The Imi-n-Ifri Formation is a
Sinemurian
In the geologic timescale, the Sinemurian is an age and stage in the Early or Lower Jurassic Epoch or Series. It spans the time between 199.3 ± 2 Ma and 190.8 ± 1.5 Ma (million years ago). The Sinemurian is preceded by the Hettangian an ...
geologic
formation
Formation may refer to:
Linguistics
* Back-formation, the process of creating a new lexeme by removing or affixes
* Word formation, the creation of a new word by adding affixes
Mathematics and science
* Cave formation or speleothem, a secondary ...
outcropping about from
Demnate
Demnate ( ar, دمنات; zgh, Demnat, ⴷⴻⵎⵏⴰⵜ) is a town in central Morocco, located at the foot of the high Atlas Mountains roughly 110 km east of Marrakech. The majority of the population speaks Berber; the local dialect is Tas ...
, to the east of
Marrakech
Marrakesh or Marrakech ( or ; ar, مراكش, murrākuš, ; ber, ⵎⵕⵕⴰⴽⵛ, translit=mṛṛakc}) is the fourth largest city in the Kingdom of Morocco. It is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrak ...
,
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria ...
. Fossil
ornithopod
Ornithopoda () is a clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, called ornithopods (), that started out as small, bipedal running grazers and grew in size and numbers until they became one of the most successful groups of herbivores in the Cretaceous worl ...
tracks have been reported from the formation.
[Weishampel, et al. (2004). "Dinosaur distribution." Pp. 517-607.]
Description
The formation comprises
limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms wh ...
s and
dolomites
The Dolomites ( it, Dolomiti ; Ladin: ''Dolomites''; german: Dolomiten ; vec, Dołomiti : fur, Dolomitis), also known as the Dolomite Mountains, Dolomite Alps or Dolomitic Alps, are a mountain range located in northeastern Italy. They form pa ...
deposited in shallow depth of water, low-energy, marine or lagoonal to supratidal environments. The footprints appear on the surface of a vast limestone on a surface of between . The top of the carbonate sequence is marked by a bench of yellow 'cargneule' capped by a
hardground
Carbonate hardgrounds are surfaces of synsedimentarily cemented carbonate layers that have been exposed on the seafloor (Wilson and Palmer, 1992). A hardground is essentially, then, a lithified seafloor. Ancient hardgrounds are found in limestone ...
.
[Adrar-n-Ouglagal tracksite]
at Fossilworks
Fossilworks is a portal which provides query, download, and analysis tools to facilitate access to the Paleobiology Database, a large relational database assembled by hundreds of paleontologists from around the world.
History
Fossilworks was cre ...
.org
See also
*
List of dinosaur-bearing rock formations
This list of dinosaur-bearing rock formations is a list of geologic formations in which dinosaur fossils have been documented.
Containing body fossils
* List of stratigraphic units with dinosaur body fossils
** List of stratigraphic units with f ...
**
List of stratigraphic units with ornithischian tracks Indeterminate or unspecified ornithischian tracks
Ceratopsians
Ornithopods
Thyreophorans
Ankylosaurs
Stegosaurs
See also
List of dinosaur-bearing rock formations
This list of dinosaur-bearing rock formations is a list of geologic ...
***
Ornithopod tracks
References
Bibliography
*
Further reading
* M. Monbaron, J. Dejax, and G. Demathieu. 1985. Longues pistes de Dinosaures bipèdes à Adrar-n-Ouglagal (Maroc) et répartition des faunes de grands Reptiles dans le domaine atlasique au cours du Mésozoïque. Bulletin du Muséum National D'Histoire Naturelle, 4e série, section A 7(3):229-242
{{DEFAULTSORT:Imi-N-Ifri Formation
Geologic formations of Morocco
Jurassic System of Africa
Jurassic Morocco
Sinemurian Stage
Limestone formations
Dolomite formations
Ichnofossiliferous formations
Paleontology in Morocco