Nautiloid from QZ467

Unidentified straight-shelled orthocerid nautiloid
QZ467, late Ladinian of Telong Formation,
Aring, Kelantan

Canadian Triassic Ammonoids Faunas (Front Page)

Price: USD 60 @ RM 269.00

Conodont biomaker for Carnian Stage

Paragondolella polygnathiformis noah (hayashi) from Stuores Wiesen, Italy.
Conodont biomaker to defined the base of the Carnian stage.

Index fossil: Reitziites reitzi

Reitziites reitzi from Hungary
Subzonal index for Reitzi Subzone of Hungarites Zone
Illyrian, Anisian, Middle Triassic

Ammonoid Balatonites sp. dari QZ480

Balatonites sp.

Middle Triassic fossils from Baling, Kedah

Daonella pichleri

Frankites cf. apertus and Celtites cf. epolensis

These fossils were found in light grey and dark grey of shale of Rhythmic Membert of the Semanggol Formation, Baling, Kedah. This rock unit is well exposes in Northern Perak and Northern Kedah state. Base on the ammonoids association, a part of Semanggol Formation is assigned to be late Ladinian of Middle Triassic in age and correlatable with Frankites Regoladus Zone.

Index fossil: Daxatina canadensis

Daxatina canadensis from Centrel Nevada, USA
Subzonal index for D. canadensis subzone,
Longorbardian, Late Ladinian of Middle Triassic age.

Protrachyceras cf. P. pseudoarchelaus

Protrachyceras cf. P. pseudoarchelaus
Regoledanus Subzone, Upper Ladinian, Middle Triassic
QZ467, Telong Formation, Gua Musang, Kelantan

Index fossil: Eoprotrachyceras curionii

Eoprotrachyceras curiionii from Menorca, Spain.
Subzonal index for curiionii Subzone,
Fassanian, Early Ladinian of Middle Triassic age.

Daonella dan Halobia dari K. Krau, Pahang

Halobia cf. Halobia daonellaformis (McRobert)

Daonella pahangensis (Kobayashi)

Fosil bivalvia Daonella pahangensis dan Halobia cf. Halobia daonellaformis telah ditemui dalam ladang kelapa sawit Jentar, K. Krau, Pahang dalam Formasi Sematan, berhampiran susur Mentakab, Lebuhraya LPT. Dengan kewujudan spesies ini stara batuan ini berusia Ladinian Atas, Trias Tengah. Kobayashi (1966) membahagikan kewujudan Daonella di Semenanjung Malaysia kepada zon barat yang dicirikan oleh Daonella-Halobia (off-shore facies) dan zon timur timur yang dicirikan oleh kewujudan Daonella dengan ammonoid dan batu pasir Myophoria (near-shore facies). Perbezaan ini adalah kerana zon-zon ini suatu ketika dahulu berada pada kerak/terrain yang berlainan (Sibumasu-Indochina paleo-terraines) dan bukannya disebabkan oleh geosyncline Malayan.

Fosil berbentuk tempelan ini wujud dengan banyaknya pada satu horizon dan selalunya hanya wujud dengan satu spesies sahaja. Oleh itu mungkin terdapat dua horizon Daonella di sini yang dikawal oleh usia pengenapan. Halobia cf. Halobia daonellaformis adalah merupakan spesies peralihan dari Daonella kepada Halobia. Foto sumbangan Fathullah & Hasan.

Never regret to be a Geologist!

Fosil Daonella dari K. Lipis, Pahang

Fosil Daonella cf. lomelli dan serpihan krinoid ditemui di kawasan cerun potongan bukit, K. lipis, berhampiran simpang masuk ke Bandar Lipis.

Ammonoid di QZ479, Aring

Assosiasi ammonoid Danubites sp. dan Acrochordiceras sp.
QZ479, Formasi Telong, Aring

Index Fossil: Tirolites cassianus

Venter view

Lateral view


-Tirolites cassianus-

Lower Spathian, Olenekian, Lower Triassic-

Neoschizodus from QZ480

Neoschizodus elongatus and Neoschizodus ovatus
QZ480, Telong Formation
Upper Anisian, Balatonites Zone

Triassic Time Scale (Induan-Anisian)

Ammonoid Zonation in QZ467

This zonation is defined by FAD of Clionitites sp.

Daxatina canadensis Zone
Characteristic spesies:
?Daxatina sp.
Clionitites sp.
Zestoceras sp.
Frankites apertus

Frankites regoledanus Zone
Characteristic spesies:
Joannites sp.
Megaphyllites jarbas
Frankites regoledanus
Protrachyceras custulatum
Anolcites sp.
Asklepioceras sp.
Arcestes sp.

Article: Triassic Correlation of The SE Asia Mainland

Vu Khuc & Dang Tran Huyen

Abstract

The Triassic in Southeast Asia is represented mainly by marine sediments. From many areas these sediments furnish abundant fossil collections, composed mostly of bivalves and ammonoids. Based on those groups, biostratigraphic scales have been compiled to make possible the correlation of the Triassic sequences of different Southeast Asian areas. Twelve assemblage zones have been distinguished, among them four are Lower Triassic, four are Middle Triassic and four are Upper Triassic. Triassic faunas from Southeast Asia have many species in common with analogous assemblages from south China and the Himalayas. - Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 143 (1998) 285–291

Click here to download.

Singkapan batuan baru di K. Lipis

Satu singkapan batuan yang baru telah terdedah berhampiran simpang masuk ke Bandar Lipis. Singkapan yang mempunyai 7-8 beam, dapat diperhatikan di sebelah kiri jalan yang menghala ke Gua Musang. Litologi singkapan adalah terdiri daripada perlapisan batuan lodak dan batu pasir. Lapisan konglomerat dengan klasta bersaiz pebel boleh diperhatikan di singkapan tersebut. Terdapat juga lapisan syal hitam yang mempunyai kesan bio serta lapisan berfosil.

Penulis hanya berkesempatan berada di singkapan tersebut selama 30 minit untuk mencari fosil. Antara fosil yang ditemui adalah Costatoria dan Halobia serta serpihan Krinoid. Namun jika berkesempatan lagi, mungkin lebih banyak fosil Triassik boleh ditemui di kawasan tersebut.

Kawasan K. Lipis sememangnya mempunyai banyak kawasan berfosil. Dari kawasan inilah rekod fosil terawal didokumentasikan di Malaysia oleh Newton, 1900. Beliau menamakan nama Batu Pasir Myophoria atau "Myhoporian Sandstone" yang berusia Triassik Atas. Tetapi dengan lebih banyak penemuan fosil-fosil oleh pengkaji selepas itu, mendapati bahawa usianya adalah Triassik Tengah. Banyak penemuan fosil telah dilaporkan oleh pengkaji selepasnya seperti Cox (1936), Tamura (1973,1968) dan Tokuyama (1961). Tamura,1968 melaporkan penemuan myphoriid di Cegar Perah yang berassosia dengan ammonoid Paraceratites trinodosus. Oleh itu, usia Batu Pasir Myophoria bolehlah dianggarkan berusia Pelsonian, Anisian Atas, Triassik Tengah dalam Zon Paraceratites trinodosus.

Menurut Gobett & Hutchinson (1973), Myophoria fasies adalah "rich thick-shelled benthonic fauna and generally clastic character, is clearly of shallow-water origin."

Triassic : Behind the scenes 3

An artist's depiction captures the burst of new life that occurred in the early- to mid-Triassic period. Massive extinctions at the end of the preceding Permian period allowed the plants and animals that survived to grow and diversify relatively free of competition and predators. These conditions gave rise to the dinosaurs, pterosaurs, and early crocodilians. -National Geographic

Lukisan yang membayangkan ledakan kehidupan baru yang berlangsung pada Zaman Triassik awal ke tengah. Tumbuh-tumbuhan dan haiwan-haiwan yang terselamat dari detik kepupusan massa Permo-Triassik telah memperolehi kelangsungan untuk terus hidup dan mengalami kebelbagaian yang dapat dikaitkan dengan ketiadaan pesaingan dan pemangsa. Keadaan ini membenarkan kemunculan dinasor, pterosor, reptilia dan buaya awal.

Triassic : Behind the scenes 2

An artist's depiction shows a Herrerasaurus lurking in a forest in what is now Argentina as smaller animals hide in the undergrowth. Herrerasaur fossils are among the oldest ever discovered, dating back about 228 million years to the mid-Triassic. - National Geographic

Lukisan yang mengambarkan Herrerasaurus berlindung dalam sebuah hutan purba di Argentina. Fosil Herrerasaurus adalah antara fosil tertua pernah ditemui yang berusia kira-kira 228 juta tahun lampau iaitu semasa Zaman Triassik tengah.

Triassic : Behind the scenes 1

An artist's rendering shows hatchling Nothosaurs heading for the safety of water as a hungry but terrestrial Ticinosuchus attacks near a lagoon in ancient Switzerland. Nothosaurs lived during the mid- and late Triassic period and were among the earliest reptiles to take to the sea. Because Nothosaurs may have had to come ashore to lay eggs, the eggs and hatchlings would have been vulnerable to Ticinosuchus. Yet once the hatchlings reached deeper waters, they were safe—for the moment. -National Geographic

Gambar lukisan yang mengambarkan Nothosaurs yang baru menetas melarikan diri ke dalam air apabila haiwan daratan Ticinosuchus datang menyerang di sebuah lagoon purba di Switzerland. Nothosaurs hidup semasa Zaman Triassik tengah ke lewat dan adalah antara reptilia terawal mula hidup di lautan. Nothosaurs yang bertelur dan menetas di pantai menjadikan ia sasaran mudah bagi Ticinosuchus.

Un-identified ammonoid from QZ480, Aring

Undeterminated ammonoid (Anisian, Middle Triassic) with ceratitic suture lines.

Middle Triassic Brachiopod From Aring, Kelantan

Photos of Anisian, Middle Triassic brachiopod belongs to genus Dinarispira or Tetractinella from Locality QZ480. Found associated with ammonoid Danubites cf. kansa, Kellnerites cf. samneunsis, Balatonites sp. and Paracrochordiceras sp..

Malaysia @ 245-228 million years ago

This paleogeographical map shows where is Malaysia probably located in 245 to 228 Ma (Middle Triassic) - red circled.

Article: The Welding of Shan-Thai

F. Hirsch, K. Ishida, T. Kozai, A. Meesook

ABSTRACT

The Shan-Thai Terrane is viewed as a remnant of paleo-Tethys in South East Asia. The more internal “Thai” elements of Shan-Thai, bordering with Indochina, are of Cathaysian type, while the more central part of the terrane is of transitional “Sibumasu” character. The external “Shan” elements of Shan-Thai that left Gondwana last have a clear cold-water imprint.Petrological and paleontological evidence corroborates the end Triassic – earliest Jurassic Late Indosinian orogeny, as the main Paleotethyan tectonic closure event. Its main axis consists of the Mae-Sariang Zone, which can be followed over Mae Sot to Kanchanaburi and Chanthaburi, from where it extends into southern Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia. Cenozoic Himalayan escape tectonics, alternating strike-slip movements and rotation severely compressed Shan-Thai, opened the Gulf of Thailand, disrupted the original alignment of the Mae Sariang zone and Gondwana-Tethys divide, and shaped the present tectonic configuration of SE Asia.- Geoscience journal: Vol. 10, No.3. p. 195-204, Sept. 2006

Download Here

Paleontology: The Window To Science Education

By: Richard K. Stucky

INTRODUCTION

EVERY YOUNG kid will tell you that dinosaurs and fossils are really cool or, in the words of one four-year old, "dinosaurs are cool and fossils are the best!Dinosaurs and fossils are the window through which most kids and many adults now get their first introduction to science. Paleontology is art, science, and imagination; it inspires a wealth of curiosity by students about ancient life and helps all of us to know about our origins and how our world with humans came to be.

More than any other science, paleontology can provide opportunities for young students to become involved in learning science. Students can participate in civic projects by letting their political leaders know how they feel about protecting fossil resources for future generations or by working with legislators to enact legislation. Furthermore, knowledge of the past and the earth's 3.5-billion-year history can provide students with sound approaches to future critical issues of planetary wellness that will need to be solved as the world's populations and cultures continue to expand.

Interest in fossils and the history of life on earth has increased greatly in recent years. By the time most kids begin kindergarten they have mastered the scientific names and vital statistics of the most popular dinosaurs. In my experience, kids know more than their parents about ancient life, and almost every teacher has to work hard to keep one step ahead of their students. This isn't surprising. Knowledge of fossils is reinforced in many aspects of young children's lives. New fossil discoveries are regularly highlighted on television and in the newspapers. Family summer vacations often include visits to some fossil Mecca such as Dinosaur National Monument, the Denver Museum of Natural History, or the American Museum of Natural History. Almost anywhere in the world it is possible for children to find fossils of ancient creatures close to their own backyard. And, many educators have taken advantage of students' interests by including dinosaurs and other extinct organisms in their curricula. This great interest in fossils and paleontology make it an ideal subject area for teaching students about the way that science works.

But knowledge of the fossil record is misunderstood by many. In a recent analysis by the National Science Foundation, only 44% of American adults sampled thought that the statement "Human beings, as we know them today, developed from earlier species of animals" was true, and just over half actually believed that dinosaurs and the earliest human beings lived during the same time. These statistics are truly appalling, especially given the high profile of human paleontology in the media and the thousands of bits of information on human evolution and the fossil record of dinosaurs. These misunderstandings certainly point to the importance of providing more science education and studies in paleontology as part of the K-12 school curriculum. It is essential not only to correct these misconceptions in our knowledge about the past, but also to present the rational approach to problem solving that is so vital to science.

Paleontology is a springboard for teaching students about the way that science works through the application of experiments in basic science and technology as shown by the many projects contained in this volume. Paleontology is a synthetic science that uses methodologies developed in all sciences and technologies. From mathematics, the basic sciences, and engineering, to high-tech applications such as satellite remote sensing, C-T scanning technology, and computer modeling, paleontologists derive important clues that help to decipher the nature, history, and patterns of past life.

Paleontology can also get students involved in civic projects. In Colorado, a group of grade schoolers inspired the legislature to make Stegosaurus the state fossil. In the past several years legislation has been introduced into the United States Congress that attempts to preserve valuable fossils that come from public lands. There are many views on how we can best preserve our important educational and scientifically valuable fossils and students can examine the issues to let their congresspersons know how they feel about preserving fossils for future generations to study and learn from.

THE BASIC METHODS OF PALEONTOLOGY

The basic techniques that prepare us for the scientific study of fossils are simple and can be mastered by young students. By becoming involved in the discovery, preparation, curation, and interpretation of fossils, students can understand the process of science and even contribute new knowledge.

Fossils are the remains of extinct organisms. They are first discovered where natural erosion or human excavations have exposed fossil-bearing rocks. The field paleontologist collects fossils and maintains a careful and thorough field notebook which outlines precisely the geographic locality and the rock layers in which the fossils were discovered. This is critical information for all fossils because it establishes the time and place the plant or animal once lived.

Once the well-documented fossils make it back to the laboratory, usually at a museum, university, or school, they are carefully cleaned and prepared to insure they will be preserved and stabilized as close as possible to the original state of the organism. The specimens are then described to record what was actually found — a fragmentary leaf or shell, a part of a skull, or a complete skeleton — and identified to determine the kind of organism. All of the information surrounding each specimen — where it was found; what rock layer it was discovered in ; who discovered it; what is preserved; what organism it represent; and when it was discovered — is recorded into a catalog book and a computer data record for ready reference and shared use.

The specimens are placed into archival trays or boxes and metal cabinets or shelving to ensure safe handling and preservation for future students and scientists. All of the specimens are kept together in a collection. The very special and unique scientific and educational specimens will make it to the museum exhibition where, equally important, everyone will learn from them and enjoy their value to our understanding of past life.

GOALS OF PALEONTOLOGY

Paleontology is rich not only in the discovery of new specimens and organisms but also in the many scientific ideas that have yet to be explored. Many of these ideas can be investigated by professionals, amateurs, and students. As much as any other scientific discipline, and more so than most, it is possible for beginning students to collect the scientific data on fossils and interpret the results.

Paleontology has essentially three basic goals:

(1) to describe the world's past biodiversity;

(2) to outline the history of life on earth; and

(3) to develop new ideas about and ecology.

The first goal is to describe the world's past biodiversity: all of the micro-organisms, plants and animals that have existed since the origin of life. We continually hear about new discoveries and we are far from fully understanding the richness of past biodiversity. Phylogenetic and systematic studies provide us with key information for understanding how organisms lived. For example, by understanding the engineering of the shapes and forms of organisms we can interpret the habits and adaptive features of past plants and animals and their ecological roles within ancient communities.

The second goal of paleontology is to outline the history of life. Knowledge gained from the age of the rocks within which fossils are found provides us with the sequence of change that has encompassed the history of life. Samples of the same fossil species or related species can be placed into the order in time that they lived in order to understand the evolutionary history of a group. By examining all of the organisms that come from sequentially ordered fossil beds, we can develop temporal maps and scenarios of the changes that have taken place in ecological communities.

The final goal of paleontology is to use knowledge of past life to develop new concepts and principles of evolution and ecology and perhaps even develop new theories about how our world has changed over time. Only by examining the evolutionary histories of species and communities through many different rock sequences can we examine the information for consistencies and similarities that reveal the processes of evolution and ecology that have governed the pattern of life's history. By combining this information with the earth's physical changes in climate, atmospheric chemistry, and continental positions, we can understand how life has been impacted by physical change, and further, how life has impacted the physical environment. Basic here is to understand the actual patterns of species evolution and whether the interaction of species has most effected the evolutionary changes we see in the fossil record, or if the physical environment has been most important in forcing such events as the origin or extinction of species. Topics of how species evolve or become extinct are interesting and important in their own right, but these events are also crucial to understanding how we need to preserve and carefully manage our current and future world.

MAKING PALEONTOLOGY RELEVANT

Paleontology is highly relevant to the modern and future world. We can learn how climate change has effected past organisms as well as how organisms have changed the physical world. We can also better understand the principles of extinction, evolutionary change, and biodiversity. Understanding, for example, the effects of global warming in the past can at least provide students with knowledge of its impacts on life. Knowing how climate change affects life can lead to understanding potential changes in future ecosystems and changes that will effect human land-use. Similarly, students can imagine how changes in human land-use and exponential population growth might result in the same effects we see in the fossil record due to physical environmental change.

This is crucial because human society as a whole and many of its political leaders have not come to grips with the demographics of exponential population growth, consequent urbanization and loss of habitats that many perceive will dramatically change the course of life on earth. Paleontology can provide us with an understanding of the depth of history for millions of years and an ethic that includes at its core a long-term stewardship for planetary wellness. Paleontology can be the rosetta stone for helping students understand the importance of science, how science is done, and how all of the sciences tie together. By incorporating novel activities and studies that are tied to both state and federal standards for science literacy, we can take advantage of student's interest in fossils to give them models for understanding how the world works and at the same time better prepare them for future decisions that will shape their lives and their world.

Research Update (QZ480)

Kellnerites samneuaensis (Mansuy,1920)
This species also can be found in Nakhuat Fm, in Langson province, northern Vietnam, bordering Guangxi and Yunnan provinces in China.

Tetsaoceras cf. angulatum (Tozer,1994)

Danubites cf. kansa

Hasil dari penelitian garis sutur bagi ammonoid yang terbaru ditemui tempohari didapati bahawa garis sutur bagi ammonoid tersebut adalah menyamai ammonoid Danubites cf. kansa yang mungkin berusia Pelsonian atau Illyrian, Anisian , Trias Tengah.


Oleh itu, ini memberikan implikasi bahawa himpunan fauna di lokaliti QZ480 yang antaranya mempunyai fosil Myphoriid (Costatoria, Neoschizodus) mungkin berusia Anisian atau lebih tua dan bukannya berusia Karnian-Norian seperti yang disangka sebelum ini. Selain itu Anatropites sebenarnya adalah Tetsaoceras, Hoplotropites pula adalah Kellnerites manakala Thisbites pula sebenarnya adalah Danubites. Ini mungkin dapat menyelesaikan masalah penentuan usia yang dihadapi oleh pengkaji terdahulu iaitu Aw, 1990.


Himpunan fauna di kawasan Aring didapati mempunyai percampuran dengan paleobioprovince Tetyan dan paleobioprovince America Utara. Himpunan ammonoid ini setara dengan Zon Balatonites batonicus bagi Zon ammonoid Tethyan.



Further study on suture line of an ammonoid discovered in Locality QZ480, I concluded that the suture line is belonging to ammonoid Danubites cf. kansa and probably assigned to Pelsonian or Illyrian, Anisian, Middle Triassic in age.

Therefore all fauna fossils in QZ480 including Myphoriid (Costatoria, Neoschizodus) are Anisian in age instead of Carnian-Norian as previous though. Ammonoid Anatropites, Hoplotropites and Thisbites are replaced by Tetsaoceras, Kellnerites, and Danubites respectively. This discovery may resolve the problem to determine the age of the fauna fossils in Sg. Telong. Carnian ammonoid Hoplotropites that discovered by Aw in 1990 and described by Tamura (based on the insufficient single sample found adjacent to this area) is now identified as Kellnerites.

Kedudukkan ammonoid Anisian di QZ480

Penemuan ammonoid Danubites sp. di QZ 480

QZ 480



Dari kajian lanjutan didapati bahawa ammonoid dari QZ 480 yang mempunyai garis sutur adalah Danubites sp. yang setara dengan Zon Balatonites balatonicus, Anisian Atas, Trias Tengah. Di Lokaliti QZ480, ammonoid ini bersekutu dengan ammonoid Kellnerites samneuaensis dan Tetsoaceras sp.

Triassic Time Scale (Ladinian-Norian)

Ammonoid bergaris sutur

Spesimen ini adalah antara koleksi yang terbaik dan mengakumkan kerana ianya adalah salah satu ammonoid yang mempamerkan garis sutur. Ammonoid bergaris sutur ini ditemui di Lokaliti QZ480, dalam batuan lumpur, Formasi Telong. Garis sutur ammonoid adalah penting dalam pengenalpasti sehingga ke peringkat spesies kerana spesies tertentu mempunyai garis sutur tertentu. walaubagaimana pun, bagi ammonoid ini masih dalam peringkat pengenalpastian.