The Upper Jurassic–Lower Cretaceous Ofeastern

Home , Caia (plant), Raohe County, Suibin County

Cretaceous Research 24 (2003) 715#728

The Upper Jurassic#Lower Cretaceous of eastern Heilongjiang, northeast China: stratigraphy and regional basin history Jingeng Shaa*, Masaki Matsukawab, Huawei Caia, Baoyu Jianga, Makoto Itoc, Chengquan Hea, Zhiwei Gua

aNanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Academia Sinica, Chi-Ming-Ssu, Nanjing 210008, People$s Republic of China bDepartment of Science Education, Tokyo Gakugei University, Koganei, Tokyo 184-8501, Japan cDepartment of Earth Science, Chiba University, Chiba 2 63-8522, Japan Accepted 22 July 2003

Abstract

In eastern Heilongjiang, the Upper Jurassic is marine and restricted to the Suibin and Dong$an areas, where it is characterized faunally by Callovian#Volgian (Tithonian) bivalves and florally by dinoflagellates. The Lower Cretaceous is widely distributed in eastern Heilongjiang, and characterized faunally by Berriasian#Valanginian bivalves, Barremian#Albian ammonites and Aucellina, and florally by dinoflagellates. To the west, the m arine facies grade into non-marine beds. Thus, in the east, for example in the Dong$an and Dajiashan areas, near the northwestern Palaeo-Pacific, the Lower Cretaceous is marine; westward, in the Yunshan, Longzhaogou, Peide, and Zhushan areas, marine and non-marine deposits alternate, whereas further west still, e.g. in the Jixi Basin, non-marine facies are intercalated with marine beds. This regional distribution is indicative of a large, shallow embayment opening eastwards to the Palaeo-Pacific; during the Early Cretaceous successive transgressive-regressive events influenced the climate and biota of eastern Heilongjiang and northeastern China. Many of the Lower Cretaceous sections contain abundant coals, demonstrating that in this region the Early Cretaceous was an important coal-forming period. Some non-marine bivalve species are common to the Lower Cretaceous Jixi Group of eastern Heilongjiang, the Jehol Group of western Liaoning and the Transbaikalian Group of Siberia, suggesting that these groups are of comparable Early Cretaceous age. ? 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Heilongjiang; Late Jurassic; Early Cretaceous; Biostratigraphy; Palaeogeography; Palaeoclimatology

1. Introduction

In eastern Heilongjiang Province, northeast China, marine deposits of Late Jurassic age have been recognized in the Suibin area of Suibin County (Fig. 1) (Suibin Formation, lower and middle Dongrong Forma- tion; Table 1, col. 2) (Huang, 1990; 110th Exploring Team, NE China#Nei Monggol Coal Corporation, 1992) and the Dong$an area of Raohe County (Fig. 1) (lower Dong$anzhen Formation; Table 1, col. 1) (Sha, 1992a; Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1993a; Sha et al. , 1994).

* Corresponding author. Dr J. Sha. Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Academia Sinica, Chi-Ming-Ssu, Nanjing 210008, People$s Republic of China. Tel.: 86-253282101 ; fax: +86-257714437. E-mail address: j [email protected] (J. Sha). 0195-6671/03/$ - see front matter ? 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi: 10. 1016/j.cretres.2003.07.006

Cretaceous deposits are widespread but their compos- ition varies both geographically and stratigraphically. Wholly marine deposits prevail in the Suibin (Fig. 1) (upper Dongrong Formation; Table 1, col. 2), Dong#an (Fig. 1) (upper Dong#anzhen Formation; Table 1, col. 1) (Sha, 1992a; Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1993a, 1994; Sha et al. , 1994) and Dajiashan areas (Fig. 1) (Dajiashan Forma- tion; Table 1, col. 3). Alternating marine and non- marine deposits occur in the Yunshan, Longzhaogou, and Peide areas (Fig. 1) (the Longzhaogou Group; Table 1, col. 4) (Sha, 1990, 1991; Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1993a, 1994; Sha et al. , 1994, 2002), whereas non-marine sediments with subordinate marine or brackish deposits are widely distributed in the Jixi, Jixian and Suibin basins (Fig. 1) (Jixi Group; Table 1, cols. 2, 4, 5) (Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1993a; Wan and Qiao, 1994; Wan et al.,

716 J. Sha et al. / Cretaceous Research 2 4 (2003) 715$728 1995; Sha et al. , 2002), at Xingfu (Fig. 1) (Dongdaling Formation; Table 1, col. 6), Xiachengzi and Yilin (Fig. 1) (Xiachengzi Formation; Table 1, col. 6) (Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1993b). Jurassic and Cretaceous strata, particularly the well- known, coal-bearing Longzhaogou and Jixi groups of eastern Heilongjiang, were studied as long ago as 1929 by Wang, H.S., most probably because of their coal resources. At that time, the Longzhaogou and Jixi groups were referred broadly to the Jurassic or were thought to be primarily of Jurassic age (Wang, 1929; Chen, 1959; Huang, 1960, 1963, 1985; Shi, 1960; Gu, 1962, 1982; Gu and Chen, 1983; Gu et al. , 1984, 1987; Group Compiling Regional Stratigraphic Scale of Eastern Heilongjiang, 1979; Li and Yu, 1982, Li et al. , 1982; Liu et al. , 1986; Research Team on the Mesozoic Coal-Bearing Formations in Eastern Heilongjiang, 1986; Wu and Tong, 1988; Sun et al. , 1989; Chen and Sun, 1989; Li, 1996). This age-determination was based largely on the presence of presumed Jurassic ammonites including Arctocephalites (Liang, 1982; Wang, 1983) and buchiid bivalves referred to the Oxfordian#Volgian species Buchia concentrica, B. teniustriata, B. cf. spitiensis, B. mosquensis and B. rugosa (Gu et al., 1984; Chen and Sun, 1989). However, more recently this broad age assignment began to be questioned by a number of palaeontologists because Cretaceous Aucellina (Aucellina) bivalves were identified in the Longzhaogou and Jixi groups (Sha, 1990). The ammonites from the Qihulin Formation (Longzhaogou Group) that were previously thought to be of Bathonian age were restudied by Kelly et al. (1994) and Futakami et al. (1995) and shown to be Barremian or younger. Sha (1990, 1991, 1992a,b, 1999), Sha and Fu ¨rsich (1993a, 1994), Sha et al. (1994, 2000, 2002) and Gu et al. (1997) studied marine bivalves of presumed Jurassic age from the Longzhaogou and Jixi groups and referred them to the Barremian#Albian (mainly Aptian), although Chen, (1999) still referred specimens of Cretaceous Aucellina from the two groups to Jurassic Buchia. Sun et al. (1993) documented Early Cretaceous angiosperm megafossils from the Chengzihe Formation of the Jixi Group in the Jixi Basin. Wan and Qiao (1994), Wan et al. (1995), He et al. (1999), He and Sun, (2000), Cheng, and He (2001) and Sha et al. (2002) identified Early Cretaceous dinoflagellates from the Longzhaogou Group in the Wandashan area, and the lower and upper marine beds of the Chengzihe and Didao formations in the Jixi, Jixian and Suibin areas. Furthermore, as early as 1983, Zhang suggested that the palynological assemblages from the two groups were of Neocomian#Aptian age. An increasing number of geologists and palaeontologists now accept that the Longzhaogou and Jixi groups are Early Cretaceous (e.g.

J. Sha et al. / Cretaceous Research 2 4 (2003) 715#728 717 Table 1 Correlation chart of the Upper Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous of eastern Heilongjiang

Sha, 1990, 1991, 1992a,b, 1999; Matsukawa et al., 1993, 1997; Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1993a, 1994; Sha et al. , 1994, 2000, 2002; Futakami et al. , 1995; Gu, 1995, 1998; Gu et al. , 1997; Wen et al. , 2000; Yang et al. , 2000; Zhao et al. , 2000; Jiang and Feng, 2001).

2. Upper Jurassic

To date, Upper Jurassic strata have only been documented in the Suibin area of Suibin county and in the Dong#an area of Raohe county; the strata are of marine origin in both areas.

2. 1. Suibin

In the Suibin area, the Upper Jurassic consists of the Suibin Formation and lower and middle Dongrong Formation (Table 1, col. 2). The Suibin Forma- tion yields a Pareodinia ceratophora-Nannoceratopsis pellucida-Chytroeisphaeridia scabrata dinoflagellate cyst assemblage (He and Huang, 1997). Chytroeisphaeridia scabrata occurs in Callovian deposits in Western Canada (He and Huang, 1997), but Nannoceratopsis pellucida ranges from the Upper Bajocian to the base of the Kimmeridgian, and Pareodinia ceratophora from Jurassic$Cretaceous in England (Powell, 1992). The Suibin Formation was considered to be Callovian, very probably middle$late Callovian, in age by He and

Huang (1997). The lower and middle Dongrong Formation is characterized by Oxfordian$Volgian (Tithonian) Buchia assemblages: B. cf. concentrica, B. tenuistriata, B. cf. mosquensis$B. cf. rugosa and B. fischeriana; this formation is composed of dark grey, greyish white, and green fine$medium-grained sandstones and siltstones, locally with tuff beds (Huang, 1990; 110th Exploring Team, NE China#Nei Monggol Coal Corporation, 1992; Chen and Huang, 1992; Sun et al. , 2000). The B. cf. concentrica, B. tennistriata and B. cf. mosquensis-B. cf. rugosa assemblages are associated with two dinoflagellate assemblages: the Gongyaulacysta jurassica assemblage, ranging from Oxfordian#basal Upper Kimmeridgian (Powell, 1992), and assemblages with Amphorula delicata having a range of Kimmeridgian#Lower Berriasian respectively (110th Exploring Team, NE China#Nei Monggol Coal Corporation, 1992; Sun and He, 1992; Sun et al. , 2000).

2.2. Dong$an

In the Dong$an area (Fig. 1), the Upper Jurassic is characterized by the Middle # Upper Volgian Buchia assemblages: B. fischeriana-B. unschensis and B. russiensis-B. f ischeriana (Sha, 1992a; Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1993a, 1994). These are recorded from the lower Dong$anzhen Formation (Table 1,col. 1), which consists

718 J. Sha et al. / Cretaceous Research 2 4 (2003) 715#728 SFiugr.ly 2k.a Gnldob Zalakc hoarrreolavti (o19n8c 2h);a 2rt,o BfraB duucchhiaana s setema lb. l(a1g9e8s6,) m, aZianklhyaa rfotvera S nhdaL aenbdeF de¨ uvrs (i1c9h8( 61)9;94 4,) .KT elhlye d (1e9ta84il)e,d Zs oaukrhcaersoa vre( 1i 9n8t 7h)e;7 f,oZ llaokwhinargo:v1 ,( 3 1,9 58#16,,1 9 9#8173),, Zala.(k h20a0r0o)v,Wa nedn Be to galo.m (2o0lo0v0)( ;1 1958,4 G);o8 u,( Z 19a8k4h)a,r oGvou( 1 9an8d1),L iZa( 1k9h8a3)r,ovL iana ndd LG erbaendte-vM( a1c9k8i6e);( 1 1948,8S )h;a1 a 6,n1 d8#F 1¨ u9r,sC icrham( 1e99 (149),8C 2h),eL nia a nnddH G uraanngt-,M( 1a9c9k2ie),( 1S 9u8n8e );t 17, Crame (1982). of dark grey, greyish green and yellowish green muddy siltstones with yellowish green silty shales. All of the index species of the Buchia assemblages recorded from the Dongrong Formation and the suc- ceeding Dong$anzhen Formation have a wide distribution in the Northern Hemisphere in Oxfordian# Volgian strata (Fig. 2) (Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1993a, 1994).

3. Lower Cretaceous

To date only Berriasian#Valanginian and Barremian# Albian strata have been documented in eastern Heilongjiang. The presence of Hauterivian strata has not been confirmed. 3.1. Upper Dongrong F ormation of Suibin In the Suibin area (Fig. 1), the upper Dongrong Formation (Table 1, col. 2) yields the dinoflagellate Oligosphaeridium p ulcherrimum, which ranges from Va- langinian to Barremian in eastern England, France, Germany and Australia, but extends downwards into the Kimmeridgian in southern England (Yu, 1982). Buchia f ischeriana, which has been found in the upper Dongrong Formation (Table 1, col. 2), may be present in Lower Berriasian deposits (Fig. 2). Li (1992) referred the Dongrong Formation to the Valanginian on the basis of spores and pollen grains. The upper Dongrong Formation is, therefore, most probably Berriasian# Valanginian in age.

J. Sha et al. / Cretaceous Research 2 4 (2003) 715#728 719

Fig. 2. continued.

3.2. Upper Dong$anzhen Formation of Dong$an Berriasian#Valanginian strata occur in the Dong$an area of Raohe County (Fig. 1), where they are characterized by the Berriasian buchiid assemblage B. volgensis-B. cf. subokensis-B. cf. okensis-B. unschensis, and by the Early Valanginian species B. p acifica. These bivalves come from the upper Dong$anzhen Formation, which is composed of dark grey and greyish green muddy siltstones, silty mudstones and greywackes (poorly sorted sandstones) (Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1994).

3.3. Dajiashan Formation of Dajiashan

Barremian#Albian strata have a wide distribution, and range from fully m arine to non-marine facies; the relative proportions of these facies vary both geographically and stratigraphically. In the Dajiashan area of Hulin County (Fig. 1), Lower Cretaceous deposits are exclusively marine; the Dajiashan Formation (Table 1, col. 3) is composed of medium and dark grey siltstones with yellowish grey, fine-grained sandstones and siltstones. These marine deposits yield ammonites, gastropods, and bivalves including an Aucellina caucasica-A. aptiensis assemblage, which is considered to indicate the latest Middle Barremian#Middle Albian elsewhere in the world (Fig. 3) (Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1993a, 1994; Sha et al. 1994); a provisional Barremian#Albian age is thus assumed for the Dajiashan Formation.

3.4. Longzhaogou Group of Yunshan, Longzhaogou, Peide and Zhushan

In the Yunshan and Longzhaogou areas of Hulin County, the Peide and Qingnianshuiku areas of Mishan al. (1965), Pergament (1965, 1981), Terechkova et al. (1984); 8#9, Imlay (1961); 10, Jeletzky (1964, 1968, 1980, 1983); 11, Sha and F u¨rsich (1994); 12, Wen (2000); 13, Stoliczka (1871), Lee (1988); 14, Edward and Glaessner (1953), Glaessner (1957), Lee (1988); 15, Skwarko (1966), Ludbrook (1966), Day (1969), Crame (1982); 16, Wellman (1959), Speden (1975), Moore (1978), Raine et al. (1981), Crame (1982); 17, Bonarelli and N a´ gera (1921), Camacho (1949), Macellari (1979), Crame (1982), Lee (1988); 18, Jones and Plafker (1977), Crame (1982), Jeletzky (1983); 19#20, Crame (1982, 1983), Crame and Howlett (1988).

J. Sha et al. / Cretaceous Research 2 4 (2003) 715#728 721 county, and the Zhushan and Baomiqiao areas of Bao- qing County (Fig. 1), the coal-bearing Longzhaogou Group comprises an alternation of marine and non- marine deposits. In ascending order these are the Peide, Qihulin, Yunshan (with Lower and Upper members) and Zhushan formations (Table 1, col. 4). The Peide Formation consists of a basal conglomer- ate and black, dark grey and yellowish-green volcaniclastic deposits, tuffs, fine-grained sandstones, siltstones, peats and coals; it yields only plant fossils. It unconformably overlies Permian strata or older granitic basement and is separated by a hiatus from the overlying Qihulin Formation. Index fossils have not been found. A Valanginian#Hauterivian age is assumed based on the absence of Jurassic fossils and its stratigraphic position beneath Barremian strata (Sha et al., 2002). The Qihulin Formation is mainly composed of littoral or sublittoral black mudstones, siltstones, with basal coarse sandstones and coals in the lower part. It yields Barremian ammonites, including Phyllopachy- ceras sp. and Pseudohaproceras cf. liptoviense (Futakami et al., 1995), and bivalves, including an assemblage of Nuculana (Praesaccella) cf. yatsushiroensis, Filosina subovalis and Thracia rotundata. Nuculana (Praesaccella) yatsushiroensis occurs in deposits of Late Jurassic#Early Cretaceous age (Tamura, 1959; Hayami, 1975; Tamura and Murakami, 1987), Filosina is a typical Barremian# Aptian form (Keen and Casey, 1969), and Thracia rotundata has been found in deposits of Aptian age in England (Woods, 191 1). Furthermore, the Qihulin Formation yields an Oligosphaeridium-Odontochitina operculata-Gardodinium trabeculosum-Palaeoperidinium cretaceum dinoflagellate cyst assemblage. This is not older than Hauterivian and is generally considered to be indicative of the Late Hauterivian#Barremian in Europe, North America, Africa and Australia (He et al., 1999; Sha et al., 2002). However, according to Powell (1992), the ranges of these cysts are as follows: Oligo- sphaeridium, Jurassic#Cretaceous; Odontochitina operculata, earliest Barremian#earliest Maastrichtian; Gardodinium trabeculosum, Early Hauterivian#Late Aptian; and Palaeoperidinium cretaceum, Middle Barremian#Middle Campanian. This indicates that the assemblage cannot be older than Middle Barremian and not younger than Aptian. Together with the occur- rences of the ammonites and most of the index bivalves a Barremian age is thus suggested for the Qihulin Formation. The Yunshan Formation is mainly composed of non-marine sediments apart from intercalations of marine deposits in the Lower Member. The rocks include andesites, tuffs, limestones, medium#fine- grained sandstones, siltstones, mudstones and, locally, coals. The Upper Member mainly consists of medium and dark grey marine mudstones, and siltstones intercalated with non-marine coal-bearing measures, with thin tuff beds. The formation contains plant fossils, brachiopods, gastropods, ostracods and numerous bivalves, including the assemblages Aucellina (A.) caucasica-A. (A.) aptiensis-Filosina subovalis-Thracia rotundata and A. (A.) cf. caucasica-A. (A.) cf. aptiensis, and an Odonto- chitina operculata-Vesperopsis didaoensis dinoflagellate cyst assemblage (Sha et al., 2002). Aucellina (A.) caucasica and A. (A.) aptiensis are widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere in uppermost Middle Barremian# Middle Albian rocks (Fig. 3), although typifying the Aptian. These two species can be compared with A. (A.) andina and A. (A.) radiatostriata respectively, both of which occur widely in the Southern Hemisphere (Fig. 3) (Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1994; Sha et al., 1994). As noted above, Thracia rotundata and Filosina are typical of Aptian and Barremian#Aptian deposits in England. The association of all the bivalves indicates an Aptian age for the Yunshan Formation. The age indications of Vesperopsis and Odontochitina operculata do not contra- dict this determination, and the stratigraphic position of the formation, resting conformably on the Barremian Qihulin Formation, is also consistent with it. The Zhushan Formation consists of non-marine coal- bearing deposits intercalated with littoral beds that are mainly grey and greyish green siltstones, mudstones, tuff breccias, tuffs, coals, and pebbly sandstones. The formation yields the bivalve Sinopsammobia ovalis, a species that is very common in the A. (A.) caucasica-A. (A.) aptiensis-Filosina subovalis-Thracia rotundata assemblage in the underlying Yunshan Formation. This suggests that the Zhushan Formation is of Late Aptian or Late Aptian#Early Albian age.

3.5. Jixi Group of Jixi, Boli, Shuangyashan, Jixian, Suibin and Hegang

In the basins of Jixi, including Jidong, Boli including Qitaihe, Shuangyashan, Suibin and Hegang (Fig. 1), another coal-bearing succession, the Jixi Group (Table 1, cols. 2, 5), occurs. In the Jixi and Boli areas this typically comprises the Didao Formation, including the Didao and Effusive members (alternatively the Didao and Effusive formations), the Chengzihe Formation and the Muling (=Muleng) Formation (Table 1, col. 5). The Didao Formation is mainly composed of volcaniclastic sediments, tuffs, pebbly sandstones, medium# fine-grained sandstones, siltstones, mudstones and coals, together with basal conglomerates, but the Effusive Member contains altered andesite. The formation yields plant fossils including spores, pollen grains and the Vesperopsis didaoensis-Lagenorhytis g ranorugosa dinoflagellate cyst association, which indicates slightly brackish conditions of deposition. Lagenorhytis occurs in Upper Ryazanian (Berriasian) (see Sha and Fu ¨rsich

722 J. Sha et al. / Cretaceous Research 2 4 (2003) 715#728

1993a) to basal Hauterivian deposits; thus the dinoflagellate assemblage was dated as Late Berriasian# Hauterivian by Cheng and He (2001). However, the Didao Formation unconformably overlies the Lower Proterozoic Mashan Group or older granites and is overlain apparently disconformably by the Upper Barremian#Aptian Chengzihe Formation (see below). The Didao Formation is, therefore, considered to be mainly Hauterivian or Valanginian#Hauterivian, and even possibly Barremian in age. The Chengzihe Formation is dominated by non- marine coal-bearing deposits. These are mainly composed of greyish white or yellow medium#fine-grained sandstones, siltstones, mudstones, sandstones with basal gravels, and coals; rocks of non-marine origin are intercalated with at least four littoral beds. The formation contains plant megafossils, spores and pollen grains, ostracods, fishes, reptiles, abundant bivalves, including the bivalve assemblage Aucellina (A.) caucasica-Filosina subovalis-Thracia rotundata, and dinoflagellate cysts, including two cyst assemblages, viz. Odontochitina operculata-Muderongia tetracantha and Vesperopsis didaoensis in the lower marine beds, and another, characterized by Canningia reticulata, in the upper marine beds. The bivalve assemblage suggests an Aptian age, as concluded for the Yunshan Formation (see above). However, Muderongia tetracantha ranges from Middle Valanginian to top Lower Barremian and Canningia reticulata from uppermost Hauterivian into the Upper Cretaceous (Powell, 1992). These ranges suggest that the lower marine beds of Chengzihe Formation are of Early Barremian age, and the upper marine beds are younger age than this. Taking into account the Aptian indications of the bivalves and the Aptian#early Albian dinoflagellate assemblage recovered from the overlying Muling Formation (see below), the Chengzihe Forma- tion is considered to be mainly Aptian but perhaps extends downward into the Barremian (He and Sun, 2001). Wan and Qiao (1994) and Wan et al. (1995) recovered Nyktericysta and Vesperopsis from the lower and upper Chengzihe Formation (Table 1, col. 2) in Jixian and Puyang (west of Suibin) (Fig. 1), which does not contra- dict our conclusion. The middle and upper parts of the formation yield bivalve assemblages of both non-marine (Arguniella cf. quadrata-Unio cf. grabaui) and marine (Sinopsamobia ovalis-Filosina subovalis) affinities, and angiosperm megafossils including Asiatifolium elegans, Chengzihella bobvata, Jixia p innatipartita, Regerisia lanceolata and Shenkuoa colonura (Sun et al., 1993). Species of Arguniella, including A. cf. quadrata, and A. cf. ventricosa, and Unio, including U. aff. abrutschewi and U. cf. grabaui, are widely known from non-marine Lower Cretaceous strata. The presence of Barremian# Aptian Filosina subovalis at this level and the inferred Aptian age of the bivalve assemblages in the lower part of the formation restricts the age of the upper Chengzihe Formation to the Aptian. Thus, the Chengzihe Formation is essentially Aptian in age. No Barremian strata have been confirmed (corresponding to the Qihulin Formation), between the Chengzihe and Didao formations. It is possible that the Chengzihe Formation extends down into the Upper Barremian, corresponding to the lower range of Aucellina (A.) caucasica. The Muling Formation is composed of non-marine coal-bearing deposits intercalated rarely with brackish sediments. It is dominated by grey and greenish-grey fine-grained sandstones and siltstones interbedded with mudstones, tuffs and coal beds. It contains the non- marine bivalve assemblage Sphaerium (Sphaerium) subplanum-S. (S.) selenginense, an assemblage that is widely distributed in eastern Asia and probably indicative of the Aptian although it possibly ranges up into the Lower Albian. The formation also yields the slightly brackish Aptian#Albian dinoflagellate cyst Cribroperi- dinium? p arorthoceras (Wan et al., 2000). Overall, the fossils recovered from the Muling Formation suggest an Aptian#Early Albian age range but the formation is probably mostly if not entirely of Aptian age.

3.6. Huashan Group of Jixi, Boli, Peide, Longzhaogou, Zhushan, Dajiashan, Shuangyashan, Jixian, Suibin and Hegang

Both the Longzhaogou and Jixi groups are succeeded by the Huashan Group, which is composed of the Dongshan Formation and overlying Houshigou Forma- tion (Table 1, cols. 2, 4, 5). The former consists mainly of volcaniclastic deposits intercalated with sandstones, siltstones and mudstones. The Houshigou Formation is composed of sandstones intercalated with siltstones and mudstones yielding a non-marine bivalve assemblage that is characterized by Trigonioides (Trigonioides) heilongjiangensis and Plicatounio? sp. (Research Team on the Mesozoic Coal-Bearing Formations in Eastern Heilongjiang, 1986). In the Dajiashan area, the Dajiashan Formation is succeeded by the Dongshan Formation, which consists mainly of unfossiliferous volcanic rocks. Deposits that are definitely referable to the Houshigou Formation have not yet been found (Table 1, col. 3).

3. 7. Dongdaling and Xiachengzif ormations of Xingfu and Xiachengzi

In the Xingfu, Xiachengzi and Yilin areas (Fig. 1), the Lower Cretaceous comprises, in ascending order, the Dongdaling and Xiachengzi formations (Table 1, col. 6). The former consists of volcanics intercalated with tuffa- ceous siltstones that yield the brackish-water bivalve Sphaerioides y ixianensis, gastropods and ostracods. In

J. Sha et al. / Cretaceous Research 2 4 (2003) 715#728 723 western Liaoning, S. y ixianensis occurs in the Aptian Jehol Group that contains Arguniella (Gu et al., 1976; Gu, 1982), as in the Aptian Chengzihe Formation in eastern Heilongjiang (see above). Therefore, the Dongdaling Formation is most probably Aptian in age. The Xiachengzi Formation is composed of black, grey and greenish fine-grained sandstones, siltstones, silty illitic claystones with feldspar debris and muddy siltstones. It yields the non-marine bivalve assemblage Trigonioides (Trigonioides) heilongjiangensis-Sphaerium (Sphaerium) y anbianense, and the marine bivalve assemblage Solemya-Inoceramya? The non-marine assemblage, which also includes Plicatounio (Plicatounio) cf. naktongensis and Unio heilongjiangense, is associated with gastropods, ostracods, insects, reptile debris, fish scales, charophyte algae and plant megafossils. In western Liaoning, Trigonioides-bearing beds occur stratigraphically higher than the Arguniella-bearing beds of the Aptian Chengzihe Formation of eastern Heilongjiang. In Jilin, Sphaerium (S.) y anbianense- bearing measures also occur above the beds yielding Arguniella. It is clear, therefore, that the T. (T.) heilongjiangensis-S. (S.) y anbianense assemblage, and hence the Xiachengzi Formation, must be younger than Aptian. Furthermore, given the assumed Aptian age of the underlying Dongdaling Formation, the Xiachengzi Formation is thought most likely to be of Albian age. The marine bivalves Solemya and Inoceramya? were collected from a thin-bedded grey muddy siltstone intercalated with the Trigonioides-bearing strata. These marine bivalves are not stratigraphically significant but record a marine depositional event.

4. Correlation

The Buchia assemblages from the Dongrong and Dong#anzhen formations (Fig. 2), the Aucellina assemblages from the Dajiashan Formation and Longzhaogou and Jixi groups (Fig. 3), and the dinoflagellate assemblages from the Dongrong and Suibin formations, and Longzhaogou and Jixi groups all have global distribu- tions (Sha and Fu ¨rsich 1993a, 1994; Sha et al. 1994, 2002). On the basis of the international ranges of this fauna and flora, the Suibin Formation is dated as Middle#Late Callovian and the Dongrong Formation as Oxfordian#Valanginian. The Dong$anzhen Formation is of Middle Volgian# Early Valanginian age. The upper Dongrong Forma- tion, containing Buchia f ischeriana and dinoflagellate cyst assemblage Oligosphaeridium p ulcherrium, can be correlated approximately with the whole of the Dong$anzhen Formation (Table 1, cols 1#2) since the index species, Buchia fischeriana, is common to both the upper Dongrong and lower Dong$anzhen formations, and the age of dinoflagellate assemblage in the upper Dongrong Formation is almost same as that of the Buchia assemblage from the upper Dong$anzhen Formation. Strata underlying the Dong$anzhen Forma- tion are not exposed (Table 1, col. 1) because they are covered by Wusuli River (Fig. 1). It is possible, therefore, that there are some strata as old as, or even older than the middle and lower Dongrong and Suibin formations in the Dong$an area. The Dajiashan Formation, and the Longzhaogou and Jixi groups are of middle#late Early Cretaceous age and can be broadly correlated. The Qihulin Formation of the Longzhaogou Group is considered to be Barremian in age, based on the associated ammonites and most of the bivalves and dinoflagellates in the formation; no age- equivalent strata have been recognized in the Jixi Group. The Yunshan Formation of the Longzhaogou Group and the Chengzihe Formation of the Jixi Group are both of Aptian age and these two formations can be approximately correlated although the Chengzihe Formation may encompass strata as old as Late Barremian. The Zhushan Formation of the Longzhaogou Group is of Late Aptian or Late Aptian#Early Albian age. It contains the same bivalve species as the Yunshan Formation. The Muling Formation of the Jixi Group is of Aptian or Aptian#Early Albian age according to the association of bivalves and dinoflagellates, and can be correlated with the Zhushan Formation. The Peide Formation of the Longzhaogou Group and the Didao Formation of the Jixi Group are inferred to be of Hauterivian or Valanginian#Hauterivian age and are considered to correlate with each other (Table 1, cols. 4#5). The Dajiashan Formation contains a marine bivalve fauna, including the Aucellina (Aucellina) caucasica-A. (A.) aptiensis assemblage, and is faunally comparable of the m arine deposits of the Longzhaogou and Jixi groups (Table 1, cols.3#5). The Dongdaling Formation is m ainly of Aptian age, based on the range of Sphaerioides y ixianensis, and corresponds to the Muling Formation (Table 1, cols. 5#6). The Huashan Group (the Houshigou Formation in particular), and the Xiachengzi Formation (Table 1, cols. 2, 4#6) are probably Albian in age; both stratigraphic units having yielded Trigonioides (Trigonioides) heilongjiangensis and Plicatounio (Plicatounio) cf. naktongensis.

5. Discussion 5.1. Biostratigraphy

On the basis of this study, the non-marine bivalve assemblages Arguniella cf. ventricosa-Unio cf. grabaui and Sphaerium subplanum-S. selenginense from the Jixi

724 J. Sha et al. / Cretaceous Research 2 4 (2003) 715#728 Group, and Sphaerioides y ixianensis from the Dongdal- ing Formation have been confirmed as being of middle# late Early Cretaceous, mainly Aptian age; this determination is constrained by the Early Cretaceous index marine bivalves Aucellina (Aucellina) caucasica, Filosina subovalis and Thracia rotundata, and by the dinoflagellate cysts Odontochitina operculata, Muderongia tetracantha, Vesperopsis didaoensis, Can- ningia reticulata and Cribroperidinium? p arorthoceras. The non-marine bivalves belong the Jehol Fauna, which is widely distributed in north and east China, and the Witim Fauna of Siberia. It is suggested, therefore, that strata containing the Jehol and Witim faunas, such as the Jehol Group of W est Liaoning, the Tuoli Group of Beijing, the Laiyang and Mengyin groups of Shandong, the Guangshan Group of central Anhui, the Jiande Group of western Zhejiang, the Zhidan Group of Shanxi, Gansu, and Ningxia, the Huihuibao Group of western Gansu, the Tugulu Group of northern Xinjiang, and the Transbaikalian Group of Siberia, are all of Early Cretaceous (most probably Barremian#Early Albian) rather than Jurassic age (Sha, 1990, 1991, 1999; Matsukawa et al., 1993; Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1993a, 1994; Sha et al., 1994, 2000, 2002; Futakami et al., 1995; Gu, 1995, 1998; Gu et al., 1997). Thus, the early birds, dinosaurs, and angiosperms from the Jehol Group of West Liaoning are all middle Early Cretaceous in age (Sha and Fu ¨rsich 1993a; Smith et al. 2001; Sha et al. 2002).

5.2. Palaeogeography andp alaeoclimatology

During the Jurassic, non-marine conditions prevailed in the basins of northeast China until the Late Jurassic when the sea encroached into the northeast corner of eastern Heilongjiang, in the vicinity of Suibin and Dong#an and probably north of these areas. It retreated from Heilongjiang in the Valanginian and did not return until the Barremian or perhaps a little earlier. Repeated transgressive and regressive events characterized the Barremian$Albian period, during which a shallow embayment opened into, and deepened towards, the Palaeo-Pacific along the line of Dajiashan-Yunshan- Longzhaogou-Peide-Jixi. This palaeogeography is suggested by the general variation in facies, from wholly marine in the east (e.g. in Dajiashan), passing westwards through alternating marine and non-marine facies (e.g. in Yunshan, Longzhaogou and Peide) to mainly non- marine with marine intercalations (e.g. in Chengzihe and Pingyang, Jixi Basin). The embayment almost dis- appeared by the end of the Aptian or Early Albian, but was episodically present during sea-level highstands, the embayment extending from the northwestern Palaeo-Pacific as far west as the Yilin-Xiachengzi area or even the Songhuajiang-Liaohe Basin, as testified by the recognition of brackish dinoflagellate cysts in the Albian Denglouku and Quantou formations in the Songhuajiang-Liaohe Basin (Gao et al., 1992), and marine bivalves in the Xiachengzi Formation in the Yilin-Xiachengzi area (Gu et al., 1984; Sha and Fu ¨rsich, 1993b). The Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous deposits of eastern Heilongjiang are almost exclusively composed of siliciclastic rocks. W arm-water faunas such as corals and trigonioids are absent whereas cool- or relatively cold-water Buchia and Aucellina faunas are present. Furthermore, all the species of Buchia and Aucellina recorded from eastern Heilongjiang are restricted to the Northern Hemisphere including Spitsbergen, the Russian Platform, western and Arctic Canada, northern Alaska, and northeastern and eastern Siberia (Fig. 2 and Fig. 3). Both fossils and facies thus suggest that the sea-water in eastern Heilongjiang was cold during the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous (Sha et al., 1994). It is probable that the embayment of eastern Heilongjiang influenced the climate of the whole of northeastern China, allowing the animals and plants to thrive, and controlling the distribution of the biota. The presence of the embayment would have ensured a humid climate, and the successive transgressive and regressive events resulted in the formation of paralic swamp and marsh environments around the bay favourable for the colonisation of both terrestrial and aquatic plants and animals. New taxa originated in, or migrated into these settings. Angiosperms appeared and the flowers attracted numerous insects. The seeds, fruits and nuts produced, together with the insects and adjacent forest, were attractive to vertebrate animals including birds and dinosaurs. Large molluscs, ostracods, fishes and reptiles thrived in the lakes and swamps. Sea-level changes modified the environmental parameters and contributed to the extinction of some old taxa and led to the emergence of new forms (Hallam, 1994; Hallam and Wignall, 1997; Sha et al., 2002). Peak transgressions during sea-level highstands would have altered the sal- inity of the lakes and changed the overall ecosystem, causing some creatures to become extinct and others to adapt and evolve.

5.3. Energy resources

The extensive, long-lasting swamps in the west and the predominantly paralic marshland environments in the east led to the accumulation of large quantities of organic matter in the sediments and substrate, and even- tually to the formation of coal and oil (Sha et al., 1994). In eastern Heilongjiang, the coal-bearing deposits are always more or less associated with marine or brackish deposits, and in the Songhuajiang-Liaohe Basin, the oil-bearing deposits are commonly within marine or brackish sediments. However, the precise relationships between the transgressive phases and the accumulation

J. Sha et al. / Cretaceous Research 2 4 (2003) 715#728 725 of organic-rich deposits that led to the coal and oil accumulations remain to be studied in detail.

Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by the Pilot Project of the Knowledge Innovation Program, Academia Sinica (KZCX2-1 14), the National Science Foundation of China (40072004) and the fund of the Grant-in-Aid for University and Society Collaboration of the Japanese Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture (11791012). We are very grateful to Prof. David J. Batten for his work on our paper, and to Dr. Zhang Haichung, Dr. Shang Qinghua, and the Chief Engineers Zhao Shan and Piao Taiyuan for their very kind help during the arduous field work.

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