Question

Due to a rise in global sea level, a shallow sea covered most of eastern Virginia during the Cretaceous. Virginia had drifted north from the equator and conditions no longer supported the formation of limestone. The tropical climate disappeared, replaced by more temperate conditions. In place of limy sediments, sand and silt were deposited as the sea level receded in the region we now know as the Plateau region. Under these conditions, we would expect to find more fossils of ____________ life forms in this location.

A) marine
B) primitive
C) single-celled
D) terrestrial

Answer 1

D) terrestrial////////////////////

Answer 2

The appropriate answer is D. Fossils of terrestrial life forms would be found in this region. Sand and silt are typically deposited by fluvial or river processes which occur on land. Sand and silt are fine grained materials which would also suggest that the environment may possibly be a flood plain. Flood plains are located in the lower course of rivers; close to where they empty into the sea. This scenario fits with the fact that three was a drop in sea level which would expose land closest to the coast.