Lower cretaceous avian-dominated, theropod, thyreophoran, pterosaur and turtle track assemblages from the Tugulu Group, Xinjiang, China: ichnotaxonomy and palaeoecology
Lida Xing,
Martin G. Lockley,
Chengkai Jia,
Hendrik Klein,
Kecheng Niu,
Lijun Zhang,
Liqi Qi,
Chunyong Chou,
Anthony Romilio,
Donghao Wang,
Yu Zhang,
W Scott Persons,
Miaoyan Wang
Affiliations
Lida Xing
State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geoscience (Beijing), Beijing, China
Martin G. Lockley
Dinosaur Trackers Research Group, University of Colorado at Denver, Denver, United States
Chengkai Jia
Research Institute of Experiment and Detection of Xinjiang Oil Company, PetroChina, Karamay, China
Yingliang Stone Natural History Museum, Nan’an, China
Lijun Zhang
Institute of Resources and Environment, Key Laboratory of Biogenic Traces & Sedimentary Minerals of Henan Province, Collaborative Innovation Center of Coalbed Methane and Shale Gas for Central Plains Economic Region, Henan Polytechnic University, Jiaozuo, China
Liqi Qi
Faculty of Petroleum, China University of Petroleum (Beijing) at Karamay, Karamay, China
Chunyong Chou
School of the Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geoscience (Beijing), Beijing, China
Anthony Romilio
School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Donghao Wang
School of the Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geoscience (Beijing), Beijing, China
Yu Zhang
School of the Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geoscience (Beijing), Beijing, China
W Scott Persons
Mace Brown Museum of Natural History, Department of Geology and Environmental Geosciences, College of Charleston, Charleston, United States
Miaoyan Wang
School of the Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geoscience (Beijing), Beijing, China
Rich tetrapod ichnofaunas, known for more than a decade, from the Huangyangquan Reservoir (Wuerhe District, Karamay City, Xinjiang) have been an abundant source of some of the largest Lower Cretaceous track collections from China. They originate from inland lacustrine clastic exposures of the 581–877 m thick Tugulu Group, variously divided into four formations and subgroups in the northwestern margin of the Junggar Basin. The large Huangyangquan track assemblages occur in the Lower layer/Subgroup II. Similarly-composed track assemblages also occur at the smaller Asphaltite site in the Upper Layer/Subgroup III. The Huangyangquan assemblages have yielded more than 1,500 identified tracks including abundant tracks of avian and non-avian theropods, pterosaurs and turtles and less abundant tracks of stegosaurs. Previous avian track identifications have been reassessed to conclude that Moguiornipes robustus is a taphotaxon and Koreanaornis dodsoni might be better accommodated in the ichnogenus Aquatilavipes which appears to be the dominant avian ichnotaxon. The avian track Ignotornis is also recognized and represents the first occurrence of this ichnogenus in China. Although the Huangyangquan assemblages lack some of the larger components (e.g., sauropodan and ornithopodan tracks) known from other Lower Cretaceous localities, the association of abundant tracks of smaller tetrapods (avian and non-avian theropods, pterosaurs and turtles) appears to be representative of lacustrine basin faunas of this region, and are an excellent example of the shorebird ichnocoenosis/ichnofacies concept. This is the first comprehensive review and re-analysis of an important Lower Cretaceous ecosystem.
