Oh. XVL] 



MIDDLE EOCENE FORMATIONS. 



20; 



CHAPTER XVI. 



MIDDLE AND LQWER EOCENE FORMATIONS. 



Middle Eocene strata of England — ^Fluvio-raarine 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 Braeklesham 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 — Gryp- 

 seous series of Montmartre and extinct quadrupeds — Calcaire grossier — Miho- 

 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. 



K;.;...:! Hypogene rocks and strata wm^X Eocene formations. 

 t^:^^^^ older than the Devonian ti^^^ 

 or Old Red series. 



]Sr. 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 fi'eshwater 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.) 



