Invertebrate assemblage from Galisteo Dam and the correlation of the Dakota–Mancos succession in north-central New Mexico

Spencer G. Lucas, New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, 1801 Mountain Rd. NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104

Abstract I further develop this correlation by Left valves are characteristically smooth describing a biostratigraphically signifi- (due to the very faint growth lines) and An invertebrate fossil assemblage from the cant invertebrate fossil assemblage from have a distinct sulcus and posterior auri- top of the upper sandstone interval of the the Cubero Member of the Dakota at Galis- cle. These specimens closely resemble Dakota Sandstone at Galisteo Dam, Santa Fe teo Dam and by presenting new lithostrati- bivalves Cobban (1977, p. 17, pl. 6, figs. County, New Mexico, consists of the bivalves Pycnodonte cf. P. kellumi (Jones) and graphic data on the Dakota–Mancos suc- 21–26) identified as P. cf. P. kellumi from Inoceramus prefragilis Stephenson and the cession around the Sandia uplift. the Clay Mesa Member of the Mancos ammonites Eucalycoceras templetonense Cob- Shale in west-central New Mexico. ban, Conlinoceras gilberti Cobban and Scott, Galisteo Dam locality and Turrilites acutus acutus Passy. This assem- Inoceramus prefragilis Stephenson blage represents the lower part of the Acan- The described here are from The only inoceramid bivalves from locality thoceras amphibolum zone or the Conlinoceras NMMNH (New Mexico Museum of Nat- 3939 represent a single taxon with a promi- tarrantense zone and confirms correlation of ural History) locality 3939, which is locat- nent terminal beak that is strongly the upper sandstone of the Dakota Sand- ed immediately south of Galisteo Dam at incurved, a straight anterior margin, nar- stone at Galisteo Dam, and around the San- dia uplift, to the Cubero Member. UTM Zone 13, 390482E, 3923830N, NAD rowly rounded ventral margin, and orna- 1 27 (SW ⁄4 sec. 9 T14N R7E, Santa Fe County; mentation of closely spaced, low, narrow Introduction Fig. 1). At locality 3939 the fossils are in cal- concentric ribs that are most prominent careous sandstone at the top of the unit umbonally (Fig. 2D, E). These inoceramids Strata of the intertongued Dakota and Lucas et al. (1998) identified as the Cubero closely resemble specimens of I. prefragilis Mancos Formations record the early histo- Member of the Dakota Sandstone. Fossils from the Woodbine Formation in Texas ry of the Late Cretaceous Western Interior are not abundant at NMMNH locality described by Stephenson (1952, p. 64, pl. seaway in northwestern New Mexico (e.g., 3939, and most are sandstone casts. 12, figs. 10–12). Owen, 1966; Landis et al., 1973; Owen and Head, 2001). These rocks are also exposed Paleontology Eucalycoceras templetonense Cobban in north-central New Mexico, just east of The second most common ammonites at the Rio Grande valley (Fig. 1). Until the Fossils from NMMNH locality 3939 are of locality 3939 (Figs. 2F, H, I) closely resem- work of Lucas et al. (1998), little effort had bivalves and ammonites (Fig. 2). ble specimens of Eucalycoceras templeto- been made to study the intertongued nense described by Cobban (1988, p. 10, pl. Dakota–Mancos succession in north-cen- Pycnodonte cf. P. kellumi (Jones) 4). These relatively evolute ammonites

tral New Mexico ando to correlate it to the The most common fossils at locality 3939 have flat flanks covered by many closely better studied successiont to the west. Here, are of the bivalve Pycnodonte (Fig. 2A, B). spaced prorsiradiate, slightly flexuous ribs

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s FIGURE 1—Index map of part of north-central New Mexico showing well; 3, Placitas; 4, Cedar Crest; 5, Sandia Park; 6, Hagan Basin; 7, Gal- the location of Galisteo Dam fossil locality and sections correlated in isteo Dam; 8, Lamy; and 9, Romeroville. Figure 3. Section locations are: 1, San Ysidro; 2, Shell Oil Santa Fe # 1

February 2002, Volume 24, Number 1 NEW MEXICO GEOLOGY 15 FIGURE 2—Fossils from the Cubero Member of the Dakota Sandstone at P-33005; G, Conlinoceras gilberti Cobban and Scott, NMMNH P-33001; H,I, NMMNH locality 3939. A,B, Pycnodonte cf. P. kellumi (Jones), two views of Eucalycoceras templetonense Cobban, NMMNH P-33015 (H,I); J, Conlinoceras left valve, NMMNH P-27584; C, Conlinoceras gilberti Cobban and Scott, gilberti Cobban and Scott , NMMNH P-33018; K, Turrilites acutus acutus NMMNH P-33016; D,E, Inoceramus prefragilis Stephenson, NMMNH P- Passy, NMMNH P-33013; L, Conlinoceras gilberti Cobban and Scott, 33019 (D) and 33014 (E); F, Eucalycoceras templetonense Cobban, NMMNH NMMNH P-33017. that cross the venter without diminution, spaced, slightly flexuous ribs, slightly con- pl. 4, figs. 4–5). Significantly, the locality and are alternately long and short. Each rib vex flanks, flattened venters, and promi- 3939 specimens do not show the smaller has prominent umbilical, lower ventrolat- nent umbilical and ventrolateral tubercles, tubercles at the whorl base that character- eral and upper ventrolateral tubercles, and especially in the early whorls (Fig. 2G). In ize the subspecies T. acutus americanus all but the outermost whorl ribs also have later whorls, the ribs are very strong and (Cobban and Scott, 1972), which is charac- a siphonal tubercle. The size range of spec- straight (Fig. 2C). As is characteristic of C. teristic of the Paguate Sandstone in west- imens from locality 3939 varies widely and gilberti, the widely spaced ribs on early central New Mexico (Cobban and Scott, shows a widening of rib spacing and whorls are of equal strength at the venter 1972, p. 72, pl. 11, figs. 1–11; Cobban, 1977, reduction (loss) of tubercles on the outer but alternate between ribs that reach the p. 22, pl. 10, figs. 3–6, 10–12). whorls. umbilicus and ribs that do not. Conlinoceras gilberti Cobban and Scott Turrilites acutus acutus Passy Biostratigraphy I assign the most common ammonites (Fig. This helical ammonoid (Fig. 2K) displays The invertebrate taxa from NMMNH local- 2C, G, J, L) at locality 3939 to Conlinoceras two rows of essentially equal-sized tuber- ity 3939 indicate a middle Cenomanian age gilberti because they closely resemble spec- cles on the whorl flanks and thus closely but a horizon older than the Paguate Sand- imens of that taxon described by Cobban matches specimens of Turrilites acutus acu- stone. Particularly important is the record and Scott (1972, p. 61, pls. 1–3). These tus described by Cobban and Scott (1972, of Turrilites acutus acutus, a taxon restricted ammonites are evolute with widely p. 53, pl. 14, fig. 6) and Cobban (1977, p. 22, to the Oak Canyon–Cubero–Clay Mesa

16 NEW MEXICO GEOLOGY February 2002, Volume 24, Number 1 Galisteo Shell Oil Sandia Hagan Romeroville W San Ysidro Placitas Cedar Dam Lamy E Santa Fe #1 Park Basin sec. 9 UTM 3931200N sec. 27 sec. 18 sec. 1 Crest sec. 33 sec. 29 sec. 25 T14N R7E 488550E, zone 13 T15N R1E T13N R3E T12N R4E T15N R10E sec. 15 T11N R6E T13N R5E NMMNH NMMNH locality L-3473 Bridge Turonian Greenhorn Ls. T10N R5E locality L-3407 Creek Mbr. (Bridge Creek)

) Twowells Mbr. (Dakota) B? a upper t o Cenomanian k B W a B? h Twowells Mbr. ( ite D Ma wa ( (Dakota) nco te . s) r A r NMMNH L-3405rr oy A b Whitewater Arroyo Mbr. o M B Graneros Pagu b M (Mancos) Shale ate M r. br. o (Da A r . NMMNH B? kota) r NMMNH locality L-3721 e b locality middle b Clay Mesa Mbr. (Mancos) M L-4673 B? Paguate Mbr. u A NMMNH (Dakota) Cenomanian C n ) o a locality y t n o L-3939 Cubero Mbr. (Dakota) a k Clay Mesa Mbr. a C (Mancos) D k ( a lower A O Ophiomorpha Cenomanian Oak Canyon Mbr. (Dakota) A K-1 Romeroville Ss. K-1 A

upper Albian Encinal Canyon . Mbr. Fm ito jar Pa K-0 Upper Jackpile Sandstone Mbr. Mesa Rica Fm. (Morrison) Jackpile Sandstone Mbr. K-0 (Morrison) Brushy Basin Mbr. (Morrison) intrusive bentonite Vertical scale 145 km sandstone trough crossbedding 16 ft 5 m San Galisteo Romeroville Ysidro shale/siltstone ripple laminated Hagan Dam Lamy limestone bioturbated Basin Santa Fe Placitas limestone concretion pebbly #1 Sandia Cedar Crest Park

FIGURE 3—West-east correlation of middle Cretaceous rocks from San Ysidro on the Colorado Plateau to Romeroville on the Sangre de Cristo front range. Identification of A and B bentonites is based on Owen and Head (2001). interval in west-central New Mexico (Cob- as that advocated by Lucas et al. (1998). val of the Dakota Sandstone at Galisteo ban, 1977; Cobban and Hook, 1989). Con- New data presented here are: Dam and around the Sandia uplift as the 1 linoceras gilberti is characteristic of the 1. A section in the Hagan Basin in SE ⁄4 sec. Cubero Sandstone. Both the Paguate and “Thatcher fauna” in the middle Cenoman- 25 (unsurveyed) T13N R5E is complete Twowells Members are not present here, ian zone of Conlinoceras tarrantense, which from the Dakota base through the Bridge though they are present in the more off- is the age of the Oak Canyon Member and Creek Member of the Greenhorn. shore section at Lamy, thus underscoring most or all of the Cubero Member in west- NMMNH locality 4673 in the Oak the discontinuous nature of the upper central New Mexico (Cobban and Hook, Canyon Member in this section yields a Dakota Sandstone members in north-cen- 1989). Eucalycoceras templetonense, howev- poorly preserved bivalve assemblage tral New Mexico (Lucas et al., 1998). er, must have a relatively early record at that includes Inoceramus arvanus Acknowledgments. O. J. Anderson Galisteo Dam as it has been reported else- Stephenson, an inoceramid restricted to helped collect many of the data presented where in the middle–upper Cenomanian the Clay Mesa Shale in west-central New here. Several NMMNH volunteers helped zones of Plesiacanthoceras wyomingense and Mexico (Cobban, 1977). In this section, in the field, especially the late J. W. Estep. Dunveganoceras pondi (Cobban, 1988). no Dakota sandstone bodies are present D. E. Owen generously shared his exten- Pycnodonte cf. P. kellumi has records from between the Cubero and Bridge Creek. sive knowledge of Dakota stratigraphy the Oak Canyon Member through the 2. A complete section from the Dakota base with me in the field. W. A. Cobban and D. Whitewater Arroyo Shale in west-central through the Bridge Creek base has also E. Owen provided helpful comments that 1 1 New Mexico (Cobban, 1977). However, the been identified at Placitas (NW ⁄4NW ⁄4 improved the manuscript. overlap zone of almost all of the taxa from sec. 1 T12N R4E). It, too, lacks any super- NMMNH locality 3939 (the exception is Cubero sandstones. References Eucalycoceras templetonense) is in the 3. Similar sections have been located at Cubero interval. Furthermore, none of the Sandia Park (Lucas et al., 1999) and at Cobban, W. A., 1977, Characteristic marine mollus- 1 1 can fossils from the Dakota Sandstone and inter- characteristic taxa of the Paguate interval Cedar Crest (NW ⁄4SE ⁄4 sec. 15 T10N tongued , west-central New Mexi- occur at NMMNH locality 3939. Thus, the R5E). The latter is very well exposed and co: U.S. Geological Survey, Professional Paper fossils from locality 3939 indicate either the shows a two-part Oak Canyon Member 1009, 30 pp. lower part of the Acanthoceras amphibolum seen at some other sections—lower Cobban, W. A., 1988, Tarrantoceras Stephenson and zone or the Conlinoceras tarrantense zone sandy interval with bentonite, overlain related ammonoid genera from Cenomanian and confirm correlation of the upper sand- by black shale with limestone concre- (Upper Cretaceous) rocks in Texas and the West- ern Interior of the United States: U.S. Geological stone interval of the Dakota Sandstone at tions. Earlier workers (Molenaar, 1983 Survey, Professional Paper 1473, 51 pp. Galisteo Dam to the Cubero Member to the and Ferguson et al., 1998) suggested that Cobban, W. A., and Hook, S. C., 1989, Mid-Creta- west. the upper sandstone interval of the ceous molluscan record from west-central New Dakota Sandstone in these sections Mexico; in Anderson, O. J., Lucas, S. G., Love, D. Correlation probably correlates to the Twowells W., and Cather, S. M. (eds.), Southeastern Col- Member, but correlation to the Cubero is orado Plateau: New Mexico Geological Society, Guidebook 40, pp. 247–264. Correlation of the intertongued Dakota– established here. Cobban, W. A., and Scott, G. R., 1972, Stratigraphy Mancos succession across north-central The new data presented here support and ammonite fauna of the Graneros Shale and New Mexico (Fig. 3) is essentially the same identification of the upper sandstone inter- Greenhorn Limestone near Pueblo, Colorado:

February 2002, Volume 24, Number 1 NEW MEXICO GEOLOGY 17 U.S. Geological Survey, Professional Paper 0605, central New Mexico: New Mexico Museum of stone (Cretaceous) in San Juan Basin, New Mexi- 108 pp. Natural History and Science, Bulletin 14, pp. co and Colorado: American Association of Petro- Ferguson, C. A., Timmons, J. M., Pazzaglia, F. J., 57–66. leum Geologists, Bulletin, v. 50, no. 5, pp. Karlstrom, K. E., and Bauer, P. W., 1998, Geologic Lucas, S. G., Anderson, O. J., and Estep, J. W., 1999, 1023–1088. map of the Sandia Park 7.5-min quadrangle, The intertongued Dakota–Mancos (Cretaceous) Owen, D. E., and Head, C. F., 2001, Summary of the Bernalillo and Sandoval Counties, New Mexico: section in the Tijeras syncline, Bernalillo County, sequence stratigraphy of the Dakota Sandstone New Mexico Bureau of Mines and Mineral New Mexico (abs.): New Mexico Geology, v. 21, and adjacent units, San Juan Basin, northwestern Resources, Open-file Geologic Map OF-GM-1, 12 no. 2, p. 48. New Mexico and southeastern Colorado; in pp. text, scale 1:24,000. Molenaar, C. M., 1983, Major depositional cycles Broadhead, R., Cather, S. M., and Brister, B. S. Landis, E. R., Dane, C. H., and Cobban, W. A., 1973, and regional correlations of Upper Cretaceous (eds.), Proceedings for low permeability and Stratigraphic terminology of the Dakota Sand- rocks, southern Colorado Plateau and adjacent underdeveloped natural gas reservoirs of New stone and Mancos Shale, west-central New Mex- areas; in Reynolds, M. W., and Dolly, E. D. (eds.), Mexico—conference and field trip: New Mexico ico: U.S. Geological Survey, Bulletin 1372-J, pp. Mesozoic paleogeography of the west-central Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, pp. J1–J44. United States—Rocky Mountain Paleogeography 2–19. Lucas, S. G., Anderson, O. J., and Estep, J. W., 1998, Symposium 2: Society of Economic Paleontolo- Stephenson, L. W., 1952, Larger invertebrate fossils Stratigraphy and correlation of middle Creta- gists and Mineralogists, Rocky Mountain Section, of the Woodbine Formation (Cenomanian) of ceous rocks (Albian–Cenomanian) from the Col- pp. 201–224. Texas: U.S. Geological Survey, Professional Paper orado Plateau to the southern High Plains, north- Owen, D. E., 1966, Nomenclature of Dakota Sand- 242, 226 pp.

New Mexico Geological Society 53rd Annual Fall Field Conference October 2–5, 2002

The 53rd annual field conference of the New Mexico Geological Society will be held on the White Sands Missile Range of south-central New Mexico. The soci- ety has never visited this area and will offer access to normally restricted por- tions of the Oscura and San Andres Mountains and the Tularosa Basin. The con- ference is hosted by Kate Giles (NMSU), Virgil Lueth (NMBGMR), Spencer Lucas (NMMNHS), Barry Kues (UNM), and Bob Myers (WSMR).

Exposures of rocks ranging in age from Proterozoic to Recent should appeal to all geologic interests. The theme "White Sands" centers on the world famous national monument and attests to the unique nature of the geology of the area. Topics covered during the trip will cover virtually every aspect of the geology. The tentative itinerary is:

Day 1. Geology of the northern portion of the range visiting the Proterozoic/ contact, Paleozoic stratigraphy, Cenozoic tectonics, ore deposits, and recent volcanism. We will also visit one of the most significant places in human history, the Trinity Site.

Day 2. A daylong trip through the Paleozoic via stops in Rhodes Canyon and a hike down Hembrillo Canyon (vans will be provided for those who cannot walk the entire trip).

Day 3. Geothermal and structural aspects of the Rio Grande rift in addition to metamorphism, structures, and mineral deposits on the margins of a granite intrusive complex.

For more information, contact: Katherine Giles Virgil Lueth New Mexico State University New Mexico Bureau of Geology (505) 646-2003 and Mineral Resources [email protected] (505) 835-5140 [email protected]

http://geoinfo.nmt.edu/nmgs/events.html#meeting

18 NEW MEXICO GEOLOGY February 2002, Volume 24, Number 1