Otterdale Formation

The Otterdale Formation is a geologic formation in Virginia. It preserves fossils dating back to the Triassic period.

Otterdale Formation
Stratigraphic range: Triassic
Type	Geological Formation
Unit of	Newark Supergroup
Location
Region	Virginia
Country	United States
Type section
Named for	Otterdale, Chesterfield County, Virginia
Named by	Shaler and Woodworth, 1899[1]

It was first identified at exposures near Otterdale, Chesterfield County, Virginia, within the Richmond Basin. Shaler and Woodworth described it as follows:

Coarse sandstones, often feldspathic, with silicified trunks of Araucarioxylon; well developed north, south, and west of Otterdale. Thickness, 500+ feet.^[1]

Petrified tree (Araucarioxylon sp.) on Otterdale Road in 1899.

See also

• Earth sciences portal
• Virginia portal
• Paleontology portal

• List of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Virginia
• Paleontology in Virginia