An early Eocene fish assemblage associated with a barite deposit in the lower part of the Crescent Formation, Olympic Peninsula, Washington State, USA

Abstract

Abundant shark and rare actinopterygian teeth are reported from a locality within the early Eocene (Ypresian) lower part of the Crescent Formation exposed in the Hamma Hamma River valley on the eastern Olympic Peninsula, Washington State, USA. This part of the Crescent Formation is predominantly submarine volcanic basalt with some sedimentary interbeds deposited in deep water. The teeth are derived from sediments that appear to directly overlay and in places interfinger with the margins of an anomalous lenticular barite deposit; one tooth was found in the barite. Genera represented include deep-water taxa (aff. Chlamydoselachus, Mitsukurina, Notorynchus, Odontaspis) and open marine, epipelagic sharks (Alopias, Brachycarcharias, Jaekelotodus, Macrorhizodus, Otodus, Striatolamia). The only other fossils found were two fragmentary shark vertebrae, numerous shark dermal ossicles, a single teleost tooth (Egertonia) and abundant, minute valves of a discinid brachiopod. This is the first report of macrofossils from the lower part of the Crescent Formation and the only early Eocene shark assemblage described from the North Pacific Basin. The shark assemblage also corroborates paleodepositional interpretations of the lower Crescent Formation as being in part ancient volcanic seamounts during early Eocene time.