Lecture: Vertebrate studies in the Kaiparowits Formation, Upper Cretaceous, of Southern Utah

Speaker: Sue Beardmore

Entry Fee

Members: Free

Visitors: £5.00

Date and Time

19:30 -

Location

Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution, 16-18 Queen Square, Bath BA1 2HN


Lecture Description

The Grand Staircase - Escalante National Monument in southern Utah, USA, is situated on the western side of the Colorado plateau where an almost complete stratigraphic succession of Mesozoic rocks is exposed. The area surrounding the Henry Mountains nearby also shows a similar succession though beds near the top have been removed by erosion and a large Oligo-Miocene intrusion has steeply tilted the strata. Both areas are of interest to the Utah Museum of Natural History as the Kaiparowits Formation of the Upper Cretaceous found in both has produced many vertebrate localities. Using the help of volunteers and students from the University of Utah, prospecting and excavation have revealed a high number of hadrosaurid dinosaur skeletons, other rarer theropod dinosaurs, crocodiles and turtles. Bivalves, gastropods and plant debris occur in dense horizons throughout the formation, though the latter often occurs close to the skeletons excavated, revealing something of the transportation processes at the time of deposition. The frequent numbers of channels within the formation are repeatedly filled by sand, fining upward into silts of the vast flood plain environment envisaged for the Kaiparowits Formation.


Attending via Zoom

This is a hybrid meeting: you can attend in person or join online via Zoom.

Bath Geological Society Members: Free of charge. Joining instructions and the Zoom link are sent to members by email prior to the lecture.

Visitors & Non-Members: (including members of the Geologists' Association and affiliated societies) Please book via Eventbrite to receive Zoom access (see the Entry Fee details above).

How to join: Click the Zoom link provided in your email or Eventbrite confirmation. You can join using the Zoom desktop or mobile app, or directly via your web browser without installing any software. The virtual waiting room opens approximately 15 minutes before the scheduled start time, and attendees will be admitted before the talk commences.

For any queries about joining online, please contact [email protected].



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