Late Tertiary floral assemblage from upland gravel deposits of the southern Maryland Coastal Plain

Abstract

Research Article| April 01, 1990 Late Tertiary floral assemblage from upland gravel deposits of the southern Maryland Coastal Plain Lucy McCartan; Lucy McCartan 1U.S. Geological Survey, 926 National Center, Reston, Virginia 22092 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Bruce H. Tiffney; Bruce H. Tiffney 2Department of Geological Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Jack A. Wolfe; Jack A. Wolfe 3U.S. Geological Survey, Federal Center, Denver, Colorado 80225 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Thomas A. Ager; Thomas A. Ager 4U.S. Geological Survey, 970 National Center, Reston, Virginia 22092 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Scott L. Wing; Scott L. Wing 5Department of Paleobiology, Natural History Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. 20560 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Leslie A. Sirkin; Leslie A. Sirkin 6Department of Earth Sciences, Adelphi University, Garden City, Long Island, New York 11530 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Lauck W. Ward; Lauck W. Ward 7Virginia Museum of Natural History, Martinsville, Virginia 24112 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar James Brooks James Brooks 8Maryland Geological Survey, Baltimore, Maryland 21211 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Lucy McCartan 1U.S. Geological Survey, 926 National Center, Reston, Virginia 22092 Bruce H. Tiffney 2Department of Geological Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106 Jack A. Wolfe 3U.S. Geological Survey, Federal Center, Denver, Colorado 80225 Thomas A. Ager 4U.S. Geological Survey, 970 National Center, Reston, Virginia 22092 Scott L. Wing 5Department of Paleobiology, Natural History Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. 20560 Leslie A. Sirkin 6Department of Earth Sciences, Adelphi University, Garden City, Long Island, New York 11530 Lauck W. Ward 7Virginia Museum of Natural History, Martinsville, Virginia 24112 James Brooks 8Maryland Geological Survey, Baltimore, Maryland 21211 Publisher: Geological Society of America First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (1990) 18 (4): 311–314. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1990)018<0311:LTFAFU>2.3.CO;2 Article history First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation Lucy McCartan, Bruce H. Tiffney, Jack A. Wolfe, Thomas A. Ager, Scott L. Wing, Leslie A. Sirkin, Lauck W. Ward, James Brooks; Late Tertiary floral assemblage from upland gravel deposits of the southern Maryland Coastal Plain. Geology 1990;; 18 (4): 311–314. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1990)018<0311:LTFAFU>2.3.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract A diverse flora has been discovered in a dark clay lens in upland gravel in southern Maryland near Brandywine. More than 49 taxa have been identified in the assemblage, which includes leaves, seeds, fruits, pollen, and a Taxodium (bald cypress) trunk. The vegetation is dominated by deciduous trees and vines. Four taxa are now absent from North America but survive elsewhere; one is extinct. A late Miocene age and warm-temperate climate are inferred from the flora. The clay lens probably represents a cutoff distributary in the extensive braided stream system that covered the area and is unique in Maryland. Similar dark clays have been described from Miocene sands and gravels in New Jersey. The Brandywine flora is the first direct evidence of the Miocene age of part of the fluvial upland deposits of Maryland. On the basis of the age inferred from the flora, the Brandywine deposit is correlated with the St. Marys Formation or the Eastover Formation, which are upper Miocene shelly marine units south and southeast of Brandywine. This content is PDF only. Please click on the PDF icon to access. First Page Preview Close Modal You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.