Question 1

How do you say Kimmeridgian?

Accepted Answer

Kimmeridgian is pronounced kim-er-IJ-ee-an. Break it into four parts: KIM, then er, then IJ, then ee-an. The stress lands firmly on the IJ syllable in the middle. Say it a few times fast and it starts to flow naturally.

Question 2

What does Kimmeridgian mean?

Accepted Answer

Kimmeridgian is named after Kimmeridge Bay, a coastal village in Dorset, England. The suffix '-ian' is a Latin-style ending that geologists use to mean 'belonging to' or 'of the age of.' So Kimmeridgian basically means 'of the Kimmeridge age,' referring to the distinctive rock layers found at that location.

Question 3

When was the Kimmeridgian period?

Accepted Answer

The Kimmeridgian lasted from roughly 157.3 million years ago to about 152.1 million years ago. That is a span of approximately 5 million years. It falls within the Late Jurassic Epoch, sandwiched between the Oxfordian age before it and the Tithonian age after it.

Question 4

What dinosaurs lived during the Kimmeridgian?

Accepted Answer

Some of the most famous dinosaurs of all time lived during the Kimmeridgian, including Allosaurus, Stegosaurus, Brachiosaurus, and Diplodocus. These animals all roamed what is now North America during this period. The Kimmeridgian was truly a golden age for dinosaur diversity.

Question 5

What was Earth like during the Kimmeridgian?

Accepted Answer

Earth during the Kimmeridgian was warmer than today with no polar ice caps. Sea levels were much higher, flooding large parts of Europe and turning it into a chain of tropical islands. The atmosphere had more carbon dioxide, creating a greenhouse climate, and the continents were still in the early stages of splitting apart from the supercontinent Pangaea.

Question 6

Is the Kimmeridgian part of the Jurassic period?

Accepted Answer

Yes, the Kimmeridgian is one of the three ages that make up the Late Jurassic Epoch. The Late Jurassic consists of the Oxfordian, the Kimmeridgian, and the Tithonian, in that order. The entire Jurassic Period ran from about 201 million years ago to 145 million years ago.

Question 7

Who named the Kimmeridgian?

Accepted Answer

The French geologist Alcide d'Orbigny formally named the Kimmeridgian stage in 1852. D'Orbigny was a brilliant scientist who worked to divide all of geological time into named intervals based on the fossils he found in rock layers. He named it after the rock exposures at Kimmeridge Bay in Dorset, England.

Question 8

What came before and after the Kimmeridgian?

Accepted Answer

Before the Kimmeridgian was the Oxfordian age, which began about 163.5 million years ago. After the Kimmeridgian came the Tithonian age, which ended the entire Jurassic Period at about 145 million years ago. Together these three ages make up the Late Jurassic Epoch.

Question 9

Why is the Kimmeridgian important to scientists?

Accepted Answer

The Kimmeridgian is important for several reasons. The rock layers from this time period, especially in England and across Europe, contain incredible fossil records of ammonites, marine reptiles, and reef-building organisms. The Kimmeridgian Clay Formation in England is also one of the source rocks for North Sea oil, making it economically significant as well as scientifically fascinating.

Question 10

Were there any sea creatures in the Kimmeridgian?

Accepted Answer

The Kimmeridgian seas were absolutely packed with life. Plesiosaurs and ichthyosaurs were the top marine predators. Ammonites filled the oceans in vast numbers. Coral reefs thrived in the warm shallow European seas. Marine crocodilians and giant fish also patrolled the coastlines of the tropical island chains that covered much of Europe at the time.

Question 11

How do geologists know where the Kimmeridgian starts and ends?

Accepted Answer

Geologists use ammonite zones to mark the boundaries of the Kimmeridgian. Ammonites evolved rapidly and each species existed for only a short time, making them perfect timestamps in the rock record. When one set of ammonite species disappears and a new set appears in the rock layers, that signals the transition from one geological age to the next.

Question 12

What is Kimmeridge Bay and why is it famous?

Accepted Answer

Kimmeridge Bay is a small coastal village and beach in Dorset on the southern coast of England. Its cliffs are made of distinctive dark shale and clay that formed from ancient seafloor sediments about 155 million years ago. The site is so geologically important that it was chosen as the type locality for the Kimmeridgian age, meaning it is the official reference point that defines the name for geologists worldwide.

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