The Bearreraig Sandstone Formation is a
geological formation
A geological formation, or simply formation, is a body of rock having a consistent set of physical characteristics ( lithology) that distinguishes it from adjacent bodies of rock, and which occupies a particular position in the layers of rock exp ...
in
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
. It preserves
fossils
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved in ...
dating back to the lower to middle parts of the
Jurassic
The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...
period
Period may refer to:
Common uses
* Era, a length or span of time
* Full stop (or period), a punctuation mark
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Period (music), a concept in musical composition
* Periodic sentence (or rhetorical period), a concept ...
(
Toarcian
The Toarcian is, in the ICS' geologic timescale, an age and stage in the Early or Lower Jurassic. It spans the time between 182.7 Ma (million years ago) and 174.1 Ma. It follows the Pliensbachian and is followed by the Aalenian.
The Toarcian ...
–
Bajocian
In the geologic timescale, the Bajocian is an age and stage in the Middle Jurassic. It lasted from approximately 170.3 Ma to around 168.3 Ma (million years ago). The Bajocian Age succeeds the Aalenian Age and precedes the Bathonian Age.
Stratig ...
).
The remains of the proximal portion of a right ulna and radius of an indeterminate
thyreophora
Thyreophora ("shield bearers", often known simply as "armored dinosaurs") is a group of armored ornithischian dinosaurs that lived from the Early Jurassic until the end of the Cretaceous.
Thyreophorans are characterized by the presence of body ...
n dinosaur are known from the formation. The
ichthyosaur
Ichthyosaurs (Ancient Greek for "fish lizard" – and ) are large extinct marine reptiles. Ichthyosaurs belong to the order known as Ichthyosauria or Ichthyopterygia ('fish flippers' – a designation introduced by Sir Richard Owen in 1842, altho ...
''
Dearcmhara
''Dearcmhara'' (pronounced like "jark vara"; Scottish Gaelic: "marine lizard") is a genus of marine reptile from the early to mid-Jurassic period around 170 million years ago, known from fossil remains found on the island of Skye in Scotland. Th ...
'' is also known from the formation.
See also
*
List of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Scotland
See also
*Lists of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Europe
* Lists of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in the United Kingdom
References
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a ...
References
Further reading
* R. M. Bateman, N. Morton, and B.L. Dower. 2000. Early Middle Jurassic plant communities in Northwest Scotland: Paleoecological and paleoclimatic significance. GeoResearch Forum 6:501-512
Geologic formations of Scotland
Jurassic System of Europe
Jurassic Scotland
Aalenian Stage
Bajocian Stage
Toarcian Stage
Sandstone formations
Shallow marine deposits
Paleontology in Scotland
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