The Hamajing Member is characterized by light grey, medium- to thick-bedded dolomite, intercalated with thin layers of chert.[3]
The Shibantan Member is interpreted to represent a subtidal environment and is composed of dark grey, thin-bedded bituminouslimestone. It is the most fossiliferous of the Dengying Formation members and has yielded several trace fossils, such as Lamonte,[5] as well as possible lobopodian trackways.[6]
The Baimatuo Member consists of light grey, thick-bedded dolomite.[3]
Traditionally, the Tianzhushan Member was considered to be the uppermost unit of the Dengying Formation. However, its small shelly fossils and Micrhystridium-like acritarchs are a shared characteristic with the CambrianYanjiahe Formation.[3] The Kuanchuanpu Formation also is occasionally placed as a member of the Dengying Formation,[7] however it is likely separate for the same reasons.
Paleobiota
The Dengying formation is unique from other Ediacaran formations in that its top is almost right up against the Ediacaran - Cambrian boundary, with more recent organisms being described that have striking similarities with Cambrian fauna, like Alienum. There are also a lot of ichnogenera in the form of burrows, something that is common in younger Ediacaran rocks the closer to the Cambrian boundary they are.
A recent paper has also found a rare example of Burgess Shale-type Preservation outside of the known range of all members, in what is known as the Tongshan Lagerstätte. This preserves a wide range of fossil forms, including the first rangeomorph fronds with Burgess Shale-type preservation.[4]
Frondose organism, with a similar appearance to Charniodiscus, consisting of a thick stalk and two petaloids, which are made up of tightly packed branches, also preserves a notable holdfast.
Elongated frondose organism, with a similar appearance to Paracharnia, consisting of a thin stalk and two petaloids, which are made up of tightly packed branches, alongside a possible holdfast at its base.
^Meyer, Mike; Xiao, Shuhai; Gill, Benjamin C.; Schiffbauer, James D.; Chen, Zhe; Zhou, Chuanming; Yuan, Xunlai (2014). "Interactions between Ediacaran animals and microbial mats: Insights from Lamonte trevallis, a new trace fossil from the Dengying Formation of South China". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 396: 62–74. Bibcode:2014PPP...396...62M. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2013.12.026.
^Liu, Junping; Chen, Ailin; Li, Binglin; Tang, Feng; Zhao, Jiangtai; Chen, Ke (6 October 2024). "Problematic Ediacaran sail-shaped fossils from eastern Yunnan, China". Historical Biology: 1–7. doi:10.1080/08912963.2024.2403588.
^ abcdDai, Qiaokun; Hua, Hong; Luo, Jinzhou; Min, Xiao; Liu, Ziwei; Zhang, Song; Gong, Meng; Bai, Lin (April 2024). "A new silicified microfossil assemblage from the Ediacaran Dengying Formation in South Shaanxi, China". Precambrian Research. 403 107308. Bibcode:2024PreR..40307308D. doi:10.1016/j.precamres.2024.107308.
^Shen, Bing; Xiao, Shuhai; Zhou, Chuanming; Dong, Lin; Chang, Jieqiong; Chen, Zhe (November 2017). "A new modular palaeopascichnid fossil Curviacus ediacaranus new genus and species from the Ediacaran Dengying Formation in the Yangtze Gorges area of South China". Geological Magazine. 154 (6): 1257–1268. Bibcode:2017GeoM..154.1257S. doi:10.1017/S001675681700036X.
^Cai, Yaoping; Schiffbauer, James D.; Hua, Hong; Xiao, Shuhai (November 2011). "Morphology and paleoecology of the late Ediacaran tubular fossil Conotubus hemiannulatus from the Gaojiashan Lagerstätte of southern Shaanxi Province, South China". Precambrian Research. 191 (1–2): 46–57. Bibcode:2011PreR..191...46C. doi:10.1016/j.precamres.2011.09.002.
^ abZhao, Mingsheng; Zhang, Yupeng; Tang, Feng; Li, Yulan; Li, Ming; Zhong, Ling; Ren, Liudong (March 2025). "Enigmatic discoidal macrofossils with central ring from the Ediacaran Jiangchuan biota, Southwest China". Papers in Palaeontology. 11 (2). Bibcode:2025PPal...11E0005Z. doi:10.1002/spp2.70005.
^Cai, Yaoping; Hua, Hong; Zhang, Xingliang (January 2013). "Tube construction and life mode of the late Ediacaran tubular fossil Gaojiashania cyclus from the Gaojiashan Lagerstätte". Precambrian Research. 224: 255–267. Bibcode:2013PreR..224..255C. doi:10.1016/j.precamres.2012.09.022.
^Cai, Yaoping; Xiao, Shuhai; Hua, Hong; Yuan, Xunlai (May 2015). "New material of the biomineralizing tubular fossil Sinotubulites from the late Ediacaran Dengying Formation, South China". Precambrian Research. 261: 12–24. Bibcode:2015PreR..261...12C. doi:10.1016/j.precamres.2015.02.002.
^Shen, Bing; Xiao, Shuhai; Zhou, Chuanming; Yuan, Xunlai (July 2009). "Yangtziramulus zhangi new genus and species, a carbonate-hosted macrofossil from the Ediacaran Dengying Formation in the Yangtze Gorges area, South China". Journal of Paleontology. 83 (4): 575–587. Bibcode:2009JPal...83..575S. doi:10.1666/08-042R1.1.
^Chen, Zhe; Zhou, Chuanming; Yuan, Xunlai; Xiao, Shuhai (19 September 2019). "Death march of a segmented and trilobate bilaterian elucidates early animal evolution". Nature. 573 (7774): 412–415. Bibcode:2019Natur.573..412C. doi:10.1038/s41586-019-1522-7. PMID31485079.
^ abChai, Shu; Hua, Hong; Ren, Jinjie; Dai, Qiaokun; Cui, Zaihang (January 2021). "Vase-shaped microfossils from the late Ediacaran Dengying Formation of Ningqiang, South China: taxonomy, preservation and biological affinity". Precambrian Research. 352 105968. Bibcode:2021PreR..35205968C. doi:10.1016/j.precamres.2020.105968.
^Meyer, Mike; Xiao, Shuhai; Gill, Benjamin C.; Schiffbauer, James D.; Chen, Zhe; Zhou, Chuanming; Yuan, Xunlai (February 2014). "Interactions between Ediacaran animals and microbial mats: Insights from Lamonte trevallis, a new trace fossil from the Dengying Formation of South China". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 396: 62–74. Bibcode:2014PPP...396...62M. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2013.12.026.
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