Wikipedia

Dakhla Formation

The Dakhla Formation, also called the Dakhla Shale,[5] is a Maastrichtian-Danian geologic formation in the Western Desert, Egypt.[4][6] Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation, although none have yet been referred to a specific genus.[7]

Dakhla Formation
Stratigraphic range: Maastrichtian-Danian
~71–63 Ma
TypeGeological formation
Sub-units
  • Ammonite Hill Member[1]
  • Baris Oyster Mudstone Member[2]
  • Beida Shale Member[3]
  • Kharga Shale Member[2]
UnderliesTarawan Formation[4]
OverliesDuwi Formation[4]
Thickness230 meters[4]
Lithology
PrimaryShale[4]
OtherMarl, Phosphorite
Location
CountryEgypt

Fossil content

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Color key
Taxon Reclassified taxon Taxon falsely reported as present Dubious taxon or junior synonym Ichnotaxon Ootaxon Morphotaxon
 Notes
Uncertain or tentative taxa are in small text; crossed out taxa are discredited.

Reptiles

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Dinosaurs

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Dinosaurs reported from the Dakhla Formation
GenusSpeciesPresence MaterialNotesImages
Sauropoda Ammonite Hill Member[8] A left femur (Vb-646).[8] Most similar to femurs of Brachiosaurus or Saltasaurus.[8]

Turtles

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Turtles reported from the Dakhla Formation
GenusSpeciesPresence MaterialNotesImages
Arenila A. krebsi Ammonite Hill Member[9] Partial skull.[9] A bothremydid turtle.
?Cf. A. krebsi Ammonite Hill Member[9] Partial dorsal shell & right pelvis.[9] A bothremydid turtle.
Bothremydidae Undetermined large forms Ammonite Hill Member[9] Nuchal bone, left pleuron & partial plastron of one individual.[9] A large bothremydid turtle, with a shell length of 70 to 80 centimeters.[9]
Gigantochelys G. aegyptiacus[10] Beris Member[10] Pelvic girdle[10] A large dermochelyid turtle
Panchelonioidea Gen. et. sp. indet. Ammonite Hill Member[11] Humerus (NVP010).[11] A giant marine turtle.
Taphrosphys T. cf. sulcatus Ammonite Hill Member[9] Anterior part of dorsal shell & partial dorsal shell with partial anterior plastral lobe.[9] A bothremydid turtle.
Cf. T. sp. Ammonite Hill Member[9] Left first pleural.[9] A bothremydid turtle.
?Aff. Tasbacka ?Aff. T. sp. Ammonite Hill Member[9] Left humerus.[9] A chelonioid sea turtle.
Zolhafah Z. bella Ammonite Hill Member[9] Skull.[9] A bothremydid turtle.

Mosasaurs

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Mosasaurs reported from the Dakhla Formation
GenusSpeciesPresence MaterialNotesImages
Globidens G. phosphaticus Beris Oyster Mudstone Member[2] A single tooth crown (CUNV0011).[2] A mosasaurine.
Halisaurus H. hebae Beris Oyster Mudstone Member[12] A halisaurine
Mosasaurinae Indeterminate Beris Oyster Mudstone Member[2] A fragmentary small dentary with a single tooth (CUNV0012).[2] A mosasaurine.
Prognathodon P. sp. "Lower part" Two tooth crowns, three cervical, nine dorsal, three caudal vertebrae, and ribs, found in association (NVP025).[5] Most similar to P. overtoni, possibly a member of that species

Fish

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Fish reported from the Dakhla Formation[13]
GenusSpeciesPresence MaterialNotesImages
Anomoeodus A. aegypticus Lower Beris Member[14] A single specimen (NVP023).[14] A pycnodont.
Carangidae
Diastemapycnodus D. tavernensis Beris Member[15] "A single vomer with partial dentition".[15] A pycnodont.
Menidae
Sclerorhynchus S. cf. leptodon[16] Beris Member Four fragmentary rostral denticles originally attributed to Onchopristis sp.[17] A sawskate.
Osteoglossidae
cf. Otodus cf. O. obliquus[citation needed] Fragmentary teeth and possible vertebra founds. A otodontid.
Scombridae
Sclerorhynchoidei Indeterminate[16] Beris Member An exceptionally large, 1.46 metres (4.8 ft) long rostrum originally attributed to Onchopristis sp.[17] A sawskate.
Syngnathidae
Veliferidae
Wadiichthys W. anbaawyi Beris Member[18] A saurodontid Ichthyodectiform

Invertebrates

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Bivalves

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Bivalves reported from the Dakhla Formation
GenusSpeciesPresence MaterialNotesImages
Apectoichnus A. longissimus Ammonite Hill Member[1] Borings in Nypa fruits.[1] Bivalve borings.
Teredolites T. clavatus Ammonite Hill Member[1] 32 moderately preserved borings (TBT02-33) & two badly preserved specimens (TBT44-45) in Nypa fruits.[1] Bivalve borings.

Plants

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Plants reported from the Dakhla Formation
GenusSpeciesPresence MaterialNotesImages
Nypa N. burtinii Fruits & seed casts.[19] A mangrove palm
N. sp. Ammonite Hill Member[1] Fruits with bivalve borings.[1] A mangrove palm.

See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 El Hedeny, M.; Kassab, W.; Rashwan, M.; Abu El-Kheir, G.; AbdelGawad, M. (2020-07-01). "Bivalve borings in Maastrichtian fossilNypafruits: Dakhla Formation, Bir Abu Minqar, South Western Desert, Egypt". Ichnos. 28 (1): 24–33. doi:10.1080/10420940.2020.1784158. ISSN 1042-0940. S2CID 225527064.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 AbdelGawad, Mohamed K.; Abu El-Kheir, Gebely A.; Kassab, Walid G. (September 2021). "The youngest records of mosasaurid reptiles from the Upper Cretaceous of the South-Western Desert in Egypt". Proceedings of the Geologists' Association. 132 (5): 556–562. Bibcode:2021PrGA..132..556A. doi:10.1016/j.pgeola.2021.07.004. ISSN 0016-7878.
  3. ↑ "UPPER DAKHLA FORMATION ( BEIDA SHALE MEMBER) AT G. DUWI, RED SEA, EGYPT: MINERALOGICAL AND GEOCHEMICAL ASPECTS | Faculty of Science". www.aun.edu.eg. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Anan, Tarek I.; Abd El-Wahed, Ahmed G. (2017-12-15). "The Maastrichtian-Danian Dakhla Formation, Eastern Desert, Egypt: Utilization in manufacturing lightweight aggregates". Applied Clay Science. 150: 10–15. Bibcode:2017ApCS..150...10A. doi:10.1016/j.clay.2017.08.027. ISSN 0169-1317.
  5. 1 2 El-Kheir, Gebely A. Abu; Shaker, Ahmed A.; Street, Hallie P.; Longrich, Nicholas R.; Strougo, Amin; Asan, Anhar; AbdelGawad, Mohamed (9 November 2023). "A Prognathodontin Mosasaur from the Maastrichtian of the Dakhla Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt". Fossil Studies. 1 (1): 60–75. doi:10.3390/fossils1010007. ISSN 2813-6284.
  6. ↑ Tantawy, A. A.; Keller, G.; Adatte, T.; Stinnesbeck, W.; Kassab, A.; Schulte, P. (2001-12-01). "Maastrichtian to Paleocene depositional environment of the Dakhla Formation, Western Desert, Egypt: sedimentology, mineralogy, and integrated micro- and macrofossil biostratigraphies". Cretaceous Research. 22 (6): 795–827. Bibcode:2001CrRes..22..795T. doi:10.1006/cres.2001.0291. ISSN 0195-6671.
  7. ↑ Weishampel, et al. (2004). "Dinosaur distribution." Pp. 517–607.
  8. 1 2 3 Rauhut, Oliver W M; Werner, Christa (January 1997). "First record of a Maastrichtian sauropod dinosaur from Egypt". Palaeontolgia Africana. 34: 63–67.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 de Lapparent, France; Werner, Christa (April 1998). "New Late Cretaceous turtles from the Western Desert, Egypt". Annales de Paléontologie. 84 (2): 131–214. Bibcode:1998AnPal..84..131D. doi:10.1016/S0753-3969(98)80005-0.
  10. 1 2 3 Mousa, Mohamed K.; Tantawy, Abdel Aziz A.; Abu El-Kheir, Gebely A. (February 2026). "First known gigantic dermochelyid turtle (Pan-Chelonioidea) from the Upper Cretaceous deposits of Dakhla Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt". Cretaceous Research (in press) 106357. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2026.106357.
  11. 1 2 Abu El-Kheir, G. A.-M.; AbdelGawad, M. K.; Kassab, W. G. (2021). "First known gigantic sea turtle from the Maastrichtian deposits in Egypt". Acta Palaeontologica Polonica. 66 (2): 349–355.
  12. ↑ Shaker, A. A.; Longrich, N. R.; Strougo, A.; Asan, A.; Bardet, N.; Mousa, M. K.; Tantawy, A. A.; Abu El-Kheir, G. A. (2023). "A new species of Halisaurus (Mosasauridae: Halisaurinae) from the lower Maastrichtian (Upper Cretaceous) of the Western Desert, Egypt". Cretaceous Research. 154. 105719. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2023.105719.
  13. ↑ El-Sayed, S.; Friedman, M.; Salem, B. S.; Gohar, A. S.; Al-Ashqar, S. F.; Amin, M.; El-Saka, H.; Saad, H.; Speijer, R. P.; Sallam, H. M. (2026). "Rise of modern marine fishes captured in an early Paleocene Lagerstätte". Science Advances. 12 (23) eaec8978. doi:10.1126/sciadv.aec8978. PMC 13232593. PMID 42234753.
  14. 1 2 Capasso, Luigi; Abu El-kheir, Gebely Abdelmaksoud; Mousa, Mohamed Kamel; Tantawy, Abdel Aziz (December 2021). "ANOMOEODUS AEGYPTICUS N. SP. (PISCES, †PYCNODONTIFORMES) FROM THE LATE CRETACEOUS OF THE DAKHLA FORMATION, WESTERN DESERT, EGYPT". Thalassia Salentina (43): 89–104.
  15. 1 2 Abu El-Kheir; Tantawy; Mousa; Wahba; Capasso (2022-12-02). "Diastemapycnodus tavernensis gen. et sp. nov. (Actinopterygii, †Pycnodontiformes) from the marine Maastrichtian (Late Cretaceous) of the Dakhla Formation, Western Desert, Egypt". Historical Biology: A Journal of Paleobiology. 34 (12): 2324–2331. Bibcode:2022HBio...34.2324A. doi:10.1080/08912963.2021.2014482. S2CID 245051336.
  16. 1 2 Greenfield, T. (2025). "No evidence for a giant, late-surviving Onchopristis: Comment on Capasso et al. (2024)". Journal of African Earth Sciences. 223. 105541. doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2025.105541.
  17. 1 2 Capasso, L.; Abdel Aziz, S.; Tantawy, A. A.; Mousa, M. K.; Wahba, D. G. A.; Abu El-Kheir, G. A. (2024). "The first described Onchopristis Stromer, 1917, (Elasmobranchii: †Onchopristidae) from the Marine Maastrichtian of Dakhla Formation, Western Desert, Egypt". Journal of African Earth Sciences. 105415. doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2024.105415.
  18. ↑ Abu El-Kheir, G. A.; Marzouk, A.; Capasso, L.; Zahran, E.; Kasem, A. M.; Kamel, A.; Mousa, M. K.; Elbsebeshi, A. (2026). "A new saurodontid fish from the Late Cretaceous of the Western Desert, Egypt". Acta Palaeontologica Polonica. 71 (1): 85–94. doi:10.4202/app.01277.2025.
  19. ↑ El-Soughier, Maher I.; Mehrotra, R.C.; Zhou, Zhi-Yan; Shi, Gong-Le (January 2011). "Nypa fruits and seeds from the Maastrichtian–Danian sediments of Bir Abu Minqar, South Western Desert, Egypt". Palaeoworld. 20 (1): 75–83. doi:10.1016/j.palwor.2010.09.016. ISSN 1871-174X.

Bibliography

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  • Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; and Osmólska, Halszka (eds.): The Dinosauria, 2nd, Berkeley: University of California Press. 861 pp. ISBN 0-520-24209-2.


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