Leon County, Florida paleontological sites
Encyclopedia
The Leon County
paleontological sites are assemblages of Early Miocene
invertebrates and vertebrates of Leon County, Florida
, United States
.
.
Period: Early Miocene
.
Faunal stage
: Arikareean
, ~23.1—21.9 Ma, calculates to a period of approximately .
Geological Formation: Torreya Formation
.
Coordinates: 30.5655°N 84.2162°W
Coordinates: 30.3°N 84.2°W
Coordinates: 30.3°N 84.2°W
Coordinates: 30.4°N 84.3°W
Griscom Plantation Site = GPS. Seaboard Air Line Railroad = SALR. St. Marks River site = SMRS. Tallahassee Waterworks Site = TWWS.
Leon County, Florida
Leon County is a county located in the state of Florida, named after the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León. At the 2010 Census, the population was 275,487. The county seat of Leon County is Tallahassee which also serves as the state capital. The county seat is home to two of Florida's major...
paleontological sites are assemblages of Early Miocene
Early Miocene
The Early Miocene is a sub-epoch of the Miocene Epoch made up of two stages: the Aquitanian and Burdigalian stages....
invertebrates and vertebrates of Leon County, Florida
Leon County, Florida
Leon County is a county located in the state of Florida, named after the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León. At the 2010 Census, the population was 275,487. The county seat of Leon County is Tallahassee which also serves as the state capital. The county seat is home to two of Florida's major...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Age
Era: NeogeneNeogene
The Neogene is a geologic period and system in the International Commission on Stratigraphy Geologic Timescale starting 23.03 ± 0.05 million years ago and ending 2.588 million years ago...
.
Period: Early Miocene
Early Miocene
The Early Miocene is a sub-epoch of the Miocene Epoch made up of two stages: the Aquitanian and Burdigalian stages....
.
Faunal stage
Faunal stage
In chronostratigraphy, a stage is a succession of rock strata laid down in a single age on the geologic timescale, which usually represents millions of years of deposition. A given stage of rock and the corresponding age of time will by convention have the same name, and the same boundaries.Rock...
: Arikareean
Arikareean
The Arikareean North American Stage on the geologic timescale is the North American faunal stage according to the North American Land Mammal Ages chronology , typically set from 30,600,000 to 20,800,000 years BP, a period of . It is usually considered to overlap the Oligocene and Miocene epochs...
, ~23.1—21.9 Ma, calculates to a period of approximately .
Geological Formation: Torreya Formation
Torreya Formation
The Torreya Formation is a Miocene geologic formation with an outcrop in North Florida. It is within the Hawthorn Group.-Age:Period: NeogeneEpoch: Early Miocene...
.
Sites
Leon County paleontological sites are represented by the following:- Griscom Plantation Site. Located in Killearn Lakes Plantation, south-southeast of Lake Iamonia on the southeast most section of Luna PlantationLuna PlantationLuna Plantation was a quail hunting plantation located in northeastern Leon County, Florida, United States established by Lloyd C. Griscom.Lloyd C. Griscom was the son of Clement A. Griscom from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Clement was a shipping magnate, President of the Red Star Line and American...
during a well drilling operation. Time period: ~23.6—18.8 Ma. (AEOAppearance Event OrdinationAppearance Event Ordination or AEO is a scientific method for biochronology through the ordering of the appearance of fossil mammal genera by multivariate analysis, using conjunctional and disconjunctional range distributions in large sets of data.-Process:AEO is based on faunal overlap and...
).
Coordinates: 30.5655°N 84.2162°W
- Seaboard Air Line Railroad Site. Location was south of the center of TallahasseeTallahassee, FloridaTallahassee is the capital of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County, and is the 128th largest city in the United States. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2010, the population recorded by...
during a dredging operation for a roadway. Time period: ~21.7 Ma. (AEO, Alroy).
Coordinates: 30.3°N 84.2°W
- St. Marks River site. Located along the St. Marks RiverSt. Marks RiverThe St. Marks River is a river in the Big Bend region of Florida. It has been classified by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection as an Outstanding Florida Water, and is the easternmost river within the Northwest Florida Water Management District....
in southern Leon County. Time period: ~23.1—21.9 Ma. (AEO, Alroy).
Coordinates: 30.3°N 84.2°W
- Tallahassee Waterworks Sites. Locations were just south of the center of Tallahassee. Time period: ~23.03—15.99 Ma.
Coordinates: 30.4°N 84.3°W
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- USGS 2302
- USGS 3423 aka J.C. Henderson's well
- USGS 395
Griscom Plantation Site = GPS. Seaboard Air Line Railroad = SALR. St. Marks River site = SMRS. Tallahassee Waterworks Site = TWWS.
Invertebrates
- Anomia suwaneensis (Bivalve) TWWS 3424
- ChlamysChlamysThe chlamys was an ancient Greek piece of clothing, a type of cloak....
(Scallop). TWWS 2302. - OstreaOstreaOstrea is a genus of oyster in the family Ostreidae. Evidence of a number of species of this genus in the geological fossil record demonstrates the ancient nature of this genus, and also gives testimony to the species that co-existed with members of the Ostrea genus...
normalis (Oyster). SALR. - Lucina janus (Bivalve). TWWS 2302.
- MercenariaMercenariaMercenaria is a genus of edible saltwater clams, marine bivalve molluscs in the family Veneridae, the Venus clams.The genus Mercenaria includes the quahogs, Mercenaria mercenaria, the northern quahog or hard clam, and M. campechiensis, the southern quahog...
langdoni. TWWS 395 - Metis chipolana (Bivalve). TWWS 2302.
- TurritellaTurritellaTurritella is a genus of medium-sized sea snails with an operculum, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Turritellidae. They have tightly coiled shells, whose overall shape is basically that of an elongated cone....
alcida (Seal snail). TWWS 2302.
Fish
- Carcharhinidae (Requiem shark). SALR.
- Myliobatidae (Eagle ray) SALR.
- Pristis (Sawfish) SALR.
- SciaenidaeSciaenidaeSciaenidae is a family of fish commonly called drums, croakers, or hardheads for the repetitive throbbing or drumming sounds they make...
(Croaker). SALR.
Reptiles
- AlligatoridaeAlligatoridaeAlligatoridae is a family of crocodylians that includes alligators and caimans.- True alligators :Alligators proper occur in the fluvial deposits of the age of the Upper Chalk in Europe, where they did not die out until the Pliocene age. The true alligators are now restricted to two species, A...
(Alligator). SALR. - Boidae (Boa or constricting snake) SALR.
- Crocodylidae (Crocodile). SALR.
- EmydidaeEmydidaeEmydidae, commonly called the pond turtles or marsh turtles, is a family of turtles. Previously, several species of Asian box turtle were classified in the family. However, revised taxonomy has separated them to a different family. Now, Emydidae, with the exception of two species of pond turtle,...
(Pond turtle). SALR. - Testudinidae (Land tortoise). SALR.
Mammals
- AnchitheriumAnchitheriumAnchitherium was a fossil horse with a three-toed hoof.Anchitherium was a browsing horse that originated in the early Miocene of North America and subsequently dispersed to Europe and Asia, where it gave rise to the larger bodied genus Sinohippus...
A. clarencei (Horse) SALR. - AphelopsAphelopsAphelops is an extinct genus of rhinoceros endemic to North America during the Miocene through the Pliocene, living from 20.43—5.330 mya, existing for approximately .-Taxonomy:...
, (Rhinoceros), SALR. - ArchaeohippusArchaeohippusArchaeohippus is an extinct three toed member of the family Equidae known from fossils of Late Oligocene to early Miocene age. The genus is noted for several distinct skeletal features. The skull possesses deeply pocketed fossa in a notably long preorbital region. The genus is considered an...
A. blackbergi (horse). SALR. - Camelidae (family of camel). GPS.
- FloridatragulusFloridatragulusFloridatragulus is an extinct genus of Camelid. It lived in North America during the Miocene, about 20.6—15.9 mya, existing for approximately .-Taxonomy:Floridatragulus was named by White...
(Camel). SALR. - MenocerasMenocerasMenoceras is a genus of extinct, small rhinoceros endemic to most of southern North America and ranged as far south as Panama during the early Miocene epoch. It lived from around 30.7—19.7 Ma, existing for approximately .-Behaviour:...
(Rhinoceros). SALR. - MoropusMoropusMoropus is an extinct genus of mammal, belonging to a group called chalicotheres, which were perissodactyl mammals, endemic to North America during the Miocene from ~23.0—13.6 Mya, existing for approximately ....
SMRS. - Osbornodon iamonensisOsbornodon iamonensisOsbornodon iamonensis is an extinct species of bone-crushing Hesperocyoninae, a predecessor of modern dogs that were endemic to North America and which lived from the Orellan age of the Early Oligocene to Early Miocene epoch 23.6—16.3 Ma and existed for approximately .O. iamonensis was named by E. H...
(Proto-dog). GPS. - OxydactylusOxydactylusOxydactylus, is an extinct terrestrial herbivorous genus of the tribe Camelini, family Camelidae, endemic to North America Oligocene through the Middle Miocene and in existence for approximately ....
, (Camel). - ParahippusParahippusParahippus is an extinct relative of the modern horse, very similar to Miohippus, but slightly larger, at around tall, at the withers....
. (Horse). SALR. - Parahippus leonensisParahippus leonensisParahippus leonensis is an extinct proto-horse of the family Equidae that was endemic to North America during the Miocene from 23.030—16.3 Ma living for approximately .Parahippus leonensis was named for Leon or more specifically Leon County, Florida....
, (Horse) GPS, SALR. - ProsynthetocerasProsynthetocerasProsynthetoceras is an extinct genus of Artiodactyla, of the family Protoceratidae, endemic to North America from the early Miocene epoch 20.6—13.6 Ma, existing for approximately .-Taxonomy:...
texanus (Deer-like ungulate) SALR. - NothokemasNothokemasNothokemas is an extinct genus of terrestrial herbivore the family Camelidae, endemic to North America from the Oligocene through Miocene 30.8— 20.430 mya, existing for approximately .-Taxonomy:...
floridanus. (Camel). SALR. - Proheteromys floridanus. (Rodent). SALR.
- RuminantiaRuminantiaRuminantia includes many of the well-known large grazing or browsing mammals: among them cattle, goats, sheep, deer, and antelope. All members of the Ruminantia are ruminants: they digest food in two steps, chewing and swallowing in the normal way to begin with, and then regurgitating the...
(unknown ruminant). GPS.