Laboratory 13

Biostratigraphy
Laboratory
John Anderson
Department of Geology
Georgia Perimeter College, Dunwoody Campus
Copyright 2004 John R. Anderson, II
Biostratigraphy, using the principle of faunal succession, is able to determine the
age of specific assemblages of fossils by use of overlapping time ranges. The
geological ranges are given for each of the genera listed for the various
assemblages.
This lab exercise has 18 assemblages listed. You will only be completing
the work for four (4) assemblages. You will be told which assemblages
you will complete when you come to lab.
The fossil genera in these assemblages are listed in A Golden Guide to Fossils.
Complete these procedures (1-7) for each of the assemblages you are
assigned to do.
1. Write out the taxonomy and geologic range for each of the genera listed
for each of the assemblages. You will list the various heirarchy catagories
that you learned for the various fossil groups. Do this by looking up each
fossil genus in the Golden Guide to Fossils and find out its geologic
range. Determine its taxonomy by reading the description of the genus
and looking at the picture. For those genera that have the same taxonomy,
all you have to do is list the various genera under the same hierarchy. (see
example below)

Example:
Kingdom: Protoctista
Phylum: Sarcodina
Order: Foraminifera
Genus: Triloculina, Geologic Range: Jurassic - Recent
Genus: Uvigerina, Geologic Range: Eocene - Recent
Note that for other genera, you may also be listing subphyla, classes,
subclasses, and other taxonomic units.

2. Write the names of each of the genera in the biostratigraphic chart if you
are using the blank charts. (The names have been completed for you if
you printed out each individual assemblage charts).
3. Plot the range of each genus in the biostratigraphic chart.
To plot the ranges, draw a line through the boxes (or shade in the boxes)
that represent the geologic periods in which it lived.
For some of the ranges, you will see Lower, Middle, or Upper before the
period name (example: Lower Devonian). If so, note that the box on the
chart for that period is divided into thirds. The bottom third represents
Lower. The middle third represents Middle. The top third represents Upper.
(See example below.)
Upper (Late)
Devonian

Middle
Lower(Early)

For the Paleogene, the box is divided vertically into three sections. They
correspond to:
Oligocene
Paleogene

Eocene
Paleocene

For the Neogene, the box is divided vertically into four sections. They
correspond to:
Holocene
(Recent)
Neogene

Pleistocene
Pliocene
Miocene

4. Determine the age of each assemblage by plotting the ranges of each of

the genera on the time charts. Find the time period(s) where all of
the ranges overlap one another. This is the time at which all of them
were alive simultaneously. In other words, to determine the age, you will
want to find the smallest amount of time that all of the genera are
found.
5. Write the age of the assemblage at the top of the biostratigraphic chart.
6. Place an astrict or star (*) by the one or two genera that are the best
index fossils for the assemblage.
In other words, note the one or two fossils that BEST serve to narrow
down the range of the fossil assemblage and indicate the age of the
assemblage as a whole (i.e., the time when they all coexisted). (For
example, you may have one fossil whose range is ONLY Middle Silurian.
That would be the best index fossil in that particular assemblage. Using

only THAT fossil, you could pinpoint the age.) In some assemblages there
are more than two genera that would best give the age of the assemblage.
7. Answer any questions that may accompany the assemblage list.

Remember: Do only the Assemblages that are assigned by your instructor. You
will not do them all.

Assemblage A.
Belemnites, Bellerophon, Isocrinus, Lingula, Lima, Meekoceras, Montlivaltia,
Ostrea, Rhynchonella.
Print Assemblage A chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this
page after printing the chart.
Assemblage B.
Allorisma, Archimedes, Composita, Enteletes, Glyptopleura, Lithostrotion,
Platycrinites, Platyceras, Schizoblastus.
Print Assemblage B chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this
page after printing the chart.
Assemblage C.
Astraeospongia, Bactrites, Bumastus, Conocardium, Cyrtina, Fenestrellina,
Halysites, Hormotoma, Platystrophia.
Print Assemblage C chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this
page after printing the chart.
Assemblage D.
Astarte, Brontotherium, Eusmilia, Lingula, Natica, Pteria, Trigonia, Vertigo,
Viviparus.
Print Assemblage D chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this
page after printing the chart.
For this assemblage:
(1) Determine the environment in which each of the organisms would have
lived.
If the Fossil book does not state the environment, then it is a marine
organism.
(2) Determine the environment in which this assemblage would have been
deposited. Explain your answer.

(3) Explain how those organisms which don't fit the depositional
environment got into that environment.

Assemblage E.
Thamnasteria, Balanus, Micraster, Isocrinus, Vertigo, Gryphaea, Ensis, Cytherelloidea, Lingula.
Print Assemblage E chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
Assemblage F.
Streptelasma, Rhombopora, Hebertella, Zygospira, Didymograptus, Endoceras, Modiolopsis, Maclurites,
Isotelus.
Print Assemblage F chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
Assemblage G.
Archimedes, Petrocrania, Dielasma, Griffithides, Pentremites, Belemnites, Allorisma, Bellerophon, Goniatites.
Print Assemblage G chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
Assemblage H.
Nerinea, Cripidula, Scaphites, Acanthoscaphites, Turrilites, Pteria, Arca, Glycimeris, Cythereis.
Print Assemblage H chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
Assemblage I.
Lithostrotion, Lophophyllidium, Composita, Juresania, Mesolobus, Conodardium, Pterinea, Pentremites,
Worthenia.
Print Assemblage I chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.

Assemblage J.
Littorina, Vertigo, Pecten, Gryphaea, Ginkgo, Lingula, Isocrinus, Balanus, Micraster.
Print Assemblage J chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
For this assemblage explain how each of these fossils became included in the assemblage.

In which sedimentary environment was this assemblage deposited? ______________________________

Assemblage K.
Streptelasma, Syringopora, Fenestrellina, Platystrophia, Flexicalymene, Codaster, Glyptocrinus,
Monograptus, Dawsonoceras.
Print Assemblage K chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
Assemblage L.
Trigonia, Ostrea, Pachyteuthis, Nerinea, Natica, Conularia, Cytherelloidea, Montlivaltia, Thamnasteria. A
helpful hint: Classify Conularia as an Annelid worm, thus Phylum Annelida.
Print Assemblage L chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
Assemblage M.
Archimedes, Petrocrania, Dielasma, Kirkbyella, Pentremites, Belemnites, Allorisma, Bellerophon.
Print Assemblage M chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
Assemblage N.
Cycadeoids, Williamsonia, Ginkgo, Viviparus, Tarsophlebia, Stegosaurus, Diplodocus, Archaeopteryx.
Print Assemblage N chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
Assemblage O.
Cordaites, Williamsonia, Ichthyosaurs, Placodonts, Nothosaurs, Ornithosuchus, Unio, Cardium, Natica.
Print Assemblage O chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
For this assemblage explain how each of these fossils became included in the assemblage.

In which sedimentary environment was this assemblage deposited?

____________________________________
Assemblage P.
Spirifer, Dunbarella, Dolorthoceras, Parallelodon, Straparollus, Pentremites, Kirkbyella, Linoproductus,
Fenestrellina.
Print Assemblage P chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
Assemblage Q.
Eryops, Diplocaulus, Edaphosaurus, Seymoria, Dimetrodon, Calamites, Neuropteris, Lebachia, Cordaites.
Print Assemblage Q chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.
Assemblage R.
Phragmoceras, Cyrtoceras, Cephalaspis, Aviculopecten, Grammysia, Hormotoma, Mesopaleaster, Codaster,
Dizygopleura.
Print Assemblage R chart. You will need to use the back button to get back to this page after printing the
chart.

Print Blank copies of the assemblage chart to complete these assemblages or print each assemblages chart.

Return to Table of Contents for the Lab manual

Return to Dr. Anderson's page for the Lab manual

This page created by John R. Anderson

Georgia Perimeter College
This page last modified on November 29, 2004.