Upper Cretaceous Molluscan Record Along a Transect from Virden, New Mexico, to Del Rio, Texas William A
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Upper Cretaceous molluscan record along a transect from Virden, New Mexico, to Del Rio, Texas William A. Cobban, U.S. Geological Survey, Denver Federal Center, Box 25046, M.S. 980, Denver, Colorado 80225; Stephen C. Hook, Atarque Geologic Consulting, LLC, 411 Eaton Avenue, Socorro, New Mexico 87801, [email protected]; K. C. McKinney, U.S. Geological Survey, Denver Federal Center, Box 25046, M.S. 980, Denver, Colorado 80225, [email protected] Abstract provisional faunal zonation for this area that Regarding the last three names, Powell links it with the better known zonation for (1965, p. 511) noted that “These formations Updated age assignments and new collec- the Western Interior (Fig. 2). Late Cretaceous intertongue; they are lateral equivalents of tions of molluscan fossils from lower Cenom- ammonite faunas from southwest New Mex- each other. The separate names indicate anian through upper Campanian strata in ico have been treated recently by us (Cobban lithologic variations, that is, depositional Texas permit a much refined biostratigraphic correlation with the rocks of New Mexico and et al. 1989) and will only be reviewed herein. features due to the relative proximity of the the Western Interior. Generic names of many Many published faunal lists and age assign- Coahuila platform (Kellum et al. 1936), and Late Cretaceous ammonites and inoceramid ments for lower Cenomanian to upper Cam- to the Diablo platform (Cohee et al. 1961).” bivalves from Texas are updated to permit panian strata in Texas are updated herein. Two ammonite zones can be recognized in this correlation. W. J. Kennedy and others have updated the Del Rio Clay, a lower one of Graysonites Strata correlated in the west-to-east transect parts of the late Keith Young’s (1963) monu- adkinsi Young 1958, and an upper one of include the lower Cenomanian Beartooth mental work on Coniacian through Cam- G. wacoensis (Böse 1928). The Buda Limestone Quartzite and Sarten Sandstone of southwest panian ammonites of Texas and the Gulf contains Neophlycticeras (Neophlycticeras) texa- New Mexico, and the Eagle Mountains For- Coast. They have also revised some of the mation, Del Rio Clay, Buda Limestone, and num (Shattuck 1903) in the lower part and basal beds of the Chispa Summit, Ojinaga, and pre-Coniacian ammonites published in the N. (Budaiceras) hyatti (Shattuck 1903) in the Boquillas Formations of the Texas–Mexico bor- important papers from the 1960s of J. D. upper part. Kennedy et al. (1990) reported der area. Middle Cenomanian strata are lack- Powell and associates. the occurrence of the latter species in the ing in southwestern New Mexico but are pres- New records of Cretaceous molluscan fos- European zone of Mantelliceras dixoni of late ent in the lower parts of the Chispa Summit sils from Big Bend National Park, Texas, have early Cenomanian age in Haute Normandie, and Boquillas Formations in southwest Texas. been provided by Roger and Dee Ann Coo- France. The basal parts of the Boquillas, Chis- Upper Cenomanian and lower Turonian rocks per (Lamar University, Beaumont, Texas, and are present at many localities in New Mexico pa Summit, and Ojinaga Formations contain the University of Texas at Austin, respective- an Acompsoceras inconstans (Schlüter) fauna and Texas in the Mancos Shale and Chispa ly), James and Margaret Stevens (Terlingua, Summit, Ojinaga, and Boquillas Formations. (Fig. 2). Middle Turonian and younger rocks seem Texas), and T. M. Lehman (Texas Tech Uni- Young (1959, p. 79, 1960, p. 42) noted two to be entirely nonmarine in southwestern versity, Lubbock, Texas), who are remapping zones in rocks of Del Rio age, a lower one New Mexico, but they are marine in the Rio parts of the park. Farther eastward in Terrell, of Graysonites adkinsi Young 1958, and an Val Verde, and Kinney Counties, collections Grande area in the Chispa Summit, Ojinaga, upper one of G. lozoi Young 1958. Graysonites and Boquillas Formations. The upper part of made by Val F. Freeman (USGS retired) and lozoi is now considered a junior synonym the Chispa Summit and Boquillas contain late the late J. A. Sharps (USGS) are listed. G. wacoensis in Turonian fossils. Rocks of Coniacian and San- This paper is arranged stratigraphi- of (Böse 1928) (Kennedy; tonian age are present high in the Chispa Sum- cally from lower Cenomanian to upper Kennedy et al. 2005). In Trans-Pecos Texas, mit, Ojinaga, and Boquillas Formations, and in Campanian. Fossil data from each stage G. adkinsi has been found at the base of the the lower part of the Austin. The San Carlos, or substage are then discussed geographi- Del Rio Clay in Pecos County, and G. wacoen- Aguja, Pen, and Austin Formations contain cally, with emphasis on the Texas part of sis has been found in the upper part of the fossils of Campanian age. Del Rio in Val Verde County as well as in the Fossils representing at least 38 Upper Creta- the transect. Strata in the Texas part are ceous ammonite zones are present along the located in Trans–Pecos Texas and parts of Del Rio area in Kinney County. transect. Collections made in recent years in Val Verde and Kinney Counties. Fossil col- Other ammonites from the Del Rio Clay southwestern New Mexico and at Sierra de lections from the west end of the transect in Trans-Pecos Texas are scarce. The basal Cristo Rey just west of downtown El Paso, from Virden, New Mexico, to Chispa Sum- part of the Del Rio Clay in Val Verde Coun- Texas, have been well treated and do not need mit, Texas, tend to be clustered closely ty yielded the holotype of Mariella brazoen- revision. Taxonomic names and zonations around the locality markers because the sis pecoensis Clark 1965. Clark also recorded published in the pre-1970 literature on the Rio Upper Cretaceous outcrops in those areas M. brazoensis brazoensis from the Del Rio Grande area of Texas have been updated. New as far west as the Quitman Mountains in fossil collections from the Big Bend National are isolated remnants. Collections from the Park, Texas, allow for a much refined cor- east end of the transect, especially from Big Hudspeth County. relation in the central part of the transect in Bend National Park to Del Rio, Texas, are The Buda Limestone in Trans-Pecos Texas. widely scattered around the locality mark- Texas usually consists of a lower thick- and Middle Turonian–Campanian zonation in ers because of the more extensive outcrops thin-bedded limestone, a softer middle southwest Texas is based mainly on ammo- of Upper Cretaceous rocks in those areas. nodular limestone, and an upper thick- nites of the Family Collignoniceratidae, bedded limestone (Maxwell et al. 1967; as opposed to the scaphitid and baculitid Freeman 1968). Neophlycticeras (Neophlyc- ammonites that are especially abundant far- Cenomanian Stage ticeras) texanum (Shattuck 1903) is fairly ther north in the Western Interior. Lower Cenomanian abundant in the lowest limestone member, and N. (Budaiceras) hyatti (Shattuck 1903) Introduction Rocks of early Cenomanian age in Trans- is common in the middle and upper mem- Pecos Texas and the adjoining part of Chi- bers. The two subgenera can be told apart The purposes of this report are (1) to corre- huahua and Coahuila, Mexico, consist of the easily because Neophlycticeras has siphonal late Upper Cretaceous strata along a west- following sequence, from oldest to young- tubercles matched by the flank ribs, where- to-east transect from Virden, New Mexico, to est: Del Rio Clay (or Formation), Buda as Budaiceras has more siphonal tubercles Del Rio, Texas (Fig. 1), using ammonites and Limestone, and basal parts of the Boquillas, than flank ribs. Wright and Kennedy (1994, inoceramid bivalves, and (2) to provide a Chispa Summit, and Ojinaga Formations. p. 550) noted the close resemblance of August 2008, Volume 30, Number 3 NEW MEXICO GEOLO G Y 75 Neophlycticeras and Budaiceras and stated He considered the fauna to represent a new A. renevieri (Sharpe 1857) were found nearby that the latter “could well be treated as no zone (Puchellia brundrettei) at the top of the slightly higher in the Chispa Summit. Daugh- more than a subgenus of Neophlycticeras,” lower Cenomanian. Young and Powell (1978) erty and Powell (1963, p. 2060) noted the pres- which is how we treat them in this paper. more correctly placed the species brundrettei ence of this fauna at the base of the Boquillas In addition to N. (B.) hyatti and N. (N.) tex- in the genus Forbesiceras. Hook and Cobban Formation in the Pico Etereo area of northern anum (recorded as Faraudiella texana), Young (1983, p. 51) recorded five species of ammo- Coahuila, just east of Big Bend National Park. (1979) reported Budaiceras elegantior (Lass- nites in the F. brundrettei Zone at Gold Hill in (See also Young 1969, table 1). witz 1904), B. alticarinatum n. sp., Faraud- northernmost Jeff Davis County, and Kenne- In summary, the early Cenomanian iella franciscoensis (Kellum and Mintz 1962), dy and Cobban (1993) further updated the ammonite sequence in Trans-Pecos Texas, F. roemeri (Lasswitz 1904), F. barachoensis n. fauna from six localities, which now consists from youngest to oldest, is as follows: sp., F. archerae n. sp., Mariella wysogorskii, and of the following ammonites: Moremanoceras Forbesiceras brundrettei (Young) Sharpeiceras tlahualilense (Kellum and Mintz elgini (Young 1958), Acompsoceras sp., Forbe- Acompsoceras inconstans (Schlüter) 1962) from the Buda Limestone of Trans- siceras brundrettei (Young 1958), Borissiako- Neophlycticeras (B.) hyatti (Shattuck) Pecos Texas. ceras sp., Ostlingoceras (Ostlingoceras) brandi Neophlycticeras (N.) texanum (Shattuck) Budaiceras has been reported from the (Young 1958), Mariella (Mariella) davidense Graysonites wacoensis (Böse) basal part of the Maness Shale of northeast- (Young 1958), Mariella (M.) cf. cenomanensis Graysonites adkinsi Young ern Texas (Lozo 1951, p.