UPDATING THE GEORGIA FOSSIL RECORD (CAMBRIAN THROUGH OLIGOCENE)

The state of Georgia contains a rich fossil record from the Cambrian Period to present day; however, a book on the complete paleontology of the state has not been published. The 1954 Contributions to the Paleontology of Northwest Georgia by A.T. Allen and J.G. Lester lists fossils from the Cambrian to the Pennsylvanian, while the 1969 Illustrated Fossils of the Georgia Coastal Plain by Horace G. Richards covers invertebrate fossils from the Cretaceous to the Pleistocene. A 360-piece collection of Georgia fossils donated to the Tellus Museum is being catalogued and includes fossils from the following formations: Shady Dolomite, Conasauga Shale, Floyd Shale, Fort Payne Chert, Red Mountain, Rockcastle Sandstone, Ripley, and Bridgeboro Limestone. The Shady Dolomite (Cambrian) has Archaeocyathid sp. of the Phylum Archaeocyatha which is the only animal phylum to go extinct. The Conasauga Shale (Cambrian) has Elrathia sp. (trilobite), Brooksella alternata (sponge), and Hyolithes, which are thought to be a type of mollusk. The Floyd Shale (Mississippian) has diverse specimens including Spirifer grimesi (brachiopod), Fenestrellina regalis (bryozoa), Goniatites kentuckiensis (ammonite), Palaeoneilo sp. (bivalve), Platyceras sp. (gastropod), Michelinoceras sp. (nautiloid), trilobite pygidiums, and crinoids. The Fort Payne Chert (Mississippian) has Dictyoclostus inflatus (brachiopod), Fenestrellina regalis (bryozoa), and Caninia corniculum (Horn Coral). The Red Mountain Formation (Silurian) has Favosites favosus (coral), Sowerbyella sp. (brachiopod), Platystrophia sp. (brachiopod), Rhombotrypa sp. (bryozoa), and Heliocotoma cleclivis (mollusk). The Rockcastle Sandstone (Pennsylvanian) contains the bulk of Georgia plant fossils with Neuropteris sp., Lepidodenron sp., Sphenopteris sp., Carpolithes sp., and Sigillaria sp. The Ripley Formation (Cretaceous) is dominated by mollusks including Exogyra costata, Crassostrea sp., Ostrea sp., and Anomia sp. The Bridgeboro Limestone is the youngest of the rock formations, dating back to the Oligocene, and has mollusk fossils such as Turitella sp., Polinices sp., Chlamys sp., Pitar sp., and Rangia sp. The collection provides insight into paleo Georgia from the Cambrian Period to the Oligocene Epoch, expanding both publications on Georgia paleontology.