Scalby Formation

Scalby Formation
Stratigraphic range: Bathonian
exposure of the Scalby Formation near Scalby, North Yorkshire
TypeGeological formation
Unit ofRavenscar Group
Sub-unitsMoor Grit Member, Long Nab Member
UnderliesCornbrash Formation, Osgodby Formation
OverliesScarborough Formation
Thicknessup to 60 metres (200 ft)
Lithology
Primary
Other
  • Moor Grit Member - Mudstone, Siltstone
  • Long Nab Member - Sandstone
Location
RegionEurope
Country UK
ExtentNorth Yorkshire
Type section
Named forScalby, North Yorkshire
LocationScalby Cliff

The Scalby Formation is a geological formation in England. Part of the Ravenscar Group, it was deposited in the Bathonian stage of the Middle Jurassic. The lower Moor Grit Member has a lithology consisting of medium to coarse grained cross bedded sandstone, with thin beds of mudstone and siltstone, while the upper Long Nab Member has a lithology consisting of predominantly laminated mudstone and siltstone, with fine to medium grained planar and cross stratified sandstones.[1]

Fossilized dinosaur tracks have been found in the Scalby Formation; these include a recently discovered footprint from a large theropod, probably a megalosaurid. The track is from the Long Nab Member, and has been assigned to the ichnogenus Megalosauripus.[2]

  1. ^ "Scalby Formation". BGS Lexicon of Named Rock Units. British Geological Survey. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
  2. ^ Hudson, J.G.; Romano, M.; Lomax, D.R.; Taylor, R.; Woods, M. (16 February 2023). "A new giant theropod dinosaur track from the Middle Jurassic of the Cleveland Basin, Yorkshire, UK". Proceedings of the Yorkshire Geological Society. 64 (3) – via Lyell Collection.