First examination of palynolgy across the K-Pg Boundary in the Jackson Purchase region of Kentucky

This study examines the Independence School section of the K-Pg Boundary, which is located in a creek cutbank exposure in Carlisle County, in the Jackson Purchase region of Kentucky. This section has not otherwise been examined since 1980 and has not previously been palynologically studied in detail. Specifically, we are examining the Owl Creek and upper McNairy Formations, deposited as Maastrictian-age sediments and the Clayton Formation, deposited as Danian- age sediments, in a mosaic of onshore, nearshore, and coastal environments (Tschudy, 1970; Olive, 1980). The site was relocated by G. Stinchcomb and students from Murray State University in 2020 and the subject of a presentation on geochemistry and iridium levels at the Geological Society of America in 2021 (Asselta et al., 2021).https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/celebration_posters_2023/1025/thumbnail.jp

Preliminary tropical fungal palynology of early-middle Miocene sediments from Northwestern Peru

Fungal communities are a vital part of terrestrial ecosystem functions and understanding how they respond to climate change is necessary for predicting future assemblage dynamics. Sediments deposited during the Miocene Climate Optimum (MCO), 18-13 million years ago, provide an opportunity to examine fungal responses to a warming event with CO2 values similar to those today. Few fungal datasets exist for tropical regions during the MCO, and only one uses modern methods to identify fossil fungi and complete paleoecological inferences and paleoclimatological reconstructions using the nearest living relative method.https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/celebration_posters_2023/1005/thumbnail.jp