The Jinju Formation (Korean: 진주층; Hanja: 晋州層; RR: Jinju-cheung), also known as the Dongmyeong Formation (Korean: 동명층; Hanja: 東明層; RR: Dongmyeong-cheung) in some literature is a Lower Cretaceous formation in South Korea.[2] Lithology of the Jinju Formation could be distinguished from overlying and underlying formations by lack of red beds in the entire formation.
The depositional age of this formation spans from approximately 112.4 ± 1.3 to 106.5 million years ago (early Albian) based on detrital zircon U-Pb dating.[3] It predominantly consists of black shale, with sandstone packets, deposited in a fluvial-lacustrine setting. The entire paleoenvironment of the Jinju Formation is interpreted as a balanced-fill lake basin, with deltas and streams.[4]
The Distribution of the Jinju Formation
A diverse arthropod fauna, including isopods, spiders, and insects, is known from the formation. Other notable fossils known from the formation include several freshwater fishes, ostracods, and plants. This formation has also "attracted global ichnological attention" for the variety of important ichnofossils.[5] Columnar and rod-shaped stromatolites have also been found here.[6]
Notes Uncertain or tentative taxa are in small text; crossed out taxa are discredited.
Plants
Based on plant fossil records, the Jinju Flora is interpreted as a temperate intermontane savannah, due to mountain barriers blocking moisture. The assemblage was dominated by stress-tolerant, low-diversity flora adapted to the arid conditions or to localized waterlogged niches. Not only restricted to the Jinju Formation, but the entire floral diversity was relatively low throughout the entire Gyeongsang Supergroup.[7] Palynofossil records also suggest the Jinju Formation was overall arid.
Unnamed plant remains include 3 different types of unidentified ferns, at least 2 types of seed cones, a conifer pollen cone, detached conifer seed cone scales, a connate bractate organ of unknown affinity, and at least 9 different types of diaspores, including winged forms and likely fleshy forms.
Scale- and awl-leaved conifer. The presence of this taxon indicates that a mixed type of the Tetori-Type and the Ryoseki-Type flora existed in this formation.
A tooth from Sacheon was initially suggested to be of Asian Brachiosaurid by Lim, Martin and Baek (2001), but Barrett et al. (2002) and Choi & Lee (2017) consider it to be indeterminate titanosauriform. Meanwhile, another tooth from Goryeong was suggested to be of Diplodocoidea by Yun et al. (2007), but Choi and Lee (2017) also considered it indeterminate titanosauriform.
While the KPE 40001 suggested to be of Boreopterid origin by Choi & Lee (2017), Yun (2021) and Yun (2024) consider them to be Anhanguerian instead based on the morphological disparity from Boreopteridae and the results of two-dimensional geometric morphometric analyses.[58][59]
The smallest known non-avian dinosaur didactyl tracks possibly made by a small microraptorine, with indication of important flight behaviors such as flap-running, take-off, and landing.[67]
Archosaur track made by either a bipedal crocodylomorph or therizinosaur;[75] the pterosaur trackway ichnospecies Haenamichnus gainensis from the Haman Formation is now assigned to this species as B. cf. grandis.[74] Paleontologist James I. Kirkland expresses doubts on the ichnogenus assignment.[76]
↑ 7.07.17.2Lee, Jaemin; Kim, Kyung Soo; Looy, Cindy V. (20 March 2026). "An Early Cretaceous temperate intermontane savanna from South Korea, and its biogeographic implications". Cretaceous Research. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2026.106387.
↑Lee, Jaemin (2025). "Deep time evolution of tubers in Equisetum and the broader sphenophytes". International Journal of Plant Sciences. doi:10.1086/735612.
↑Ueda, Kyoichiro; Kim, Taewan; Aoki, Tateyu (2005). "A new record of Early Cretaceous fossil dragonfly from Korea". Bulletin of the Kitakyushu Museum of Natural History and Human History, Series A (Natural History)3: 145–152. doi:10.34522/kmnh.3.0_145.
↑Wei, G.; Nam, G.-S.; Liu, Y.; Ren, D.; Wang, Y. (2026). "New hemeroscopid (Odonata: Hemeroscopidae) from Lower Cretaceous Jinju Formation (South Korea) illustrating variation of wing vannal region among hemeroscopids and prohemeroscopids". Zootaxa5810 (2): 380–388. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.5810.2.9.
↑Engel, Michael A.; Lim, Jong-Deock; Baek, Kwang-Seok; Martin, Larry D. (2002). "An Earwig from the Lower Cretaceous of Korea (Dermaptera: Forficulina)". Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society75 (2): 86–90.
↑ 19.019.119.219.3Nam, Gi-Soo; Jang, Jun-Hyeok (19 May 2026). "Cockroaches from the Lower Cretaceous Jinju Formation of Gunwi, South Korea". Biologia81 (6). doi:10.1007/s11756-026-02200-w.
↑ 21.021.121.2Lee, Soo Bin; Nam, Gi Soo; Nel, André; Park, Jong Kyun (February 2025). "A new Albian genus and species and two other new species of Umenocoleidae (Dictyoptera) from South Korea". Cretaceous Research166. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2024.106013.
↑Sohn, J.-C.; Nam, G. S. (2024). "New fossil genus and species of Yuripopovinidae (Insecta: Heteroptera, Coreoidea) from the Lower Cretaceous Jinju Formation, South Korea, with insights into the evolution of exaggerated antennae in the family". Cretaceous Research158: 105847. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2024.105847. Bibcode: 2024CrRes.15805847S.
↑Jouault, Corentin; Kwon, Seung-Hyuk; Nam, Gi-Soo (2025). "A new species of Cretosphecium (Hymenoptera: Angarosphecidae) from the lower Albian Jinju Formation of South Korea". Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology49 (1): 62–68. doi:10.1080/03115518.2024.2425623. ISSN0311-5518.
↑ 28.028.1Jouault, Corentin; Kopylov, Dmitry S.; Rasnitsyn, Alexandr P.; Nam, Gi-Soo; Kwon, Seung-Hyuk; Oyama, Nozomu (31 December 2025). "Farther East: New Ghilarellinae wasps (Hymenoptera: Sepulcidae) from the Albian of the Republic of Korea extend the geographic range of the subfamily". Journal of Insect Biodiversity77 (1): 60–70. doi:10.12976/jib/2025.77.1.10.
↑Khramov, A.V.; Nam, G.S. (2020). "The First Record of Lacewings (Insecta: Neuroptera: Mesochrysopidae) from the Lower Cretaceous of South Korea". Paleontological Journal54 (6): 613–616. doi:10.1134/S003103012005007X. Bibcode: 2020PalJ...54..613K.
↑ 31.031.1Khramov, Alexander V.; Nam, Gi-Soo (October 2024). "Discovery of supposedly "Gondwanan" myrmeleontoids (Neuroptera) in the Lower Cretaceous of South Korea". Cretaceous Research166. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2024.106024.
↑Lee, S.B.; Li, Y.-D.; Cai, C.; Engel, M.S.; Nam, G.S.; Park, J.K.; Nel, A.; Jenkins Shaw, J. et al. (2024). "Cretaceous beetles of the Jinju Formation (Coleoptera): An overview of the Jinju Formation, its coleopteran diversity, and past and future research". Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology27 (2). doi:10.1016/j.aspen.2024.102236. Bibcode: 2024JAsPE..2702236L.
↑Lee, Soo-Bin; Cai, Chen-Yang; Nam, Gi-Soo (31 December 2025). "Cretaceous beetles of the Jinju Formation: Cryptocoelus minimus sp. nov. (Coleoptera: Elateridae) from the Early Cretaceous of South Korea". Journal of Insect Biodiversity77 (1): 28–35. doi:10.12976/jib/2025.77.1.6.
↑Lee, Soo Bin; Nam, Gi Soo; Li, Yan-Da (2022). "A new species of Notocupes (Coleoptera: Archostemata) from the Lower Cretaceous (Albian) Jinju Formation in South Korea". Cretaceous Research140. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2022.105357. Bibcode: 2022CrRes.14005357L.
↑Park, Sun-Ok; Chang, Ki-Hong (1998). "Some Cretaceous conchostracans of Kyongsang basin". Journal of the Paleontological Society of Korea14 (2): 179–199.
↑ 55.055.1Yun, Cheol-Soo; Baek, Kwang-Seok; Jeong, Young-Hyeon (2007). "Cretaceous reptilian teeth from the Gyeongsang Basin". Journal of the Paleontological Society of Korea23 (1): 27–47.
↑Yun, Cheol-Soo; Yang, Seong-Young (2001). "First discovery of big pterosaur teeth in Korea". Journal of the Paleontological Society of Korea17 (2): 69–76.
↑Yun, Chan-Gyu (2021). "Boreopterid pterosaur fossils from South Korea reconsidered". New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science Bulletin82: 567–568.
↑Yun, Chan-Gyu (2024). "Geometric morphometric approach to establish phylogenetic affinities of enigmatic pterosaur specimens from the Lower Cretaceous of South Korea". Acta Palaeontologica Romaniae20 (1): 77–86. doi:10.35463/j.apr.2024.01.06.
↑ 63.063.1Kim, Jeong Yul; Lockley, Martin G.; Woo, Jeong Ok; Kim, Sam Hyang (2012). "Unusual didactyl traces from the Jinju Formation (Early Cretaceous, South Korea) indicate a new ichnospecies of Dromaeosauripus". Ichnos: An International Journal for Plant and Animal Traces19 (1–2): 75–83. doi:10.1080/10420940.2012.664054. Bibcode: 2012Ichno..19...75K.
↑Xing, Lida; Díaz-Martínez, Ignacio; Lallensack, Jens N.; Kim, Kyung Soo; Buckley, Lisa G.; Romilio, Anthony; Piñuela, Laura; Wang, Donghao et al. (2025). "Cretaceous vertebrate tracks". Vertebrate Ichnology: 479–747. doi:10.1016/B978-0-443-13837-9.00002-0. ISBN978-0-443-13837-9.
↑ 68.068.1Kang, Seung Hyeop; Buckley, Lisa G.; McCrea, Richard T.; Kim, Kyung-Soo; Lockley, Martin G.; Lim, Jong Deock; Lim, Hyun Soo; Kim, Cheong-Bin (2021). "First report of bird tracks (Ignotornis seoungjoseoi ichnosp. nov.) from the Jinju Formation (Lower Cretaceous), Sacheon City, Korea". Cretaceous Research127 (11). doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2021.104899. Bibcode: 2021CrRes.12704899K.
↑Jung, Jongyun; Kim, Kyung Soo; Xing, Lida; Choi, Byung-Do (16 April 2026). "New large pterosaur tracks from Korea and their implications on terrestrial behavior". Scientific Reports16 (1). doi:10.1038/s41598-026-48019-y.
↑Lee, Dong-Chan (2017). "Radialimbricatus, a new ichnogenus from the lacustrine sandstone facies of the Lower Cretaceous Jinju Formation, South Korea" (in en). Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology41 (3): 350–364. doi:10.1080/03115518.2017.1283053. Bibcode: 2017Alch...41..350L.
↑Lee, Dong-Chan (2018). "Probable insect cocoon or pupation chamber in a channel-fill sandstone bed of the Lower Cretaceous Jinju Formation, South Korea". Lethaia51 (3): 433–443. doi:10.1111/let.12257. Bibcode: 2018Letha..51..433L.
↑ 84.084.184.284.384.484.5Kim, J.Y.; Pickerill, R. (2002). "Cretaceous Nonmarine Trace Fossils from the Hasandong and Jinju Formations of the Namhae Area, Kyongsangnamdo, Southeast Korea". Ichnos9 (1–2): 41–60. doi:10.1080/10420940190034076.