First occurrence of sauropod and theropod footprints in the pre-Campanian deposits of the Nubian Sandstone, south Eastern Desert, Egypt. Geological Journal 1-12 [P. Mannion/G. Varnham/G. Varnham]