Revisiting the Cupidito unit (Cupido Formation) along peritidal carbonates from northeastern Mexico

Depositional episodes are readily identified along representative localities of the Lower Cretaceous Cupido platform in northeastern Mexico. The basal part of the Cupido Formation exhibits a progradational reef platform that, at the upper limit, is truncated by a sequence boundary defined by a breccia. This breccia marks the development of a peculiar sedimentary facies informally known as the Cupidito unit, a distinctive stratigraphical unit in northeastern Mexico that remained uninterpreted for decades. Through the analysis of facies, microfacies and stable isotope comparisons from representative localities (Potrero Chico, Potrero de García, La Huasteca, La Muralla and Puerto Mexico) and from other previously reported outcrops, this work describes six diagnostic features for Cupidito and an improved stratigraphic model is proposed. The depositional sequence suggests a broad flat-topped platform with a general low organic productivity and restricted conditions followed by recurrent inundations of lagoon waters. Before drowning, this carbonate platform remained under equilibrium conditions interrupted by short pulses of relative higher-temperatures (48.3 °C and 39.2 °C). Coral-rudist-stromatoporoid patch-reefs with inferred inter-tropical temperatures between 31.5 °C and 32.2 °C originated as a progradational response to the instauration of a new Sequence Boundary at the base of Cupidito.

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Sequence stratigraphy of Oxfordian and Kimmeridgian shelf carbonate reservoirs, offshore Abu Dhabi

GeoArabia ◽

10.2113/geoarabia070131 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

pp. 31-44 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Ahmed S. Al-Suwaidi ◽

Sabah K. Aziz

Keyword(s):

Carbonate Platform ◽

Carbonate Reservoirs ◽

Abu Dhabi ◽

Depositional Sequence ◽

Offshore Area ◽

Depositional Sequences ◽

Eastern Flank ◽

Stratigraphic Model ◽

Intrashelf Basin ◽

System Tracts

ABSTRACT Carbonate reservoirs on the eastern flank of the Oxfordian-Kimmeridgian intrashelf basin in offshore Abu Dhabi had received little attention until commercial oil accumulations in structural traps were discovered in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In order to clarify the geometric and chronostratigraphic relationships of the Oxfordian-Kimmeridgian reservoirs, a multidisciplinary study (seismic, lithobiofacies, geochemistry, strontium isotope dating, and well-log data) was used to develop a sequence stratigraphic model. After deposition of the Callovian upper Araej Formation, a differentiated carbonate platform was established in the early Oxfordian in offshore and western onshore Abu Dhabi. Tectonic subsidence coupled with sea-level fluctuations controlled the geometry, deposition, and distribution of the lithofacies. These ranged from organic-rich, limy mudstones in the basinal area, to porous and permeable bioclastic packstones, grainstones, and dolomites in shallow waters on the eastern flank of the intrashelf basin. The upper Kimmeridgian Arab-D Member of the Arab Formation overlies the basinal deposits. Three third-order Depositional Sequences were identified in the offshore area. They are named according to their contained Maximum Flooding Surface; a fourth sequence is an intermediate unnamed Depositional Wedge. Depositional Sequence Jurassic 50 is of Oxfordian age and was deposited during transgressive and highstand periods. The lower Kimmeridgian Depositional Sequence Jurassic 60 is a well-defined lowstand system tract overlain by short-lived transgressive and highstand system tracts. Overlying Depositional Sequence Jurassic 60 is the Depositional Wedge. Finally, Depositional Sequence Jurassic 70 consists of transgressive and highstand system tracts developed on an undifferentiated platform that had localized depressions in the west. The best reservoir developments are in highstand bioclastic packstones and grainstones below the type-1 sequence boundaries that cap Depositional Sequences Jurassic 50 and Jurassic 60. The reservoir units have porosities greater than 20 percent and permeabilities of more than 1,000 milliDarcies. The basinal facies of Depositional Sequence Jurassic 50 have the best source-rock potential in the intrashelf basin.

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Benthic foraminiferal zonation in deep-water carbonate platform margin environments, northern Little Bahama Bank

Journal of Paleontology ◽

10.1017/s0022336000058819 ◽

1988 ◽

Vol 62 (01) ◽

pp. 1-8 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ronald E. Martin

Keyword(s):

Deep Water ◽

Benthic Foraminifera ◽

Carbonate Platform ◽

Sedimentary Facies ◽

Depositional Environments ◽

Near Surface ◽

Sediment Gravity Flows ◽

Gravity Flows ◽

Platform Margin ◽

Water Carbonate

The utility of benthic foraminifera in bathymetric interpretation of clastic depositional environments is well established. In contrast, bathymetric distribution of benthic foraminifera in deep-water carbonate environments has been largely neglected. Approximately 260 species and morphotypes of benthic foraminifera were identified from 12 piston core tops and grab samples collected along two traverses 25 km apart across the northern windward margin of Little Bahama Bank at depths of 275-1,135 m. Certain species and operational taxonomic groups of benthic foraminifera correspond to major near-surface sedimentary facies of the windward margin of Little Bahama Bank and serve as reliable depth indicators. Globocassidulina subglobosa, Cibicides rugosus, and Cibicides wuellerstorfi are all reliable depth indicators, being most abundant at depths >1,000 m, and are found in lower slope periplatform aprons, which are primarily comprised of sediment gravity flows. Reef-dwelling peneroplids and soritids (suborder Miliolina) and rotaliines (suborder Rotaliina) are most abundant at depths <300 m, reflecting downslope bottom transport in proximity to bank-margin reefs. Small miliolines, rosalinids, and discorbids are abundant in periplatform ooze at depths <300 m and are winnowed from the carbonate platform. Increased variation in assemblage diversity below 900 m reflects mixing of shallow- and deep-water species by sediment gravity flows.

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Reconstructing the palaeoenvironment at the early Mesolithic site of Lake Duvensee: Ground-penetrating radar and geoarchaeology for 3D facies mapping

The Holocene ◽

10.1177/0959683620902234 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 30 (6) ◽

pp. 820-833 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Erica Corradini ◽

Dennis Wilken ◽

Marco Zanon ◽

Daniel Groß ◽

Harald Lübke ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Ground Penetrating Radar ◽

Three Dimensional ◽

Sedimentary Facies ◽

Landscape Development ◽

Fine Grained ◽

Stratigraphic Model ◽

Lake Bottom ◽

Organic Sediments ◽

Spatio Temporal ◽

Ground Penetrating

We investigate the landscape development of the early Mesolithic hunter-gatherer sites of Duvensee (10000–6500 cal. BCE). Based on ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and geoarchaeological drillings, we present for the first time a three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of the palaeoenvironment of 63 ha covering subarea of the former lake during the Mesolithic. The archaeological aims were (1) to detect the location of former islands possibly hosting hunter-gatherer settlements and (2) to reconstruct the ancient landscape development for understanding prehistoric land use. The research in Duvensee lasts almost 100 years, providing vivid illustrations of early Mesolithic life. Clusters of Mesolithic camps have been found located on small sand hills that formed islands in the prehistoric lake. For this environment, we present depth maps of the three most important sedimentary facies interfaces of the ancient Lake Duvensee. Interface1 represents the transition between coarse organic sediments (peat and coarse detritus gyttja) and fine-grained organic sediments (fine detritus gyttja, calcareous gyttja), Interface2 represents the transition to the underlying clayish-loamy sediments, and Interface3 marks the top of the basal sand deposits at the lake bottom. From Interface3, we identified the location and extent of five former islands with Mesolithic camps. Stratigraphic information from the corings enabled us to create a 3D model of the spatio-temporal development of the Duvensee bog. The locations of the islands and their estimated dive-up times agree with the spatio-temporal pattern of the previous archaeological finds. The model shows where hunter-gatherers could settle and move from one island to another following the shorelines of the overgrowing lake. The 3D stratigraphic model provides growth and shrinking rates of the island and lake areas in the Mesolithic, and volumes of organic and non-organic deposited lake sediments. Besides, it provides a basis for a sustainable groundwater management needed for heritage preservation.

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Benthic foraminiferal zonation in deep-water carbonate platform margin environments, northern Little Bahama Bank

Journal of Paleontology ◽

10.1017/s0022336000017935 ◽

1988 ◽

Vol 62 (1) ◽

pp. 1-8 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Ronald E. Martin

Keyword(s):

Deep Water ◽

Benthic Foraminifera ◽

Carbonate Platform ◽

Sedimentary Facies ◽

Depositional Environments ◽

Near Surface ◽

Sediment Gravity Flows ◽

Gravity Flows ◽

Platform Margin ◽

Water Carbonate

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Calpionellid biostratigraphy and microfacies analysis of a Tithonian–Berriasian carbonate succession in the Western Srednogorie (Bulgaria)

Geologica Balcanica ◽

10.52321/geolbalc.46.1.65 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 46 (1) ◽

pp. 65-92

Author(s):

Silviya Petrova ◽

Polina Andreeva ◽

Lubomir Metodiev ◽

Daniela Reháková ◽

Jozef Michalík ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Carbonate Platform ◽

Carbonate Sediments ◽

Marine Environments ◽

Microfacies Analysis ◽

Diagnostic Features ◽

Depositional Settings ◽

Lithostratigraphic Units

In the eastern part of the Western Srednogorie Unit, around Dragovishtitsa Village, a specific succession of the Gintsi and Glozhene–Slivnitsa formations has provided micropalaeontological evidence for late Tithonian (Chitinoidella, Praetintinnopsella and the base of Crassicollaria zones) and mid-Berriasian (the Elliptica Subzone of the Calpionella Zone) age on the basis of 45 chitinoidellid and calpionellid species. A significant stratigraphic hiatus is documented within the Glozhene–Slivnitsa Formation, since a part of the Crassicollaria Zone, as well as the Alpina+Remaniella subzones of the Calpionella Zone, is absent from the Dragovishtitsa 1 section. The conformably overlying Salash Formation is of mid-Berriasian age (Elliptica Subzone) and is locally characterized by the presence of calcareous sandstones (Dragovishtitsa 2 section). The Salash–Cherni Osam Formation, as well as the clayey limestone unit covering the Slivnitsa Formation, is also of mid-Berriasian age (Elliptica Subzone). The Slivnitsa and Glozhene–Slivnitsa formations, which underlie the Salash–Cherni Osam Formation in the Dragovishtitsa East section, correspond to the Crassicollaria Zone and the Alpina Subzone, respectively. Reworking of calpionellids from the Crassicollaria Zone is documented in the Alpina and Elliptica subzones in all three studied sections. Eight microfacies types are distinguished, which suggests that the carbonate sediments were deposited in a carbonate platform rather than in a pelagic basin environment, althought the upper part of the studied sections reveals an upward-deepening trend. The Slivnitsa Formation is covered by highly diachronous sediments from more distal settings: from mid-Berriasian around Dragovishtitsa Village to the Berriasian/Valanginian transition at the Tri Ushi section to late Valanginian in the Dragoman and Kalotina sections. This fact, together with the significant stratigraphic hiatus within the Glozhene–Slivnitsa Formation, is interpreted here as tectonically controlled. The presence of transitional depositional settings from carbonate platform to deeper-marine environments caused deposition of specific lithostratigraphic units not always corresponding to the diagnostic features of the Glozhene, Salash and Cherni Osam formations.

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Stratigraphic organisation of the Jurassic sequence in Interior Oman, Arabian Peninsula

GeoArabia ◽

10.2113/geoarabia110117 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 17-50 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Mathieu Rousseau ◽

Gilles Dromart ◽

Henk Droste ◽

Peter Homewood

Keyword(s):

Middle Jurassic ◽

Large Scale ◽

Geometric Model ◽

Sedimentary Facies ◽

Source Rocks ◽

Correlation Technique ◽

Well Log ◽

Angular Unconformity ◽

Stratigraphic Model ◽

Jurassic Sequence

ABSTRACT A Stratigraphic model is proposed for the Jurassic sequence in Interior Oman. The model is based on regional well-log correlations, outcrop analysis and integration of Biostratigraphy. Large-scale architectures are restored using a well-to-well correlation technique, after the well-log markers of the relevant surfaces of sequence stratigraphy are identified. This identification is achieved by comparing well-log signatures to lithological and sedimentological columns of nearby exposed sections. The subsurface dataset consists of 19 wells arranged in two east-west profiles, 341 km and 332 km long. The Jurassic sequence in Interior Oman shows a general easterly thinning wedge and includes two hiatuses with marked age-gaps. Three major depositional episodes are identified: (1) a Pliensbachian-Toarcian coastal encroachment in a southward direction, represented by the dominantly clastic deposition of the Lower Mafraq Formation upon the Permian carbonates; (2) a general late Bajocian marine flooding (hybrid facies of marginal-marine environments of the Upper Mafraq Formation), followed through the Bathonian-Callovian by the carbonate Dhruma-Tuwaiq System which evolved through time from a low-angle, homoclinal ramp dipping in a (north) westwards direction, to a purely aggradational, flat-topped platform (upper Dhruma and Tuwaiq Mountain formations); (3) a Kimmeridgian-Tithonian onlap in an eastwards direction of finegrained limestones (Jubaila-Rayda) upon the post-Tuwaiq unconformity. Depositional hiatuses in the early Liassic and at the Early-Middle Jurassic transition are likely to reflect major eustatic sea-level lowstands. In contrast, subsurface correlations of the MFSs through the Dhruma-Tuwaiq indicate that the post-Tuwaiq unconformity is a low-angle (0.001 degrees) angular unconformity associated with tilting and truncation of the underlying sequences. Oxfordian sequences were probably never deposited in Interior Oman because of a lack of accommodation space and prolonged subaerial exposure. It is here proposed that the Upper/Middle Jurassic angular unconformity in Interior Oman was planed-off by subaerial carbonate dissolution during a steady, tectonically-driven uplift of the whole eastern Arabian shelf edge. The proposed geological model has several implications for the petroleum systems of Interior Oman. The geometric model predicts the distribution of the sedimentary facies, including source rocks, clastic and carbonate reservoirs, and seal facies. The occurrence of isolated Upper Mafraq-producing reservoir sands (i.e. Sayh Rawl field) are believed to be restricted to central and eastern Interior Oman. There are two other reservoir/seal combinations, both related to the Upper/Middle Jurassic unconformity: (1) truncation traps of the Dhruma-Tuwaiq below the unconformity (i.e. Hadriya and Uwainat reservoirs); (2) updip pinch-out trap of the Hanifa above the unconformity. Finally, it is believed that the early Late Jurassic general uplift and truncation of eastern Oman may have caused local remobilisation, updip migration, and loss to the surface of oil in reservoirs, initially generated from the prolific Al Huqf source rocks of Late Precambrian-Early Cambrian age.

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Late Oligocene–Early Miocene Nukhul Sequence, Gulf of Suez and Red Sea

GeoArabia ◽

10.2113/geoarabia170117 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

pp. 17-44 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Moujahed I. Al-Husseini

Keyword(s):

Red Sea ◽

Isotope Analysis ◽

Sedimentary Facies ◽

Early Miocene ◽

Rift System ◽

Gulf Of Suez ◽

Late Oligocene ◽

Depositional Sequence ◽

Red Sea Rift ◽

Northern Red Sea

ABSTRACT Egypt’s Late Oligocene–Early Miocene Nukhul Formation was deposited during the earliest geological evolution of the Gulf of Suez and Red Sea Rift System. In this paper the formation is cast as a depositional sequence based on published sections, and correlated across the Gulf of Suez and northern Red Sea. The resulting correlations indicate that deposition was initiated in local grabens by the oldest continental clastics of the lower member of the Nukhul Formation, the Shoab Ali Member. The member overlies the Suez Rift Unconformity, a term proposed for the entire Red Sea. Although this member can attain a thickness of ca. 1,000 ft (305 m) locally in grabens, it is generally absent over horsts. Sedimentary facies of the member are interpreted as indicating an initial alluvial-fluvial setting that evolved to an estuarine and coastal setting. The upper part of the Nukhul Formation records a regional shallow-marine transgression, which can be subdivided into three correlative Upper Nukhul members. These sediments are absent over the highest paleo-horsts, but reach up to 900 ft (275 m) in thickness in grabens. In the southern Gulf of Suez the Ghara Member represents the Upper Nukhul members. In places it consists of four cycles, each of which starts with an anhydrite bed and is overlain by deposits of mixed lithology (sandstone, marl, and limestone). The four cycles are interpreted as transgressive-regressive subsequences that can be correlated across ca. 60 km in the Gulf of Suez. The Ghara Member correlates to Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu Formation, which consists of massive salt in wells drilled on the Red Sea coastal plains. The Yanbu Salt is dated by strontium-isotope analysis at ca. 23.1–21.6 Ma (earliest Aquitanian). The Nukhul Formation is capped by the Sub-Rudeis Unconformity or correlative Rudeis Sequence Boundary, and overlain by the Rudeis Formation. The Nukhul Formation is here proposed as the Nukhul Sequence and defined in the Wadi Dib-1 Well, wherein it consists of Nukhul subsequences 1 to 10 (in descending order, ranging in thickness between 33–84 m). The lower six Nukhul subsequences 10 to 5 are characterized by shale-to-sandstone cycles of the Shoab Ali Member, and the upper four are represented by the cycles of the Ghara Member. The 10 subsequences are interpreted as tracking the 405,000 year eccentricity signal of the Earth’s orbit and to span ca. 4.0 million years between ca. 25.0 and 21.0 Ma.

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Large-scale vertical movements in Cenomanian to Santonian carbonate platform in Iberia: Indicators of a Coniacian pre-orogenic compressive stress

BSGF - Earth Sciences Bulletin ◽

10.1051/bsgf/2021011 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Simon Andrieu ◽

Nicolas Saspiturry ◽

Marine Lartigau ◽

Benoit Issautier ◽

Paul Angrand ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Large Scale ◽

Carbonate Platform ◽

Sedimentary Facies ◽

Depositional Environments ◽

Deep Basin ◽

Vertical Movements ◽

Flexural Response ◽

Kinematic Models ◽

Far Field Stress ◽

Iberian Margin

The Cenomanian to early Santonian interval is usually considered a time of postrifting tectonic quiescence around the northern margins of Iberia that preceded the onset of the Pyrenean convergence by crustal thrusting in the latest Santonian. However, plate kinematic models of the Mesozoic evolution of Iberia poorly constrain the Turonian-Santonian position of Iberia relative to Eurasia. This study reconstructs changes in the sedimentary facies and architecture of the Iberian carbonate platform throughout the Late Cretaceous and sheds new light on the geodynamic evolution of the Iberia-Eurasia relationship at that time. Sixteen outcrop sections were described and 24 sedimentary facies identified that define 5 depositional environments ranging from the basin to the continental setting. From these and previously published field data we reconstruct the evolution of the Pyrenean carbonate platform, on an east-west transect nearly 400 km long, on the basis of 11 short-term depositional sequences and 5 long-term systems tracts. In our interpretation, the Cenomanian and Turonian correspond to a postrift stage during which the European and Iberian margins, together with the deep basin between them, subside gently, as shown by accommodation rates varying from ~15 to 30 m/My in the margins and ~100 to 150 m/My in the basin. The Coniacian and early Santonian are characterized by a large-scale flexural response consisting of (1) uplift of the southern Iberian margin, with negative accommodation rates, karstified surfaces and paleosols, and (2) increasing subsidence rates in the basin and its edges (the northern Iberian margin and eastern Aquitaine platform), with accommodation rates several times greater than during the Turonian. We propose that far-field stress associated with slight northward motion of the Iberia plate led to the incipient large-scale flexural deformation in the Pyrenean domain. The late Santonian and Campanian are an early orogenic stage marked by rapid subsidence throughout the Pyrenean domain, except at its western end. We argue that the initiation of the Pyrenean convergence, usually considered to occur during the latest Santonian, occurred in the Coniacian.

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Review of the syn-rift to early post-rift depositional systems of the Cretaceous Mauléon rift: sedimentary record of continental crust hyperextension and mantle denudation (Western Pyrenees)

BSGF - Earth Sciences Bulletin ◽

10.1051/bsgf/2021044 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Nicolas Saspiturry ◽

Benoit Issautier ◽

Philippe Razin ◽

Simon Andrieu ◽

Eric Lasseur ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Carbonate Platform ◽

Regional Distribution ◽

Sedimentary Facies ◽

Depositional Environments ◽

Low Density ◽

Proximal Margin ◽

Continental Breakup ◽

Sedimentary Environments ◽

Synthetic View ◽

Fault Scarps

Abstract — The Mauléon basin, in the northwestern Pyrenean belt, is related to Early Cretaceous rifting and continental breakup. Here we review the evolution of depositional environments in the hyperextended Mauléon rift basin during Albian and Cenomanian time. This review includes the lithostratigraphy, regional distribution, boundaries, age and facies sedimentology of the basin’s syn-rift formations and their members. We construct paleogeographic maps to elucidate (1) the 3D distribution of sedimentary facies and depositional environments during the Albian and Cenomanian from the Iberian proximal margin to the hyperextended domain and (2) the link between major extensional structures and sedimentation during rifting and continental breakup. The Mauléon rift was supplied during most of the Albian by sediments from the Iberian proximal margin. The southern margin had a steep and abrupt topographic boundary related to a northward crustal rollover along the south-dipping Saint-Palais detachment. This feature controlled the deposition of base-of-slope conglomerates at the base of the margin that abruptly gave way to low-density turbidites, then hemipelagic deposits in the hyperextended domain. During latest Albian to Early Cenomanian time, continental breakup occurred in the eastern Mauléon basin and the vergence of the detachment systems reversed. Minor debris-flow deposits formed at the foot of fault scarps associated with the newly formed north-dipping detachments. Elsewhere, sediment from deltaic systems to the west in the Saint-Jean-de-Luz area deposited low-density turbidites in the hyperextended domain. During the post-rift stage, the flux of coarse sediment from the detachment footwall gradually declined as deformation waned, and low-density turbidites expanded onto the hyperextended domain from the European Late Cretaceous carbonate platform. These paleogeographic reconstructions, in addition to offering a synthetic view of the evolution of sedimentary environments during rifting, offer new insight into the post-rifting exhumation of the lower crust and mantle.

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Cambrian Ordovician sedimentary facies and its evolution in Tadong area

E3S Web of Conferences ◽

10.1051/e3sconf/202132901055 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 329 ◽

pp. 01055

Author(s):

Ding Hansheng

Keyword(s):

Oil And Gas ◽

Carbonate Platform ◽

Sedimentary Facies ◽

Seismic Profile ◽

Oil And Gas Exploration ◽

Stratigraphic Framework ◽

Lower Ordovician ◽

Platform Margin ◽

Carbonate Platform Margin ◽

Order Sequence

In order to clarify the sedimentary development law under the Cambrian Ordovician regional stratigraphic framework in Tadong area, and lay a theoretical foundation for further oil and gas exploration in the study area. The distribution, characteristics and evolution of main sedimentary facies belts of Cambrian Ordovician are studied by means of drilling core observation, cast thin section identification, logging curve feature analysis, seismic profile and well connection profile. The results show that the Cambrian middle lower Ordovician in Tadong area is equivalent to a second-order sequence and can be further divided into 12 thirdorder sequences. Each third-order sequence is mainly composed of transgressive and highstand tracts. Carbonate platform margin beach facies and Reef (mound) beach complex facies are favorable reservoir development facies belts in this area; Under the regional stratigraphic framework, three types of sedimentary facies can be identified in Cambrian Ordovician, and a total of 10 subfacies are developed; The evolution of sedimentary facies is mainly controlled by the rise and fall of sea level, which is characterized by the migration of platform margin facies and the change of platform facies.

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