Tar Heel/Coachman Formation
Stratigraphic range: Campanian
~
TypeFormation
Unit ofBlack Creek Group
UnderliesBladen Formation
Location
Region
Country United States

The Tar Heel Formation is a geologic formation in North Carolina. It preserves fossils, including amber dating back to the Cretaceous period. A locality known as Phoebus Landing, has been dated to 78.5-77.1 Ma.[1]

Fish

Cartilaginous fish[2]

Cartilaginous fish of the Tar Heel/Coachman Formation
Genus Species Location Notes Images

Ischyrhiza

I. mira Pitt County, North Carolina
Bladen County, North Carolina
An extinct genus of sawfish
Squalicorax kaupi
Cretolamna
Modern Sand Tiger Shark

Squalicorax

  • S. falcatus
  • S. kaupi
  • S. pristodontus
  • S. bassanii
Wayne County, North Carolina
Bladen County, North Carolina
Lenoir County, North Carolina
An anacorid shark

Hybodus

H. sp. Bladen County, North Carolina
Robeson County, North Carolina
Wayne County, North Carolina
A hybodontid shark

Scapanorhynchus

S. texanus Bladen County, North Carolina
Robeson County, North Carolina
Wayne County, North Carolina
Lenoir County, North Carolina
A type of goblin shark

Asteracanthus

A. sp. Bladen County, North Carolina A hybodontid shark

Brachyrhizodus

  • B. wichitaensis
  • B. mcnultyi
Bladen County, North Carolina A prehistoric stingray

Cretolamna

C. appendiculata Wayne County, North Carolina
Bladen County, North Carolina
An otodontid Shark

Cretodus

Cretodus sp. Wayne County, North Carolina A cretoxyrhinid shark

Carcharias

Carcharias sp. Bladen County, North Carolina A genus of sand shark (sand tiger sharks)

Odontaspis

Odontaspis sp. Bladen County, North Carolina A type of sand shark

Dinosaurs

Ornithopods

An indeterminate hadrosauroid is known from Stokes Quarry.[3]

Ornithopods of the Tar Heel/Coachman Formation
Genus Species Location Notes Images

Hadrosaurus

H. foulkii Hadrosaurus can be found throughout Late Cretaceous Appalachia.[3]
Hadrosaurus foulkii
"Hadrosaurus" "H." minor Phoebus Landing, North Carolina A small or juvenile hadrosaur.[3]

Hypsibema

H.crassicauda Hypsibema was first discovered in North Carolina from Sampson County, 1869, and described by Edward Drinker Cope. It was measured to be 12-17 meters, making it one of the largest hadrosaurids.
Hypsibema crassicauda

Lophorhothon

L. sp. Phoebus Landing, North Carolina Lophorhothon was discovered in the Mooreville Chalk Formation, Alabama.

Ceratopsians

Ceratopsids of the Tar Heel/Coachman Formation
Genus Species Location Notes Images

Leptoceratopsidae[3][4]

Indeterminate Sampson County, North Carolina In 2016, a left maxilla was found of a dinosaur from the Leptoceratopsidae, of an unknown genus.

Theropods

Indeterminate theropods, ornithomimosaurs, and maniraptorans are known from Stokes Quarry.[3]

Theropods of the Tar Heel/Coachman Formation
Genus Species Location Notes Images
Appalachiosaurus[3] A. montgomeriensis Stokes Quarry, South Carolina A large eutyrannosaur.
cf. Coelosaurus[5] Indeterminate Phoebus Landing, North Carolina An intermediate Ornithomimosaur
Dromaeosaurine[6] Indeterminate Sampson County, North Carolina A large dromaeosaurid, larger than Saurornitholestes but smaller than Dakotaraptor.
Dryptosauridae[3] Indeterminate Phoebus Landing, North Carolina A large eutyrannosaur part of an early lineage related to Dryptosaurus.

Saurornitholestes[3][7]

S. langstoni

The first evidence of dromaeosaurids in Appalachia was uncovered through S. langstoni specimens found at Stokes Quarry and Burches Ferry.[3]

References

  1. Longrich, Nicholas R. (2016). "A ceratopsian dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of eastern North America, and implications for dinosaur biogeography". Cretaceous Research. 57: 199–207. Bibcode:2016CrRes..57..199L. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2015.08.004.
  2. 1 2 NCSM Paleontology Database
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Brownstein, Chase D. (2018-02-08). "The biogeography and ecology of the Cretaceous non-avian dinosaurs of Appalachia". Palaeontologia Electronica. 21 (1): 1–56. doi:10.26879/801. ISSN 1094-8074.
  4. Brownstein, Chase D. (2018-04-05). "Diversity of raptor dinosaurs in southeastern North America revealed by the first definite record from North Carolina". doi:10.7287/peerj.preprints.26829v1. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. Baird D., and Horner, J., 1979, "Cretaceous dinosaurs of North Carolina" Brimleyana 2: 1–28
  6. Brownstein, Chase D. (2018-12-01). "A large dromaeosaurid from North Carolina". Cretaceous Research. 92: 1–7. Bibcode:2018CrRes..92....1B. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2018.07.006. ISSN 0195-6671. S2CID 135459468.
  7. Brownstein, Chase D. (2018). "The distinctive theropod assemblage of the Ellisdale site of New Jersey and its implications for North American dinosaur ecology and evolution during the Cretaceous". Journal of Paleontology. 92 (6): 1115–1129. Bibcode:2018JPal...92.1115B. doi:10.1017/jpa.2018.42. ISSN 0022-3360.
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