Fish Remains from Homestead Cave and Lake Levels of the Past 13,000 Years in the Bonneville Basin

A late Quaternary ichthyofauna from Homestead Cave, Utah, provides a new source of information on lake history in the Bonneville basin. The fish, represented by 11 freshwater species, were accumulated between 11,200 and 1000 ¹⁴C yr B.P. by scavenging owls. The ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratio of Lake Bonneville varied with its elevation; ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values of fish from the lowest stratum of the cave suggest they grew in a lake near the terminal Pleistocene Gilbert shoreline. In the lowest deposits, a decrease in fish size and an increase in species tolerant of higher salinities or temperatures suggest multiple die-offs associated with declining lake levels. An initial, catastrophic, post-Provo die-off occurred at 11,300–11,200 ¹⁴C yr B.P. and was followed by at least one rebound or recolonization of fish populations, but fish were gone from Lake Bonneville sometime before 10,400 ¹⁴C yr B.P. This evidence is inconsistent with previous inferences of a near desiccation of Lake Bonneville between 13,000 and 12,000 ¹⁴C yr B.P. Peaks in Gila atraria frequencies in the upper strata suggest the Great Salt Lake had highstands at 3400 and 1000 ¹⁴C yr B.P.     

Collapse‐induced fluidization structures in the Lower Cretaceous Athabasca Oil Sands Deposit,Western Canada

Unique vertical fluidization structures from the Lower Cretaceous Athabasca Oil Sands Deposit in Western Canada are described. The multi‐metre long structures resulted from ascending Devonian karst aquifer waters injected into the overlying unconsolidated sands of the McMurray Formation (Aptian). The dissolution removal of 100–200 m of Middle Devonian salt beds caused the collapse and fragmentation of the 200 m of Upper Devonian limestones underlying the Cretaceous sands. Hypogene karst aquifer waters fingered upwards along the faults and fractures. Disintegrated muddy wall rock sourced hydroplastic mud flows along fractures in the limestone beds below the floor of the central Bitumount Trough. These dykes widened and lengthened collapse‐induced Upper Devonian fault blocks that differentially subsided due to salt dissolution. Conduits plugged by these mud flows diverted over‐pressured aquifer waters upwards along remaining open pipes, some of which vented on the trough floor. Aquifer waters injected into the McMurray sand and mud beds accumulated on the trough floor generated several types of collapse‐induced fluidization structures: (1) stronger aquifer flows mobilized sands into tens‐of‐metres high sand dykes consisting of multiple vertical pipes of fluidized sand contorted around and intertwined with fragmented muddy wall rock; (2) smaller aquifer jets resulted in 1–2 m high sand‐rich pillars on the trough floor; and (3) narrower high‐pressure jets flowed muddy waters along multi‐metre long, 3–5 cm wide, vertical pipes that cross‐cut and wrapped around fragmented in situ beds. The velocity gradient between these narrow but multi‐metre long water pipe flows and the ambient velocity in the surrounding sediments caused water infiltration to radiate outwards. This plugged porosity along the outer wall of the pipe, diminished drainage into the wall rock, and stabilized concentric growth ring depositions along the length of the pipe. These pipe fills appear as unique striped ribbon fabrics when viewed in longitudinal section.     

The Klippfisk Formation—a new lithostratigraphic unit of Lower Cretaceous platform carbonates on the Western Barents Shelf

A new Lower Cretceous lithostratigraphic unit of the Western Barents Shelf, named the Klippfisk Formation, is formally introduced. The formation represents a condensed carbonate succession deposited on platform areas and structural highs, where it consists of limestones and marls, often glauconitic. The limestones may have a nodular appearance, and fossil debris, which are dominated by Inoceramus prisms, may be abundant. The Klippfisk Formation is composed of two members: the Kutling Member defined herein from cores drilled on the Bjarmeland Platform, and the coeval Tordenskjoldberget Member described on Kong Karls Land. The base of the formation is defined by the abrupt decrease in gamma-ray intensity, where the dark shales of the underlying Hekkingen or Agardhfjellet formations are replaced by marls. It is often unconformable. The Klippfisk Formation is of Berriasian to Early Barremian age and appears to be time-transgressive over parts of the Western Barents Shelf (including Kong Karls Land). It passes laterally into the basinal Knurr Formation. On Kongsøya (Kong Karls Land) a thin shale unit, bounded by unconformities, earlier included in the Tordenskjoldberget Member, represents the northernmost extension of the overlying Kolje Formation in the Barents Shelf.     

Geology and palynology of the Triassic succession of Bjørnøya

The Triassic succession of Bjørnøya (200 m) comprises the Lower Triassic Urd Formation (65 m) of the Sassendalen Group, and the Middle and Upper Triassic Skuld Formation (135 m) of the Kapp Toscana Group. These units are separated by a condensed '.'Middle Triassic sequence represented by a phosphatic remainé conglomerate (0.2m).
The Urd Formation consists of grey to dark grey shales with yellow weathering dolomitic beds and nodules. Palynology indicates the oldest beds to be Diencrian; ammonoid faunas in the middle and upper part of the formation arc of Smithian age. The organic content (c. 1 %) includes kerogen of land and marine origin, reflecting a shallow marine depositional environment.
The Skuld Formation is dominated by grey shales with red weathering siderite nodules. There are minor coarsening upwards sequences; the highest bed exposed is a 20 m thick, very fine-grained sandstone. Palynomorphs indicate a late Ladinian age for the lower part of the formation, and macrofossils and palynomorphs indicate Ladinian to Carnian ages for the upper part. Sedimentary structures, a sparse marine fauna and microplankton indicate deposition in a shallow marine environment. The organic residues contain dominantly terrestrially derived kerogen.     

Basinal setting and origin of thick (1·8 km) mass‐flow dominated Grand Conglomérat diamictites,Kamoa, Democratic Republic of Congo: Resolving climate and tectonic controls during Neoproterozoic glaciations

The Kamoa sub‐basin, in the south‐eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is a rift basin that hosts a world‐class stratiform copper deposit at the base of a very thick (1·8 km) succession of matrix‐supported conglomerates (diamictite) (Grand Conglomérat Formation) that has been interpreted by some as the product of deposition in the aftermath of a planet‐wide glaciation. Newly available subsurface data consisting of more than 300 km of drill core throws new light on the origin of diamictite and associated facies types, and their tectonic, basinal and palaeoclimatic setting. Initiation of rifting is recorded by a lowermost subaqueous succession of fault‐related mass flow conglomerates and breccias (the ‘Poudingue’) with interdigitating coeval and succeeding sandstone turbidites (Mwashya Subgroup). Overlying diamictites of the Grand Conglomérat were deposited as subaqueous debrites produced by mixing and homogenization of antecedent breccias and gravel from the Poudingue and Mwashya sediments with basinal muds. Failure of over‐steepened basin margins and debris flow was likely to be triggered by faulting and seismic activity, and was accompanied by syn‐depositional subaqueous basaltic magmatism recorded by peperites and pillow lavas within diamictites. The thickness of diamictites reflects recurring phases of faulting, volcanism and rapid subsidence allowing continued accommodation of rapidly deposited resedimented facies well below wave base. A distal or indirect, glacial influence in the form of rare dropstones and striated clasts is evident, but tectonically‐driven mass flow destroyed any primary record of glacial climate originally present in basin margin sediments. Such basin margin settings were common during Rodinia rifting and their stratigraphy and facies record a dominant tectonic, rather than climatic, control on sedimentation. Deposition occurred on tectonic timescales inconsistent with a Snowball Earth model for Neoproterozoic diamictites involving a direct glacial contribution to deposition.     

The type section of the Vikinghôgda Formation: a new Lower Triassic unit in central and eastern Svalbard

The Vikinghøgda Formation (250 m) is defined with a stratotype in Deltadalen-Vikinghøgda in central Spitsbergen. The Vikinghøgda Formation replaces the Vardebukta and Sticky Keep Formations of Buchan et al. (1965) and the lower part of the Barentsøya Formation of Lock et al. (1978) as extended geographically by Mørk, Knarud et al. (1982) in central Spitsbergen, Barentsøya and Edgeøya. The formation consists of three member: the Deltadalen Member (composed of mudstones with sandstones and siltstones), the Lusitaniadalen Member (dominated by mudstones with thin siltstone beds and some limestone concretions) and the Vendomdalen Member (composed of dark shales with dolomite interbeds and nodules). The Lusitaniadalen and Vendomdalen members replace the former Sticky Keep Formation/ Member in the siirne areu. The Vikinghøda Formation can be followed through central and eastern Spitsbergen to Barentøya and Edgeøya and includes all sediments between the chert-rich Kapp Starostin Formation (Permian) and the organic-rich shales of the Botneheia Formation (Middle Triassic). The subdivision into three members is also reflected in the organic carbon content and palynofacies. Upwards. each succeeding member becomes more distal, organic-rich and oil-prone than the one below.
The Vikinghøda Formation is well-dated by six ammonoid zones. although the transitional beds between the Deltadalen and Lusitaniadalen members lack age diagnostic macrofossils. Corresponding palynozonation and magnetustratigraphy have also been determined. The overall stratigraphical development correlates well with other key Triassic areas in the Arctic, although intervals in the late Dienerian and early Smithian may be condensed or missing.     

火山岩风化壳储层发育模式——以三塘湖盆地马朗凹陷石炭系火山岩为例

中国的火山岩油气勘探近年来进展非常快,并不断在许多盆地发现了优质火山岩储层,其中风化壳型储层作为非常重要的火山岩储集体类型而倍受重视。三塘湖盆地马朗凹陷石炭系风化壳型储层储集空间以溶蚀孔洞缝为主,储层物性非常好。通过火山岩油气勘探中的野外露头观察、钻井取心、镜下薄片鉴定,及主量元素、微量元素等分析化验资料,并结合火山岩岩石学特征和物性特点,初步建立了该区的风化壳储层的发育模式,将火山岩风化壳储层在垂向上自上而下划分为五个带: ①最终分解产物带; ②水解带; ③淋滤带; ④崩解带; ⑤未风化带(母岩)。淋滤带储集物性最好,该区风化淋滤是改善储层的关键。     

Incipient vertical traction carpets within collapsed sinkhole fills

Small vertically oriented traction carpets are reported from the collapsed sandy fills of 100 m deep Devonian limestone sinkholes underlying the Lower Cretaceous Athabasca oil sands deposit in north‐eastern Alberta, Western Canada. Dissolution of 100 m of underlying halite salt beds caused cataclysmic collapse of the sinkhole floors and water saturated sinkhole sand fills to descend very rapidly. Turbulent currents flushed upper sinkhole fills of friable sandstone blocks and disaggregated sand and quartz pebble for tens of metres. Laminar deposits with inverse grading accumulated as many as six to eight curvilinear entrained pebble streaks, 10 to 30 cm long, vertically impinged against the sides of descending collapse blocks. These deposits were initiated as vertically oriented early stage traction carpets that interlocked fine sand grains and inversely graded overlying pebbles entrained below the dilute overlying turbulent flows. Vortexes that flushed these sinkhole fills and induced these depositional processes may have lasted only seconds before the very rapid descents abruptly halted. Some of the fabrics were suspended vertically in‐place and preserved from unlocking and obliteration. These small fabrics provide insight into the instability and ephemeral character of the transition from strong gravity‐driven grain falls to very early stages of traction carpet formation. These short‐lived deposits of very thin sand layers resulted from sufficient incipient frictional freezing that grain interlocking overcame, however briefly, the strong gravity drives of the vertical falls that would have otherwise dispersed grains and obliterated any organized fabric patterns. Tenuous frictionally locked grains were also suspended at the centres of hyperbolic grain fall flows that briefly developed between turbulent flow eddies, some of which were fortuitously preserved. Some of these suspended grain locking zones passed downward onto the relatively more stable surfaces of the rapidly descending block surfaces. The morphogenesis of these early stage traction carpets differ from more fully developed deposits elsewhere because of their short‐lived transport, dynamic instability and vertical orientation.