Pailoukou Fm

Jianghan Basin - NW. The type section is located in the vicinity Pailoukou ~3 km southwest of Cekou (Songzikou), Songzi County, Hubei. It was named by the Jianghan Petroleum Geological Party in 1960 and used formally by Wang Zhen et al. in 1978.

Lower part is grayish yellow, light brown, grayish white sandstone and pebbly sandstone with brownish red sandy mudstone and mudstone and minor grayish green mudstone, ~320–570 m thick. Upper part is composed of grayish yellow, brownish yellow and grayish white sandstone and brownish red sandy mudstone and muddy sandstone, with several beds of grayish green, yellowish green and light gray muddy sandstone and sandstone, ~180–580 m thick. Usually mud cracks, crossing bedding and oblique bedding are developed. The total thickness is 323~962 m.

The main fossil groups are found in the lower part. In Yidu and Zhijiang there occur the mammals Metacoryphodon (Manteodon) youngi and M. (Manteodon or Eudinoceras) cf. kholobolchiensis, the ostracod Songziella longa and the charophytes Maedlerisphaera chinensis, Nemegtichara sadleri and Sphaerochara rugulosa. In addition, there are also sporopollen and opercula of gastropods.