2014 Season Finale - Pennsylvanian Of Kansas

[Bullsnake]

With unseasonably mild weather, Ive been able to continue exploration of a small roadcut close to home, and happily it has turned out to be a rather nice find in itself.

I've posted previously about this site after finding several, rather rare crinoid cups- Paragassizocrinus.

Thank you to all who contributed to it.

http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/50693-crinoid-help-plus-suspect-item/

At the risk of redundancy, I'll re-post pictures of the site and crinoids in this thread, but also some other finds of note, as well as another site I'd been wanting to visit comprising a formation I've been interested in exploring.

First stop:

When I first visited this cut I found that the slabs of rock detaching from the South Bend limestone, and sliding down the Rock Lake shale are riddled with some nice ichnofossils.

The South Bend will be the focus here, as that is the most fossiliferous layer. I will certainly return to explore the Rock Creek shale and Stoner limestone further.

Continued...

[Bullsnake]

One more plate:

Some other interesting ichnos are this vertical channel shaped trace with an apparently more resistant center:

...and several rocks pervaded with borings. Perhaps burrows, or maybe root molds:

At the top of the member is an iron-rich, heavily weathered layer. This is where the most fossils were found.

Continued...

[Bullsnake]

In this layer is a pretty heavy concentration of small horn corals, a few species of small brachiopods, and crinoid pieces, including the Paragassizocrinus basal cones.

Another quite rare find is what I believe to be a fragment of a pretty big Cladodont tooth:

After this initial visit, I must admit I just couldn't figure out the formation, so I called in 'the big guns'.

Enter our resident Midcontinent Pennsylvanian guru, Missourian.

It wasn't too hard to lure him out with the promise of finding something he had yet to find.

In no time at all he told me where we were, thus I could finally put a name to the fac(ies).

While we were there I also found a fragment of a nautiloid...another moment because I didn't recognize it until he pointed out what it was.

Continued...

[Bullsnake]

After spending awhile at that exposure I was able to coax him out of the Missourian Series into the Virgilian Series.

I led him to a cut across town that I had seen, but not yet visited. So, again I didn't know what strata it is.

He immediately pointed out the distinctively red, massive member as the Toronto limestone.

So, armed with that information, I could readily distinguish other members of this formation; the Oread.

The talus below contains brachiopods, gastropods, crinoid bits, and fusulinids. Typical Pennsylvanian stuff.

I haven't taken pictures of any specimens I picked up there, as they are not the greatest preservation, and only picked up a very few.

But here are a couple of shots of exposed fossils in the face of the rock:

Continued...

Edited January 1, 2015 by Bullsnake

[Bullsnake]

At the top of the Toronto is a weathered surface full of plant root molds. Missourian said this is indicative of exposed surface at the end of a regressive phase. Also present, but not pictured, are fragments of pelecypod shell.

The member above the Toronto is the Snyderville shale. I didn't spot any fossils here, but in my reference they are reported in the upper part.

Not present, or certainly not exposed, are the overlying members of the Oread.

However, directly across the highway is a nice vertical cut of some of the members of the formation.

Notable is the Leavenworth limestone, of which Missourian believes this is the type locality for the member.

This concludes the report, and my lesson for 2014.

Should there be any questions, I'll humbly have to defer to Missourian if he shall be so kind.

Thank you for your indulgence, and Happy Hunting in 2015!

[izak_]

Wow!

[JimB88]

Cool report! Nice horn corals.

Missourian does seem to be the "rock whisperer" for that area.

[Plantguy]

Hey Steve, thanks for the post. Really enjoyed seeing the road cuts with the different strata in your area. I wish we had more of that stuff down here.

Yeah Missourian!

Regards, Chris

[Ludwigia]

Thanks for the detailed report, especially on the strata. It's a good feeling to start to feel at home in the rocks, isn't it?

[JustPlainPetrified]

Great report to end one year and eagerly start another. Thank you!

[Fossildude19]

Thanks for the great report, Steve!

Hope the mild trend continues for you - and you can get out some more.

Regards,

[Bullsnake]

Dinoboy, Jim, Chris, Roger, JustPlainPetrified, and Tim.

Thank you for the comments!

It is a great feeling to have learned the importance of the provenance of our finds, and though it's a a frustrating struggle sometimes (read usually), I'm fortunate to have the help with it.

I have a long way to go getting my bearings with identifying a lot of the geology, but frustration couldn't be more fun!

[Missourian]

Thanks again Steve for dragging me along. My modest finds from that day....

Paragassizocrinus:

Granular texture:

Lophophyllidium. These are quite numerous:

All were found at the top of the South Bend Formation (probably Gretna Shale).

[Missourian]

Trace fossils at the base of the South Bend (Little Kaw Limestone)....

There is an amazing variety:

Up close:

Chondrites, i think:

This is one of the pieces Steve showed above. I tried to field-trim the chunk, but it was pretty tough stuff.

Edited January 1, 2015 by Missourian

[Missourian]

These burrows appear to be on or under some ripples in the sandstone:

At a few other localities, Cruziana, Crossopodia, and Asteriacites can be found in this horizon.

Now on to the second stop....

As Steve mentioned, the top of the Toronto Limestone was weathered at the end of the regressive phase. The carbonate was altered as the freshwater water table extended into it, and it eventually became oxidized and riddled with roots. These weathered zones have fascinated me as long as I've known about them.

I collected one fairly nice bunch of roots:

[Bullsnake]

Thanks again Steve for dragging me along.

You're very welcome.

A small price to pay for all I learn from you.

[Virgilian]

On ‎12‎/‎31‎/‎2014 at 8:26 PM, Bullsnake said:

I've posted previously about this site after finding several, rather rare crinoid cups- Paragassizocrinus

.

The South Bend will be the focus here, as that is the most fossiliferous layer.

 

In Kansas, infrabasal cones belonging to that fascinating stemless crinoid Paragassizocrinus have also been reported from the Eudora Shale Member of the Stanton Limestone--Lansing Group, Missourian Stage (the South Bend, of course, is also a member of the Lansing Group--though somwhat younger in geologic age than the Eudora Shale)--and possibly the Nellie Bly Formation, Kansas City Group, Missourian Stage. 

 

On ‎12‎/‎31‎/‎2014 at 8:46 PM, Bullsnake said:

In this layer is a pretty heavy concentration of small horn corals, a few species of small brachiopods, and crinoid pieces, including the Paragassizocrinus basal cones.

 

 

 

Yes. Very nice Paragassizocrinus infrabasal cones. Spectacular finds, as a matter of fact.