Cooper Canyon Formation

The Cooper Canyon Formation is a geological formation of Norian age in Texas and New Mexico. It is one of several formations encompassed by the Dockum Group.[1][2]

Cooper Canyon Formation
Stratigraphic range:
TypeGeological formation
Unit ofDockum Group
UnderliesRedonda Formation
OverliesTrujillo Formation, possibly Camp Springs Formation and Colorado City Formation
Location
Coordinates33.127°N 101.366°W / 33.127; -101.366
Region Texas
 New Mexico
Country United States
Cooper Canyon Formation is located in the United States
Cooper Canyon Formation
Cooper Canyon Formation (the United States)
Cooper Canyon Formation is located in Texas
Cooper Canyon Formation
Cooper Canyon Formation (Texas)

The type area of the formation is situated in Garza County, Texas, southeast of Lubbock. The Cooper Canyon Formation consist of reddish siltstone and mudstone with lenses of sandstone and conglomerate. Thickness of the formation in the type area is 161.5 meters. It increases to the south, and in some places exceeds 200 m. The formation contains diverse fossils, including vertebrate remains.[2]

Regional equivalents

The Bull Canyon Formation in eastern New Mexico is equivalent to the upper part of the Cooper Canyon Formation. Some researchers argue that the latter name should be abandoned.[2] The middle and lower parts of the Cooper Canyon are correlated to the Trujillo and Tecovas formations (respectively) further north in the Texas Panhandle. The lowermost part of the Cooper Canyon Formation may also be correlated to the Colorado City Formation further south at Otis Chalk (Howard County).[3][4][5]

Vertebrate fauna

Color key
Taxon Reclassified taxon Taxon falsely reported as present Dubious taxon or junior synonym Ichnotaxon Ootaxon Morphotaxon
Notes
Uncertain or tentative taxa are in small text; crossed out taxa are discredited.

Temnospondyls

Temnospondyls of the Cooper Canyon Formation
Genus/Taxon Species Unit Location Material Notes Images

Apachesaurus

A. gregorii[4]

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Partial skull, mandible and pectoral girdle[4]

The lowest known stratigraphic occurrence of diagnostic Apachesaurus cranial material.[6]

Buettnererpeton

B. bakeri[6]

  • Lower (lower)
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)

Two skulls

A metoposaurid temnospondyl. Species was originally assigned to Anaschisma or Metoposaurus before being given its own genus in 2022.[3][6]

Rileymillerus

R. cosgriffi[4]

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Skull and jaws, vertebral intercentra[4]

An unusual small temnospondyl, known only by one specimen.

Phytosaurs

Phytosaurs of the Cooper Canyon Formation
Genus/Taxon Species Unit Location Material Notes Images

Leptosuchus

L. sp.[4]

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Partial skull and mandibles[4]

May represent a distinct species of Leptosuchus from L. crosbiensis and L. studeri.[4]

Machaeroprosopus

M. lottorum[7]

  • Upper
  • Patricia Site (MOTT 3870)[7]

Two skulls[7]

A derived mystriosuchin phytosaur closely related to and intermediate with Redondasaurus.[7]

M. sp.

  • Patricia Site (MOTT 3870)[7]

One skull[7]

A specimen of Machaeoprosopus that appears phylogenetically distinct from M. lottorum.[7]

M. sp.[3]

  • Middle
  • Headquarters (MOTT 3892)[3]

Squamosal[3]

The lowest occurrence of Machaeoprosopus in the Dockum Group, defining the base of the Revueltian teilzone in the Cooper Canyon Formation.[3][4]

"Paleorhinus"

"P." cf. sawini[3]

  • Lower (lower)
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[3]

Skull[3]

A phytosaur similar to "Paleorhinus" sawini, although potentially representing a distinct species.[3]

Redondasaurus

R. gregorii?[8]

  • Upper
  • Macy Ranch (MOTT 3927)[8]

Skulls and postcranial skeleton[8]

Specimens currently only described in unpublished theses, first referred to a new genus "Macysuchus" and then as a new species of Redondasaurus. Referred to R. gregorii by Spielmann and Lucas (2012).[9][10][8]

Pseudosuchians

Pseudosuchians of the Cooper Canyon Formation
Genus/Taxon Species Unit Location Material Notes Images

Calyptosuchus

C. wellesi

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)

Osteoderms

Material named as the new genus and species Scutarx deltatylus in 2016.[11]

Crocodylomorpha indet.[4]

Indeterminate

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Right femur[4]

A small crocodylomorph comparable to Hesperosuchus.[4]

Desmatosuchus

D. smalli[12]

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[12]

Several skulls and partial skeletons, osteoderms[12]

An armoured aetosaur with large shoulder spines. Type locality of D. smalli, species also known from the Chinle Formation. Some skeletal postcranial material may belong to Paratypothorax.[11]

Paratypothorax

P. sp.[11]

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Osteoderms and some associated postcrania[4]

A paratypothoracin aetosaur. Potentially belongs to a distinct species from P. andressorum, as for other North American Paratypothorax.[11]

Postosuchus

P. kirkpatricki[4]

  • Upper?
  • Lower (upper)
  • Patricia Site (MOTT 3870)?[7]
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Two skeletons and isolated remains[4]

A large predatory rauisuchid, type specimen from the Post Quarry. Most rauisuchid material from elsewhere in the southwestern US has also been assigned to Postosuchus kirkpatricki but it is unclear how much of it definitively belongs to Postosuchus.[13]

Scutarx

S. deltatylus[11]

  • Middle
  • Lower (upper)
  • Headquarters NW (MOTT 3899)[14]
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[11]

Osteoderms[14]

A desmatosuchine aetosaur based on material formerly assigned to Calyptosuchus wellesi. Known more abundantly in the Chinle Formation.[11]

Shuvosaurus

S. inexpectatus[4]

  • Upper?
  • Lower (upper)
  • Patricia Site (MOTT 3870)?[7]
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Skulls and skeleton[4]

Originally named as an ornithomimid dinosaur based on its skull, later recognised to be synonymous with poposauroid postcrania named "Chatterjeea elegans". Type specimen is from the Post Quarry, Shuvosaurus has also reported from the Chinle Formation.

Cf. Stagonolepis?[3]

S.? sp.

  • Lower (lower)
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[3]

Lateral and caudal paramedian osteoderm[3]

Aetosaur osteoderms compared favourably to Stagonolepis (including Calyptosuchus at the time).[3]

Typothorax[7]

T. coccinarum

  • Upper
  • Lower (upper)
  • Patricia Site (MOTT 3870)[7]
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Partial skeleton, braincase, and osteoderms

A typothoracine aetosaur. Also commonly found in the Chinle Formation of Arizona and the Bull Canyon Formation of New Mexico.

Ornithodirans

Numerous bones from ornithodirans have been discovered throughout the Cooper Canyon Formation but cannot be assigned to specific genera or clades. However, they are at least variably identifiable as lagerpetids, dinosauromorphs, dinosaurs, saurischians and theropods.[14]

Ornithodirans of the Cooper Canyon Formation
Genus/Taxon Species Unit Location Material Notes Images

Coelophysis

C. bauri

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)

Material since referred to indeterminate herrerasaurids and neotheropods.

Dinosauriformes indet.[5]

Indeterminate

  • Lower (lower)
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[5]

Two left fibulae[5]

The fibulae are most similar to those of Marasuchus, but notably are three times as long.[5]

Dromomeron

D. gregorii[4]

  • Lower (upper, lower)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[14]

Four left femora[4][14][5]

Lagerpetid pterosauromorphs.

D. romeri[5]

  • Middle (upper)
  • Headquarters South (MOTT 3898)[5]

Proximal right tibia[5]

Herrerasauridae indet.[4]

Indeterminate

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Partial hip[4]

Previously referred to Coelophysis bauri by Lehman and Chatterjee (2005).[15]

Neotheropoda indet.[4]

Indeterminate

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Ilium and tibia[4]

Previously referred to Coelophysis bauri by Lehman and Chatterjee (2005).[15]

Soumyasaurus

S. aenigmaticus[16]

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[16]

Left dentary[16]

A very small silesaurid dinosauriform, type specimen.[16]

Technosaurus

T. smalli[4]

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Premaxilla and dentary[4]

A silesaurid dinosauriform, type and only specimen.

Archosauromorphs

Fragmentary fossils are identifiable as archosauromorphs, namely members of the Allokotosauria+Prolacerta+Archosauriformes clade.[14]

Non-crurotarsan archosauromorphs of the Cooper Canyon Formation
Genus/Taxon Species Unit Location Material Notes Images
cf. Doswellia[3]

cf. D. sp.

  • Lower (lower)
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[3]

Fragmentary osteoderm[3]

An unusual armoured archosauriform.

?Malerisaurus

?M. langstoni

  • Middle
  • Lower (upper, lower)
  • Headquarters North (MOTT 3900)[3]
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[17]
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[17]

Dentaries, cervical vertebrae, femur, humerus.[17][18]

A Malerisaurus-like taxon, a small carnivorous azendohsaurid allokotosaur. Three dentaries from the Boren Quarry were misinterpreted as the oldest saurischian dinosaurs in North America, but show affinity to malerisaurines.[18][19]

Tanystropheidae indet.[14]

Indeterminate

  • Lower (middle, lower)
  • Kirkpatrick Quarry (MOTT 3628)[14]
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[14]

Two femora[14]

Small tanystropheids comparable to Tanytrachelos and Langobardisaurus.[14]

Trilophosaurus

T. buettneri[20]

  • Lower (lower)
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[20]

Teeth

Herbivorous trilophosaurid allokotosaurs. Of the three species represented in the Boren Quarry, T. dornorum and T. jacobsi are the more common, with T. buettneri represented by only two specimens.[3] T. jacobsi is also common at the Kahle Quarry (NMMNH L-3775) should it belong to the middle Cooper Canyon Formation.[20]

T. dornorum[4][20]

  • Lower (upper, lower)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4][20]
  • Lott Hill (MOTT 3878)[20]
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[20]

Teeth, jaw elements[21]

T. jacobsi[20]

  • Lower (lower)
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[20]

Teeth

Vancleavea

V. campi[16]

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[16]

Postcervical vertebrae, osteoderms[16]

An unusual armoured semi-aquatic archosauriform. Additional limb bones from the Post and Kirkpatrick quarries may belong to Vancleavea or a related taxon.

Other amniotes

Numerous fragmentary limb bones of various reptiles have been collected that cannot be reliably diagnosed to specific clades, though some show similarities to drepanosauromorphs.

Miscellaneous amniotes of the Cooper Canyon Formation
Genus/Taxon Species Unit Location Material Notes Image

Cf. Clevosaurus[3]

Cf. C. sp.

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3634)[4]

Premaxilla[4]

A sphenodontian lepidosauromorph, very similar to Clevosaurus.

Dicynodontia indet.[3][15]

Indeterminate

  • Lower (upper, lower)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3634)[4]
  • Meyer’s Hill (MOTT 3881)[3]
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[15]

Skull, mandibles, and postcrania[15][4]

Isolated indeterminate dicynodont material is known from various localities. Boren Quarry material represents an undescribed taxon with prominent tusks, distinct from Placerias.[15][22]

Drepanosauromorpha indet.[4]

Indeterminate

  • Lower
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Two scapulacoracoids[4]

An unusual, possibly arboreal diapsid reptile.

Eucynodontia indet.[4]

Indeterminate

  • Lower
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3624)[4]

Jaw bones and teeth[4]

Probable eucynodonts with teeth lacking a cingulum and possessing a large main cusp and 2–3 smaller posterior cusps.[4]

Libognathus[23]

L. sheddi[23]

  • Upper
  • Middle
  • Simpson Ranch (MOTT 3874)[3]
  • UU Sand Creek (MOTT 3882)[3]

Skull and dentaries[3][15]

A procolophonid parareptile, one of the only known from Late Triassic North America.[23]

Pachygenelus

P. milleri[4]

  • Lower (upper)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3634)[4]

Dentary with teeth[4]

Named as a new species of Pachygenelus by Chatterjee (1983), assignment to this genus is doubtful. Material now provisionally regarded as eucynodont.[4]

Protoavis

P. texensis[4]

  • Lower (upper, middle)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3634)[4]
  • Kirkpatrick Quarry (MOTT 3628)[15]

At least two partial skeletons

A problematic taxon purported to be an early avialan, may be a chimaera of different fossils.[24]

Sphenodontia indet.[3]

Indeterminate

  • Lower (upper, lower)
  • Post Quarry (MOTT 3634)[3]
  • Boren Quarry (MOTT 3869)[3]

Pterygoid and mandible[3]

Sphenodont lepidosauromorphs.

See also

References

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  2. Lehman T., Chatterjee S., Schnable J. (1992). "The Cooper Canyon Formation (Late Triassic) of western Texas". The Texas Journal of Science. 44 (3): 349–355.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. Martz, J. W. (2008). Lithostratigraphy, chemostratigraphy, and vertebrate biostratigraphy of the Dockum Group (Upper Triassic), of southern Garza County, West Texas (Unpublished PhD thesis). Texas Tech University. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  4. Martz, J. W.; Mueller, B.; Nesbitt, S. J.; Stocker, M. R.; Parker, W. G.; Atanassov, M.; Fraser, N.; Weinbaum, J.; Lehane, J. (2013). "A taxonomic and biostratigraphic re-evaluation of the Post Quarry vertebrate assemblage from the Cooper Canyon Formation (Dockum Group, Upper Triassic) of southern Garza County, western Texas". Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. 103 (3–4): 339–364. doi:10.1017/S1755691013000376. S2CID 129744424.
  5. Sarıgül, V. (2016). "New basal dinosauromorph records from the Dockum Group of Texas, USA". Palaeontologia Electronica. 19 (2): 19.2.21A. doi:10.26879/564.
  6. Gee, Bryan M.; Kufner, Aaron M. (2022). "Revision of the Late Triassic metoposaurid "Metoposaurus" bakeri (Amphibia: Temnospondyli) from Texas, USA and a phylogenetic analysis of the Metoposauridae". PeerJ. 10: e14065. doi:10.7717/peerj.14065. S2CID 252894139.
  7. Hungerbühler, Axel; Mueller, Bill; Chatterjee, Sankar; Cunningham, Douglas P. (September 2012). "Cranial anatomy of the Late Triassic phytosaur Machaeroprosopus , with the description of a new species from West Texas". Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. 103 (3–4): 269–312. doi:10.1017/S1755691013000364. S2CID 129442164.
  8. Spielmann, J. A.; Lucas, S. G. (2012). "Tetrapod Fauna of the Upper Triassic Redonda Formation East-central New Mexico: The Characteristic Assemblage of the Apachean Land-vertebrate Faunachron". Bulletin of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science. 55.
  9. Chatterjee, Sankar; Tewari, Rajni; Agnihotri, Deepa (2013-06-01). "A Dicroidium flora from the Triassic of Allan Hills, South Victoria Land, Transantarctic Mountains, Antarctica". Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology. 37 (2): 209–221. doi:10.1080/03115518.2013.736799. ISSN 0311-5518. S2CID 129383334.
  10. McQuilkin, K. S. (1998). An Articulated Phytosaur Skeleton: Preparation Techniques From Field to Exhibit (PDF) (Unpublished MSc thesis). Texas Tech University.
  11. Parker, William (2016). "Revised phylogenetic analysis of the Aetosauria (Archosauria: Pseudosuchia); assessing the effects of incongruent morphological character sets". PeerJ. 4: e1583. doi:10.7717/peerj.1583. PMC 4727975. PMID 26819845.
  12. Parker, W. G. (2005). "A new species of the Late Triassic aetosaur Desmatosuchus (Archosauria: Pseudosuchia)". Comptes Rendus Palevol. 4 (4): 327–340. doi:10.1016/j.crpv.2005.03.002.
  13. Emily J. Lessner; Michelle R. Stocker; Nathan D. Smith; Alan H. Turner; Randall B. Irmis; Sterling J. Nesbitt (2016). "A new rauisuchid (Archosauria, Pseudosuchia) from the Upper Triassic (Norian) of New Mexico increases the diversity and temporal range of the clade". PeerJ. 4: e2336. doi:10.7717/peerj.2336. PMC 5018681. PMID 27651983.
  14. Lessner, E. J.; Parker, W. G.; Marsh, A. D.; Nesbitt, S. J.; Irmis, R. B.; Mueller, B. D. "New insights into Late Triassic dinosauromorph-bearing assemblages from Texas using apomorphy-based identifications". PaleoBios. 35. doi:10.5070/P9351039960.
  15. Lehman, Thomas; Chatterjee, Sankar (2005). "Depositional setting and vertebrate biostratigraphy of the Triassic Dockum Group of Texas". Journal of Earth System Science. 114 (3): 325–351. Bibcode:2005JESS..114..325L. doi:10.1007/BF02702953. S2CID 128760266.
  16. Sarıgül, V.; Agnolín, F.; Chatterjee, S. (2018). "Description of a multitaxic bone assemblage from the Upper Triassic Post Quarry of Texas (Dockum group), including a new small basal dinosauriform taxon" (PDF). Historia Natural. 8 (1). ISSN 1853-6581.
  17. Nesbitt, S. J.; Stocker, M. R.; Ezcurra, M. D.; Fraser, M. C.; Heckert, A. B.; Parker, W. G.; Mueller, B.; Sengupta, S.; Bandyopadhyay, S.; Pritchard, A. C.; Marsh, A. D. (2021). "Widespread azendohsaurids (Archosauromorpha, Allokotosauria) from the Late Triassic of western USA and India". Papers in Palaeontology. 8. doi:10.1002/spp2.1413. S2CID 245049571.
  18. Sarigül, V. (2017). "New archosauromorph fragments from the Dockum Group of Texas and the assessment of earliest dinosaurs in North America". Historical Biology. 30 (8): 1059–1075. doi:10.1080/08912963.2017.1333609.
  19. Marsh, Adam D.; Parker, William G.; Nesbitt, Sterling J.; Kligman, Ben T.; Stocker, Michelle R. (2022). "Puercosuchus traverorum n. gen. n. sp.: a new malerisaurine azendohsaurid (Archosauromorpha: Allokotosauria) from two monodominant bonebeds in the Chinle Formation (Upper Triassic, Norian) of Arizona". Journal of Paleontology. 96 (S90): 1–39. doi:10.1017/jpa.2022.49. ISSN 0022-3360.
  20. Kligman, B. T.; Marsh, A. D.; Nesbitt, S. J.; Parker, W. G.; Stocker, M. R. (2020). "New trilophosaurid species demonstrates a decline in allokotosaur diversity across the Adamanian-Revueltian boundary in the Late Triassic of western North America". Palaeodiversity. 13 (1): 25–37. doi:10.18476/pale.v13.a3.
  21. Müller, B. D.; Parker, W. G. (2006). "A new species of Trilophosaurus (Diapsida: Archosauromorpha) from the Sonsela Member (Chinle Formation) of Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona" (PDF). Museum of Northern Arizona, Bulletin. 62: 119–125.
  22. Kammerer, C. F.; Fröbisch, J. R.; Angielczyk, K. D. (2013). Farke, A. A (ed.). "On the Validity and Phylogenetic Position of Eubrachiosaurus browni, a Kannemeyeriiform Dicynodont (Anomodontia) from Triassic North America". PLOS ONE. 8 (5): e64203. Bibcode:2013PLoSO...864203K. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0064203. PMC 3669350. PMID 23741307.
  23. Small, Bryan J. (15 December 1997). "A new procolophonid from the Upper Triassic of Texas, with a description of tooth replacement and implantation". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 17 (4): 674–678. doi:10.1080/02724634.1997.10011016.
  24. Witmer, L. (2002). "The debate on avian ancestry: phylogeny, function, and fossils". In Chiappe, L. M.; Witmer, L. M. (eds.). Mesozoic birds: Above the heads of dinosaurs. Berkeley, Calif., USA: University of California Press. pp. 3–30. ISBN 0-520-20094-2.
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