Montag, 8. Dezember 2008

Fieldwork Photo of the Week

Northern Alay Chain, Batken District, SW Kyrgyzstan.

Standing on massive Devonian limestones we are looking to the NNW. On the right you can see the greenish Madygen river oasis bearing a few farms and fruit plantations. On the left: the badlands represent the SW outcrop area of the Triassic Madygen Formation.

To the north and northwest reddish strata and ribs of Cretaceous conglomerate follow which overlie a narrow stripe of Jurassic. Than there is a succession of mostly Cenozoic rocks forming the core of a syncline.

In the distance you can see larger massifs of mostly Paleozoic schists, limestones and conglomerates. And then there is the greenish plain to the northwest marking another outcrop of fineclastic sediments.

This is Dzhaylyau-Cho ("good meadow"), the NW outcrop area of the Madygen Fm, including "Sharov Quarry" as the most famous locality for insects and tetrapods.


Can you see the artificial band-like wall to the west of the Madygen oasis - this is some relic from ancient times (built under Alexander the Great according to a myth).

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