Hell Creek in the Cretaceous

For more than a century, the Hell Creek and Fort Union formations and their constituent fossil biotas have captivated geologists and paleontologists alike. In Montana and adjacent areas, these rocks have become renowned as the type locality for Tyrannosaurus rex and the epicenter for debate surrounding the mass extinction of dinosaurs at the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary.

The 15 chapters in this volume represent a surge of field and laboratory research activity that illustrates the impacts of new and refined methods and tools. In tandem, the research questions have evolved to take advantage of the increased precision, quality, and quantity of the data, from determinations of paleoecologies to assessment of ontogenetic sequences, patterns of sedimentation, and basin-level intraformational correlations.

Volume editors Gregory P. Wilson of the University of Washington, William A. Clemens of the University of California at Berkeley, John R. Horner of the Museum of the Rockies, and Joseph H. Hartman of the University of North Dakota emphasize that while this book marks a major step forward in the quest to mine the rich lode of geologic and biologic history preserved in the strata bounding the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary, the vast collections made during these studies means that the work will continue for many years to come.

More information:
Through the End of the Cretaceous in the Type Locality of the Hell Creek Formation in Montana and Adjacent Areas
Gregory P. Wilson, William A. Clemens, John R. Horner, and Joseph H. Hartman (editors)
Geological Society of America Special Paper 503
SPE503, 392 p., $95.00; Member price $75.00
ISBN 978-0-8137-2503-1

Provided by Geological Society of America