Austin Chalk stratigraphic column in Texas

The Del Rio Clay is a

geologic 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 ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. 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

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of th ...

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 ...

. A

stratigraphic column A stratigraphic column is a representation used in geology and its subfield of stratigraphy to describe the vertical location of rock units in a particular area. A typical stratigraphic column shows a sequence of sedimentary rocks, with the oldest ...

at the

Mount Bonnell Mount Bonnell , also known as Covert Park, is a prominent point alongside the Lake Austin portion of the Colorado River in Austin, Texas. It has been a popular tourist destination since the 1850s. The mount provides a vista for viewing the city of ...

location starts with the

Lower Cretaceous Lower may refer to: *Lower (surname) *Lower Township, New Jersey *Lower Receiver (firearms) *Lower Wick Lower Wick is a small hamlet located in the county of Gloucestershire, England. It is situated about five miles south west of Dursley, eight ...

Trinity Group The Trinity Group is a group (sequence of rock strata) in the Lower Cretaceous lithostratigraphy of Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana and Oklahoma. It is named for the Trinity River of Texas. A stratigraphic column at the Mount Bonnell Fau ...

overlain by the

Edwards Group The Edwards Group is a geologic group in Texas. It preserves fossils dating back to the Cretaceous period. A stratigraphic column at the Mount Bonnell Fault location starts with the Lower Cretaceous Trinity Group overlain by the Edwards Group ...

and the Georgetown Formation.

Upper Cretaceous The Late Cretaceous (100.5–66 Ma) is the younger of two epochs into which the Cretaceous Period is divided in the geologic time scale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous Series. The Cretaceous is named after ''creta'', the ...

formations follow, starting with the Del Rio Clay,

Buda Limestone The Buda Limestone is a geological formation in the High Plains and Trans-Pecos regions of West Texas and in southern New Mexico, whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous. Pterosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from ...

, and then the

Eagle Ford Group The Eagle Ford Group (also called the Eagle Ford Shale) is a Sedimentary rock, sedimentary rock formation deposited during the Cenomanian and Turonian ages of the Late Cretaceous over much of the modern-day state of Texas. The Eagle Ford is pr ...

. Formations within the Trinity Group include the

Hammett Formation The Hammett Shale is a geologic formation in Texas. It preserves fossils dating back to the Cretaceous period. A stratigraphic column at the Mount Bonnell Fault location starts with the Lower Cretaceous Trinity Group overlain by the Edwards Gr ...

, Cow Creek Formation,

Hensel Formation The Hensel Formation or Hensel Sand is a Mesozoic geologic formation in Texas. Fossil ornithopod tracks have been reported from the formation.Weishampel, et al. (2004). "Dinosaur distribution." Pp. 517-607. A stratigraphic column at the Mount Bon ...

, and Lower and Upper

Glen Rose Formation The Glen Rose Formation is a shallow marine to shoreline geological formation from the lower Cretaceous period exposed over a large area from South Central to North Central Texas. The formation is most widely known for the dinosaur footprints ...

. The Upper Cretaceous rock units confine the

Edwards Aquifer The Edwards Aquifer is one of the most prolific artesian aquifers in the world. Located on the eastern edge of the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas, it is the source of drinking water for two million people, and is the primary water su ...

within the Edwards Group and

Georgetown Formation The Georgetown Formation is a geologic formation in Mexico and the United States. It preserves fossils dating back to the Cretaceous period. A stratigraphic column at the Mount Bonnell location starts with the Lower Cretaceous Trinity Group ove ...

References

* Geologic formations of Texas Cretaceous System of North America {{Cretaceous-stub

See also

References