Multiproxy synthesis at the Arlington Archosaur Site: New insights into Cretaceous paralic paleoenvironments and regional stratigraphy, Woodbine Group, Texas, USA

Ecosystems of the 'mid' Cretaceous are significant but poorly understood, due in large part to a sparse fossil record. Existing fossils, particularly in North America, are not chronostratigraphically well-constrained, further hampering comparisons of species and ecosystems across Laramidi...

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Main Authors: Christopher R. Noto, Peter P. Flaig, Maria Antonietta Lorente
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Bibliothèque de l'Université de Genève 2025-01-01
Series:Sedimentologika
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Online Access:https://oap.unige.ch/journals/sdk/article/view/1435
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author Christopher R. Noto
Peter P. Flaig
Maria Antonietta Lorente
author_facet Christopher R. Noto
Peter P. Flaig
Maria Antonietta Lorente
author_sort Christopher R. Noto
collection DOAJ
description Ecosystems of the 'mid' Cretaceous are significant but poorly understood, due in large part to a sparse fossil record. Existing fossils, particularly in North America, are not chronostratigraphically well-constrained, further hampering comparisons of species and ecosystems across Laramidia and Appalachia. Efforts to overcome this lack of temporal resolution typically involve systematic collection of ashfall deposits, geochemistry, and biostratigraphy. Here we describe a new, high-resolution palynological and sedimentologic dataset from the Arlington Archosaur Site (AAS) of the Lewisville Formation (Woodbine Group; Middle Cenomanian). The integration of these new data with existing biostratigraphic, macrofossil (vertebrate, invertebrate, botanical), lithologic, ichnologic, and geochemical data allows for a comprehensive paleoenvironmental reconstruction and assessment of paleoenvironmental evolution during AAS deposition. Depositional environments are paralic and include nearshore, shallow-marine tidal-flat, lagoonal, tidal-delta deposits, fluvial-distributary channels, and associated floodplain environments including wetlands (swamp-marsh-lakes) and paleosols. The presence of the Cyclonephelium compactum – C. membraniphorum (Ccm) morphological plexus throughout the AAS deposit suggests a younger minimum age of (early) late Cenomanian for deposits, indicating possible southward expansion of this group into the Cretaceous Western Interior Seaway (CWIS) coincident with the onset of the Plenus Cold Event (PCE) of OAE2. The revised age estimate for the AAS suggests that Woodbine deposition at more proximal clastic source areas continued into the late Cenomanian, coeval with down dip Eagle Ford Group sedimentation. This study has important implications for the biogeography of western Appalachia and the response of terrestrial and shallow marine ecosystems of the southeastern CWIS to the onset of OAE2.
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spelling doaj-art-866af07863d44b0e922d545dae2fb0a52025-01-07T02:28:18ZengBibliothèque de l'Université de GenèveSedimentologika2813-415X2025-01-013110.57035/journals/sdk.2025.e31.1435Multiproxy synthesis at the Arlington Archosaur Site: New insights into Cretaceous paralic paleoenvironments and regional stratigraphy, Woodbine Group, Texas, USAChristopher R. Noto0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1829-2593Peter P. Flaig1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4702-2157Maria Antonietta Lorente2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2191-7729Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin–Parkside, 900 Wood Rd PO Box 2000, Kenosha, Wisconsin 53141, U.S.A.Bureau of Economic Geology, Jackson School of Geosciences, University of Texas at Austin, 10100 Burnet Rd., Bldg. 130, Austin, Texas 78758-4445, U.S.A.Geology, Central University Venezuela and Ellington Geological Services, 1414 Lumpkin Rd., Houston, Texas 77043, U.S.A. Ecosystems of the 'mid' Cretaceous are significant but poorly understood, due in large part to a sparse fossil record. Existing fossils, particularly in North America, are not chronostratigraphically well-constrained, further hampering comparisons of species and ecosystems across Laramidia and Appalachia. Efforts to overcome this lack of temporal resolution typically involve systematic collection of ashfall deposits, geochemistry, and biostratigraphy. Here we describe a new, high-resolution palynological and sedimentologic dataset from the Arlington Archosaur Site (AAS) of the Lewisville Formation (Woodbine Group; Middle Cenomanian). The integration of these new data with existing biostratigraphic, macrofossil (vertebrate, invertebrate, botanical), lithologic, ichnologic, and geochemical data allows for a comprehensive paleoenvironmental reconstruction and assessment of paleoenvironmental evolution during AAS deposition. Depositional environments are paralic and include nearshore, shallow-marine tidal-flat, lagoonal, tidal-delta deposits, fluvial-distributary channels, and associated floodplain environments including wetlands (swamp-marsh-lakes) and paleosols. The presence of the Cyclonephelium compactum – C. membraniphorum (Ccm) morphological plexus throughout the AAS deposit suggests a younger minimum age of (early) late Cenomanian for deposits, indicating possible southward expansion of this group into the Cretaceous Western Interior Seaway (CWIS) coincident with the onset of the Plenus Cold Event (PCE) of OAE2. The revised age estimate for the AAS suggests that Woodbine deposition at more proximal clastic source areas continued into the late Cenomanian, coeval with down dip Eagle Ford Group sedimentation. This study has important implications for the biogeography of western Appalachia and the response of terrestrial and shallow marine ecosystems of the southeastern CWIS to the onset of OAE2. https://oap.unige.ch/journals/sdk/article/view/1435CenomanianEagle FordPlenus Cold EventOAE2Tidal coastline
spellingShingle Christopher R. Noto
Peter P. Flaig
Maria Antonietta Lorente
Multiproxy synthesis at the Arlington Archosaur Site: New insights into Cretaceous paralic paleoenvironments and regional stratigraphy, Woodbine Group, Texas, USA
Sedimentologika
Cenomanian
Eagle Ford
Plenus Cold Event
OAE2
Tidal coastline
title Multiproxy synthesis at the Arlington Archosaur Site: New insights into Cretaceous paralic paleoenvironments and regional stratigraphy, Woodbine Group, Texas, USA
title_full Multiproxy synthesis at the Arlington Archosaur Site: New insights into Cretaceous paralic paleoenvironments and regional stratigraphy, Woodbine Group, Texas, USA
title_fullStr Multiproxy synthesis at the Arlington Archosaur Site: New insights into Cretaceous paralic paleoenvironments and regional stratigraphy, Woodbine Group, Texas, USA
title_full_unstemmed Multiproxy synthesis at the Arlington Archosaur Site: New insights into Cretaceous paralic paleoenvironments and regional stratigraphy, Woodbine Group, Texas, USA
title_short Multiproxy synthesis at the Arlington Archosaur Site: New insights into Cretaceous paralic paleoenvironments and regional stratigraphy, Woodbine Group, Texas, USA
title_sort multiproxy synthesis at the arlington archosaur site new insights into cretaceous paralic paleoenvironments and regional stratigraphy woodbine group texas usa
topic Cenomanian
Eagle Ford
Plenus Cold Event
OAE2
Tidal coastline
url https://oap.unige.ch/journals/sdk/article/view/1435
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