Research Interests

Late Cretaceous Paleoecology & Paleobiogeography

Late Cretaceous Paleogeography and Tectonics

Late Cretaceous Stratigraphy of Wyoming

Figure 1: Upper Cretaceous strata within several Wyoming basins. Formations of note is the Mesaverde Formation/Group, the Meeteetse Formation, and the Lance Formation. Modified from Lynds and Slattery, 2017.

I am interested in improving the chronostratigraphic correlation of the Upper Cretaceous strata throughout Wyoming and across Laramidia. Though many of these nonmarine deposits are highly fossiliferous, the depositional age remains poorly constrained preventing high-resolution correlation.

Maastrichtian: The lower Maastrichtian Meeteetse Formation and upper Maastrichtian Lance Formation are the two most prominent nonmarine Maastrichtian deposits. The Meeteetse Formation has received minimal fieldwork with few fossil localities having been reported, though has great potential for new discoveries. The Lance Formation outcrops across the state though the correlation between the outcrops and age remains poorly understood with the only age identified age marker being the Chixulub ejecta layer and associated iridium anomaly.

Campanian: The primary strata composing nonmarine deposits from the Campanian is the Mesaverde Formation/Group. In southern Wyoming, the Mesaverde Group contains several nonmarine formations spanning the lower, middle, and upper Campanian; including the Rock Springs Formation, Ericson Sandstone, Allen Ridge Formation, and Almond Formation. In northern and central Wyoming the Mesaverde Formation is composed of several members from the middle and upper Campanian; including the Fales Sandstone Member, Parkman Sandstone member, nonmarine middle member, unnamed marine shale member, and the Teapot Sandstone Member. Many of these units have remain poorly constrained in age with no ash beds having been dated.

Late Cretaceous Paleoecology & Paleobiogeography

Figure 2: Outcrop map of Campanian-Maastrichtian nonmarine formations and associated vertebrate fossil localities from the University of Wyoming at Tate Geological Museum Collections.

Wyoming is an area that has received relatively minimal research over the last century and requires significant reanalysis and further prospecting. The fossiliferous Mesaverde Formation/Group of Wyoming a located in a critical region between the disparate northern and southern vertebrate faunas of Laramidia during the Campanian. Despite minimal prior prospecting, recent work has discovered numerous important vertebrate fossil specimens from around the state including the Bighorn Basin, Powder River Basin, and Rock Springs Uplift.

Although the Lance Formation in eastern Wyoming is well-known to be highly fossiliferous, other regions of similarly aged deposits from across the state have received minimal investigation despite having collections from every major basin. Additionally, the

Late Cretaceous Paleogeography and Tectonics

Despite having a significant history of petroleum exploration within the state, there remain numerous questions regarding the paleogeography throughout the Late Cretaceous. Most prior analyses have not accounted for recent developments regarding the earlier onset of the Laramide Orogeny, which shifts depositional patterns significantly and may improve interpretations in paleogeographic and stratigraphic patterns observed.

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