Lapurr Sandstone

The Lapurr Sandstone, also spelled Lapur Sandstone, previously considered part of the informal "Turkana Grits", is a geological formation in Kenya (Turkana County). It is the oldest unit in the Turkana Basin. The strata date back to the Late Cretaceous, likely Campanian to Maastrichtian, based on palynology and the presence of dyrosaurs and mosasaurs, the upper part of the unit likely extends into the Palaeogene, based on zircon dating.[1] It predominantly consists of fine-coarse arkosic sandstone, which has been interpreted as either been deposited in fluvial or shallow marine conditions.[2][1] Dinosaur remains among other vertebrates have been recovered from it around Lokitaung Gorge, though these mostly consist of heavily abraded, isolated bones of robust morphology like sauropod limb bones and caudal vertebrae.[3][1]

Lapurr Sandstone
Stratigraphic range: Campanian-Paleocene
~72–65 Ma
TypeGeological formation
UnderliesOligocene basalt
OverliesPrecambrian metamorphic basement
Thickness400–610 m (1,310–2,000 ft)
Lithology
PrimarySandstone
Location
Coordinates4.3°N 35.8°E / 4.3; 35.8
Approximate paleocoordinates13.8°S 27.8°E / -13.8; 27.8
RegionRift Valley Province
Country Kenya
ExtentTurkana Basin, Great Rift Valley, Kenya
Type section
Named forLake Turkana
Lapurr Sandstone (Kenya)

Vertebrate paleofauna
Dinosaurs and pterosaurs
TaxaPresenceNotesImages
Lithostrotia gen. et sp. nov.[4] Rift Valley Province, Kenya An unnamed titanosaur
Sauropoda indet Two distinct taxa
Iguanodontia indet Two distinct taxa
?Ornithopoda indet.[3] Rift Valley Province, Kenya[3]
? Azhdarchidae indet.[5] Rift Valley Province, Kenya Partial cervical vertebrae
Abelisauridae gen. et sp. nov.[6] Rift Valley Province, Kenya An unnamed giant abelisaurid, known from partial cranial and post cranial remains
Theropoda indet. Large taxon

See also
  • List of dinosaur-bearing rock formations

References
  1. Agyemang, Prince C. Owusu; Roberts, Eric M.; Downie, Bob; Sertich, Joseph J. W. (August 2019). "Sedimentary provenance and maximum depositional age analysis of the Cretaceous? Lapur and Muruanachok sandstones (Turkana Grits), Turkana Basin, Kenya". Geological Magazine. 156 (08): 1334–1356. doi:10.1017/S0016756818000663. ISSN 0016-7568.
  2. Wescott, W.A.; Morley, C.K.; Karanja, F.M. (May 1993). "Geology of the "Turkana Grits" in the Lariu range and Mt. Porr areas, southern Lake Turkana, Northwestern Kenya". Journal of African Earth Sciences (And the Middle East). 16 (4): 425–435. doi:10.1016/0899-5362(93)90101-U.
  3. Weishampel, et al. (2004). "Dinosaur distribution" Pp. 517-607. in Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; and Osmólska, Halszka (eds.): The Dinosauria, 2nd, Berkeley: University of California Press. 861 pp. ISBN 0-520-24209-2. " Pp. 517-607.
  4. https://etd.ohiolink.edu/pg_10?0::NO:10:P10_ACCESSION_NUM:ohiou1478778037108276
  5. O'Connor PM, Sertich JJW, Manthi FK (2011) A pterodactyloid pterosaur from the Upper Cretaceous Lapurr sandstone, West Turkana, Kenya. Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências 83: 309–315.
  6. Sertich, J., O’Connor, P., Seiffert, E. & Manthi, F. 2013. A giant abelisaurid theropod from the latest Cretaceous of Northern Turkana, Kenya. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, SVP Program and Abstracts Book, 2013, pp211.
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