Upper Cretaceous Ammonites from Haiti
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If you no longer need this publication write to the Geological Survey in Washington for an official mailing label to use in returning it UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR UPPER CRETACEOUS AMMONITES FROM HAITI GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 214-A UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR J. A. Krug, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY W. E. Wrather, Director Professional Paper 214-A UPPER CRETACEOUS AMMONITES FROM HAITI BY JOHN B. REESIDE, JR. Shorter contributions to general geology. 1947 (Pages 1-11) UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON : 1947 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington 25, D. C. Price 15 cents CONTENTS Abstract-...-..______.___-..__._._.__.,___.__^_-_________________________________ .____-_-_--__--__--__-_ _ _.. 1 General statement ____________________________________________________________________________ ________________ 1 The fossils and their correlation_________________________________________________________________________________ 1 Description of species __________________________________________________________________________________________ 2 References---_-___---_--__---___-_-______________..______ -_-___--__-______-__-_-___---__--_-_____-_--_--__-.-- 5 Index._______________________-__--____-______-_-______________-___-_-___-----___. ___-_-___--._._.__-_ _._.._ 11 ILLUSTRATIONS PLATES 1-3. Cretaceous ammonites from Haiti_____________-__--__--___-______-__-__--___ _._--__ .-_ _.___ __. _ 7-10 n UPPER CRETACEOUS AMMONITES FROM HAITI By JOHN B. REESIDE, Jr. ABSTRACT Pachydiscus ("Parapachydiscus") woodringi Reeside Ammonites of the genera Baculites, Parapuzosial, Pachydiscus, Paralenticeras sieAersi (Gerhardt) Texanites, and Paralenticeras are described from Haiti. Two Texanites ("Mortoniceras") cf. T. canaensis (Gerhardt) new species of Pachydiscus are proposed. The age of the fauna is interpreted as late lower Senonian. The nearest recorded occurrence of Upper Cretaceous ammonites in the West Indies is that in Jamaica re GENERAL STATEMENT ported by Spath (1925). From Providence, near Port Antonia, in shales underlying a limestone with Rudistae In recent work in the Republic of Haiti Messrs. and rather low in the sequence, were described Epigoni- W. P. Woodring and L. S. Gardner, of the Geological ceras sp., Parapachydiscus aff. P. stallauensis (Imkellcr), Survey, made a collection of Upper Cretaceous ammon Parapachydiscus aff. P. gollevillensis (D'Orbigny), Glyp- ites that seems worthy of record. From the neighbor toxoceras cf. G. rugatum (Forbes), and Baculites sp. This ing Dominican Republic Gabb (1873, p. 87) long ago fauna is assigned by Spath to the upper Senonian reported an ammonite and a dubious baculite, but the (Campanian-Maestrichtian). writer knows of no other published report of such From Jamaica also Trechmann (1936) reported the fossils from the island of Hispaniola. occurrence of an ammonite in "probably the lowest Dr. Woodring has kindly supplied the following known fossiliferous shales, 800 feet below a Barreftia statement: limestone," that was identified by Spath as Nowakites The ammonites were collected from boulders of weathered, aff. N. paillettei (D'Orbigny). This form is said to relatively soft calcareous sandstone, containing pebbles and suggest a "Senonian (upper Coniacian or lower San- granules of basalt, at two localities in Riviere Corail, a south eastward-flowing stream entering Grand Riviere about 8 miles tonian) age." north of Jacmel. The country rock is basalt, part of an exten The next nearest occurrence of Upper Cretaceous sive area of basalt in the interior of the Southern Peninsula. ammonites is that in central Puerto Rico recorded by About 6 miles to the west-northwest limy sediments interbedded Meyerhoff (1932), who reports identifications by Ree with the basalt and including basalt pillows contain caprinids side of Barroisiceras aff. B. haberfellneri (Von Hauer) indicating late Lower Cretaceous age (Aptian-Albian). The fossiliferous boulders found on Riviere Corail may represent and Parapuzosia aff. P. corbarica (Grossbuvre) from sediments interbedded with the basalt, or an Upper Cretaceous tuft'aceous deposits. These were assigned to the lower formation overlying the basalt, or may have been derived from Senonian (Coniacian). conglomerate at the base of Eocene limestone, which overlies A third occurrence is that recorded by Rutten 1936, the basalt at localities examined. pp. 35, 36), who lists apparently preliminary identifica The precise location of the two finds is as follows: tions by Jaworski of ammonites from three localities in U. S. Geological Survey Mesozoic locality 18723. the central part of Santa Clara Province, Cuba. These Petite Riviere (or Riviere Corail), about 2 miles north are reported as from limestones intercalated in the tuff west of junction with Grande Riviere de Jacmel, Arron- series, which underlies the Habana formation, of dissement of Jacmel, southern part of the Republic of Maestrichtian age. The forms found at the three Haiti. localities are as follows: (1) Austiniceras dibleyi Spath, U. S. Geological Survey Mesozoic locality 18724. Pachydiscus cf. P. colligatus Binckhorst, Peroniceras Same as 18723 but 200 feet northwest of junction. aff. P. tricarinatum (Fric) Burckhardt, P. cf. P. csorrigi (Redtenbacher); (2) Peroniceras cocchi Meiieghini, P. THE FOSSILS AND THEIR CORRELATION aff. P. tricarinatum, Crioceras sp.; and (3) Austiniceras The ammonites contained in this collection are as dibleyi Spath, Barroisiceras sp. This fauna is assigned follows: to a Turonian-Emscherian (Coniacian) age. A pertinent fauna is found in Venezuela. Gerhardt Baculites sp. Parapuzosia? sp. (1897, pp. 70-84) recorded an Upper Cretaceous ammo Pachydiscus ("Parapachydiscus") gardneri Reeside nite fauna from western Venezuela, giving the source of 732202—47 1 SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY, 1947 the material as a blue-black bituminous limestone near of Texas, that is, Campanian. To the present writer Rubio, between Cana and Amarillo, State of Tachira. it seems most likely that the Haitian ammonites are to The species recorded are: Mortoniceras texanum (Roe- be placed as approximately Santonian, that is, late mer), M. canaen.se Gerhardt, Gauthien'ceras lenti Ger- lower Senonian. hardt, 0. margae (Schluter), Amaltheus siewrsi Gerhardt, and Lenticeras andii Gerhardt. These were assigned DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES to the lower Seiionian (Coiiiacian-Santoiiian). Liddle Genus BACULITES Lamarck (1928, p. 168) assigned Gerhardt's locality to the Colon shale, to include the La Luna limestone as that term Baculites sp. indet. was used by Liddle. He also cited from the lower part Plate 3, figures 1-6 of the Colon shale at a locality on the road between Three small fragments of an apparently smooth San Cristobal and Cucuta, in the State of Tachira, species of baculite with broad-ovate cross section and Amaltheus siei^ersi and Lenticeras andii, and from a simple suture were found. One specimen measures 3.1 locality on Quebrada La Luna, in the District of Perija, mm. in greatest diameter and 2.8 mm. in least State of Zulia, Mortoniceras texanum, Amaltheus sie- diameter; the second is very nearly the same; the third versi, and Gauthiericeras lenti. At both these localities is smaller but is much crushed. As these specimens other species also are cited. Liddle (p. 169) says of the are juvenile it is not profitable to make comparisons, sequence in the vicinity of Rubio, hence near Gerhardt's and they are recorded and illustrated for what they are locality: worth. To the west and southwest of Rubio there are good sections of Figured specimens: U. S. N. M. 104163. the Colon shales exposed. Limestone nodules and lentils carry Occurrence: U. S. G. S. 18723. a good ammonite fauna. The few thin limestone beds, which are intercalated with the shales, are very poorly fossiliferous. Most of the ammonites come from a cherty, nodular horizon near Genus PAEAPUZOSIA Nowak the base of the shales. Parapuzosia? sp. Kehrer (1937, pp. 48-51) describes the La Luna lime stone near Colon, Tachira, as including black and gray Plate 3, figures 7-10 cherts above and dark well-bedded limestone below. A single, very young specimen that retains parts of The overlying Colon shale is said to be dark shale with the shell differs from all others of similar size in the some intercalated limestones. It would seem that collection. Gerhardt's locality and Liddle's locality in Tachira are The shell is compressed. Cross section of whorl oval, in the upper part of the La Luna limestone of present higher than wide, flanks and venter evenly rounded. usage. Hedberg and Sass (1937, p. 80) refer Liddle's Umbilicus moderately wide, with low but distinct locality in Perija also to the La Luna. umbilical wall; umbilical shoulder rounded. Measure The ammonites from Haiti seem to have little in com ments in millimeters and percentage of diameter: mon with those from Jamaica, for the species of Pachy Diameter, 11.7; height of outer whorl, 4.6, 39; thickness discus present are not closely related, and there is still of outer whorl, 4.1, 35; width of umbilicus, 3.4, 29. less in common with the ammonites listed from Puerto The shell is apparently nearly smooth throughout. Rico and Cuba. On the contrary, the fauna reported At a diameter of approximately 7 mm., the internal by Gerhardt from southwestern Venezuela appears to mold shows a clear constriction running from the inner be closely related. Gerhardt's list includes both a part