U-Pb dating establishes the age of Mastodonsaurus in the Middle Triassic, suggesting new sedimentation models and stratigraphy implications.
The article presents the first data of the U-Pb LA-ICPMS dating of the tetrapod fauna “Mastodonsaurus” (Middle Triassic). The U-Pb age (241.6 ± 1.0 Ma) of the sediments directly underlying the layers of the Inder Formation with the fauna “Mastodonsaurus” in the Kok-Tau section (Pre-Caspian Depression) indicates that the base of the Inderian Regional stage roughly corresponds to the Anisian-Ladinian boundary and can be used as the lower age limit for the distribution of this fauna. The obtained radioisotopic dating, as well as palaeontological data on the bone-bearing Bukobayian Regional stage of the Southern Urals, place the stratigraphic range of the fauna “Mastodonsaurus” within the Ladinian Stage. A palaeogeographic model of the sediment accumulation in the Eltonian and Inderian time is proposed.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Silantiev et al. (2025) studied this question.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: