FerminDodson605 at 09:20, 30 April 2026

2026-04-30T09:20:39Z

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{{Short description|Geological formation in India}}

{{Infobox rockunit
| name = Gangapur Formation
| image =
| caption =
| type = [[Geological formation]]
| age = [[Early Cretaceous]], {{fossilrange|135.15|117.30|[[Valanginian]] to [[Aptian]]}}
| period = Cretaceous
| prilithology =
| otherlithology =
| namedfor = Gangapur Village
| namedby =
| region = [[Telangana]]
| country = [[India]]
| coordinates = {{coord|19.16|N|79.26|E|display=inline,title}}
| paleocoordinates =
| unitof =
| subunits =
| underlies =
| overlies = Unconformity with the [[Kota Formation]]
| thickness =
| extent = [[Pranhita-Godavari Basin]]
| area =
| map = {{Location map+ | India
| relief = 1
| width = 250
| float = center
| places =
{{Location map~ | India
| lat_deg = 18.9
| lon_deg = 80.0
| mark = Green pog.svg
| marksize = 10
}}
}}
| map_caption =
}}
The '''Gangapur Formation''' is a geological [[Formation (geology)|formation]] in [[Telangana]], [[India]]. The Gangapur formation is [[Early Cretaceous]] in age. It forms a part of the [[Pranhita–Godavari Basin]] and overlies the [[Jurassic]] [[Kota Formation]]. The outcrops near the Gangapur village was first described in 1881 as the Gangapur beds.<ref>King W. 1881. The geology of the Pranhita-Godavari Valley. Mem. Geol. Surv. India 18(3): 151-311.</ref> In 1969, the area was instituted as the Gangapur Formation. It was also determined that the Gangapur Formation extends from north of Nowgaon (Lat. 19°20’N; Long. 79°24’E) to the west of Gangapur (Lat. 19°16’N; Long. 79°26’E) and in the east up to Dharmaram and Paikasigudem.<ref>Kutty T. S. 1969. Some contributions to the stratigraphy of the Upper Gondwana Formations of the Pranhita-Godavari Valley, central India. J. geol. Soc. India. 10(1): 33-48.</ref> Fossils of plants have been found in large quantities in the formation.

==Stratigraphy==
The Gangapur Formation was laid down sometime in the Early Cretaceous due to renewed rift activity.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Biswas |first=S. K. |date=2003-03-01 |title=Regional tectonic framework of the Pranhita–Godavari basin, India |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1367912002001451 |journal=Journal of Asian Earth Sciences |series=Geology of the Pranhita-Godavari Valley, India |volume=21 |issue=6 |pages=543–551 |doi=10.1016/S1367-9120(02)00145-1 |issn=1367-9120|url-access=subscription }}</ref> The rocks of the formation are composed of coarse ferruginous sandstone interrupted with pebble bands succeeded by an alternating sequence of sandstones and mudstones or silty mudstone. Both the Gangapur Formation and the [[Chikiala Formation]] overlie the Kota formation however their exact relationships are uncertain. This uncertainty is partly due to the lack of fossils from the Chikiala Formation. It is possible that the Gangapur Formation is older than the Chikiala Formation<ref>Raiverman V., Rao M. R. & Pal D. 1985. Stratigraphy and structure of the Pranhita-Godavari Graben. Petrol. Asia J. 8(2): 174-189.</ref><ref>Lakshminarayana G. 1996. Stratigraphy and structural framework of the Gondwana sediments in the Pranhita-Godavari Valley, Andhra Pradesh. Gondwana Nine (1), Geol. Surv. India: 311- 330.</ref> or that they are both of the same age.<ref>Rudra D. K. 1982. Upper Gondwana stratigraphy and sedimentation in the Pranhita-Godavari valley, India. Quart. Jour. Geol. Min. Metall. Soc. India 54: 56-79.</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |date=2022-08-17 |title=Gondwana Sequence of the northern Pranhita-Godavari Valley: its stratigraphy and vertebrate faunas {{!}} Journal of Palaeosciences |url=https://www.jpsonline.co.in/index.php/jop/article/view/1582 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":0">https://www.researchgate.net/publication/269109738_GYMNOSPERM_FOSSILS_FROM_THE_GANGAPUR_FORMATION_EARLY_CRETACEOUS_OF_ADILABAD_DISTRICT_Gymnosperm_fossils_from_the_Gangapur_Formation_Early_Cretaceous_of_Adilabad_District_Telangana_India</ref>

== Fossil content ==
{{Paleobiota-key-compact}}
=== Osteichthyes ===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Genus
! Species
! Location
! Stratigraphic position
! Material
! Notes
! Images
|-
|[[Caturidae]]<ref name="GangapurFishes">Prasad, G. V. R.; Manhas, Brijesh K. & Arratia, Gloria (2004). [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257968608_Elasmobrach_and_actinopterygian_remains_from_the_Jurassic_and_Cretaceous_of_India Elasmobranch and actinopterygian remains from the Jurassic and Cretaceous of India]. In: Arratia G and Tintori A (eds) Mesozoic Fishes 3 - Systematics, Paleoenvironments and Biodiversity. Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, München, pp 625-638.</ref>
|Indeterminate
|
|
|VPL/JU/KF/126-128, teeth
|The teeth are said to be ''[[Caturus]]''-like.
|
|-
|[[Palaeoniscidae]]<ref name="GangapurFishes" />
|Indeterminate
|
|
|VPL/JU/KF/104-105, teeth
|The teeth are said to be ''[[Gyrolepis]]''-like.
|
|}

=== Megaflora ===
Plant megafossils are common in the Gangapur Formation, dominated by the [[Pinales|Coniferales]].<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2">http://14.139.63.228:8080/pbrep/bitstream/123456789/978/1/PbV30N2_121.pdf</ref><ref>Ramakrishna H. & Muralidhar Rao G. 1986. Pterophyllum medlicottianum from the Gangapur Formation of Andhra Pradesh. Curr. Sci. 55(23): 1199-1200</ref><ref>Ramakrishna H. & Muralidhar Rao G. 1991. Conites sripermaturensis from the Gangapur Formation, A. P. J. Swamy. Bot. Cl. 8(3&4): 113-114</ref><ref>Muralidhar Rao G. & Ramakrishna H.1988. Torreyites sitholeyi, a new record from the Gangapur Formation of Andhra Pradesh. Curr. Sci. 57(4): 203-204</ref><ref>Lakshminarayana G. & Kutumba Rao N. 1988. A note on the occurrence of Ptilophyllum fl ora from the Chintalapudi subbasin, Pranhita-Godavari Valley, Khammam District, Andhra Pradesh. J. geol. Soc. India 32(2): 137-142</ref><ref name=":1">Sukh-Dev & Rajanikanth A. 1988. The Gangapur: fossil fl ora and stratigraphy. Geophytology 18(1): 1-27</ref><ref>Rajanikanth A. 1996. Palaeobotany of Mesozoic Gondwana sediments of Pranhita-Godavari Basin. Gondwana Nine (1), Geol. Surv. India: 425-438</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Genus
! Species
! Location
! Stratigraphic position
! Material
! Notes
! Images
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" rowspan = "3" |''[[Taeniopteris]]''
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''T. kutchensis''<ref name=":0" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Ralpet, Rampur and Peddavagu.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | [[Cycad]] also known from the [[Bhuj Formation]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |''T. spatulata''<ref name=":0" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Rampur, Butarmal Nala and
Peddavagu.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Leaves
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |[[Cycad]] also known from the [[Rajmahal Traps]].<ref>{{Cite journal |date=2023-12-06 |title=Cycadophytic leaves from Jurassic - Lower Cretaceous rocks of India {{!}} Journal of Palaeosciences |url=https://jpsonline.co.in/index.php/jop/article/view/1416 |language=en-US}}</ref>
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |''T.'' sp.<ref name=":0" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Rampur, Nowgaon and Peddavagu.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Leaves
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |[[Cycad]] similar to ''T.sp'' from Antarctica.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''[[Cycadites]]''<ref name=":2" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |''C.''sp.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | [[Cycad]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" rowspan = "5"|''[[Ptilophyllum]]''
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''P. cutchense''<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Rampur and Nowgaon.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Bennettitales]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''P. acutifolium''<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Rampur and Peddavagu.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Bennettitales]]. Resembles ''P. acutifolium'' from the [[Raghavapuram Formation]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''P. rarinervis''<ref name=":0" /><ref>Bose M. N. & Kasat M. L. 1972. The genus Ptilophyllum in India. Palaeobotanist 19(2): 115-145.

</ref><ref>https://eurekamag.com/research/006/869/006869186.php</ref>
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Butarmal Nala.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Bennettitales]]. Originally referred to as [[Otozamites]] rarinervis.<ref>Feistmantel O. 1879. The fossil fl ora of the Upper Gondwanas. Outliers on the Madras Coast. Mem. Geol. Surv. India, Palaeont. Indica, Ser.2, 1(4):191-224</ref>
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''cf. P. distans''<ref name=":0" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Butarmal Nala.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Bennettitales]]. Resembles P. distans.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''P. distans''<ref name=":1" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Butarmal Nala.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Bennettitales]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ?''[[Anomozamites]]''<ref name=":2" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ?''A. sp''
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Nowgaon.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Bennettitales]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" rowspan = "6"|''[[Elatocladus]]''
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''E. confertus''<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Ralpet, Rampur, Nowgaon,
Butarmal Nala and Peddavagu.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Coniferales]]. Very common in the Gangapur Formation.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''E. sehoraensis''<ref name=":0" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Ralpet and Butarmal Nala.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Coniferales]]. Also known from the [[Jabalpur Formation]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | '' cf. E. bosei''<ref name=":0" />

|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Ralpet and Butarmal Nala.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Coniferales]]. Comparable to E. bosei of the [[Jabalpur Formation]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''E. andhrensis''<ref name=":0" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Ralpet, Nowgaon and Peddavagu.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Coniferales]]. Specimens belonging to this species were also registered as E. confertus<ref name=":2" /> and E. heterophylla.<ref>Pal A. K., Datta P. M., Basu P. K., Shome S. & Ghosh S. C. 1988. Cone bearing shoots of Elatocladus Halle from Gangapur Formation (Lower Cretaceous) of Andhra Pradesh, India. Curr. Sci. 57(3): 141-142.</ref>
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''E. sp''<ref name=":2" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Nowgaon and Peddavagu.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Coniferales]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''E. kingianus''<ref name=":2" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Cave Temple.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Coniferales]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" rowspan = "2" | ''[[Pagiophyllum]]''<ref name=":0" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''P. marwarensis''
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Rampur.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Coniferales]]. Also known from the [[Jabalpur Formation]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''P. rewaensis''
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Peddavagu.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Coniferales]]. Also known from the [[Jabalpur Formation]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''?[[Cladophlebis]]''<ref name=":2" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''?C. sp''
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Peddavagu.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Fern]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''[[Gleichenia]]''<ref name=":2" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''G. nordenskioildii''
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Nowgaon.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Fern]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ?''[[Gleichenia]]''<ref name=":2" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''G. sp''
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Nowgaon.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| Leaves.
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"| [[Fern]].
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|
|-
| rowspan="2" style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''[[Coniferocaulon]]''<ref name=":2" />
|style="background:#D1FFCF;" | ''C.'' sp.
| rowspan="2" style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Peddavagu and quarry north of the Cave Temple.
| rowspan="2" style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
| rowspan="2" style="background:#D1FFCF;" | Leaves.
| rowspan="2" style="background:#D1FFCF;" | [[Coniferales]]. Also known from the [[Jabalpur Formation]].
| rowspan="2" style="background:#D1FFCF;" |
|-
|style="background:#D1FFCF;"|cf. ''C. rajmahalense''
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Geography of Telangana]]
[[Category:Geologic formations of India]]
[[Category:Cretaceous India]]

Gangapur Formation - Revision history

FerminDodson605 at 09:20, 30 April 2026