Ruisbroek (Oligocene of Belgium)

Where: Belgium (51.1° N, 4.4° E: paleocoordinates 50.4° N, 0.7° E)

When: Bassevelde Sand Formation, Rupelian (33.9 - 28.1 Ma)

• Late Tongrian

Environment/lithology: marine; glauconitic, argillaceous sandstone

• The Oligocene of the Rupel tunnel at Ruisbroek consists of clayey glauconitic sands which are stronglymottledandhomogenizedbybioturbation.Primarysedimentarystructureshavecompletely beenwipedout.Thesandsarepoorlysorted,mainlyveryfinetomedium,withsomecoarsegrains. It is characterized by a mollusc fauna containing the pectinid Hilberia stettinensis (von Koenen,

•1868)(seeJanssen,1982).Thearagoniticfossilshavesufferedmoreorlessfromdissolution. Furtherdecayofcalcareousfossilsmayhaveoccurredbyoxidationofindigenouspyriteinthe sediment. The Oligocene deposits are overlain by about 13 m of Quaternary deposits, of which the lower 9 m consist of (sometimes gravelly) sands built up of cross-beddings and channels.

Size class: macrofossils

Primary reference: P. A. M. Gaemers. 1984. Fish otoliths from the Bassevelde Sand (Late Tongrian) of Ruisbroek, Belgium, and the Stratigraphy of the Early Oligocene of Belgium. Mededelingen van de Werkgroep voor Tertiaire en Kwartaire Geologie 21(1):13-57 [M. Uhen/M. Uhen]more details

Purpose of describing collection: general faunal/floral analysis

PaleoDB collection 188930: authorized by Mark Uhen, entered by Mark Uhen on 21.09.2017

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

Actinopteri
 Argentiniformes - Argentinidae
 Aulopiformes - Synodontidae
 Acanthomorphata - Ammodytidae
 Acanthomorphata - Trachinidae
 Gadiformes - Merlucciidae
Palaeogadus compactus Gaemers and van Hinsbergh 1978
 Gadiformes - Gadidae
Palaeoraniceps sp. Gaemers 1976
"Ensigadus ensiformis" = Gadidarum ensiformis Steurbaut and Herman 1978
 Gadiformes - Gaidropsaridae
 Ophidiiformes - Bythitidae
 Spariformes - Sparidae
Sparidarum sp. Bonaparte 1832
 Perciformes - Sparidae
"Pagellus" sp. Cuvier and Valenciennes 1830 perch-like fish
 Perciformes - Scorpaenidae
"Pontinus" ellipticus Koken 1884 perch-like fish
 Scombriformes - Scombridae
Scombridarum sp. Rifinesque 1815
 Beloniformes - Hemiramphidae
 Pleuronectiformes - Citharidae
"Citharus belgicus" = Eucitharus belgicus
"Citharus belgicus" = Eucitharus belgicus Gaemers 1972 flatfish
 Pleuronectiformes - Scophthalmidae
"Lepidorhombus" compressus Gaemers 1984 flatfish
 Clupeiformes - Clupeoidei
? Etrumeus sp. Bleeker 1853 herring
 Anguilliformes - Congridae
"Conger" aff. glaber Brzobohaty 1967 conger eel
 Albuliformes - Albulidae
"Pterothrissus" umbonatus Koken 1884 bonefish
 Scorpaeniformes - Triglidae
Acanthatrigla biangulata Gaemers 1984 sea robin