Ch. XVI.] 



MIDDLE EOCENE FORMATIONS. 



207 



CHAPTER XVI. 



MIDDLE AND LOWER EOCENE FORMATIONS. 



Middle Eocene strata of England — Fluvio-marine series in the Isle of Wight and 

 Hampshire — Successive groups of Eocene Mammalia — Fossils of Barton Clay — 

 Shells, mummulites, fishes, and reptiles of the Bagshot and Bracklesham beds 

 — Lower Eocene strata of England — Fossil plants and shells of the London 

 Clay proper — Strata of Kyson in Suffolk — Fossil monkey and opossum — Plastic 

 clays and sands — Thanet sands — Middle Eocene formations of France — Gyp- 

 seous series of Montmartre and extinct quadrupeds — Calcaire grossicr — Milio- 

 lites — Lower Eocene in France — Nummulitic formations of Europe and Asia — 

 Their wide extent ; referable to the Middle Eocene period — Eocene strata in 

 the United States — Section at Claiborne, Alabama — Colossal cetacean — Orbitoid 

 limestone — Burr-stone. 



The strata next in order in the descending series are those which I 

 term Middle Eocene. In the accompanying map, the position of several 

 Eocene areas is pointed out, such as the basin of the Thames, part of 



Fig. 181. 

 Map of the principal tertiary basins of the Eocene period. 



(J.;;:;;;d Hypogene rocks and s 

 * • •'■'"* older than the Dev>' 

 or Old Bed series, 



strata 

 onian 



Eocene formations. 



N. B. The space left blank is occupied by secondary formations from the Devonian or old red 

 sandstone to the chalk inclusive. 



Hampshire, part of the Netherlands, and the country round Paris. The 

 three last-mentioned areas contain some marine and freshwater formations, 

 which have been already spoken of as Upper Eocene, but their superficial 

 extent in this part of Europe is insignificant. 



ENGLISH MIDDLE EOCENE FORMATIONS. 



The following table will show the order of succession of the strata found 

 in the Tertiary areas, commonly called the London and Hampshire 

 basins. (See also Table, p. 104, et seq.) 



