Joggins Fossil Cliffs

World Heritage Research

Discover scientific research and academic studies that deepen our understanding of Joggins Fossil Cliffs from its history and significance to its conservation, management, and contemporary challenges.

• Pygocephalid pancrustaceans from the late Carboniferous of Nova Scotia, Canada, with comments on the cuticular microstructures of Pygocephalamorpha

  Research at the Joggins Fossil Cliffs UNESCO World Heritage Site, Nova Scotia, has confirmed the presence of three pygocephalomorph species—Pygocephalus cooperi, Pygocephalus cf. cooperi, and Pygocephalus dubius—from the late Carboniferous period. These pancrustaceans, resembling modern shrimp or lobsters, were likely benthic walkers based on leg morphology and paleoichnological evidence. The study also identified three distinct cuticular microstructures on P. dubius: canal-like pores (likely organule canals), setal attachment sites, and polygonal reticular ornamentation. Comparative analysis of Joggins assemblages with Mississippian faunas suggests a significant faunal turnover, potentially linked to paleoenvironmental changes in Atlantic Canada during the Carboniferous. This research provides new insights into the ecological diversity and evolutionary history of these ancient pancrustaceans.

  Laville, T., Andréo, A., & Atkins, J. B. (2026). Pancrustacés pygocéphalides du Carbonifère tardif de la Nouvelle-Écosse (Canada), avec commentaires sur les microstructures cuticulaires des pygocéphalamorphes. Atlantic Geoscience, 62, 001–020. https://doi.org/10.4138/atlgeo.2026.001

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• A new cubichnium ichnogenus and ichnospecies, Pygocephalichnium reidi, from the Pennsylvanian UNESCO World Heritage Site at Joggins Fossil Cliffs, Canada, and associated ichnotaxa

  Researchers have identified and described a new ichnogenus and ichnospecies, Pygocephalichnium reidi, from the Pennsylvanian Joggins Fossil Cliffs UNESCO World Heritage Site in Nova Scotia, Canada. This discovery represents the first trace fossil attributed to the Pygocephalus shrimp, a common body fossil found at the site but previously lacking associated trace fossils. The study analyzed a unique shrimp-shaped resting trace from the upper Joggins Formation, linked it to an invertebrate trackway, and compared its morphology with known Pygocephalus body fossils. The trace fossil was found in fine-grained sandstones alongside other invertebrate resting traces (Selenichnites and Rusophycus) and Kouphichnium trackways, suggesting a diverse paleoenvironment. This finding enhances our understanding of the site's ichnofossil record and contributes to its paleontological significance.

  Malay, B. C., Stimson, M. R., King, O. A., Faulkner, S., Heberts, B. L., Calder, J. H., MacRae, R. A., & Lucas, S. G. (2024). Nouvel ichnogenre et nouvelle ichnoespèce de cubichnium, le Pygocephalichnium reidi, du site du patrimoine mondial de l’UNESCO des falaises fossilifères de Joggins, au Canada, et ichnotaxons connexes. Atlantic Geoscience, 60, 185–203. https://doi.org/10.4138/atlgeo.2024.009

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• Coastal Erosion and The Minas Bay: An Analysis

  Extreme tidal forces and accelerated coastal erosion threaten the Joggins Fossil Cliffs, a UNESCO World Heritage Site renowned for its 300-million-year-old fossil record. Research using ArcGIS Pro and photogrammetry reveals that erosion rates are increasing, likely due to climate-driven changes in environmental variables such as water turbulence and silt load. This poses a significant risk to the preservation of rare organisms—including tetrapods, amphibians, and reptiles—that were first documented by 19th-century geologists Charles Lyell and William Dawson. The study aims to determine whether escalating erosion, driven by extreme climate events, will further degrade this irreplaceable biological archive, with implications for its long-term conservation.

  Flemington, H. (2023). Coastal Erosion and The Minas Bay: An Analysis. Inquiry@Queen’s Undergraduate Research Conference Proceedings, 17. https://doi.org/10.24908/iqurcp16321

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• Cranial anatomy and systematics of Dendrerpeton cf. helogenes (Tetrapoda, Temnospondyli) from the Pennsylvanian of Joggins, revisited through micro‐CT scanning

  A re-examination of the most complete tetrapod specimen from Joggins Fossil Cliffs, using micro-CT scanning, reveals that the genus Dendrysekos is a junior synonym of Dendrerpeton, resolving a long-standing taxonomic question. The study identified previously obscured anatomical structures, including the stapes and scleral plates, which were critical in redrawing the boundaries between these genera. Phylogenetic analyses, however, indicate that relationships among early temnospondyl groups remain poorly resolved due to limited shared derived characters. Joggins continues to provide invaluable insights into late Carboniferous ecosystems, particularly for its rich terrestrial fauna record.

  Arbez, T., Atkins, J. B., & Maddin, H. C. (2022). Cranial anatomy and systematics of Dendrerpeton cf. helogenes (Tetrapoda, Temnospondyli) from the Pennsylvanian of Joggins, revisited through micro‐CT scanning. Papers in Palaeontology, 8(2). Portico. https://doi.org/10.1002/spp2.1421

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• Absence of evidence of climate-driven cycles in Carboniferous deposits of Joggins, Nova Scotia, Canada: influence of salt withdrawal tectonics on deposition and pedogenesis

  A new analysis of Carboniferous deposits at Joggins Fossil Cliffs, Nova Scotia, challenges the long-held assumption that glacio-eustatic cycles drove sedimentation during the Late Paleozoic Ice Age. By applying threshold autoregressive modeling to 474 fluvial aggradational cycles and analyzing lithological variations across 1,655 beds, researchers found no statistically significant cyclicity in sediment thickness, paleosol development, or sandstone content. Instead, the study attributes rapid subsidence and sediment accumulation to halokinetic tectonics—ductile deformation of deep salt deposits—rather than climate-driven processes. This finding suggests that tectonic activity, not glacial cycles, was the primary driver of fluvial sedimentation in the Cumberland Basin, explaining the preservation of coal-rich units and fossil forests along the cliffs.

  Letourmy, Y., Driese, S. G., & Sims, J. R. (2021). Absence of evidence of climate-driven cycles in Carboniferous deposits of Joggins, Nova Scotia, Canada: influence of salt withdrawal tectonics on deposition and pedogenesis. Journal of Sedimentary Research, 91(2), 167–185. https://doi.org/10.2110/jsr.2020.78

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• Chemostratigraphy of Cumberland Group (Pennsylvanian) strata influenced by salt tectonics, Joggins Fossil Cliffs UNESCO World Heritage Site, eastern Canada

  A significant discovery at the Joggins Fossil Cliffs UNESCO World Heritage Site reveals that over 2 km of sediment accumulated south of the Minudie Anticline during a major episode of salt diapirism, followed by erosion and deposition of an additional 500 m of sediment within just 2 million years. This finding challenges previous assumptions about the stratigraphic relationships between formations influenced by salt tectonics. The study used chemostratigraphy, specifically inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), to analyze major-element compositions in sandstone samples from post-Boss Point Formation strata. Results indicated that the Grande Anse and Ragged Reef formations exhibit greater compositional maturity than older formations (Little River, Joggins, and Springhill Mines), attributed to a shift from semiarid to humid paleoclimate conditions, enhancing chemical weathering of sediment.

  Bahr, F., & Keighley, D. (2021). Chemostratigraphy of Cumberland Group (Pennsylvanian) strata influenced by salt tectonics, Joggins Fossil Cliffs UNESCO World Heritage Site, eastern Canada. Journal of Sedimentary Research, 91(9), 969–985. https://doi.org/10.2110/jsr.2020.152

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• Footprints of the earliest reptiles: Notalacerta missouriensis – Ichnotaxonomy, potential trackmakers, biostratigraphy, palaeobiogeography and palaeoecology

  A comprehensive revision of the earliest supposed reptile ichnotaxon, Notalacerta missouriensis, reveals that eureptiles, specifically protorothyridids like Paleothyris, are the most probable trackmakers. This study also identifies the middle Bashkirian (early Langsettian) as the earliest unequivocal occurrence of Notalacerta at the UNESCO World Heritage Site Joggins Fossil Cliffs in Nova Scotia, Canada, coinciding with the earliest known reptile body fossils (Hylonomus lyelli). The research employs a synapomorphy-based track-trackmaker attribution and revises the entire Pennsylvanian-Cisuralian record of this ichnotaxon, uncovering its unexpected abundance and wide palaeogeographical distribution. Notalacerta is predominantly found in tidal palaeoenvironments during the Bashkirian, with lesser occurrences in the Moscovian and Kasimovian, and a reappearance in fully continental environments during the Artinskian.

  Marchetti, L., Voigt, S., Lucas, S., Stimson, M., King, O., & Calder, J. (2020). Footprints of the earliest reptiles: Notalacerta missouriensis – Ichnotaxonomy, potential trackmakers, biostratigraphy, palaeobiogeography and palaeoecology. Annales Societatis Geologorum Poloniae. https://doi.org/10.14241/asgp.2020.13

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