Massive cliffs in Zion Canyon consist of Lower Jurassic formations, including (from bottom to top): the Wingate Sandstone, the Kayenta Formation, and the massive Navajo Sandstone.

For general context see Jurassic.

The Early Jurassic (in geology referred to as the Lower Jurassic, originally (and still in Europe) the "Lias") is the earliest of three epochs of the Jurassic period. Download high resolution version (2000x759, 247 KB)Photo taken by Daniel Mayer in August 2004. ... Download high resolution version (2000x759, 247 KB)Photo taken by Daniel Mayer in August 2004. ... Zion National Park is a United States National Park located near Springdale, Utah in the Southwestern United States. ... Wingate Sandstone is a geologic formation in the Glen Canyon Group that is spread across the Colorado Plateau province of the United States, including northern Arizona, northwest Colorado, Nevada, and Utah. ... The Kayenta Formation is a geologic layer in the Glen Canyon Group that is spread across the Colorado Plateau province of the United States, including northern Arizona, northwest Colorado, Nevada, and Utah. ... This article belongs in one or more categories. ... // The image above is believed to be a replaceable fair use image. ... The geologic time scale is used by geologists and other scientists to describe the timing and relationships between events that have occurred during the history of the Earth. ...

There are extensive Liassic outcrops around the coast of the UK, in particular in Dorset, often associated with the pioneering work of Mary Anning of Lyme Regis. The facies of the Lower Jurassic in this area are predominantly of clays, thin limestones and siltstones, deposited under fully marine conditions. Dorset (pronounced DOR-sit or [dɔ.sət], and sometimes in the past called Dorsetshire) is a county in the south-west of England, on the English Channel coast. ... Mary Anning. ... Location within the British Isles The Cobb, with boats grounded in the harbour at low tide. ... The term facies was introduced by the Swiss geologist Amanz Gressly in 1838 and was part of his significant contribution to the foundations of modern stratigraphy (see Cross and Homewood 1997), which replaced the earlier notions of Neptunism. ... For the town in the United States, see Clay, New York. ... Limey shale overlaid by limestone. ... Categories: Stub | Sedimentary rocks ...

Perhaps the best example of a liassic coastline in the world are the superb cliffs of the Vale of Glamorgan in southern Wales. Stretching for around 14 miles just outside Cardiff, the remarkable strata of the cliffs, situated on the Bristol Channel are a mixture of carboniferous sandstone/limestone, shale and liassic limestone, created during a geological upheaval known as the variscan orogeny. For other uses, see Vale of Glamorgan (disambiguation). ... Motto: (Welsh for Wales forever) Anthem: Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau Capital Cardiff Largest city Cardiff Official language(s) Welsh, English Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair MP  - First Minister Rhodri Morgan AM Unification    - by Gruffudd ap Llywelyn 1056  Area    - Total 20,779... Cardiff (English:  Welsh: ) is the capital of Wales and its largest city. ... Strata is a comic science fiction novel by Terry Pratchett. ... The location of the Bristol Channel The Severn Bridge and Bristol Channel, looking northwestward from England towards Wales The Bristol Channel coast at Ilfracombe, North Devon, looking west towards Lee Bay The Bristol Channel is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from South West... The Carboniferous is a major division of the geologic timescale that extends from the end of the Devonian period, about 359. ... Red sandstone interior of Lower Antelope Canyon, Arizona, worn smooth due to erosion by flash flooding over millions of years Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-size mineral or rock grains. ... Limey shale overlaid by limestone. ... Shale Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock whose original constituents were clays or muds. ... Limey shale overlaid by limestone. ... The Variscan or Hercynian orogeny is a geologic mountain-building event recorded in the European mountains and hills called the Variscan Belt. ...

There has been some debate over the actual base of the [[Hettang an]] Stage, and so of the Jurassic system itself. Biostratigraphically, the first appearance of psiloceratid ammonites has been used; but this depends on relatively complete ammonite faunas being present, a problem that makes correlation between sections in different parts of the world difficult. If this biostratigraphical indicator is used, then technically the Lias Group — a lithostratigraphical division — spans the Jurassic / Triassic boundary. Lias may refer to: Lias, the lower Jurassic period which saw much deposition of clay followed by limestone. ... Lithostratigraphy is the geological science associated with the study of stratum or rock layers. ... The Triassic is a geologic period that extends from about 251 to 200 Ma (million years ago). ...

During this period, ammonoids, which had almost died out at the end-of-Triassic extinction, radiated out into a huge diversity of new forms with complex suture patterns (the ammonites proper). Ammonites evolved so rapidly, and their shells are so often preserved, that they serve as important zone fossils. There were several distinct waves of ammonite evolution in Europe alone (see e.g. Davies, 1920, pp.173-5) This article is about the marine animal. ... Index fossils (or zone fossils) are fossils used to define and identify geologic periods (or faunal stages). ...

The Early Jurassic was an important time in the evolution of the marine reptiles. The Hettangian saw the already existing Rhaetian ichthyosaurs and plesiosaurs continuing to flourish, while at the same time a number of new types of these marine reptiles appeared, such as Ichthyosaurus and Temnodontosaurus among the ichthyosaurs, and Eurycleidus, Macroplata, and Rhomaleosaurus among the plesiosaurs (all Rhomaleosauridae, although as currently defined this group is probably paraphyletic). All these plesiosaurs had medium-sized necks and large heads. In the Toarcian, at the end of the Early Jurassic, the thalattosaurs or marine Crocodiles appear, as do new genera of ichthyosaurs (Stenopterygius, Eurhinosaurus, and the persistently primitive Suevoleviathan) and plesiosaurs (the elasmosaurs (long-necked) Microcleidus and Occitanosaurus, and the pliosaur Hauffiosaurus). The Rhaetian Stage is the most recent stage of the Late Triassic. ... Taxonomy See text Ichthyosaurs (Greek for fish lizard - ιχθυς meaning fish and σαυρος meaning lizard) were giant marine reptiles that resembled fish and dolphins. ... Families Plesiosaurs (IPA ) (Greek: plesios, near to + sauros, lizard) were large, carnivorous aquatic reptiles. ... Euryapsids Plesiosaurs Ichthyosaurs placodonts Diapsids mosasaurs marine crocodiles marine Iguanas Categories: Lists of animals | Reptiles ... Groups Cymbospondylus Mixosauridae Merriamosauria Shastasauridae/Shastasauria Euichthyosauria Parvipelvia Leptonectidae Thunnosauria Stenopterygidae Ichthyosauridae Ichthyosaurs (Greek for fish lizards) were giant marine reptiles that resemble a dolphin with teeth (see convergent evolution). ... Temnodontosaurus was an ichthyosaur from the early Jurassic found in Europe (England & Germany) which grew to 9m. ... Binomial name Macroplata tenuiceps Macroplata (mack-roh-PLAH-tah) was an early Jurassic plesiosaur, which grew up to 5 meters (15 ft) in length. ... Rhomaleosaurus is an extinct genus of sauropterygian reptile belonging to the pliosaur suborder. ... Paraphyletic - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The Toarcian Stage was the last faunal stage of the Early Jurassic period. ... In biology, a genus (plural genera) is a taxonomic grouping. ... Stenopterygius is an extinct genus of diapsid reptile belonging to the ichthyosaur order of fish-like aquatic reptiles. ... Eurhinosaurus (well-nosed lizard) is an extinct genus of diapsid reptile belonging to the icthyosaur order. ... Elasmosauridae was the taxonomic family of the most advanced plesiosaurs. ... Microcleidus is an extinct genus of sauropterygian reptile belonging to the plesiosaur suborder. ... Families and genera Thalassiodragon Archaeonectrus Attenborosaurus Eurycleidus Rhomaleosauridae Leptocleididae Pliosauridae Brachauchneiidae The Pliosaurs were aquatic mesozoic reptiles, from the Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods. ...

On land, a number of new types of dinosaurs - the heterodontosaurs, scelidosaurs, stegosaurs, and tetanurae, appeared, and joined those groups like the podokesaurs, prosauropods and the sauropods that had continued over from the Triassic. Accompanying them as small carnivores were the sphenosuchid and protosuchid crocodilians. In the air, new types of pterosaurs replaced those that had died out at the end of the Triassic. While in the undergrowth were various types of early mammals, as well as tritylodont mammal-like reptiles, lizard-like sphenodonts, and early Lissamphibians. Heterodontosaurus (Different Toothed Lizard) was a small herbivore with sharp canines, that lived in Triassic and Jurassic North America. ... Scelidosaurus (meaning limb lizard) was a heavily plated, plant-eating dinosaur. ... Species (type) Stegosaurus was a large herbivorous dinosaur genus from the Upper Jurassic of North America. ... Groups Cryolophosaurus Spinosauroidea     Megalosauridae     Spinosauridae     Torvosauridae Neotetanurae     Carnosauria     Coelurosauria // Definition Tetanurae, meaning stiff tails, was named by Gauthier (1986) for a large group of theropod dinosaurs. ... Species (type) Podokesaurus (swift-footed lizard) was a small carnivorous dinosaur of the Early Jurassic, and as such is one of the earliest known dinosaurs to inhabit the eastern United States. ... Families Plateosauridae (paraphyletic) Plesion Riojasaurus Massospondylidae Yunnanosauridae Prosauropoda or prosauropods were a group of early herbivorous dinosaurs that lived during the Late Triassic and early Jurassic periods. ... Families Brachiosauridae Camarasauridae Cetiosauridae Diplodocidae Euhelopodidae Nemegtosauridae Titanosauridae Vulcanodontidae Sauropoda, the sauropods, are a suborder or infraorder of the saurischian (lizard-hipped) dinosaurs. ... Suborders Rhamphorhynchoidea Pterodactyloidea Pterosaurs (, winged lizards, often referred to as pterodactyls, ) were flying reptiles of the clade Pterosauria. ... Genera See below The Tritylodontidae (three knob teeth, named after how their teeth were shaped) were small to medium-sized, highly specialized and extremely mammal-like cynodonts. ... Orders Anura Caudata Gymnophiona Allocaudata The subclass Lissamphibia includes all recent amphibians. ...

There are two possible reasons for the name Lias: the first reason is it was taken by a geologist from an English quarryman's dialect pronunciation of the word "layers"; secondly, sloops from North Cornwall ports such as Bude would sail to the Vale of Glamorgan heritage coast to load up on lias limestone (lias limestone from South Wales was used throughout North Devon/North Cornwall as it contains calcium carbonate to fertilise the poor quality Devonian soils of the West Country); the Cornish would pronounce the layers of limestone as 'laiyers' or 'lias'. A geologist is a contributor to the science of geology, studying the physical structure and processes of the Earth and planets of the solar system (see planetary geology). ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2005 est. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... A dialect (from the Greek word διάλεκτος, dialektos) is a variety of a language used by people from a particular geographic area. ... Important notice: This article is about the modern civilian boat type. ... Compass rose with north highlighted and at top Look up North in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Cornwall (Cornish: Kernow) is a county in South West England on the peninsula that lies to the west of the River Tamar. ... Bude (Cornish: Bud) is a small resort town and watering-place in Cornwall, England, UK, on the north coast at the mouth of the river Neet. ... For other uses, see Vale of Glamorgan (disambiguation). ...

References

• Davies, A. M., An Introduction to Palaeontology, Thomas Murby & Co., London
• House, M.R. (1993) Geology of The Dorset Coast, The Geologists' Association.
• Simms, M.J.,Chidlaw, N., Morton, N. and Page, K.N.(2004) British Lower Jurassic Stratigraphy, Geological Conservation Review Series, No.30, Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Peterborough.

A. Morley Davies was a British palaeontologist and author or co-author of a number of books on the subject. ...

External links

• Early Jurassic Period - The Lias epoch - Palaeos - overall presentation
• Lecture 12 - Early Jurassic - informative lecture notes by Dr Paul Olsen