Wadi Al Dab'i: Late/Upper Maastrichtian, Jordan

List of taxa
Where & when
Geology
Taphonomy & methods
Metadata & references
Taxonomic list
unclassified
Dinopterygoidea indet.
Selachia indet.
"enigmatic tiny 2 mm selachian teeth with three lateral cusplets and broad massive root"
Cephalopoda - Ammonitida - Pachydiscidae
Menuites fresvillensis (Seunes 1890)
Jagt et al. 2019
Pachydiscus (Pachydiscus) dossantosi (Maury 1930)
Jagt et al. 2019
Cephalopoda - Ammonitida - Sphenodiscidae
Libycoceras acutodorsatus (Noetling 1897)
Jagt et al. 2019
Cephalopoda - Ammonitida - Baculitidae
Baculites sp. Lamarck 1799
Jagt et al. 2019
Baculites ovatus auctorum non Say 1821
Bivalvia - Myalinida - Inoceramidae
Tenuipteria ex gr. argentea (Conrad 1858)
Jagt et al. 2019
Chondrichthyes - Myliobatiformes
Myliobatoidea indet. ()
Chondrichthyes - Lamniformes - Anacoracidae
Squalicorax pristodontus (Agassiz 1835)
Chondrichthyes - Lamniformes - Otodontidae
Cretolamna biauriculate
Reptilia - Testudines - Cheloniidae
Gigantatypus salahi n. gen., n. sp. Kaddumi 2006
Reptilia - Mosasauridae
Mosasauridae indet. Gervais 1852
:new species and genus of small durophagous mosasaurs similar to carinodens"
Platecarpus sp. Cope 1869
"Platecarpus indet."
Tylosaurus indet. Marsh 1872
Mosasaurus hoffmanni (Mantell 1829)
original and current combination Mosasaurus hoffmannii
Liodon anceps (Owen 1841)
original and current combination Leiodon anceps
Clidastes sp. Cope 1868
Reptilia - Pterosauria
Pterosauria indet. Kaup 1834
Reptilia - Plesiosauria - Polycotylidae
Polycotylidae indet. Williston 1908
Actinopteri - Aulopiformes - Enchodontidae
Enchodus libycus
Enchodus elegans Dartevelle and Casier 1949
Actinopteri - Aulopiformes - Eurypholidae
Eurypholidae indet. Goody 1969
Actinopteri - Aulopiformes - Dercetidae
Stratodus apicalis Cope 1872
Dercetis sp. Agassiz 1834
Actinopteri - Ichthyodectiformes - Ichthyodectidae
Ichthyodectidae indet. Crook 1892
Actinopteri - Ichthyodectiformes - Saurodontidae
Saurodon sp. Hays 1829
Saurocephalus sp. Harlan 1824
see common names

Geography
Country:Jordan
Coordinates: 31.6° North, 36.5° East (view map)
Paleocoordinates:15.9° North, 30.2° East
Basis of coordinate:estimated from map
Geographic resolution:local area
Time
Period:Cretaceous Epoch:Late/Upper Cretaceous
Stage:Maastrichtian 10 m.y. bin:Cretaceous 8
Key time interval:Late/Upper Maastrichtian
Age range of interval:70.60000 - 66.00000 m.y. ago
Stratigraphy
Formation:Muwaddar Chalk Marl
Stratigraphic resolution:group of beds
Stratigraphy comments: Most vertebrate fossils from lowest stratigraphic zone buried beneath 25 meters of sediments. Menuites fresvillensis is a good index taxon for upper Maastrichtian strata Pachydiscus (P.) dossantosi links Jordan with the (upper) lower to lower upper Maastrichtian in the United Arab Emirates/Oman border area and with more poorly constrained Maastrichtian levels in Brazil and Nigeria. The record of Menuites fresvillensis and sphenodiscids suggests correlation of the MCMF with the Emael and Nekum members of the Maastrichtian Formation (ca 66.5–66.1 Ma), plus the upper part of the coeval Kunrade Formation, in the type area of the Maastrichtian Stage (southeast Netherlands, northeast Belgium). However, associated ‘tegulated’ inoceramids from the MCMF are assignable to the group of Tenuipteria argentea (Conrad, 1858), which corroborates the latest Maastrichtian age of that unit and allows correlation with North America and Europe.
Lithology and environment
Primary lithology: lithified marl
Includes fossils?Y
Lithology description: Slightly bituminous light gray chalk marl with very large concretions up to 4 meters in diameter rich in vertebrate remains and also containing secondary Uranium and calcite veins.
Environment:offshore indet.
Geology comments: The predominantly chalky lithology, coupled with the paucity of any diversified benthic macrofaunal assemblages, the absence of erosional surfaces and the presence of diverse planktonic faunas, indicates a moderate to deep-water pelagic environment (Powell 1989). On the basis of macrofossil evidence at a number of localities, inclusive of sclerorhynchid saw fishes and ginglymostomatid sharks, palaeowater depth is estimated not to have exceeded 100 metres, under prevailing subtropical palaeoclimatic conditions (Kaddumi 2009a).
Taphonomy
Modes of preservation:body
Size of fossils:macrofossils
Collection methods and comments
Collection excludes:some macrofossils
Reason for describing collection:taxonomic analysis
Collection method comments: Repository: Eternal River Museum of Natural History (ERMNH) at Amman
Metadata
Also known as:Harrana fauna
Database number:170239
Authorizer:P. Holroyd, M. Clapham Enterer:P. Holroyd, M. Clapham
Modifier:M. Clapham Research group:marine invertebrate,vertebrate
Created:2015-06-17 19:02:59 Last modified:2019-02-12 22:57:05
Access level:the public Released:2015-06-17 19:02:59
Creative Commons license:CC BY
Reference information

Primary reference:

55540. H. F. Kaddumi. 2006. A new genus and species of gigantic marine turtles (Chelonioidea: Cheloniidae) from the Maastrichtian of the Harrana Fauna-Jordan. PalArch Vertebrate Paleontology 2(1):1-14 [P. Holroyd/P. Holroyd]

Secondary references:

67922 J. W. M. Jagt, E. A. Jagt-Yazykova, H. F. Kaddumi and J. Lindgren. 2019. Ammonite dating of latest Cretaceous mosasaurid reptiles (Squamata, Mosasauroidea) from Jordan-preliminary observations. Alcheringa 42:587-596 [M. Clapham/M. Clapham/M. Clapham]