The Belle Fourche Formation or Belle Fourche Shale is a fossiliferous
early Late-Cretaceous 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 ...
classification in
Wyoming
Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the sou ...
. Named for outcrops in
Belle Fourche River
The Belle Fourche River (pronounced ''bel FOOSH''; lkt, Šahíyela Wakpá) is a tributary of the Cheyenne River, approximately long, in the U.S. states of Wyoming and South Dakota. It is part of the Mississippi River watershed via the Cheyenn ...
, Wyoming, this unit name is also used in
Montana
Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...
,
North Dakota
North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, S ...
, and
South Dakota
South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...
.
The unit records the gradual opening and expansion of the Greenhorn Cycle of the
Western Interior Seaway
The Western Interior Seaway (also called the Cretaceous Seaway, the Niobraran Sea, the North American Inland Sea, and the Western Interior Sea) was a large inland sea that split the continent of North America into two landmasses. The ancient se ...
, and as such is lithologically identical to the
Graneros Shale
The Graneros Shale is a geologic formation in the United States identified in the Great Plains as well as New Mexico that dates to the Cenomanian Age of the Cretaceous Period. It is defined as the finely sandy argillaceous or clayey ''near-shor ...
Formation (that is, it is the same formation under a different name).
See also
*
List of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Montana
This article contains a list of fossil-bearing stratigraphic units in the state of Montana, U.S.
Sites
See also
* Paleontology in Montana
References
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Montana
Montana
Stratigraph ...
*
Paleontology in Montana
Paleontology in Montana refers to paleontological research occurring within or conducted by people from the U.S. state of Montana. The fossil record in Montana stretches all the way back to the Precambrian. During the Late Precambrian, western Mont ...
*
Paleontology in North Dakota
Paleontology in North Dakota refers to paleontological research occurring within or conducted by people from the U.S. state of North Dakota. During the early Paleozoic era most of North Dakota was covered by a sea home to brachiopods, corals, and ...
*
Paleontology in South Dakota
Paleontology in South Dakota refers to paleontological research occurring within or conducted by people from the U.S. state of South Dakota. South Dakota is an excellent source of fossils as finds have been widespread throughout the state. During ...
*
Paleontology in Wyoming
Paleontology in Wyoming includes research into the prehistoric life of the U.S. state of Wyoming as well as investigations conducted by Wyomingite researchers and institutions into ancient life occurring elsewhere. The fossil record of the US stat ...
References
*
Cretaceous Montana
Cretaceous geology of North Dakota
Cretaceous geology of South Dakota
Cretaceous geology of Wyoming
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