| La Quinta Formation | |
| Type: | Geological formation |
| Period: | Early Jurassic |
| Age: | Hettangian—Aalenian |
| Prilithology: | Sandstone |
| Otherlithology: | Tuff, conglomerate |
| Namedfor: | La Quinta quarry |
| Region: | Cesar-Ranchería & Maracaibo Basins Serranía del Perijá & Cordillera de Mérida |
| Country: | |
| Paleocoordinates: | 0.1°N -42.7°W |
| Underlies: | Río Negro Formation |
| Overlies: | Mucuchachi Formation |
| Thickness: | up to 11000feet |
The La Quinta Formation is a Jurassic geologic formation which crops out in the Cordillera de Mérida and Serranía del Perijá of western Venezuela and northeastern Colombia. The formation is also present in the subsurface of the Cesar-Ranchería and Maracaibo Basins. At its type locality near La Grita, Táchira, it consists of a basal dacitic tuff followed by interlayered sandstones, tuffs, siltstones and rare limestones.[1] Dinosaur remains including Laquintasaura,[2] Tachiraptor, and Perijasaurus[3] are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.[4]
U–Pb zircon analysis demonstrates that the formation dates to 200.91+0.55 Ma at its base and a maximum age of 174.8 Ma.
| Genus | Species | location | Material | Notes | Images |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laquintasaura | L. venezuelae | Venezuela | Partial skeleton | First dinosaur identified from Venezuela | |
| Perijasaurus | P. lapaz | Cesar Department, Colombia | Partial dorsal vertebra | Previously known as the "Cesar sauropod", and was the first dinosaur discovered in Colombia | |
| Tachiraptor | T. admirabilis | Venezuela | A tibia and ischium | ||