j ournal of tlu Ro)al So<itty of Ntw Ztaland

l'olumt 16, Num/Nr 4, 19116, pp. 307-317

An estuarine fossil assemblage from the Mangaoranga

Formation (Upper Miocene), Wairarapa, New Zealand
Patricia E. Wells

As assemblage of rarely- preserved Upper Miocene estuarine fossils is exposed

in basal mudstones of the Mangaoranga Formation by the Ruarnahanga River
near Mt Bruce, northern W airarapa. The assemblage represents the biota
accumulated on the mud llat o f an estua ry of a river carrying b rackish-water
molluscs and vegetation derived both from warm temperate fo rests and cool
temperate uplands. Wave action carried in offshore molluscan debris and shells
livi ng on nearby rocky outcrops, depositing them in the estuary at high tides.
T he molluscan fauna indicates a Tongaporutuan age, a nd includes three new
species of gastropods: Taxonia gudruna~, Comin~lla Uos~pha) grtUm~i, and Zefallacia
ruamahanga. Ztja/lacia wamahanga has well preserved colour band ing.
Ktywortfs: 1 'ongaporutuan Stagt, Mt Bruu , ntwjossil wxa, palynoflora, rstuariMjossiu , Cominclla (Joscpha) gracmci
rup., Taxonia gudrunac n.sp., Zefallacia ruarnahanga n.sp., mol/uscan colour banding.

INTRODUCTION
A conformable sequence of mudstone, co nglomerate and sandstone is exposed on the
western bank of the Ruamahanga River near M t Bruce, 20 km north of M asterton in
Northern Wairarapa (Fig. 1). The conglomerate and sandstone a rc members of the
Ma ngaoranga Format ion (Nccf, 1984), and the underlying mudstones (Fig. 2) are here
considered to be basal sed iments of tha t formation (Wells, 1985). There is a thin lign ite
layer near the base of the mudstonc; a nd higher up (ten to twelve metres strati graphically
above the lignite}, a fossilifcrous bed approximatel y two metres thick contains a varied
molluscan assemblage (Table 1).
Early in 1985, the sediments immedia tely underlying the lignite horizon were sampled
for foraminiferal a nd polle n analyses (New Zealand Fossil Record Number T25/ f70),
and molluscan fau na and foraminiferal microsamples were collected from the upper
fossiliferous bed (T25/7 1).
H olotypes and para types of molluscan species descri bed as new here are deposited in
the Depa rtment of Geology, Victoria U niversit y of Wellington, and have collection
numbers prefixed by VM . Grid re ferences refer to NZMS 270 sheet T 25C ( 1: 50,000).
GEOLOGICAL AGE
Sediments sampled from T25/ f70 contained no fora minifera, but over 40 spore and
pollen taxa were identified by Mr D. C. Mildenhall of N .z. Geological Survey. Most
arc long-ranging species typical of the Miocene and Pliocenc. T he dominant pollen are
those of Monosulcites olagomris Couper, M . waitakiensis Mclnt yre, Nothoj agidiles lachlanae
(jusca group) Couper, Typha sp. and Sparganium sp. Glmcopallis omalus Pocknall a nd
Mildenhall and Monog~mmiles gemma/us (Couper) Krut zsch are found throughout the
Mioccne up to the Tongaporutuan Stage. A pollen grai n of Calystegia sp. was identified;
this genus has not previously been recorded from scdiment s older than Waipipian.
Bombacacidites bombaxoides Couper and Glmcopollis omalus were unusually common, indicating
that the plants supplying the pollen were living very close to the deposi tion site.
The lack of abunda nt Nothofagus brassi and Casuan'na polle n indicates a post-Waiauan,
most probably T ongaporutua n age (D . C. M ildcnhall, pas. comm., 1985).

Research School of Earth Sciences, Victoria Univlrsity of W ell ington .