Haman Formation

The Haman Formation (Korean: 함안층; Hanja: 咸安層; RR: Ham-an-cheung) is an Early Cretaceous geological formation in South Korea. It has been dated to the Albian, with an estimated maximum depositional age of 105.4 ± 0.4 Ma.^[1] The deposit is known for its tracks, including those of dinosaurs,^[2][3] pterosaurs and birds.^[4][5][6] It overlies the Silla Conglomerate which overlies the Chilgok Formation. It is laterally equivalent to the Sagog Formation.^[7]

Haman Formation
Stratigraphic range: Albian ~105.4 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Type	Geological formation
Unit of	Hayang Group
Underlies	Jindong & Banyawol Formations
Overlies	Silla Conglomerate, Hagbong volcanics
Lithology
Primary	Sandstone
Other	Siltstone, shale
Location
Coordinates	35.8°N 128.8°E / 35.8; 128.8
Approximate paleocoordinates	44.4°N 125.2°E / 44.4; 125.2
Region	Gyeongsangnam-do
Country	South Korea
Extent	Gyeongsang Basin
Haman Formation (South Korea)

Vertebrate paleofauna

Fossil pterosaur, theropod, sauropod and ornithopod tracks have been recovered from this formation. Some dinosaur tracks show signs of display behavior. Dinosaur skin impressions have also been found in this formation.^[8]

Ichnofossils

Ichnofossils of the Haman Formation
Ichnogenus	Ichnospecies	Region[8]	Member	Material	Notes	Image
Pteraichnus[4][9]	P. isp.	Namhae			Pterosaur track, showing swimming traces.[8] Haman specimens housed at Korea National University of Education, Cheongwongun, South Korea.[9]
Dromaeosauripus	D. hamanensis[3]	Namhae			Dromaeosaur track, belonging to a 70 cm (28 in) tall individual.
Neosauroides[10]	N. koreanensis				Lizard trackway
Koreanaornis	K. hamanensis	Haman and Jinju			Bird track; the first vertebrate ichnotaxon reported from South Korea.[11]
Caririchnium	C. isp.				Juvenile ornithopod tracks, belonging to either derived iguanodonts or basal hadrosauroids. The trackmakers' hip heights are estimated between 76.4 and 102.1 cm (30.1 and 40.2 in).[12]
Minisauripus	M. cf. zhenshuonani or M. cf. chuanzhuensis[13]	Namhae			One of the smallest known theropod tracks.
Ignotornis	I. yangi[4] I. gajinensis[5]	Namhae (I. yangi) and Jinju (I. gajinensis)			The oldest known web-footed bird tracks. I. gajinensis shows feeding traces.[8]
Brontopodus[2]	B. birdi	Namhae			Sauropod tracks[8]
Gyeongsangsauropus[14]	G. pentadactylus	Jinju			Sauropod tracks,[8] previously assigned to the ichnogenus Brontopodus
Batrachopus	B. cf. grandis	Namhae			B. grandis is the archosaur track made by either a bipedal crocodylomorph or therizinosaur.[15] Specimen from Haman Formation was originally assigned to pterosaur trackway ichnotaxon Haenamichnus gainensis.[16]
Grallator[17]					Theropod track

See also

• Cretaceous Asia
• List of fossil sites
• Geoncheonri Formation
• Gugyedong Formation
• Hasandong Formation
• Jinju Formation

References

1. Lee, Tae-Ho; Park, Kye-Hun; Yi, Keewook (October 2018). "Nature and evolution of the Cretaceous basins in the eastern margin of Eurasia: A case study of the Gyeongsang Basin, SE Korea". Journal of Asian Earth Sciences. 166: 19–31. Bibcode:2018JAESc.166...19L. doi:10.1016/j.jseaes.2018.07.004. S2CID 135061525.
2. Kim, Jeong Yul; Lockley, Martin G. (January 2012). "New Sauropod Tracks (Brontopodus pentadactylus ichnosp. nov.) from the Early Cretaceous Haman Formation of Jinju Area, Korea: Implications for Sauropods Manus Morphology". Ichnos. 19 (1–2): 84–92. Bibcode:2012Ichno..19...84K. doi:10.1080/10420940.2012.664056. ISSN 1042-0940. S2CID 129209272.
3. Kim, Jeong Yul; Kim, Kyung Soo; Lockley, Martin G.; Yang, Seong Young; Seo, Seung Jo; Choi, Hyun Il; Lim, Jong Deock (May 2008). "New didactyl dinosaur footprints (Dromaeosauripus hamanensis ichnogen. et ichnosp. nov.) from the Early Cretaceous Haman Formation, south coast of Korea". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 262 (1–2): 72–78. Bibcode:2008PPP...262...72K. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2008.02.003.
4. Kim, Jeong Yul; Kim, Sam Hyang; Kim, Kyung Soo; Lockley, Martin (February 2006). "The oldest record of webbed bird and pterosaur tracks from South Korea (Cretaceous Haman Formation, Changseon and Sinsu Islands): More evidence of high avian diversity in East Asia". Cretaceous Research. 27 (1): 56–69. Bibcode:2006CrRes..27...56K. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2005.10.005.
5. Kim, Jeong Yul; Lockley, Martin G.; Seo, Seung Jo; Kim, Kyung Soo; Kim, Sam Hyang; Baek, Kwang Seok (January 2012). "A Paradise of Mesozoic Birds: The World's Richest and Most Diverse Cretaceous Bird Track Assemblage from the Early Cretaceous Haman Formation of the Gajin Tracksite, Jinju, Korea". Ichnos. 19 (1–2): 28–42. Bibcode:2012Ichno..19...28K. doi:10.1080/10420940.2012.660414. ISSN 1042-0940. S2CID 129787299.
6. Falk, A. R.; Hasiotis, S. T.; Martin, L. D. (2010-11-01). "Feeding Traces Associated with Bird Tracks from the Lower Cretaceous Haman Formation, Republic of Korea". PALAIOS. 25 (11): 730–741. Bibcode:2010Palai..25..730F. doi:10.2110/palo.2010.p10-057r. ISSN 0883-1351. S2CID 128765843.
7. Lee, J. I.; Lee, Y. I. (2000-01-01). "Provenance of the Lower Cretaceous Hayang Group, Gyeongsang Basin, Southeastern Korea: Implications for Continental-Arc Volcanism". Journal of Sedimentary Research. 70 (1): 151–158. Bibcode:2000JSedR..70..151L. doi:10.1306/2DC40906-0E47-11D7-8643000102C1865D. ISSN 1527-1404.
8. Kim, Jeong Yul; Huh, Min (2018). Dinosaurs, Birds, and Pterosaurs of Korea: A Paradise of Mesozoic Vertebrates (PDF). Springer Nature. ISBN 978-981-10-6998-7.
9. Lockley, M.; Harris, J.D.; and Mitchell, L. 2008. "A global overview of pterosaur ichnology: tracksite distribution in space and time." Zitteliana. B28. p. 187-198. ISSN 1612-4138.
10. Kim, Kyung Soo; Lockley, Martin G.; Lim, Jong Deock; Pinuela, Laura; Xing, Lida; Moon, Hae Won (2017). "First report of lacertiform (lizard) tracks from the Cretaceous of Asia". Cretaceous Research. 69: 62–70. Bibcode:2017CrRes..69...62K. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2016.08.013.
11. Kim, Bong Kyun (December 1969). "A study of several sole marks in the Haman Formation". Journal of the Geological Society of Korea. 5 (4): 243–258.
12. Yoon, Han Sang; Lee, Yuong-Nam; Jung, Seung-Ho; Kong, Dal-Yong; Kim, Su-Hwan; Son, Minyoung (2021). "A juvenile ornithopod-dominated tracksite from the Lower Cretaceous Haman Formation, South Korea" (PDF). Cretaceous Research. 125: 104877. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2021.104877.
13. Lockley, Martin G.; Kim, J.-Y.; Kim, K.-S.; Kim, S.-H.; Matsukawa, M.; Rihui, L.; Jianjun, L.; Yang, S.-Y. (2008). "Minisauripus―the track of a diminutive dinosaur from the Cretaceous of China and South Korea: implications for stratigraphic correlation and theropod foot morphodynamics". Cretaceous Research. 29 (1): 115–130. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2007.04.003.
14. Xing, Lida; Díaz-Martínez, Ignacio; Lallensack, Jens N.; Kim, Kyung Soo; Buckley, Lisa G.; Romilio, Anthony; Piñuela, Laura; Wang, Donghao; Chen, Qiyan; Yang, Qing; Chou, Chunyong; Yin, Hang; Jin, Yufei (2025). "Cretaceous vertebrate tracks". Vertebrate Ichnology: 479–747. doi:10.1016/B978-0-443-13837-9.00002-0.
15. Sennikov, Andrey Gerasimovich (December 2021). "The Plantigrade Segnosaurians: Sloth Dinosaurs or Bear Dinosaurs?". Paleontological Journal. 55 (10): 1158–1185. doi:10.1134/S0031030121100087.
16. Kim, Kyung Soo; Lockley, Martin G.; Lim, Jong Deock; Bae, Seul Mi; Romilio, Anthony (2020-06-11). "Trackway evidence for large bipedal crocodylomorphs from the Cretaceous of Korea". Scientific Reports. 10 (1): 8680. Bibcode:2020NatSR..10.8680K. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-66008-7. ISSN 2045-2322. PMC 7289791. PMID 32528068.
17. Lockley, Martin G.; Kim, Sam Hyang; Kim, Kyung Soo; Bae, Seul Mi; Kim, Jeong Yul; Xing, Lida (2 December 2022). "A high-density Grallator assemblage from the Haman Formation (Cretaceous), Korea: implications for Cretaceous distribution of grallatorids in east Asia". Historical Biology. 34 (12): 2430–2438. Bibcode:2022HBio...34.2430L. doi:10.1080/08912963.2021.2018687.