Middle Ordovician Conodont and Fish Fossil Data from the Stairway Sandstone

Australian Ocean Data Network provides a report on fossil assemblages from the Middle Ordovician Stairway Sandstone formation in the Amadeus Basin. The document details an abundant and well-preserved fauna, including early arandaspid fish and conodont fossils. This dataset was last updated in April 2026.

Use Cases

• Correlating the Stairway Sandstone to international conodont biozonation schemes using the described conodont fossil assemblage.
• Studying the morphology and distribution of early arandaspid fish fossils found within the siliciclastic sediments.
• Analyzing the paleoenvironmental context of shallow marine deposits based on the described fossil fauna and stratigraphic positioning.
• Supporting hydrocarbon prospectivity assessments for the Larapinta Petroleum System by documenting the reservoir unit's fossil content.

Strengths

• Report is based on an abundant and well-preserved fossil fauna from a field sample.
• Provides high-resolution correlation potential to international conodont biozonation schemes.
• Document includes stratigraphic context between the Horn Valley Siltstone and Stokes Siltstone.

Limitations

• Data is contained in a PDF report, not a structured, machine-readable format.
• Sample size and specific fossil counts are not provided in the description.
• The Stairway Sandstone unit has not been directly dated.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network via data.gov.au.

Collection Method

Field sample collection and paleontological analysis.

Time Range

Middle Ordovician period.

Freshness

Last updated in April 2026.

Geography

Amadeus Basin, Australia.