Taphonomic characteristics of Longjiagou Hipparion Fauna and genesis of ’Hipparion red clay’ in Wudu County, Gansu Province

A suite of red strata called ’Hipparion red clay’ is widely distributed in North China. There has been a variety of opinions on its genesis, among which the leading. ones are aeolian theory and residual theory. A preliminary study on taphonomy of Longjiagou Hipparion Fauna, in Wudu, southern Gansu, has been made and some important conclu-sions have been achieved by the authors. The study provides new evidence for genesis of ’Hipparion red clay’ in the region.