An exposure of Lower Devonian sandstones near Highland Mills, NY
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An active and very busy rail line. The trains are moving fast and are quiet. Not a great place for pets and/or children. There are also exposures on the adjacent thruway, but pedestrians are generally banned from Interstate Highways. There is some poison ivy growing over part of the exposure.
Similar outcrops are found on the adjacent NY State Thruway (Interstate 87). In addition a somewhat similar sequence is found about 8km to the North West of Cornwall New York and around 6km West at Monroe. The sequence at Cornwall-Orrs Mills includes Helderberg Age rocks with reportedly abundant fossils that are part of the unexposed rocks in the Highland Mills exposures.
Molds of brachiopods (39 genera), corals, etc. ichnofossils (16 genera of tracks and burrows)
The beds here are at the North end of the Green Pond outlier -- a 96km long ridge of Lower Paleozoic rocks found East of, and parallel to, the Applachian Mountains in New York and adjacent New Jersey. The outlier is roughly 50km SouthEast of the parallel exposures of similar rocks in the Applachian ("Catskill" in this case) Mountains.
The specific beds generally collected from at this site in the Highland Mills member of the Esopus formation.
The full sequence exposed in the neighborhood of Highland mills is
Checked 110512 -- The strata here are nearly vertical. Ichnofossils seem to be present in a number of beds, but body fossils seemed to be confined to 10-20 cm of very hard sandstone. You are going to need hardrock mining gear if your interest goes beyond picking over the limited amount of material in the small talus pile.
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","39 taxa of Brachiopods","Devonian-Lower","Central Valley Sandstone|Esopus","diverse brachiopods","NY0526","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",,,
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","41 taxa of brachiopods in RR cut and adjacent cut on the NY State Thruway (I87). About 1km E of NY32, Access from Park St. Park at sharp right. Do not block gates. Follow gravel road. Cross tracks turn left and walk N about 300m to orange SS cut","Devonian","Kanouse|Esopus","diverse brachiopods","NY1149""'http://www.jstor.org/pss/1300913 (Boucot 1959);https://jerseydiamonds.webs.com/areafossilhunting.htm'","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",,,
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","At Highland Mills Cut-Harriman RR Cut--May be dangerous","Silurian-Devonian""fossils(abundant)","NY0527""paleodb.org-600; 'http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0022-3360(195909)33%3A5%3C727%3ABOTLDR%3E2.0.CO%3B2-5'; paleodb.org-601","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","In a narrow 100km long band called the Green Pond Outlier from I87 in NY to I80 in NJ S of Green Pond Mountain","Devonian","Coeymans","brachiopods-Dalejina,Levenea,Schizophoria?,Schuchertella?,Gypidula,Cupularostrum?,Plethorhyncha,Cyrtina,Howellella,Meristella,Plicoplasia,Spinoplasia,Trematospira,Kozlowskiella,Atrypa,Coelospira,Nucleospira,Nanothyris?,Rensselaerina?","NY1146""paleodb.org-25894","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",,,
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","In a narrow 100km long band called the Green Pond Outlier from I87 in NY to I80 in NJ S of Green Pond Mountain","Devonian","Esopus","brachiopods-Levenea,Platyorthis,Salopina,Anoplia,Chonostrophiella?,Eodevonaria,Protoleptostrophia?,Schuchertella?,brachiopods(chonetid),Costellirostra?,Meristella?,Metaplasia,Trematospira,Acrospirifer?,Ambocoelia,Coelospira,Leptocoelia,Terebratulida,Etymothyris","NY1150""paleodb.org-25897","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",,,
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","In a narrow 100km long band called the Green Pond Outlier from I87 in NY to I80 in NJ S of Green Pond Mountain","Devonian","Kalkberg","brachiopods-Cordatomyonia,Dalejina,Levenea,Leptostrophia,Leptaena,Iridistrophia,Eatonia,Costellirostra,Cyrtina,Hedeina,Howellella,Meristella,Trematospira,Kozlowskiella,Nucleospira","NY1147","Costellirorstra in original","paleodb.org-25895","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","In a narrow 100km long band called the Green Pond Outlier from I87 in NY to I80 in NJ S of Green Pond Mountain","Devonian","Kanouse","brachiopods-Eodevonaria,Plicanoplia,Protoleptostrophia?,Schuchertella?,Acrospiriferids,Cyrtina,Rhynchonella,Terebratulida,Amphigenia,Prionothyris","NY1151""paleodb.org-25898","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",,,
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","In a narrow 100km long band called the Green Pond Outlier from I87 in NY to I80 in NJ S of Green Pond Mountain","Devonian","New Scotland","brachiopods-Cordatomyonia,Dalejina,Isorthis,Levenea,Skenidium,Chonostrophiella?,Leptostrophia?,Strophonella,Leptaena,Iridistrophia,brachiopods(chonetid),Gypidula,Eatonia,Cyrtina,Meristella,Spinoplasia,Trematospira,Kozlowskiella,Nucleospira","NY1148""paleodb.org-25896","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",,,
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","In a narrow 100km long band called the Green Pond Outlier from I87 in NY to I80 in NJ S of Green Pond Mountain","Silurian","Decker","brachiopods-Dalejina?,Dolerorthis?,Orthostrophia?,Leptostrophia?,Leptaena,brachiopods(chonetid),Gypidula, Cupularostrum?,Machaeraria,Kozlowskiella,Megakozlowskiella,Atrypa,Nucleospira?","NY1145""paleodb.org-25893","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",,,
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","along RR 300m N of crossing of Park Ave in Highland Mills and RR tracks","Devonian?""invertebrates-cephalopods","NY1283""http://www.nytimes.com/1990/11/02/arts/buried-treasure-a-zillion-years-old.html","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","around old RR station in sandstones","Devonian""invertebrates-brachiopods","NY0528","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",
- "Highland Mills","Orange","NY","in Railroad cut adjacent to old station","Devonian","Esopus","brachiopods,mollusks,trilobites,ichnofossils","NY0529","41.3469,-74.1267SCU","|",,,
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