Morphology, Microstructure and Stratigraphy of Some Late Cretaceous Radiolitid Rudists from Jamaica

Radiolitid rudists belonging to the genera Bournonia FISCHER, Biradiolites D’ORBIGNY and Thyrastylon CHUBB are abundant in the Upper Maastrichtian, Titanosarcolites Limestones (Guinea Corn Formation and other formations) of Jamaica. Although there is a large literature on these Jamaican forms (e.g., WHITFIELD, 1897; TRECHMANN, 1924; CHUBB, 1956, 1967, 1971), little information on their microstructure, or their detailed stratigraphy has been published. Indeed, there have been few studies on the microstructure of rudists, although those there have been indicate that the microstructures have high taxonomic significance (e.g., AMICO, 1978; STEUBER, 1999). This paper presents Morphology, Microstructure and Stratigraphy of Some Late Cretaceous Radiolitid Rudists from Jamaica