The Carrara Formation is primarily composed of olive-gray and greenish-gray
siltstones and
shales, as well as medium-gray
limestone in the lower half of the formation, with medium-gray to yellowish-brown silty limestone and limy limestone in the upper half of the formation. •
Eagle Mountain Shale Member: This is the lowest of the nine members, and is dominated by green to gray-brown silty-shales. Inter-bedded into these shales are thin-beds of
terrigenous or
carbonate silt-sized and sand-sized grains. The terrigenous inter-beds are primarily composed of
quartz sand, and are notably common at the base of the member. Meanwhile, at the top of the member, the carbonate inter-beds become increasingly common, and are composed not only of limestone, but also notably are composed of a high amount of
echinoderm and
trilobite fragment packstones, set into a muddy matrix. It has been noted that this member is poor in fossil materials, although in some sections a few trilobite species have been recovered. •
Thimble Limestone Member: Named for Thimble Peak in the Grapevine Mountains, this member is the widest, but thinnest, of the nine, only attaining a thickness of , and is predominately composed of thin-bedded black, brown, and orange
argillaceous limestone, which is
dolomitic in nature. In the eastern sections of the member, it is notably poor in fossil material, although the number of fossils increases in richness going in the northwestern direction, with fragments belonging to hyolithoids, echinoderms, and trilobites being found, as well as
oncolite trace fossils. •
Echo Shale Member: Named for
Echo Canyon, this member is primarily composed of green
micaceous platy shale. It is similar to the Eagle Mountain Shales, although it is notably more calcareous in nature, and contains layers of inter-bedded shale and limestone. Similar to the Eagle Mountain Shales, it is poor in fossil material, with a few records of
Olenellus clarki being found, and an undetermined
Olenellus species. •
Gold Ace Limestone Member: Named for Gold Ace Mine, this member is dominated my microspar limestone, which is thin- to medium-bedded in nature, with definitions of argillaceous dolomitic burrow horizons throughout. Nearer to the top of the member, the continuous limestone layers are further broken up by burrows, which range from open burrows filled by calcite spar, and sediment filled burrows, containing a variety of recrystallised and uncrystallised oncolites, as well as sparse
wackestone and
mudstone. It is noted to be moderately rich in fossil material, although these are too decayed or fragmented for proper identification, with only
Olenellus puertoblancoensis and
O. howelli being identified from the member. •
Pyramid Shale Member: Named for Pyramid Peak in the Funeral Mountains, this member is predominately composed of green shales, which is inter-bedded with layers of brown and maroon siltstone and shale, itself containing small amounts of quartzite and limestone. The member starts shaly at its base, getting increasingly more silty towards the top, with the top itself transitioning into brown siltstones and maroon shales. The member is notably rich in fossil material, although fossil are commonly disarticulated, forming packstones and grainstone in some layers of the member. In the lower of the member, more identifiable fossils can be found, ranging from the usual
Olenellus, to the unusual
Biceratops. •
Red Pass Limestone Member: Named for Red Pass in the Grapevine Mountains, this member is dominated by lime mudstones, which notably contains borrows, oncolites and skeletal-fragments. Alongside this, there are also abundant oolites, and layers of laminated lime mudstones and fenestral limestone, which form a thin, very light-gray cap of limestone at the top of the member in its western sections. Towards the east, the member becomes less prominent, with its lime mudstones instead being inter-bedded with green and brown calcareous shales. The majority of the member is notably poor in fossil material, although fossils have been found at the base and top of the member, with the base being dominated by trilobites from the "Plagiura-Poliella" Zone, whilst the top is dominated by trilobites from the "Albertella" Zone. •
Pahrump Hills Shale Member: Named for Pahrump Hills, this member is primarily composed of tan siltstones, shales, and red and green mudstones, with small amounts of argillaceous limestone and fine-grained sandstones throughout. The siltstone at the base of the member is orange-brown in colour, thin-bedded and carbonate-cemented, with laminations of fine-grained sandstone. The base of the member in its southeastward sections is instead composed of brown silty calcareous shale, abundant in echinoderm fragments. Meanwhile, the upper layers of the member is composed of the red, brown and green mudstones and shales, with layers of chloritic and cryptalgal limestones and oolites throughout. Overall, the member is notably poor in fossil materials, but there are collections of trilobites known throughout. •
Jangle Limestone Member: One of the first members to be named, it was named for Jangle Ridge in Halfpint Range, and is predominately composed of five limestone units, separated by layers of argillaceous limestone and calcareous shales. Throughout, there can also be found lime mudstones, trilobite- and echinoderm-fragment bearing wackestones, packstones, and grainstones, oolites, as well as fenestral-fabric and laminated limestone, all of which varying in their distribution, specially when compared to other members such as the Red Pass and Gold Ace Limestone Members, although this variation notably decreases eastward. The member is moderately fossiliferous throughout, getting more diverse in its middle section. •
Desert Range Limestone Member: Named for Desert Range, this member is similar to the Thimble Limestone Member, being primarily composed of black thin-bedded argillaceous limestone, with orange dolomitic partings throughout. There can also be found occasionally throughout the member trilobite packstones and wackestone. The member is notably rich in
Glossopleura, due to it being partly within the "Glossopleura" Zone. == Palaeoenvironment ==