BETTY SKIPP AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF MISSISSIPPIAN CALCAREOUS FORAMINIFERAL STUDIES IN NORTH AMERICA

Although the study of Mississippian calcareous foraminifers in North America dates back to the mid-1800s, detailed work first began a century later when C. Cooper (1947), E. Zeller (1950, 1957), D. Zeller (1953), and R. Woodland (1958) published taxonomic descriptions and zonations based on occurrences from the Midcontinent and Cordillera. Their research, however, did not take into account contributions from the dominant Soviet school, thus overlooking pertinent developments in taxonomy and biostratigraphy. W. McKay and R. Green (1963) introduced Soviet species names into their zonation of the Canadian Rockies, but Betty Skipp and others (1966) produced the first report integrating Soviet species concepts, correlations, and paleogeography in their paper on the Tournayellinae of North America. Skipp (1969) then followed with a detailed study of the Redwall Limestone in Arizona that remains the best documented Mississippian foraminiferal zonation published on this continent. She also began working with B. Mamet on international correlation of Mississippian foraminifers in an attempt to place the North American foraminiferal succession into a global context. The results of their collaboration (1970) led to a numbered zonal scheme that is still used today both here and abroad. In the 80s ad 90s Betty continued making important contributions to international stratigraphy through her work as a corresponding member of the Carboniferous Subcommission and as a member of the Mid-Carboniferous Boundary Working Group of that same subcommission. Although no longer active in foraminiferal research, she remains influential in the profession through the quality of her microfossil publications, her biostratigraphic consulting for regional geologic studies, and her mentoring that had a profound impact upon, among others, the authors of this abstract.

Selected References:

Mamet, B., and Skipp, B., 1970, Lower Carboniferous calcareous Foraminifera: Preliminary zonation and stratigraphic implications for the Mississippian of North America: 6th Internat. Carboniferous Cong., Sheffield 1967, v. 3, p. 1129-1146.

Skipp, B., 1969, Chapter V-Foraminifera, in History of the Redwall Limestone of Northern Arizona: GSA Memoir 114, p. 173-255.

Skipp, B., Holcomb, L. D., and Gutschick, R. C., 1966, Tournayellinae, calcareous Foraminifera, in Mississippian rocks of North America: Cush. Found. Foram. Res., Spec. Pub. 9, 38 p.