376 



J. S. DlLLER THE JURASSIC PLOEA OF OREGON 



as that of Buck peak, tends to bind the plant beds closely to the "Myrtle 

 formation." 



The fossiliferous Dothan sandstone and conglomerate occur in the 

 ravine a quarter of a mile southwest of the whistling post locality of the 

 plant beds, and the two are separated by a line of disturbance and silicifi- 

 cation which crosses Cow creek near the serpentine, half a mile north of 

 Nichols station. South of the serpentine, about Nichols and beyond, the 

 Dothan strata are much disturbed. They have an aspect of somewhat 

 greater age than those of the plant beds, due to the fact that the Dothan 

 contains occasional bunches or veinlets of either or both calcite and 

 quartz. The difference in the degree of lithification between the plant 

 beds and the Dothan is not nearly as great in the Nichols region as along 

 Thompson creek, where the two are separated by a mass of greenstone. 



Plant Beds op Elk Kivee, Oregon 



OCGURRE'NGE 



In the Port Orford folio of the TJ. S. Geological Survey, page 2, atten- 

 tion is called to fragments of plant-bearing shale found scattered along 

 the bed of Elk river for a mile or more, from the forks of the river down 

 to the mouth of Blackberry creek. The shales containing the leaf frag- 

 ments are dark, rather sandy, and veined with calcite, like most of those 

 which outcrop along that portion of the stream. They are interstratified 

 with frequent layers of calcareous material, beds of sandstone, and fine 

 conglomerate, most of which are fossiliferous. 



At the time the survey was made of the Elk Eiver region for the Port 

 Orford folio, comparatively little attention was given to the fossil plants. 

 They were not found in place, so that the relation of the plant beds to 

 the other fossiliferous strata was then unlcnown. As the importance of 

 these beds was recognized, it became necessary to obtain further informa- 

 tion. Mr James Storrs, who has been the special collector of fossils in 

 my field party for a number of years, was sent in October, 1907, to the 

 forks of Elk river to locate the plant beds, collect fossils, and determine 

 the relations of the strata containing the plants and shells. His success 

 will appear in the sequel. 



The dip of the beds on Elk river below the forks is to the northwest, 

 and the course of the main stream makes but a small angle with the 

 strike, but the two forks make large angles with it — the North fork in 

 the newer and the South fork in the older strata. 



The total thickness of the strata in which fossil plants have been found 

 on Elk river is apparently somewhat over 1,000 feet. These plant beds 



