Latest issue of Geology likewise had a fascinating article on annihilation
of the dinosaurs in the Gobi Dersert, which up till now had been thought to
have been destroyed by dust storms on a dry desert. New scenario: killed
by "water-soaked sand"! Heavy rain saturated sand, sand collapsed and
buried dinosaurs.
Cross-bedded sands (supposed desert sand dunes), had no dead dinos. All
dead dinos in structureless layer with cobbles too big to have been
transported by wind. Thus debris flow burial...subaqueously!
The discovery of small amounts of clay in the dunes supposedly helps clear
up another mystery that was never mentioned until a possible solution
presented itself, namely, how could all these dinos be out in the middle of
a desert with no food (no fossil evidence of food sources anywhere in the
area)? Well, maybe since there is a little clay around, and some moisture,
there could have been some plants (Whew! That problem is solved.) The same
problem exists numerous other localities including the Coconino itself.
Namely, no food for the supposed populations of organisms in the deposits.
Of course, if you assume they were really an indiginous population of
organisms, then you can also assume there was really food somewhere nearby,
just no direct evidence for it.
Art
http://chadwicka.swau.edu