List of stratigraphic units with dinosaur body fossils
Encyclopedia
This is a list of stratigraphic units dinosaur
body fossils have been recovered from. Although Dinosauria is a clade
which includes modern birds, this article covers only Mesozoic
stratigraphic units. Units listed are all either formation rank or higher (e.g. group).
that have been reported as being represented in their respective fossil yields. Since the creation or synonymy of genera can be subjective, the sorting of the units can only roughly approximate their known paleobiodiversities.
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
body fossils have been recovered from. Although Dinosauria is a clade
Clade
A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...
which includes modern birds, this article covers only Mesozoic
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic era is an interval of geological time from about 250 million years ago to about 65 million years ago. It is often referred to as the age of reptiles because reptiles, namely dinosaurs, were the dominant terrestrial and marine vertebrates of the time...
stratigraphic units. Units listed are all either formation rank or higher (e.g. group).
By diversity
Here the units are sorted by the number of generaGenera
Genera is a commercial operating system and development environment for Lisp machines developed by Symbolics. It is essentially a fork of an earlier operating system originating on the MIT AI Lab's Lisp machines which Symbolics had used in common with LMI and Texas Instruments...
that have been reported as being represented in their respective fossil yields. Since the creation or synonymy of genera can be subjective, the sorting of the units can only roughly approximate their known paleobiodiversities.
>20
| Name | Age | Location | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Bissekty Formation Bissekty Formation The Bissekty Formation is situated in the Kyzyl Kum desert of Uzbekistan, and dates from the late Cretaceous Period. Laid down in the early the Turonian to Coniacian stages, it is dated to about 90-85 ma .The Bissekty Formation is characterised by a mix of marine, brackish, freshwater, and... |
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Cedar Mountain Formation Cedar Mountain Formation The Cedar Mountain Formation is the name given to distinctive sedimentary rocks in eastern Utah that occur between the underlying Morrison Formation and overlying Naturita Formation . It is composed of non-marine sediments, that is, sediments deposited in rivers, lakes and on flood plains... |
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Dinosaur Park Formation Dinosaur Park Formation The Dinosaur Park Formation is the uppermost member of the Judith River Group, a major geologic unit in southern Alberta. It was laid down over a period of time between about 76.5 and 75 million years ago. The formation is made up of deposits of a high-sinuosity fluvial system, and is capped... |
Description | ||
Djadochta Formation Djadochta Formation The Djadochta Formation is situated in central Asia and dates from the Late Cretaceous Period. Laid down in the early Campanian, possibly starting in the latest Santonian, it is dated somewhat uncertainly at about 84-75 mya... |
has many alternate spellings | ||
Elliot Formation Elliot Formation The Elliot Formation is a geological formation dating to roughly 210 to 190 million years ago and covering the Norian to Sinemurian stages. The Elliot Formation is found in South Africa and Lesotho and is a member of the Stormberg Group. It consists mainly of limestone, sandstone, and mudstone... |
Late Triassic Triassic The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events... - Early Jurassic Jurassic The Jurassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about Mya to Mya, that is, from the end of the Triassic to the beginning of the Cretaceous. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of the Mesozoic era, also known as the age of reptiles. The start of the period is marked by... |
Description | |
Hell Creek Formation Hell Creek Formation The Hell Creek Formation is an intensely-studied division of Upper Cretaceous to lower Paleocene rocks in North America, named for exposures studied along Hell Creek, near Jordan, Montana... |
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Horseshoe Canyon Formation Horseshoe Canyon Formation The Horseshoe Canyon Formation is part of the Edmonton Group and is up to 230m in thickness. It is Late Campanian to Early Maastrichtian in age and is composed of mudstone, sandstone, and carbonaceous shales... |
Description | ||
Jiufotang Formation Jiufotang Formation The Jiufotang Formation is an Early Cretaceous geological formation in Chaoyang, Liaoning which has yielded fossils of feathered dinosaurs, primitive birds, pterosaurs, and other organisms. . It is a member of the Jehol group. The exact age of the Jiufotang has been debated for years, with... |
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Judith River Formation Judith River Formation The Judith River Formation is a fossil-bearing geologic formation in Montana, and is part of the Judith River Group. It dates to the upper Cretaceous, between 80 and 75 million years ago, corresponding to the "Judithian" land vertebrate age... |
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Lance Formation Lance Formation The Lance Formation is a division of Late Cretaceous rocks in the western United States. Named after Lance Creek, Wyoming, the microvertebrate fossils and dinosaurs represent important components of the latest Mesozoic vertebrate faunas... |
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Morrison Formation Morrison Formation The Morrison Formation is a distinctive sequence of Late Jurassic sedimentary rock that is found in the western United States, which has been the most fertile source of dinosaur fossils in North America. It is composed of mudstone, sandstone, siltstone and limestone and is light grey, greenish... |
Late Jurassic | Description | |
Nemegt Formation Nemegt Formation The Nemegt Formation is a geological formation dating from the Late Cretaceous sedimentary from the Gobi Desert of Mongolia. It overlies and sometimes forms folds with the Barun Goyot Formation. It consists of river channel sediments and contains fossils of fish, turtles, crocodilians, birds and a... |
has a few alternate spellings |
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Shaximiao Formation |
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Two Medicine Formation Two Medicine Formation The Two Medicine Formation is a geologic formation, or rock body, that was deposited between 83.5 ± 0.7 Ma to 70.6 ± 0.6 Ma , during Campanian time, and is located in northwestern Montana... |
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Wessex Formation Wessex Formation The Wessex Formation is an English fossil site and geological formation that dates to the Barremian stage of the Early Cretaceous. It is part of the Wealden Group and underlies the younger Vectis Formation.-Invertebrates:... |
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Yixian Formation Yixian Formation The Yixian Formation is a geological formation in Jinzhou, Liaoning, People's Republic of China, that spans 11 million years during the early Cretaceous period... |
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11-20
| Name | Age | Location | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Aguja Formation Aguja Formation The Aguja Formation is a geological formation in North America, exposed in Texas, whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Ammonites:-Crurotarsans:... |
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Barun Goyot Formation Barun Goyot Formation The Barun Goyot Formation , dating from the Late Cretaceous Period, is located within and is widely represented in the Gobi Desert basin, in the Ömnögovi Province of Mongolia.... |
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has a few alternate spellings | |
Bayan Shireh Formation Bayan Shireh Formation The Bayan Shireh Formation is a geological formation in Burkhant, Mongolia, that dates to the late Cretaceous period... |
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has many alternate spellings |
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Frenchman Formation Frenchman Formation The Frenchman Formation is a division of Upper Cretaceous rocks found in Saskatchewan, Canada. More accurately described as Late Maastrichtian, these rocks contain the youngest of dinosaur genera, much like the Hell Creek Formation in the United States.... |
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Hastings Beds Hastings Beds The Hastings Beds is a geological formation in southeast England whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Ornithischians:-Saurischians:-References:... |
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Iren Dabasu Formation Iren Dabasu Formation The Iren Dabasu Formation is a Mesozoic geologic formation. Dinosaur remains diagnostic to the genus level are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Ornithischians:-Saurischians:-References:... |
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Kimmeridge Clay Kimmeridge Clay The Kimmeridge Clay Formation is a sedimentary deposit of fossiliferous marine clay which is of Jurassic age. It occurs in Europe.Kimmeridge Clay is arguably the most economically important unit of rocks in the whole of Europe, being the major source rock for oil fields in the North Sea hydrocarbon... |
to Late Tithonian |
Description | |
Kirtland Formation Kirtland Formation The Kirtland Formation is a sedimentary geological formation. It is the product of alluvial muds and overbank sand deposits from the many channels draining the coastal plain that existed on the inland seashore of North America, in the late Cretaceous period. It overlies the Fruitland Formation... |
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Lameta Formation Lameta Formation The Lameta Formation is a sedimentary rock formation found in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Maharashtra, India. It is of Maastrichtian age , and is notable for its dinosaur fossils... |
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Laramie Formation Laramie Formation The Laramie Formation is a geologic formation of Cretaceous age, named by Clarence King in 1876 for exposures in northeastern Colorado, in the United States.... |
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Lower Lufeng Series Lower Lufeng Series The Lower Lufeng Series is a Lower Jurassic sedimentary rock formation found in Yunnan, China. It has two units: the lower Dull Purplish Beds are of Hettangian age, and Dark Red Beds are of Sinemurian age. It is known for its fossils of early dinosaurs... |
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Oldman Formation Oldman Formation The Oldman Formation is the middle member of the Judith River Group, a major geologic unit in southern Alberta. The formation is widely recognized as bearing a great number of well preserved dinosaur skeletons, as well as other fossils.-Age:... |
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Oxford Clay Oxford Clay The Oxford Clay Formation is a Jurassic marine sedimentary rock formation underlying much of southeast England, from as far west as Dorset and as far north as Yorkshire. The Oxford Clay is of middle Callovian to lower Oxfordian age and comprises 2 main facies. The lower facies comprises the... |
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Scollard Formation Scollard Formation -References:* Ryan, M. J., and Russell, A. P., 2001. Dinosaurs of Alberta : In: Mesozoic Vertebrate Life, edited by Tanke, D. H., and Carpenter, K., Indiana University Press, pp. 279-297.... |
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Tendaguru Formation |
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Xinminbao Group Xinminbao Group The Xinminbao Group is a group of geological formations in north central China. They occur across a large depression between the Altai mountains of Mongolia to the north and the Qilian mountains of the Qinghai Plateau to the south, in the Gonpoquan and Suanjingze basins, and also in the... |
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Ferris Formation Ferris Formation The Ferris Formation is a Late Cretaceous to Paleocene , fluvial-deltaic geological formation in southern Wyoming. It contains a variety of trace and body fossils, preserved in sandy fluvial channel deposits and overbank units... |
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Fruitland Formation Fruitland Formation The Fruitland Formation is a sedimentary geological formation containing layers of sandstone, shale, and coal. It was laid down in marshy delta conditions, with poor drainage and frequent flooding, under a warm, humid and seasonal climate... |
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Rio Colorado Formation Rio Colorado Formation The Rio Colorado Formation is a Mesozoic geologic formation. Dinosaur remains diagnostic to the genus level are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Ornithischians:-Sauropods:Titanosaur eggs are known from Neuquen province.... |
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6-10
| Name | Age | Location | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Allen Formation Allen Formation The Allen Formation is a geological formation in Argentina whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous The Allen Formation is a geological formation in Argentina whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous The Allen Formation is a geological formation in Argentina whose strata date back to the... |
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Almond Formation Almond Formation The Almond Formation is a geological formation in Wyoming whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Dinosaurs:-References:... |
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Anacleto Formation Anacleto Formation The Anacleto Formation is a geologic formation with outcroppings in the Argentine Patagonian provinces of Mendoza, Río Negro, and Neuquén. It is the youngest formation within the Neuquén Group and belongs to the Río Colorado Subgroup... |
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Antlers Formation Antlers Formation The Antlers Formation occurs as a band of strata from Arkansas through southern Oklahoma into northeastern Texas. It consists of 150 m of silty to sandy mudstones, fine- to coarse grained sandstones that are poorly to moderately sorted and cemented with clay or calcium carbonate... |
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Aréen Formation |
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Arundel Clay |
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Baharija Formation |
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Bajo Barreal Formation Bajo Barreal Formation The Bajo Barreal Formation is a geological formation in Chubut, Argentina whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous.-Dinosaurs:Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation... |
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Bajo de la Carpa Formation Bajo de la Carpa Formation The Bajo de la Carpa Formation is a geologic formation that outcrops in Patagonia, in the provinces of Río Negro and Neuquén, Argentina. It is the first of two formations belonging to the Río Colorado Subgroup within the Neuquén Group... |
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Bauxite of Cornet Bauxite of Cornet The Bauxite of Cornet is a geological formation in Romania whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Dinosaurs:-References:... |
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Bayan Mandahu Formation Bayan Mandahu Formation The Bayan Mandahu Formation is a geological unit of "redbeds" located near the village of Bayan Mandahu in Inner Mongolia, China Asia and dates from the Late Cretaceous Period... |
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Calizas de La Huergina Formation Calizas de La Huergina Formation The Calizas de La Huérgina Formation is a geological formation in Spain whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous... |
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Camadas de Alcobaça Camadas de Alcobaça The Camadas de Alcobaça is a geological formation in Portugal. It dates back to the Oxfordian stage of the Late Jurassic.-Vertebrate fauna:Dinosaur eggs are geographically located in Distrito do Lisboa, Portugal. Dinosaur tracks are geographically located in Distrito do Leiria,... |
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Camadas de Guimarota Camadas de Guimarota The Camadas de Guimarota is a geological formation in Europe, and the synonym of "Camadas de Alcobaça". It dates back to the Late Jurassic.-Vertebrate fauna:... |
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Castellar Formation Castellar Formation The Castellar Formation is a geological formation in Teruel and La Rioja, Spain whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Vertebrate paleofauna:... |
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Chipping Norton Formation Chipping Norton Formation The Chipping Norton Formation is a geological formation in Europe. It dates back to the Middle Jurassic.-Vertebrate fauna:The so-called "Scrotum humanum" remains may have come from this formation.-References:... |
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Clarens Formation Clarens Formation The Clarens Formation is a prominent fossil site in the Tuli Basin, in the KwaZulu-Natal region of South Africa.-Fauna of the Clarens Formation:Unidentified dinosaur eggs have been recovered from the formation.-Bony fish:-Dinosaurs:-Synapsids:... |
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Cloverly Formation Cloverly Formation The Cloverly Formation are Lower Cretaceous strata located in Montana and Wyoming, in the western United States. The term now includes strata that had formerly been called the Dakota Formation in central and southern Wyoming.-Members:... |
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Continental intercalaire |
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northern Africa; | Description |
Continental Red Beds Continental Red Beds The Kem Kem Beds is a geological formation in Morocco and Algeria whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous... |
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Denver Formation Denver Formation The Denver Formation is a geological formation in Colorado whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Ornithischians:-Saurischians:-References:... |
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Elrhaz Formation Elrhaz Formation The Elrhaz Formation is a geological formation in Niger whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous... |
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Foremost Formation Foremost Formation The Foremost Formation is a geological formation in Alberta, Canada whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Dinosaurs:... |
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Forest Marble Formation |
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Gosau Formation Gosau Formation The Gosau Formation is a geological formation in Lower Austria whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Vertebrate paleofauna:-References:... |
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Gres a reptiles Grès à Reptiles Grès à Reptiles is a French fossil site in the département of Var preserving the remains of several types of dinosaurs and other extinct organisms.-Vertebrate paleofauna:... |
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Hornerstown Formation Hornerstown Formation The Hornerstown Formation is a Paleogene or latest Mesozoic geologic formation. The age of these deposits have been controversial. While most fossils are of animals types known from the earliest Cenozoic era, several fossils of otherwise exclusively Cretaceous age have been found... |
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Ischigualasto Formation |
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Kaiparowits Formation Kaiparowits Formation The Kaiparowits Formation is a sedimentary rock formation found in the Kaiparowits Plateau in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, in the southern part of Utah in the western United States. It is over 2800 feet thick, and is Campanian in age... |
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Khodzhakul Formation Khodzhakul Formation The Khodzhakul Formation is a Mesozoic geologic formation. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Paleofauna:-References:... |
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Knollenmergel Knollenmergel The Knollenmergel is a geological formation in Germany and Switzerland. It dates back to the late Norian.-Dinosaurs:-References:* Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; and Osmólska, Halszka : The Dinosauria, 2nd, Berkeley: University of California Press. 861 pp. ISBN 0-520-24209-2.... |
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Lecho Formation Lecho Formation The Lecho Formation is a geological formation in Argentina whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.... |
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Maevarano Formation Maevarano Formation The Maevarano Formation is an Upper Cretaceous sedimentary rock formation found in the Mahajanga Province of northwestern Madagascar. It is most likely Maastrichtian in age, and records a seasonal, semiarid environment with rivers that had greatly varying discharges... |
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Middle Stubensandstein |
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Milk River Formation Milk River Formation The Milk River Formation is a near- shore to terrestrial sedimentary unit deposited during the Late Cretaceous in southern Alberta... |
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Minhe Formation Minhe Formation -References:* Molnar, R. E., 2001, Theropod paleopathology: a literature survey: In: Mesozoic Vertebrate Life, edited by Tanke, D. H., and Carpenter, K., Indiana University Press, p. 337-363.... |
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Niobrara Chalk |
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Prince Creek Formation Prince Creek Formation The Prince Creek Formation is a geological formation in Alaska with strata from the early Maastrichtian stage of the Upper Cretaceous, dating to between 70 and 69 million years ago... |
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Rio Neuquen Formation Rio Neuquen Formation The Rio Neuquen Formation is a geological formation in Neuquen, Argentina whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Vertebrate paleofauna:-References:... |
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St. Mary River Formation St. Mary River Formation The St. Mary River Formation is a geological formation in Alberta, Canada whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation. The St. Mary River Formation has produced only a few dinosaur fossils in its Albertan... |
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Sânpetru Formation Sânpetru Formation The Sânpetru Formation is a Mesozoic geologic formation. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation. It is located near Sânpetru village, part of Sântămăria-Orlea commune.-Ornithischians:-Sauropods:-Theropods:... |
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Stubensandstein |
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Tugulu Group Tugulu Group The Tugulu Group is a geological formation in Xinjiang, China whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Dinosaurs:-Pterosaurs:-Crurotarsans:-References:... |
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Unidade Bombarral Unidade Bombarral The Unidade Bombarral is a geological formation in Europe. It dates back to the Late Jurassic.-Vertebrate fauna:Indeterminate stegosauridae remains once referred to Dacentrurus armatus were located in Distrito do Leiria, Portugal. Theropod tracks have been located in Distrito do Lisboa, Portugal.... |
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Wangshi Group Wangshi Group The Wangshi Group is a geological formation in Shandong, China whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Dinosaurs:-References:... |
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Indeterminate
This list include stratigraphic units that have produced dinosaur remains, although none of these remains have been referred to a specific genus.Bone beds and mass graves
| Name | Age | Location | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Morrison Formation Morrison Formation The Morrison Formation is a distinctive sequence of Late Jurassic sedimentary rock that is found in the western United States, which has been the most fertile source of dinosaur fossils in North America. It is composed of mudstone, sandstone, siltstone and limestone and is light grey, greenish... |
Time | Description | |
Lagerstatten
| Name | Age | Location | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
Solnhofen limestone Solnhofen limestone The Solnhofen Plattenkalk is a Jurassic Konservat-Lagerstätte that preserves a rare assemblage of fossilized organisms, including highly detailed imprints of soft bodied organisms such as sea jellies... |
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Yixian Formation Yixian Formation The Yixian Formation is a geological formation in Jinzhou, Liaoning, People's Republic of China, that spans 11 million years during the early Cretaceous period... |
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