Microfossils and biostratigraphy of the Upper Cretaceous Coon Creek Formation Lagerstätte, Mississippi Embayment, USA
Geological Society, London, Special Publications
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Abstract
The Upper Cretaceous Coon Creek Formation type-locality in McNairy County, Tennessee, is an exceptional marine invertebrate Lagerstätte that was deposited in a nearshore reentrant into the ancestral continent of Appalachia. Extensive taxonomic analysis of the macrofauna has been done for over 100 years. However, documentation of the microfossil component at the type-locality has largely been ignored. This paper provides analysis of calcareous microfossils (benthic and planktonic foraminifera, calcareous nannofossils and ostracods) and palynomorphs (pollen, spores, algal remains and dinoflagellates) for detailed age control and information regarding environment of deposition. The Coon Creek type-locality is late Campanian (76.8–76.0 Ma) in age and was deposited in 35–60 m water depths. Calcareous nannofossil assemblages suggest that there was an influence of colder water through time, possibly by a connection to the northern Western Interior Seaway. The complex interplay between currents of the Gulf of Mexico and the Western Interior Seaway, upwelling and runoff influenced the palaeoenvironment. Increased influx of freshwater palynomorphs near the top of the section suggests placement proximal to the palaeoshoreline and that weathering increased through time. Changes in the dinoflagellate assemblage may be linked to a mosasaur mass mortality event and the presence of a harmful algal bloom.
Suggested Citation
Self-Trail, J., Gardner, K.F., O’Keefe, J.M., Mason, P.H., Puckett, M., Gibson, M.A., and McCarty, M., 2023, Microfossils and biostratigraphy of the Upper Cretaceous Coon Creek Formation Lagerstätte, Mississippi Embayment, USA: Geological Society, London, Special Publications, v. 545, 22 p., https://doi.org/10.1144/SP545-2023-137.
Study Area
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Microfossils and biostratigraphy of the Upper Cretaceous Coon Creek Formation Lagerstätte, Mississippi Embayment, USA |
| Series title | Geological Society, London, Special Publications |
| DOI | 10.1144/SP545-2023-137 |
| Volume | 545 |
| Publication Date | December 22, 2023 |
| Year Published | 2023 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Geological Society, London |
| Contributing office(s) | Eastern Geology and Paleoclimate Science Center, Florence Bascom Geoscience Center |
| Description | 22 p. |
| Country | United States |
| State | Tennessee |
| County | McNairy County |