Cerro Barcino Formation


The Cerro Barcino Formation is a geological formation in South America whose strata span the Early Cretaceous. The top age for the formation has been estimated to be Albian. Earlier estimates placed the formation until the Campanian.
The formation was deposited in the Cañadón Asfalto Basin, a rift basin that started forming in the earliest Jurassic. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.
The Cerro Barcino Formation is the second-youngest unit of the Chubut Group, which also includes the older Los Adobes Formation. Both formations cover a vast area in Chubut Province, Argentina. The two formations are distinguished by geological features suggesting a distinct change in climate, from a wetter, flood plain environment in the Los Adobes to a much more arid, desert-like environment in the Cerro Barcino.
The Cerro Barcino Formation is subdivided into several subunits. From oldest to youngest:
The final three members were estimated to range from Albian to Campanian age, while the La Paloma dates to the latest Hauterivian.

Fossil content

Indeterminate abelisaurid remains. Possible indeterminate carcharodontosaurid remains. Indeterminate Titanosauria remains. Also, an unnamed titanosauriform.

Crurotarsans

Dinosaurs