14 



7. Viburnum calgarianum, Dn. 



8. oxycoccoides, Dn. 



9. Gingko sp. Probably G. adiantoides. 



RED DEER RIVER, ALBERTA. 



The Red Deer river lies on the eastern water-shed of the Rocky mountains, its course 

 extending thence to the Great plains, crossing the entire width of the Laramie basin. The 

 river enters this area on the west about thirty-six miles northwest of Cochrane, "it then runs 

 northeast sixty-five miles to Blackfolds, thence south and east to near long. 113° west, and 

 finally southeast seventy-five miles to the eastern limits of the Tertiary formation, the eastern 

 and western portions lying within Cretaceous areas. 



Tyrrell (84, 60E) gives the formation at the mouth of the Blindman river, the locality 

 from which many of the specimens have been derived, as consisting of horizontal, light-grey 

 sandstones with grey and olive shales, fifty-two feet in thickness. The olive shales near the 

 top, and having a thickness of fifteen feet, contain fossils. In discussing the possible age of 

 the formation, he expresses the opinion that it is early Eocene, and designates it as the 

 Paskapoo series which includes all the rocks above the Edmonton and embraces Dawson's 

 Porcupine Hills and Willow Creek series, together with all but the lowest 700 - 900 feet of his 

 St. Mary River series. As exposed on the Little Red Deer, the Paskapoo has a total thick- 

 ness of 5,700 feet (84, 135 E). The origin of the series is explained by the statemeet that at 

 the close of the Edmonton the present plains area was lifted from the bottom of the Pierre 

 sea with the formation of the Rocky mountains along a line near the western edge, but again 

 sank beneath the sea. This area, now cut off from the main ocean, formed a great inland 

 lake upon the sinking floor of which there were deposited sandstones and sandy shales with 

 a thickness of several thousand feet. (84,137E). 



The first record of plants from the Red Deer river was published by Sir "William 

 Dawson in connexion with Mr. Tyrrell's report in 1887 (2», 136E) : — 



In 1897 Mr. L. M. Lambe placed in my hands a collection of Red Deer plants from the 

 mouth of the Blindman river, and in 1902 these were published together with others in the 

 collection of the Peter Redpath Museum (75, 46). Combining these various lists, the 

 following represents the flora of the Red Deer region as now known: — 



1. Alnites grandifolia, Newb. 



2. Carya antiquorum, Newb. 



3. Gatalpa crassifolia, Newb. 



4 . Gercis parvifolia, Lesq. 



5. Glintonia ohlongifolia, Penh. 



6. Gornus rhamnifolia, O. Web. 



7. Gorylus americana fossilis, Newb. 



8. macquarrii, (Forbes) Heer. 



9. Equisetum arcticum, Heer. 



10. Ficus sp. 



11. Glyptostrobus europmu^, (Brongn) Heer. 



12. Juglans sp. 



13. acuminata, A. Br. 



14. laurifolia, Knowlton. 



