23-19 Palynology of Upper Cretaceous Rocks in Illinois and Kentucky

Session: Paleontology of North America (Posters)

Poster Booth No.: 19

Presenting Author:

Ethan Lung

Authors:

Gray, Kyndra M.¹, Jack, Asher D.², Lung, Ethan R.³, McCarty, Maeve M.⁴, Park, Beau A.⁵, Devera, Joe⁶, Beck, Ennis Glynn⁷, Greb, Stephen F.⁸, O'Keefe, Jennifer M.K.⁹

(1) Craft Academy for Excellence in Science and Mathematics, Morehead State University, Morehead, KY, USA, (2) Department of Engineering Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead, KY, USA, (3) Department of Engineering Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead, KY, USA, (4) Department of Engineering Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead, KY, USA, (5) Department of Engineering Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead, KY, USA, (6) ISGS, Carterville, IL, , (7) Kentucky Geological Survey, Henderson, KY, USA, (8) Kentucky Geological Survey, Lexington, KY, , (9) Department of Engineering Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead, KY, USA,

Abstract:

Currently developing biostratigraphy of Cretaceous to Eocene sediments furthering mapping projects has allowed differences in paleoecology and paleoclimatology to be reconstructed for Cretaceous sediments throughout southern Illinois and the Jackson Purchase region of Western Kentucky. Here we show our initial findings from sites sampled from March-April 2025 as related to those found from prior work (2002 and 2021) in the area. Most palynomorphs found are terrestrial in origin. Numerous show damage patterns typical of attack by bacteria and fungi. Nearest living relatives (NLRs) of the assemblages are suggestive of a combination of closed-canopy and open-canopy forested environments and fern- and sphagnum-dominated bogs. Late Cretaceous paleoclimates were reconstructed by using the coexistence approach and CRESTr. When effective, these suggest a mean annual temperature of approximately 17C, and hotter months wetter, which is indicative of humid subtropical climates.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 58, No. 1, 2026

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