A PALEONTOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF MIDDLE DEVONIAN TRILOBITES AT THE COLE HILL ROADCUT IN MADISON COUNTY, NEW YORK

While stratigraphic and depositional research on the Middle Devonian Delphi Station Member is fairly extensive, little paleontological analysis has been done in recent history. This field-based project was designed to gain a more complete understanding of the fossil assemblage of the unit and its implications on the depositional environment in which it formed.

The project focused on the collection, examination, physical and ontogenic analysis of trilobite specimens, including the dominant species, Dipleura dekayi, and Greenops boothi, from the Cole Hill Road outcrop. The samples collected and the data they yield have been used to characterize fossil preservation within the unit. Additionally, the orientation of trilobite specimens allow for the interpretation of the paleoenvironment in which the organisms lived and suggest heavy bioturbation. Extensive measurements were collected from the cephalon and pygidium, though correlations were nil. While the amount of data acquired during this project was limited by time and resource constraints, the information gathered does provide a strong basis for furture research and more intense studies.