La Colonia Formation
The La Colonia 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.
Paleogeography of the Late Cretaceous with La Colonia Formation indicated 
Restoration of La Colonia Formation
Originally thought to be Campanian (c.73-72 million years ago) in age or earlier, studies of underlying formations have made a Maastrichtian (72–66 million years ago) age more likely.
Description
It is divided up into three distinct facies, the first is up to 16 metres (52 ft) thick and consists of conglomerate, the second is by far the thickest at over 100 metres (330 ft), consists of siltstone and claystone, with interbeds of claystone/shale and sandstone, the third is less than 10 metres (33 ft) thick and consists of clay, and probably represents a nearshore marine environment.
The paleoflora was known for its aquatic components, Paleoazolla and Regnellidium. However, recent paleobotanical discoveries at the Cañadón del Irupé locality have revealed the presence of a more diverse range of plants associated with these water bodies, including pteridophytes, gymnosperms, and various angiosperms. Among these are fossil leaves and fruits assignable to Nelumbonaceae.
Fossil content
Color key
|
Notes Uncertain or tentative taxa are in small text; |
Turtles
| Turtles from the La Colonia Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Chelidae gen. nov. | sp. nov. | Norte de Cerro Bayo 2 | Skull and lower jaw; postcranial remains | Represents a new genus of chelid | ||
| Patagoniaemys | P. gasparinae |
|
"skull fragments and several postcranial elements including a nearly complete vertebral column." | A meiolaniform |  | |
| Yaminuechelys | aff.Y. gasparinii |
|
"Three specimens formed only by postcranial remains (mainly shell fragments)" | |||
| Y. sulcipeculiaris | ||||||
Fish
| Fish from the La Colonia Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Metaceratodus | M. baibianorum | Norte de Cerro Bayo 1 | A ceratodontid lungfish | |||
Plesiosaurs
| Plesiosaurs from the La Colonia Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Chubutinectes | C. carmeloi | Several vertebrae, ribs, partial pectoral and pelvic girdles, arm and leg bones, and gastroliths | An elasmosaurid | |||
| Elasmosauridae | Indeterminate |
|
"three postcranial specimens that preserve cervical, dorsal and caudal vertebrae, ribs and gastroliths and three vertebrae without collection number" | |||
| Kawanectes | K. lafquenianum | "an incomplete mandible, nine cervical vertebrae, 14 dorsal vertebrae, three sacral vertebrae and five caudal vertebrae, and almost complete left fore limb, the isolated right humerus, both femora, ilia, pubes and the right ischium" | An elasmosaurid |  | ||
| Sulcusuchus | S. erraini | Cerro Bosta | "part of skull and mandible" | A polycotylid |  | |
Dinosaurs
Ornithiscians
| Ornithischians from the La Colonia Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Ankylosauria | Indeterminate | Norte de Cerro Bayo 2 | An osteoderm | |||
| Hadrosauroidea | Indeterminate | Norte de Cerro Bayo 2 | Metatarsal fragment and two vertebral fragments | |||
Sauropods
| Sauropods from the La Colonia Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Somphospondyli | Indeterminate | Norte de Cerro Bayo 2 | "Two fragmentary caudal vertebrae" | |||
| Titanomachya | T. gimenezi | Norte de Cerro Bayo 2 | "Partial postcranial skeleton" | A titanosaur sauropod |
 | |
Theropods
| Theropods from the La Colonia Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Carnotaurus | C. sastrei | Pocho Sastre | "Nearly complete skeleton and skull" | An abelisaurid | .png) | |
| Enantiornithine | Indeterminate | A distal humerus | ||||
| Koleken | K. inakayali | Norte de Cerro Bayo 1 | "Quite complete and partially articulated skeleton" | An abelisaurid. |
 | |
| Neornithes | Indeterminate | A distal ulna | ||||
| Theropoda | Indeterminate | Norte de Cerro Bayo 2 | "Metatarsal fragments of a single individual" | |||
Mammals
Over 300 mammal specimens have been found in the La Colonia Formation.
| Mammals of the La Colonia Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Argentodites | A. coloniensis | A possible gondwanatherian or multituberculate | ||||
| Coloniatherium | C. cilinskii | A meridiolestidan | ||||
| Ferugliotherium | F. windhauseni | A possible gondwanatherian or multituberculate | ||||
| Reigitherium | R. bunodontum | A meridiolestidan | ||||
Snakes
Fossils of madtsoiids, and perhaps boids, have been found in the formation.
| Snakes from the La Colonia Formation | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Genus | Species | Location | Stratigraphic position | Material | Notes | Images |
| Alamitophis | A. argentinus | Trunk vertebra | A madtsoiid snake | |||
| Eomadtsoia | E. ragei | A madtsoiid Snake | ||||
See also
- List of dinosaur-bearing rock formations
- Allen Formation, Campanian to Maastrichtian fossiliferous formation of the Neuquén Basin
- Angostura Colorada Formation, Campanian to Maastrichtian fossiliferous formation of the North Patagonian Massif
- Colorado Formation, Campanian to Maastrichtian fossiliferous formation of the Colorado Basin
- Lago Colhué Huapí Formation, Campanian to Maastrichtian fossiliferous formation of the Golfo San Jorge Basin
References
- ^ Weishampel et al., 2004, pp.600-604
- ^ Rauhut, 2003
- ^ Gasparini, Zulma; Sterli, Juliana; Parras, Ana; O'Gorman, José Patricio; Salgado, Leonardo; Varela, Julio; Pol, Diego (May 2015). "Late Cretaceous reptilian biota of the La Colonia Formation, central Patagonia, Argentina: Occurrences, preservation and paleoenvironments". Cretaceous Research. 54: 154–168. Bibcode:2015CrRes..54..154G. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2014.11.010. hdl:11336/19244.
- ^ Gandolfo, Maria A.; Cuneo, Ruben N. (February 2005). "Fossil Nelumbonaceae from the La Colonia Formation (Campanian–Maastrichtian, Upper Cretaceous), Chubut, Patagonia, Argentina". Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology. 133 (3–4): 169–178. Bibcode:2005RPaPa.133..169G. doi:10.1016/j.revpalbo.2004.09.007.
- ^ Sterli & De la Fuente, 2011
- ^ Carolina Oriozabala; Juliana Sterli; Marcelo S. De La Fuente (2020). "New species of the long-necked chelid Yaminuechelys from the Upper Cretaceous (Campanian–Maastrichtian) of Chubut, Argentina". Cretaceous Research. 106: Article 104197. Bibcode:2020CrRes.10604197O. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2019.104197. S2CID 201336536.
- ^ Karen M. Panzeri; Soledad Gouiric Cavalli; Nahuel A. Muñoz; Alberto L. Cione (2020). "Metaceratodus baibianorum, a new dipnoan species from the Upper Cretaceous of southern South America supported by traditional and geometric morphometric analyses". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 40 (2): e1769640. Bibcode:2020JVPal..40E9640P. doi:10.1080/02724634.2020.1769640. S2CID 222210313.
- ^ O’Gorman, José P.; Carignano, Ana Paula; Calvo-Marcilese, Lydia; Pérez Panera, Juan Pablo (2023-08-10). "A new elasmosaurid (Sauropterygia, Plesiosauria) from the upper levels of the La Colonia Formation (upper Maastrichtian), Chubut Province, Argentina". Cretaceous Research. 152: 105674. Bibcode:2023CrRes.15205674O. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2023.105674. ISSN 0195-6671.
- ^ O'Gorman, 2019
- ^ Pérez-Moreno, A.; Salgado, L.; Carballido, J. L.; Otero, A.; Pol, D. (2024). "A new titanosaur from the La Colonia Formation (Campanian-Maastrichtian), Chubut Province, Argentina". Historical Biology: An International Journal of Paleobiology: 1–20. doi:10.1080/08912963.2024.2332997.
- ^ "Table 3.1," in Weishampel et al., 2004, p.49
- ^ Rauhut, 2004
- ^ Leanza et al., 2004, p.72
- ^ Lawver, Daniel R.; Debee, Aj M.; Clarke, Julia A.; Rougier, Guillermo W. (January 1, 2011). "A New Enantiornithine Bird from the Upper Cretaceous La Colonia Formation of Patagonia, Argentina". Annals of Carnegie Museum. 80 (1): 35–42. doi:10.2992/007.080.0104. S2CID 85015365.
- ^ Pol, Diego; Baiano, Mattia Antonio; Černý, David; Novas, Fernando; Cerda, Ignacio A. (21 May 2024). "A new abelisaurid dinosaur from the end Cretaceous of Patagonia and evolutionary rates among the Ceratosauria". Cladistics. 40 (3): 307–356. doi:10.1111/cla.12583. PMID 38771085.
- ^ Acosta Hospitaleche, C.; O'Gorman, J. P.; Panzeri, K. M. (2023). "A new Cretaceous bird from the Maastrichtian La Colonia Formation (Patagonia, Argentina)". Cretaceous Research. 150. 105595. Bibcode:2023CrRes.15005595A. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2023.105595. S2CID 259059084.
- ^ Rougier et al., 2009, p.225
- ^ Gurovich, Y.; Beck, R. (2009). "The phylogenetic affinities of the enigmatic mammalian clade Gondwanatheria". Journal of Mammalian Evolution. 16 (1): 25–49. doi:10.1007/s10914-008-9097-3. S2CID 42799370.
- ^ Rougier, G.W.; Forasiepi, A.M.; Hill, R.V.; Novacek, M. (2009). "New mammalian remains from the Late Cretaceous La Colonia Formation, Patagonia, Argentina". Acta Palaeontologica Polonica. 54 (2): 195–212. doi:10.4202/app.2006.0026.
- ^ Rougier, G. W.; Turazzinni, G. F.; Cardozo, M. S.; Harper, T.; Lires, A. I.; Canessa, L. A. (2021). "New Specimens of Reigitherium bunodontum from the Late Cretaceous La Colonia Formation, Patagonia, Argentina and Meridiolestidan Diversity in South America". Journal of Mammalian Evolution. 28 (4): 1051–1081. doi:10.1007/s10914-021-09585-2. S2CID 254704047.
- ^ Albino, Adriana M. (2000). "New record of snakes from the Cretaceous of Patagonia (Argentina)". Geodiversitas. 22 (2): 247–253.
- ^ Raúl O. Gómez; Fernando F. Garberoglio; Guillermo W. Rougier (2019). "A new Late Cretaceous snake from Patagonia: Phylogeny and trends in body size evolution of madtsoiid snakes". Comptes Rendus Palevol. 18 (7): 771–781. Bibcode:2019CRPal..18..771G. doi:10.1016/j.crpv.2019.09.003. hdl:11336/139595. S2CID 213774502.
Bibliography
- Gasparini, Zulma; Sterli, Juliana; Parras, Ana; O'Gorman, José Patricio; Salgado, Leonardo; Varela, Julio; Pol, Diego (2015), "Late Cretaceous reptilian biota of the La Colonia Formation, central Patagonia, Argentina: Occurrences, preservation and paleoenvironments", Cretaceous Research, 54: 154–168, Bibcode:2015CrRes..54..154G, doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2014.11.010, hdl:11336/19244, retrieved 2019-04-06ISSN 0195-6671
- Gandolfo, Maria A.; Cúneo, Ruben N. (2005), "Fossil Nelumbonaceae from the La Colonia Formation (Campanian–Maastrichtian, Upper Cretaceous), Chubut, Patagonia, Argentina", Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 133 (3–4): 170, Bibcode:2005RPaPa.133..169G, doi:10.1016/j.revpalbo.2004.09.007ISSN 0034-6667
- O'Gorman, José Patricio (2019), "First record of Kawanectes lafquenianum (Plesiosauria, Elasmosauridae) from the La Colonia Formation of Argentina, with comments on the mandibular morphology of elasmosaurids", Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology, 44: 176–193, doi:10.1080/03115518.2019.1687754
- Leanza, H.A.; Apesteguia, S.; Novas, F.E.; De la Fuente, M.S. (2004), "Cretaceous terrestrial beds from the Neuquén Basin (Argentina) and their tetrapod assemblages", Cretaceous Research, 25 (1): 61–87, Bibcode:2004CrRes..25...61L, doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2003.10.005, retrieved 2019-02-16
- Rauhut, O.W.M (2004), "Provenance and anatomy of Genyodectes serus, a large-toothed ceratosaur (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from Patagonia", Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 24 (4): 894–902, doi:10.1671/0272-4634(2004)024[0894:PAAOGS]2.0.CO;2, retrieved 2019-04-06
- Rauhut, O.W.M.; Cladera, G.; Vickers-Rich, P.; Rich, T.H. (2003), "Dinosaur remains from the Lower Cretaceous of the Chubut Group, Argentina" (PDF), Cretaceous Research, 24 (5): 487–497, Bibcode:2003CrRes..24..487R, doi:10.1016/S0195-6671(03)00067-3, retrieved 2019-04-06doi:10.1016/S0195-6671(03)00067-3
- Rougier, G.W.; Chornogubsky, L.; Casadio, S.; Arango, N.P.; Giallombardo, A. (2009), "Mammals from the Allen Formation, Late Cretaceous, Argentina", Cretaceous Research, 30 (1): 223–238, Bibcode:2009CrRes..30..223R, doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2008.07.006, hdl:11336/103413, retrieved 2019-04-06
- Sterli, Juliana; De la Fuente, Marcelo S. (2011), "A new turtle from the La Colonia Formation (Campanian–Maastrichtian), Patagonia, Argentina, with remarks on the evolution of the vertebral column in turtles", Palaeontology, 54 (1): 63–78, Bibcode:2011Palgy..54...63S, doi:10.1111/j.1475-4983.2010.01002.x, retrieved 2019-04-06doi:10.1111/j.1475-4983.2010.01002.x
- Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; Osmólska, Halszka (2004), The Dinosauria, 2nd edition, Berkeley: University of California Press, pp. 1–880, ISBN 0-520-24209-2, retrieved 2019-02-21
Further reading
- A. M. Albino. 2000. New record of snakes from the Cretaceous of Patagonia (Argentina). Geodiversitas 22(2):247-253
- N. R. Cúneo, E. J. Hermsen, and M. A. Gandolfo. 2013. Regnellidium (Salviniales, Marsileaceae) macrofossils and associated spores from the Late Cretaceous of South America. PloSOne 174(3):340-349
- J. P. O'Gorman, L. Salgado, I. A. Cerda and Z. Gasparini. 2013. First record of gastroliths associated with elasmosaur remains from La Colonia Formation (Campanian–Maastrichtian), Chubut, Patagonia Argentina, with comments on the probable depositional palaeoenvironment of the source of the gastroliths. Cretaceous Research 40:212-217
- J. O'Gorman and Z. Gasparini. 2013. Revision of Sulcusuchus erraini (Sauropterygia, Polycotylidae) from the Upper Cretaceous of Patagonia, Argentina. Alcheringa 37(2):163-176
- T. Harper, A. Parras, and G. W. Rougier. 2018. Reigitherium (Meridiolestida, Mesungulatoidea) an Enigmatic Late Cretaceous Mammal from Patagonia, Argentina: Morphology, Affinities, and Dental Evolution. Journal of Mammalian Evolution
- Z. Kielan-Jaworowska, E. Ortiz-Jaureguizar, C. Vieytes, R. Pascual, and F. J. Goin. 2007. First cimolodontan multituberculate mammal from South America. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 52(2):257-262