Zhaohuajing Fm

It was named by Ye Yongzheng et al in 1959 and published in Northwest China Regional Stratigraphical Scale, the Ningxia Hui Zizhiqu Facsimile in 1980. The type section is located at east of Zhaohuajing Village in Tongxing County, Ningxia.

Synonym: (照花井组) , Zhaohuajin Fm

Lower member, approximately 13 m thick, consists of purplish gray, grayish green calcareous pelitic arkosic quartzose sandstone with 2-6 m-thick conglomerate at the base. Middle member, about 45 m in thickness, is composed of dark gray, purplish gray, grayish yellow thin-to-thick-bedded marl, argillaceous knotty limestone and pseudo-oolitic limestone. Upper member, 44 m thick, is characterized by purplish red ferriferous calcareous siltstone intercalated with silty limestone, thin-bedded grit and pebbly limestone lenses.

The lower member bears conodont Panderodus sp. The middle member yields rich brachiopods Schizorama planodorsa, Eospirifer sinensis dasifiliformis, Nalivkinia zhaohuajingensis, Holorhynchus sinensis, Striispirifer orbiplicatus, etc.; anthozoa Streptelasma, Brachyelasma, Grewingkia Tungussophyllum, Crassilasma, Priscosolenia, Halysites senior , H. junior, etc.; conodonts Pterospathodus posteritenuis, Roundya datorta, Trichonodella excavata, Distomodus kentuckyensis, etc.; graptolites Pristiograptus cf. incommodus, Pseudoclimacograptus hughesi, Climacograptus minutus, C.miserabilis, Glyptograptus, etc. The upper member yields anthozoa Mesofavosites grandiformis; conodonts Panderodus, Ozarkodina, etc.