New Lootsberg Pass, Tweefontein Farm: Induan, South Africa
collected by R. Smith 1998

List of taxa
Where & when
Geology
Taphonomy & methods
Metadata & references
Taxonomic list
Galesauridae
Progalesaurus lootbergensis n. gen., n. sp. Sidor and Smith 2004
1 individual
SAM-PK-K9954, nearly complete skull and postcranial fragments
see common names

Geography
Country:South Africa State/province:Eastern Cape County:Graaff-Reinet
Coordinates: 31.8° South, 24.9° East (view map)
Paleocoordinates:50.4° South, 14.0° West (Wright 2013)
Basis of coordinate:stated in text
Geographic resolution:small collection
Time
Period: Triassic Epoch: Early Triassic
Stage: Induan 10 m.y. bin: Triassic 1
Key time interval: Induan Other zone:  Lystrosaurus
Age range of interval: 251.902 - 251.2 m.y. ago
Stratigraphy
Geological group:Beaufort Formation:Balfour Member:Palingkloof
Stratigraphic resolution:bed
Stratigraphy comments: "The type locality lies near the top of the Paalingkloof Member of the Balfour Formation of the Beaufort Group, some 36 m above the Permian/Triassic boundary. Biostratigraphically, it falls in the lowermost Lystrosaurus Assemblage Zone (Groenewald and Kitching 1995) and is part of the Lootsbergian land vertebrate faunachron of Lucas (1998)."
Lithology and environment
Primary lithology:massive,paleosol/pedogenic,nodular,brown,red siltstone
Secondary lithology:planar lamination conglomeratic sandstone
Includes fossils?Y
Lithology description: "The holotype of Progalesaurus was discovered within a nodule protruding from a small outcrop of reddish brown massive siltstone. Detailed logging of the sedimentary sequence above and below the fossil locality shows several similar nodular horizons interbedded with tabular greenish grey fine-grained sandstone bodies. These mudrocks are interpreted as proximal floodplain deposits that mainly accumulated from episodic flooding of rivers on a semi-arid alluvial plain. The nodules are composed of micrite and interpreted to be of pedogenic origin formed in the B horizon of an arid zone calcic palaeosol. Preferential micritization around buried bone began with bacterial decay that produced a reduction halo around the bones some 0.5 m below the floodplain surface. Later, microcrystalline calcium carbonate was precipitated from groundwater within the reduction envelope and onto the bone surface. The uncompressed state of the skull attests to the early lithi®cation of the calcareous nodule, before the surrounding mud was fully compacted. Associated sandstone bodies are up to 4 m thick and extend laterally for 1-2 km. They are predominantly horizontally laminated and contain conglomeratic lenses made up of mudrock pebbles, pedogenic nodules and fragments of bone. These are interpreted as the in-channel deposits of ephemeral, low sinuosity rivers flowing in a general northerly direction across a semi-arid, low gradient alluvial plain."
Environment:dry floodplain
Taphonomy
Modes of preservation:body
Size of fossils:macrofossils
Preservation of anatomical detail:good
Fragmentation:occasional
Temporal resolution:snapshot
Collection methods and comments
Collection methods:mechanical,field collection
Reason for describing collection:taxonomic analysis
Collectors:R. Smith Collection dates:1998
Metadata
Database number:98601
Authorizer:R. Butler Enterer:R. Butler
Modifier:P. Wagner Research group:vertebrate
Created:2010-10-14 01:49:26 Last modified:2025-02-22 15:12:02
Access level:the public Released:2010-10-14 01:49:26
Creative Commons license:CC0
Reference information

Primary reference:
34016. C. A. Sidor and R. M. H. Smith. 2004. A new galesaurid (Therapsida: Cyndontia) from the Lower Triassic of South Africa. Palaeontology 47:535-556 [R. Butler/R. Butler]