Oxford Clay
Stratigraphic range: Middle to Late Jurassic (Callovian-Oxfordian), 166–160 Ma

PreЄ

Coastal exposure of the Oxford Clay Formation near Weymouth

Type| Geological formation
Unit of| Ancholme Group
Sub-units| Peterborough Member, Stewartby Member, Weymouth Member
Underlies| West Walton Formation, Corallian Group
Overlies| Kellaways Formation, Osgodby Formation
Thickness| Up to 185 metres, typically 50 to 70 m on East Midlands Shelf
Lithology
Primary| Claystone
Other| Mudstone
Location
Region| Oxford, Peterborough, Dorset, Yorkshire
Country| England
Type section
Named for| Oxford

The Oxford Clay (or Oxford Clay Formation) is a Jurassic marine sedimentary rock formation underlying much of southeast England, from as far west as Dorset and as far north as Yorkshire. The Oxford Clay Formation dates to the Jurassic, specifically, the Callovian and Oxfordian ages,[1] and comprises two main facies. The lower facies comprises the Peterborough Member, a fossiliferous organic-rich mudstone. This facies and its rocks are commonly known as lower Oxford Clay. The upper facies comprises the middle Oxford Clay, the Stewartby Member, and the upper Oxford Clay, the Weymouth Member. The upper facies is a fossil poor assemblage of calcareous mudstones.

Oxford Clay appears at the surface around Oxford, Peterborough and Weymouth and is exposed in many quarries around these areas. The top of the Lower Oxford Clay shows a lithological change, where fissile shale changes to grey mudstone. The Middle and Upper Oxford Clays differ slightly, as they are separated by an argillaceous limestone in the South Midlands.

## Contents

* 1 Palaeontology
* 2 Fossil Content
* 2.1 Ornithischians
* 2.2 Saurischians
* 2.3 Pterosaurs
* 2.4 Ichthyosaurs
* 2.5 Plesiosaurs
* 2.6 Pachycormiformes
* 2.7 Thalattosuchians
* 3 Economic use
* 4 See also
* 5 References
* 5.1 Bibliography
* 6 Further reading

## Palaeontology

The Oxford Clay is well known for its rich fossil record of fish and invertebrates.[2] Many of the fossils are well preserved, occasionally some are found exceptionally well preserved. Animals which lived in the Oxford Clay Sea include plesiosaurs, marine crocodiles, ichthyosaurs, cephalopods (such as belemnites), bivalves (such as Gryphaea), and a variety of gastropods. Dinosaur eggs are stratigraphically present in the Lower Oxford Clay. Geographically, they are located in Cambridgeshire, England.[3]

Life restoration of Eustreptospondylus and Lexovisaurus in the Oxford Clay environment

## Fossil Content

|  |

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Color key
| Taxon | Reclassified taxon | Taxon falsely reported as present | Dubious taxon or junior synonym | Ichnotaxon | Ootaxon | Morphotaxon

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| Notes
Uncertain or tentative taxa are in small text; ~~crossed out~~ taxa are discredited.

### Ornithischians

Indeterminate euronithopod remains stratigraphically present in the Lower Oxford Clay and geographically located in Cambridgeshire, England.[3]

Ornithischians of the Oxford Clay

Genus  | Species  | Location  | Stratigraphic position  | Material  | Notes  | Images

Callovosaurus

C. leedsi[3]

* Cambridgeshire[3]

Lower[3]

"Femur."[4]

| An iguanodontian dryosaur.  | Callovosaurus Lexovisaurus

Lexovisaurus[5]

L. durobivensis[6]

* Cambridgeshire[3]
* Dorset[7]

Lower[6]

| A holotype pelvis.  | A stegosaur

Indeterminate[8]

* Bedfordshire[9]

|  |

Loricatosaurus[3]

L. priscus[3]

* Cambridgeshire[3]

Lower[3]

|  | A stegosaur.

Sarcolestes[3]

S. leedsi[3]

* Cambridgeshire[3]

Lower[3]

"Partial mandible."[10]

| An ankylosaur.

### Saurischians

Saurischians of the Oxford Clay

Genus  | Species  | Location  | Stratigraphic position  | Material  | Notes  | Images

Cetiosauriscus[3]

C. stewarti[3]

* Cambridgeshire[3]

Lower[3]

"Rear half of a skeleton."[11]

|  |  Cetiosauriscus Eustreptospondylus Metriacanthosaurus

Eustreptospondylus[12]

E. oxoniensis[12]

* Oxfordshire[12]

Upper[12]

Disarticulated skull and skeleton, with some referred limb elements.[13]

Sauropoda

Indeterminate[14]

* Wiltshire[14]
* Cambridgeshire[3]

|  |  |

The caudal vertebrae from Cambridgeshire were mistakenly considered part of the syntypic series of "Ornithopsis" leedsi by Upchurch and Martin (2003).[15]

Theropoda

Indeterminate[12]

* Oxfordshire[12]

Middle[12]

|  |

Metriacanthosaurus

| M. parkeri |

* Weymouth

| Upper  |  |

### Pterosaurs

Additional indeterminate pterosaur material is stratigraphically present in the Weymouth and Peterborough Members.[16]

Pterosaurs of the Oxford Clay

Genus  | Species  | Location  | Stratigraphic position  | Material  | Notes  | Images
Rhamphorhynchinae indet.[16] |  |  | Stewartby Member[16] | Scapulocoracoid, humerus, ulna  | Possibly cf. Rhamphorhynchus[16]
"Rhamphorhynchus"  | "R." jessoni[16] |

* Cambridgeshire[16]

| Weymouth Member[16] |  | Indeterminate non-monofenestratan pterosaur[16]

### Ichthyosaurs

Genus  | Species  | Location  | Member  | Abundance  | Notes  | Images

|
|
|
|
|
|

Ophthalmosaurus

O. icenicus

|  |  |  |

A ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur

### Plesiosaurs

Genus  | Species  | Location  | Member  | Abundance  | Notes  | Images

|
|
|
|
|
|

Cryptoclidus

C. eurymerus

|  |  |  |

A cryptoclidid

|  Cryptoclidus Eardasaurus Liopleurodon Muraenosaurus Pachycostasaurus Peloneustes Simolestes

C. richardsoni

|  |  |  |

A cryptoclidid

Eardasaurus |

E. powelli

|  |  |  |

A thalassophonean pliosaurid

Liopleurodon

L. ferox

|  |  |  |

A thalassophonean pliosaurid

L. pachydeirus

|  |  |  |

A thalassophonean pliosaurid

Marmornectes

M. candrewi

|  |  |  |

A pliosaurid

Muraenosaurus

M. leedsi

|  |  |  |

A cryptoclidid

Pachycostasaurus

P. dawnii

|  |  |  |

A pliosaurid

Peloneustes

P. philarchus

|  |  |  |

A thalassophonean pliosaurid

Picrocleidus

P. beloclis

|  |  |  |

A cryptoclidid

Pliosaurus

P. andrewsi

|  |  |  |

A thalassophonean pliosaurid; represents a new genus distinct from Pliosaurus

Simolestes

S. vorax

|  |  |  |

A thalassophonean pliosaurid

Tricleidus

T. seeleyi

|  |  |  |

A cryptoclidid

### Pachycormiformes

Genus  | Species  | Location  | Member  | Abundance  | Notes  | Images

|
|
|
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|
|

Leedsichthys | L. problematicus |  |  |  | Giant filter feeding pachycormiform  |
Martillichthys | M. renwickae |  |  |  | Filter feeding pachyocormiform  |
"Hypsocormus"  | "H." tenuirostris |  |  |  | Carnivorous pachycormiform, not closely related to Hypsocormus, and more closely related to Orthocormus |

### Thalattosuchians

Genus  | Species  | Location  | Member  | Abundance  | Notes  | Images

|
|
|
|
|
|

Lemmysuchus

L. obtusidens

|  |  |  |

A teleosauroid belonging to the Machimosauridae

|  Neosteneosaurus specimen (from an unknown location) Thalattosuchus Suchodus Tyrannoneustes

Charitomenosuchus

C. leedsi

|  |  |  |

A machimosaurid teleosauroid

Steneosaurus

S. edwardsi

|  |  |  |

Now referred to Neosteneosaurus.

S. durobrivensis

|  |  |  |

Junior synonym of N. edwardsi.

Neosteneosaurus

N. edwardsi

|  |  |  |

A machimosaurid teleosauroid

Mycterosuchus

M. leedsi

|  |  |  |

A teleosaurid teleosauroid

Metriorhynchus

M. superciliosus

|  |  |  |

This species was referred to a new genus, Thalattosuchus.[17]

Thalattosuchus

T. superciliosus

|  |  |  |

A metriorhynchine metriorhynchid

Gracilineustes

G. leedsi

|  |  |  |

A metriorhynchine metriorhynchid

Suchodus

S. brachyrhynchus

|  |  |  |

A geosaurine metriorhynchid

S. durobrivensis

|  |  |  |

A geosaurine metriorhynchid

Tyrannoneustes[18]

T. lythrodectikos

|  |  |  |

A geosaurine metriorhynchid

## Economic use

Oxford Clay has a porous consistency and is soft and is often used in the making of roads. It is also the source of the Fletton stock brick of which much of London is built. For brick making, the Oxford Clay has the advantage of containing carbon which provides part of the fuel required in firing it so reducing the requirement for an external fuel source.

## See also

* List of fossil sites (with link directory)
* List of dinosaur-bearing rock formations
* Kimmeridge Clay
* London Clay
* Weald Clay

## References

1. ↑ "Oxford Clay Formation". The BGS Lexicon of Named Rock Units. British Geological Survey. http://www.bgs.ac.uk/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?pub=OXC.
2. ↑ Martill, D.M.; Hudson J.D. (1991). Fossils of the Oxford Clay. Palaeontological Association.
3. ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 "10.9 Cambridgeshire, England; 1. Lower Oxford Clay," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.
4. ↑ "Table 18.1," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 396.
5. ↑ Weishampel, et al. (2004). Pages 539-540.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "10.7 Dorset, England; 3. Lower Oxford Clay" and "cambridgeshire">"10.9 Cambridgeshire, England; 1. Lower Oxford Clay," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Pages 539-540.
7. ↑ "10.7 Dorset, England; 3. Lower Oxford Clay," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 539.
8. ↑ Listed as "?Lexovisaurus sp." in "10.10 Bedfordshire, England; 1. Oxford Clay," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.
9. ↑ "10.10 Bedfordshire, England; 1. Oxford Clay," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.
10. ↑ "Table 17.1," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 367.
11. ↑ "Table 13.1," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 265.
12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 12.6 "10.14 Oxfordshire, England; 8. Middle Oxford Clay," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.
13. ↑ "Table 4.1," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 72.
14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 "10.14 Wiltshire, England; 4. Oxford Clay," in Weishampel, et al. (2004). Page 540.
15. ↑ Noé LF, Liston JJ, Chapman SD. 2010. ‘Old bones, dry subject’: the dinosaurs and pterosaur collected by Alfred Nicholson Leeds of Peterborough, England. Geological Society, London, Special Publications 343: 49–77.
16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 16.5 16.6 16.7 O'Sullivan, Michael (2018). "The pterosaur assemblage of the Oxford Clay Formation (Jurassic, Callovian-Oxfordian) from the UK". Geological Society, London, Special Publications 455: 171–180. doi:10.1144/SP455.10.
17. ↑ Young, M.T.; Brignon, A.; Sachs, S.; Hornung, J.; Foffa, D.; Kitson, J.J.N.; Johnson, M.M.; Steel, L. (2021). "Cutting the Gordian knot: a historical and taxonomic revision of the Jurassic crocodylomorph Metriorhynchus". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 192 (2): 510–553. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaa092. https://academic.oup.com/zoolinnean/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaa092/5952483.
18. ↑ Mark T. Young; Marco Brandalise de Andrade; Stephen L. Brusatte; Manabu Sakamoto; Jeff Liston (2013). "The oldest known metriorhynchid super-predator: a new genus and species from the Middle Jurassic of England, with implications for serration and mandibular evolution in predacious clades". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 11 (4): 475–513. doi:10.1080/14772019.2012.704948.

### Bibliography

* Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; Osmólska, Halszka, eds (2004). The Dinosauria, 2nd edition. Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 1–880. ISBN 0-520-24209-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=vtZFDb_iw40C. Retrieved 2019-02-21.

## Further reading

* Andrews, C. W. 1910. "A Descriptive Catalogue of the Marine Reptiles of the Oxford Clay, Part I". British Museum (Natural History), London, England: 205 pp.
* Andrews, CW. 1913. "A descriptive catalogue of the Marine Reptiles of the Oxford Clay, Part II". British Museum (Natural History). pp. 205pp.
* M. J. Benton and P. S. Spencer. 1995. Fossil Reptiles of Great Britain. Chapman & Hall, London 1–386
* J. B. Delair. 1973. "The dinosaurs of Wiltshire". The Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine 68:1–7
* P. M. Galton. 1980. "European Jurassic ornithopod dinosaurs of the families Hypsilophodontidae and Camptosauridae". Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie, Abhandlungen 160(1):73–95
* D. M. Martill. 1988. "A review of the terrestrial vertebrate of fossils of the Oxford Clay (Callovian-Oxfordian) of England". Mercian Geologist 11(3):171–190

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