The Hale Formation is a geologic formation in northern Arkansas that dates to the Morrowan Series of the early Pennsylvanian.Various Contributors to the Paleobiology Database. "Fossilworks: Gateway to the Paleobiology Database". Archived from the original on 31 July 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014. The Hale Formation has two named members: the Cane Hill and the Prairie Grove Members. The lower member is the Cane Hill, a primarily sandstone and shale interval that unconformably overlies the Mississippian-age Pitkin Formation. The upper member, the Prairie Grove Member, is predominately limestone and conformably underlies the Bloyd Formation.
Nomenclature Named by J. A. Taff in 1905, the Hale Formation was originally called the "Hale sandstone lentil" of the Morrow Formation after Hale Mountain in Washington County, Arkansas. In the same year, George I. Adams and E. O. Ulrich called it the "Hale sandstone member" of the Morrow Formation. In 1907, Albert Homer Purdue raised the rank to the Hale Formation of the Morrow Group, however, the Morrow Group was later abandoned as a stratigraphic unit in 1961. A stratotype was not designated by J. A. Taff and, as of 2017, no reference section has been designated.
The Cane Hill Member was named after the town of Cane Hill in Washington County, Arkansas in 1953 by Lloyd G. Henbest, who also named its upper member, the Prairie Grove Member, after the town of Prairie Grove, in Washington County, Arkansas. Henbest did not designate a stratotype for either of these members, and as of 2017, neither of them have been designated a reference section.
In the eastern parts of the Ozarks in Arkansas, the Hale Formation becomes undifferentiated with the overlying Bloyd Formation and is called the Witts Springs Formation.
Paleontology Blastoids Pentremites P. angustus P. rusticus
Brachiopods
Anthracospirifer AntiquatoniaN. A. Heim. 2009. Stability of regional brachiopod diversity structure across the Mississippian/Pennsylvanian boundary. Paleobiology 35(3):393 Beecheria Cleiothyridina Composita Desmoinesia Echinaria Hustedia Krotovia Leptagonia Linoproductus Neochonetes
Phricodothyris Punctospirifer Schizophoria Plicochonetes Rhipidomella Rhynchopora Sandia Schizophoria Spiriferellina Tesuquea T. morrowensis Zia
Bryozoans Fenestella morrowensis F. venusta Fistulipora matheri Matheropora triseriata Polypora anastomosa P. constricta P. halensis P. magna P. purduei P. reversispina P. triseriata P. washingtonensis Phyllopora perforata Septopora crebripora Sulcoretepora brentwoodensis S. sinuomarginata
Cephalopods
Arkanites relictusW. L. Manger and W. B. Saunders. 1980. Lower Pennsylvanian (Morrowan) ammonoids from the North American midcontinent. Paleontological Society Memoirs. 10:1-56 Bactrites redactus M. Gordon. 1964. Carboniferous Cephalopods of Arkansas. Unitest States Geological Survey Professional Paper. 460:1-322 B. gaitherensis Baschkirites B. librovitchi Bisatoceras secundum Branneroceras branneri Cancelloceras huntsvillense Cymoceras cracens Dinocycloceras prolixum Endolobus Ephippioceras ferratum Glaphyrites morrowensis Gordonites matheri G. filifer Homoceratoides cracens Hudsonoceras moorei Knightoceras oxylobatum K. palatum
Paradimorphoceras Proshumardites morrowanus Pseudopronorites quinni P. arkansiensis Pseudorthoceras knoxense Quinnites henbetsi Q. textum Ramosites Reticuloceras wainwrighti R. tiro R. semiretia Retites semiretia Schartymites paynei Syngastrioceras globosum S. oblatum Verneuilites pygmaeus Wiedeyoceras matheri
Conodonts
Gondolella G. clarki Idiognathodus I. klapperi I. sinuosus Idiognathoides I. convexus I. sinuatus
Neognathodus N. bassleri N. symmetricus Rhachistognathus R. primus
Crinoids Arkacrinus Eirmocrinus Palmerocrinus
Flora Archaeolithophyllum A. missouiense Asphaltina A. cordillerensis Eflugelia Girvanella Stacheoides S. spissa
Foraminifera
Asteroarchaediscus A. rugosus Biseriella Climacammina C. antiqua Diplosphaerina D. inaequalis Earlandia Endothyra Eosigmoinina E. rugosa Eostaffella E. pinguis Hemiarchaediscus Millerella M. marblensis M. pressa
Neoarchaediscus Paleonubecularia Paramillerella P. pinuis Planoendothyra Plectogyra P. tantala Pseudoglomospira Tetrataxis T. maxima Tubertina T. plana Turrispoiroides T. multivolutus
Ostracods Glyptopleua G. whitei Healdia Kirkbyella (Berdanella) Knightina Shivaella
Trace Fossils
Gastrochaenolites anauchenM. A. Wilson and T. J. Palmer. 1998. The earliest Gastrochaenolites (Early Pennsylvanian, Arkansas, USA): An Upper Paleozoic bivalve boring?. Journal of Paleontology. 72(4):769-772
Trypanites
Incertae sedis Clacisphaera C. laevis Proninella P. strigosa
See also
List of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Arkansas Paleontology in Arkansas
References