Bluff Downs fossil site


The Bluff Downs fossil site is a paleontological site of Pliocene age in northern Queensland, Australia, and is the most significant fossil site of the Pliocene age in Australia. The fossil site lies on the banks of Allingham Creek on the pastoral property of Bluff Downs Station.

Fossil fauna

The Bluff Downs fossils are about four million years old, dating from the Pliocene period. Geologically they come from the Allingham Formation which comprises a sequence of terrigenous clays, silts, sands, calcareous sands and limestones. In the Pliocene the site was a wetland environment containing a diverse fauna, including fish, reptiles, birds and mammals. Examples are the: