This past Friday was the QNHG promised trip to look for sharks’ teeth. No not recent ones, but those millions of years old. Organized by Jacques LaBlanc (see below for web site) for the Qatar Natural History Group, those interested gathered in the parking lot of the Carrefours Mall. We broke into three groups, or convoys, with the following instructions:
“We will take Salwa Road west for about 50/60 minutes, make a U-turn, take Salwa road back East for 10km and then turn south on the Sauda Natheel road towards Saudi Arabia. We will drive about 28 kms on the Sauda Natheel road and then turn left (East) in an unmarked trail across the desert. On this trail we will drive for about 10 kms and reach a depression (Jaow Al Hamar) in which the Middle Eocene Midra Shale outcrops (the shale in which the shark teeth are found).”
Please see the google map of the area linked to the blog (Al Salwa).
All those without 4-wheel drive were separated and joined to those who had such vehicles and space. I was traveling in my 4-wheel with a faculty colleague and we added a couple, he teaching at Carnegie Mellon in Education City, and his wife currently with Rand. The trip was reasonably uneventful, although we stopped for seemingly inexplicable reasons in the middle of traffic. Once we hit the unmarked track, I was glad for the 4–wheel as we bounced freely over rocks and debris along some previous car tracks. Aside from danger to the undercarriage of the jeep, the real danger occurred when we hit the sand. Impossible to miss, it was an amazing experience. I made it through the 1+ km of very soft sand, always looking for the hard edge. Evenutally we came to the depression, Jaow Al Hamar. We parked in various places and many gathered to hear a brief discussion of the location and age of the spot.
“We will take Salwa Road west for about 50/60 minutes, make a U-turn, take Salwa road back East for 10km and then turn south on the Sauda Natheel road towards Saudi Arabia. We will drive about 28 kms on the Sauda Natheel road and then turn left (East) in an unmarked trail across the desert. On this trail we will drive for about 10 kms and reach a depression (Jaow Al Hamar) in which the Middle Eocene Midra Shale outcrops (the shale in which the shark teeth are found).”
Please see the google map of the area linked to the blog (Al Salwa).
All those without 4-wheel drive were separated and joined to those who had such vehicles and space. I was traveling in my 4-wheel with a faculty colleague and we added a couple, he teaching at Carnegie Mellon in Education City, and his wife currently with Rand. The trip was reasonably uneventful, although we stopped for seemingly inexplicable reasons in the middle of traffic. Once we hit the unmarked track, I was glad for the 4–wheel as we bounced freely over rocks and debris along some previous car tracks. Aside from danger to the undercarriage of the jeep, the real danger occurred when we hit the sand. Impossible to miss, it was an amazing experience. I made it through the 1+ km of very soft sand, always looking for the hard edge. Evenutally we came to the depression, Jaow Al Hamar. We parked in various places and many gathered to hear a brief discussion of the location and age of the spot.
From the supplied literature, I quote
“As explained in the text below, in addition to shark teeth, other fossils can also be found in Jaow Al Hamar. These fossils include gastropods, echinoderm spines, oyster shells, nummulites, pycnodont teeth and dugong bones. The participants to this field trip can collect and keep all the fossils they find, however, any dugong bone material found must be handed over to the Trip Leaders. It is only just recently that Middle Eocene dugong bones (48,000,000 years) were identified in Qatar (the first ever in the Arabian Peninsula) and these are still under study by the University of Qatar in collaboration with the University of Michigan.”
I urge anyone interested to consult the web site of Jacques LeBlanc, as he writes: “More pictures of Qatar fossils (and other countries) can be found on one of the trip leader’s website at http://leblanc.jacques.googlepages.com/fossilhome . A more extensive guide to the Tertiary fossils of Qatar will also be available soon (February-March 2008) for free download.”
What did we see follows in a few pictures of the day as well as one of what we found. No, my group did not find a shark’s tooth, although some of those on the trip did. I found the four nummulites illustrated,
ferricrete, echinoderm spines and nautilus pits and pieces as well as some of the oyster shells, which to my eye practiced in finding pot sherds (very often rounded) I easily saw. Adults and children wandered the terrain, hunched over looking for fossils. Many objects were taken to the team leaders who discussed or dismissed what was acquired. We munched on lunch (for me tuna fish sandwich and diet pepsi, for my colleagues, cheese and bread and yogurt). A dog insisted that he must have some of our food – with two tags and a handsome collar he clearly came with one of the cars.
Around 2:00 my small group decided to leave and we caravanned with two other cars. I seemed to lead the group and got stuck in the sand. One car passed by and stopped on the hard packed sand. The one behind got horribly mired. I turned the driving over to my colleague who had far more experience with 4-wheel drive (mine goes back 40 years) and he got us out. We then went to help the other car flagging cars now leaving the site to go around the sand trap. Soon another land cruiser decided to stop and help and sooner than we could bear to watch, he too was mired. As we searched for large flat rocks in the area, my colleague found a wonderful large (7-8” high) well-preserved nautilus fossil, well worth the getting stuck to locate. With shovels and winch but no sand ladders, they were still working at the two cars
(illustrated) as we left. We negotiated the rest of the treacherous sand and finally got back on the very rocky ‘track’, passing a dead camel 
(illustrated) and a camel farm, and some glorious dunes (also illustrated). 
We became convinced that the camel farm was cleverly located to assist all the non-natives who got stuck in the sand since camels could clearly pull vehicles out.
I arrived home with a car covered in sand, nose, ears and eyes filled with sand and some good photos and fine thoughts about the bonding we all had - although it was a bit unnerving thinking of spending the night with little water etc near the Saudi border. Reconnoitering the next day we hoped the cars had in fact been released from the sand …
I arrived home with a car covered in sand, nose, ears and eyes filled with sand and some good photos and fine thoughts about the bonding we all had - although it was a bit unnerving thinking of spending the night with little water etc near the Saudi border. Reconnoitering the next day we hoped the cars had in fact been released from the sand …
*****************************************************
Finally, technical details from the supplied literature:
“Jaow Al Hamar is located at 24° 39’ 06”N , 51° 09’ 05.8”E. The Arabic word 'jaow' is the local
term used to refer to an "elongated depression". These depressions are common in Qatar and are formed as a result of erosion of the surface ground layer of the limestone layer that constitutes a major part of Qatar's soil structure. A variety of plants grow in these depressions and were there more considered good feeding grounds for animals. The other constituent of the name is the word 'hamar'; a term referring to the colour "red". Therefore, the area consists of a depression whose red-coloured sand provides the area with its geographic name Jaow Al Hamar. …
The Middle Eocene (37,000,000 to 49,000,000 years) in Qatar is represented by the Dammam
Formation. It is underlain by the Rus Formation and overlain by the Dam Formation. The
Dammam is broken into four members … The Rus and all the Members of the Dammam Formation can be observed in the Jaow Al Hamar locality except for the Abarug member which occurs only around the Bay of Zekrit, more to the north. … The base of the Dammam represents an open-marine environment, whereas the upper part indicates a shallow-marine environment and a siliciclastic influence from the west. The Dammam contains nummulites and has been dated as upper Ypresian to Priabonian … from its foraminiferal content. (Ziegler 2001). …
The Midra Shale (called “Midra & Saila Shales” in Saudi Arabia) at the base of the Dammam
Formation consists of pale yellow-orange to yellow-green shale and clay and very pale orange marl and dolomite. The shales are finely fissile (papyraceous) and contain clays, dolomite, and gypsum. The dolomitic marl is laminated and contains some pellet ghosts called ferricrete; it consists of dolomite, clay minerals and minor quartz, feldspar, and gypsum. The Midra Shale Member contains dolomitized benthonic foraminifera, mollusks, and fish remains in some horizons. (M. Namik Cagatay, 1990)
Iron oxides pseudomorphosing pyrite cubes in the Midra Shale are clear evidence that reducing
conditions existed in the basin and the water level was much higher than in the underlying Rus
Formation (subtidal/dysaerobic). On the other hand, layers near the top of the Midra Shale abundant in gypsum bear witness of strong evaporation and attest to oxidizing conditions in parts of the basin (shallow marine to supratidal (?)). The MFS … is the key element during the Eocene. It was defined based on a strong influx of an open marine fauna in the Midra Shales. This MFS was assigned an early Eocene age by Sharland et al. (200l), based on studies carried out at the reference section of the Midra Shales in Saudi Arabia. In Qatar, however, the MFS Pg 20 is in the lower half of the Midra Shale, where the argillaceous rocks rich in marine fossils such as shark teeth and abundant in allogenic palygorskite are found. The MFS Pg 20 is the most prominent surface for correlation. According to the above data this MFS Pg 20 should have been assigned an early Lutetian rather than Ypresian age.”
“Jaow Al Hamar is located at 24° 39’ 06”N , 51° 09’ 05.8”E. The Arabic word 'jaow' is the local
term used to refer to an "elongated depression". These depressions are common in Qatar and are formed as a result of erosion of the surface ground layer of the limestone layer that constitutes a major part of Qatar's soil structure. A variety of plants grow in these depressions and were there more considered good feeding grounds for animals. The other constituent of the name is the word 'hamar'; a term referring to the colour "red". Therefore, the area consists of a depression whose red-coloured sand provides the area with its geographic name Jaow Al Hamar. …
The Middle Eocene (37,000,000 to 49,000,000 years) in Qatar is represented by the Dammam
Formation. It is underlain by the Rus Formation and overlain by the Dam Formation. The
Dammam is broken into four members … The Rus and all the Members of the Dammam Formation can be observed in the Jaow Al Hamar locality except for the Abarug member which occurs only around the Bay of Zekrit, more to the north. … The base of the Dammam represents an open-marine environment, whereas the upper part indicates a shallow-marine environment and a siliciclastic influence from the west. The Dammam contains nummulites and has been dated as upper Ypresian to Priabonian … from its foraminiferal content. (Ziegler 2001). …
The Midra Shale (called “Midra & Saila Shales” in Saudi Arabia) at the base of the Dammam
Formation consists of pale yellow-orange to yellow-green shale and clay and very pale orange marl and dolomite. The shales are finely fissile (papyraceous) and contain clays, dolomite, and gypsum. The dolomitic marl is laminated and contains some pellet ghosts called ferricrete; it consists of dolomite, clay minerals and minor quartz, feldspar, and gypsum. The Midra Shale Member contains dolomitized benthonic foraminifera, mollusks, and fish remains in some horizons. (M. Namik Cagatay, 1990)
Iron oxides pseudomorphosing pyrite cubes in the Midra Shale are clear evidence that reducing
conditions existed in the basin and the water level was much higher than in the underlying Rus
Formation (subtidal/dysaerobic). On the other hand, layers near the top of the Midra Shale abundant in gypsum bear witness of strong evaporation and attest to oxidizing conditions in parts of the basin (shallow marine to supratidal (?)). The MFS … is the key element during the Eocene. It was defined based on a strong influx of an open marine fauna in the Midra Shales. This MFS was assigned an early Eocene age by Sharland et al. (200l), based on studies carried out at the reference section of the Midra Shales in Saudi Arabia. In Qatar, however, the MFS Pg 20 is in the lower half of the Midra Shale, where the argillaceous rocks rich in marine fossils such as shark teeth and abundant in allogenic palygorskite are found. The MFS Pg 20 is the most prominent surface for correlation. According to the above data this MFS Pg 20 should have been assigned an early Lutetian rather than Ypresian age.”
References cited in our supplied literature, for those interested:
• Al-Murshid: For Qatar Geographic Names. The Centre for GIS, Doha, Qatar
• Cagatay, M. Namik (1990). PALYGORSKITE IN THE EOCENE ROCKS OF THE
DAMMAM DOME, SAUDI ARABIA. Clays and Clay Minerals, Vol. 38, No. 3, 299-307
• Casier, Edgard (1971) : Sur un materiel ichthyologique des Midra (and Saila) shales du Qatar -
Golfe Persique. Bull. Inst. R. Sci. Nat. de Belgique.
• Cavelier Claude, Salatt Abdullah, Heuze Yves (1970); Geological description of the Qatar
Peninsula (explanation of the 1/100,000 geological maps of Qatar). Bureau de recherches
geologiques et minieres, Government of Qatar, Department of Petroleum Affairs. 46 pages et
cartes.
• Dixon, Dougal; Cox Barry; Savage R.J.G.; Gardiner, Brian (1988): The MacMillan Illustrated
encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and prehistoric animals: a visual who's who of prehistoric life.
• Nasir, S , Hamad Al-Saad, Abdul Razak Al-Sayigh , Abdul Rahman Al-Harthy ? (2003).
Ferricretes of the Early Tertiary Dammam Formation in the Dukhan Area, Western Qatar:
mineralogy, geochemistry and environment of deposition Qatar J. Science, 23, 55-70.
• Roman, J. 1976. Echinides éocènes et miocènes du Qatar (Golfe Persique). Ann. Paleont.
Invertebr., 62, 49–85.
• Sharland Peter R., Casey David M., Davies Roger B., Simmons Michael D., Sutcliffe Owen E.
(2004). Arabian Plate Sequence stratigraphy – revisions to SP2. GeoArabia Volume 9, No. 1
• Ziegler, Martin A. (2001). Late Permian to Holocene Paleofacies Evolution of the Arabian
Plate and its Hydrocarbon Occurrences. GeoArabia, Vol 6, No. 3 (60 pages).
• Al-Murshid: For Qatar Geographic Names. The Centre for GIS, Doha, Qatar
• Cagatay, M. Namik (1990). PALYGORSKITE IN THE EOCENE ROCKS OF THE
DAMMAM DOME, SAUDI ARABIA. Clays and Clay Minerals, Vol. 38, No. 3, 299-307
• Casier, Edgard (1971) : Sur un materiel ichthyologique des Midra (and Saila) shales du Qatar -
Golfe Persique. Bull. Inst. R. Sci. Nat. de Belgique.
• Cavelier Claude, Salatt Abdullah, Heuze Yves (1970); Geological description of the Qatar
Peninsula (explanation of the 1/100,000 geological maps of Qatar). Bureau de recherches
geologiques et minieres, Government of Qatar, Department of Petroleum Affairs. 46 pages et
cartes.
• Dixon, Dougal; Cox Barry; Savage R.J.G.; Gardiner, Brian (1988): The MacMillan Illustrated
encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and prehistoric animals: a visual who's who of prehistoric life.
• Nasir, S , Hamad Al-Saad, Abdul Razak Al-Sayigh , Abdul Rahman Al-Harthy ? (2003).
Ferricretes of the Early Tertiary Dammam Formation in the Dukhan Area, Western Qatar:
mineralogy, geochemistry and environment of deposition Qatar J. Science, 23, 55-70.
• Roman, J. 1976. Echinides éocènes et miocènes du Qatar (Golfe Persique). Ann. Paleont.
Invertebr., 62, 49–85.
• Sharland Peter R., Casey David M., Davies Roger B., Simmons Michael D., Sutcliffe Owen E.
(2004). Arabian Plate Sequence stratigraphy – revisions to SP2. GeoArabia Volume 9, No. 1
• Ziegler, Martin A. (2001). Late Permian to Holocene Paleofacies Evolution of the Arabian
Plate and its Hydrocarbon Occurrences. GeoArabia, Vol 6, No. 3 (60 pages).
