The Marble Mountains are a mountain range in the Eastern Mojave Desert and within Mojave Trails National Monument, in San Bernardino County, California.[1]
| Marble Mountains | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 685 m (2,247 ft) |
| Geography | |
  Marble Mountains Location of Marble Mountains in California[1] | |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| District | San Bernardino County |
| Range coordinates | 34°36′56.983″N 115°33′44.967″W / 34.61582861°N 115.56249083°W |
| Topo map | USGS Cadiz |
Geography
editThe Marble Mountains are located just north of Cadiz, California, and are south of Bristol Dry Lake and Amboy, California. The Old Woman Mountains are to the east, and Bullion Mountains to the west. The Sheep Hole Mountains and Twentynine Palms, California are to the southeast.
Geology
editIn the early Cambrian fossiliferous sediments from a shallow sea were deposited upon a basement of Proterozoic granite and then more uplifted to form the Marble Mountains. These sediments - the Latham Shale Formation - are between 50 ft (15 m) and 75 ft (23 m) thick. Deeper sediments metamorphized into quartzite and form a thin layer ~10 ft (3.0 m) thick between the shale and basement granite.[2][3]
The Marble Mountains Fossil Beds are the site of 550-million-year-old fossils of trilobites, which were among the first animals on earth with eyes and skeletons. In all, roughly 21 species of Cambrian invertebrates have been discovered in the area.[4] Trilobites from the order Olenellina are predominant, but 12 species of trilobite have been discovered in this area. Full specimens are rare; trilobite heads are the most commonly found feature. This may indicate the area was home to a trilobite molting ground, or simply an area where ocean currents brought dead trilobite exoskeletons.[5][6][7][8] Trilobite fossils are so plentiful that in places nearly every rock contains trilobite fossils, making the region a destination for trilobite collectors worldwide. The beds have worldwide importance as they contain some of the best preserved fossils of the earliest trilobites.[8]
Wilderness
edit
Established in 1994 by the U.S. Congress, the Trilobite Wilderness encompasses a large portion of the Marble Mountain range.[9]
See also
editExternal links
edit- Trilobite Wilderness - BLM
References
edit- ^ a b "Marble Mountains". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2009-05-04.
- ^ Norris, Robert M.; Webb, Robert W. (1990). Geology of California (2nd ed.). John Wiley & Sons. p. 244. ISBN 0-471-50980-9.
- ^ Sylvester, Arthur Gibss; O'Black Gans, Elizabeth (June 2021). Roadside Geology of Southern California. Mountain Press. p. 68. ISBN 978-0-87842-653-9.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: year (link) - ^ Waggoner, Ben (8 July 2000). "The Marble Mountains". University of California Berkeley. Archived from the original on 27 February 2024. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
- ^ Waggoner, Ben (8 July 2000). "The Marble Mountains". University of California Berkeley. Archived from the original on 27 February 2024. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
- ^ Sylvester, Arthur Gibss; O'Black Gans, Elizabeth (June 2021). Roadside Geology of Southern California. Mountain Press. p. 68. ISBN 978-0-87842-653-9.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: year (link) - ^ Norris, Robert M.; Webb, Robert W. (1990). Geology of California (2nd ed.). John Wiley & Sons. p. 244. ISBN 0-471-50980-9.
- ^ a b "Latham Shale - California Dreamin'". American Museum of Natural History. Archived from the original on 14 April 2024.
- ^ Trilobite Wilderness - Wilderness Connect
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