The Westbury Formation is a geological formation in England, one of the Penarth Group. It dates back to the Rhaetian.[1] The formation is named after the village of Westbury-on-Severn in Gloucestershire.[2] The remains of a giant shastasaurid and dinosaurs are known from the formation.[3][4]

Westbury Formation
Stratigraphic range: Rhaetian
TypeGeological formation
Unit ofPenarth Group
UnderliesLilstock Formation
OverliesBlue Anchor Formation
Thickness5-10 m
Lithology
PrimaryMudstone, Shale
OtherLimestone, Sandstone
Location
RegionEurope
Country UK
Type section
Named forWestbury-on-Severn

Vertebrate fauna

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Vertebrates reported from the Westbury Formation
Genus Species Location Stratigraphic position Material Notes Images
Avalonianus[5] A. sanfordi[5] Wedmore Hill[5] "Several now lost teeth."[5]

Camelotia[1]

C. borealis[1]

Westbury-on-Severn[6]

"Vertebrae, pubis, ischium, femur, tibia, phalanges, adult."[7]

 
Camelotia
Ichthyotitan[4] I. severnensis[4] Blue Anchor and Lilstock[4] Two partial surangulars[3] Possibly one of the largest marine reptiles
Picrodon[5] P. herveyi[5] Wedmore Hill[5] "Tooth."[5]
Shastasauridae[3] Indeterminate[3] Aust[3] "Three partial specimens."[3]
Pachystropheus[8] Several partial postcranial skeletons A small thalattosaurian marine reptile, youngest known thalattosaur
Lissodus[8] L. minimus A hybodont shark
Saurichthys[8] A pike or gar-like predatory fish
Sargodon[8] A dapediiform fish
Gyrolepis[8] A ray-finned fish
Birgeria[8] A large predatory fish
 
Ceratodus[8] A lungfish

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Weishampel, David B; et al. (2004). "Dinosaur distribution (Late Triassic, Europe)." In: Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; and Osmólska, Halszka (eds.): The Dinosauria, 2nd, Berkeley: University of California Press. Pp. 521–525. ISBN 0-520-24209-2.
  2. ^ The BGS Lexicon of Named Rock Units — Result Details: Westbury Formation
  3. ^ a b c d e f Lomax, Dean R.; De la Salle, Paul; Massare, Judy A.; Gallois, Ramues (2018-04-09). Wong, William Oki (ed.). "A giant Late Triassic ichthyosaur from the UK and a reinterpretation of the Aust Cliff 'dinosaurian' bones". PLOS ONE. 13 (4): e0194742. Bibcode:2018PLoSO..1394742L. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0194742. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 5890986. PMID 29630618.
  4. ^ a b c d Lomax, D. R.; de la Salle, P.; Perillo, M.; Reynolds, J.; Reynolds, R.; Waldron, J. F. (2024). "The last giants: New evidence for giant Late Triassic (Rhaetian) ichthyosaurs from the UK". PLOS ONE. 19 (4). e0300289. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0300289. PMC 11023487.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h H. G. Seeley. (1898). On large terrestrial saurians from the Rhaetic Beds of Wedmore Hill, described as Avalonia sanfordi and Picrodon herveyi. Geological Magazine, decade 4 5:1-6
  6. ^ Galton, P. M. (1985). Notes on the Melanorosauridae, a family of large prosauropod dinosaurs (Saurischia: Sauropodomorpha). Geobios, 18(5), 671-676.
  7. ^ "Table 12.1," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 234.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Quinn, Jacob G.; Matheau-Raven, Evangelos R.; Whiteside, David I.; Marshall, John E. A.; Hutchinson, Deborah J.; Benton, Michael J. (2024-06-04). "The relationships and paleoecology of Pachystropheus rhaeticus , an enigmatic latest Triassic marine reptile (Diapsida: Thalattosauria)". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. doi:10.1080/02724634.2024.2350408. ISSN 0272-4634.