Biostratigraphy of Mississippian Lithostrotionoid Corals, Lisburne Group, Arctic Alaska
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Biostratigraphy of Mississippian Lithostrotionoid Corals, Lisburne Group, Arctic Alaska GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 743-A BIOSTRATIGRAPHY OF MISSISSIPPIAN LITHOSTROTIONOID CORALS, LISBURNE GROUP, ARCTIC ALASKA a? t - 5 - ^- -i FRONTISPIECE. Panoramic view to the east, south of Cape Lewis, showing the outcrop of the south Cape Lewis section, 68A-9. Biostratigraphy of Mississippian Lithostrotionoid Corals, Lisburne Group, Arctic Alaska By AUGUSTUS K. ARMSTRONG CONTRIBUTIONS TO PALEONTOLOGY GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 743-A Systematic paleontologic studies of five new species of lithostrotionoid corals from described sections of the Lisburne Group UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON: 1972 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR ROGERS G. B. MORTON, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY V. E. McKelvey, Director Library of Congress catalog-card No. 77-188160 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C. 20402 - Price 70 cents (paper cover) Stock Number 2401-2091 CONTENTS Page Systematic paleontology Continued Pase Abstract _________________________________________ Al Family Lithostrotionidae d'Orbigny, 1851 Con. Introduction _____________________________________ 1 Genus Lithostrotion Fleming, 1828 Con. Stratigraphic sections _____________________________ 2 Subgenus Siphonodendron McCoy, 1849 North Niak Creek section ______________________ 2 Continued South Niak Creek section ______________________ 2 Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) du- South Cape Lewis section ______________________ 5 troi n. sp _ _____ _____ A14 West Sadlerochit Mountains section ____________ 5 Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) ig- nekensis n. sp _____________ 19 Biostratigraphic distribution of Lisburne Group litho- Genus Diphyphyllum Lonsdale, 1845 _____ 20 strotionoid corals _______________________________ 6 Diphyphyllum nasorakensis n. sp ____ 20 Systematic paleontology ___________________________ 9 Family Lonsdaleiidae Chapman, 1893 _______ 22 Family Lithostrotionidae d'Orbigny, 1851 ________ 9 Genus Lithostrotionella Yabe and Hayasaka, Genus Lithostrotion Fleming, 1828 __________ 9 1915 _______________________ 22' Subgenus Siphonodendron McCoy, 1849 _ 10 Lithostrotionella niakensis n. sp 23 Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) lis- References cited ________________ _ 25 burnensis n. sp _________________ 10 Index ________________________________ 27 ILLUSTRATIONS [Plates follow index] FRONTISPIECE. Panoramic view to the east, south of Cape Lewis, showing the outcrop of the south Cape Lewis section, 68A-9. PLATE Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) lisburnensis n. sp. Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) lisburnensis n. sp. Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) dutroi n. sp. Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) dutroi n. sp. and Lithostrotionella niakensis n. sp. Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) ignekensis n. sp. Diphyphyllum nasorakensis n. sp. Diphyphyllum nasorakensis n. sp. Lithostrotionella niakensis n. sp. Lithostrotionella niakensis n. sp. Page FIGURE 1. Index map of northern Alaska, showing location of coral collections and stratigraphic sections A2 2. Chart showing stratigraphic distribution of colonial rugose corals __________ 3 3. Diagram showing stratigraphy and coral distribution in the north Niak Creek section, 68A-12, and the south Niak Creek section, 68A-13 _________________________________________ 4 4. Photograph of lithostrotionoid coral colonies at the base of section 68A-12 ___________ 5 5. Photograph of the base of section 68A-13 _____________________________ - 6 6. Photograph of lithostrotionoid biostrome in section 68A-13 _______________________ 7 7. Diagram showing stratigraphy and coral distribution in the south Cape Lewis section, 68A-9 8 8. Index map of section 68A-9 and location of type specimen of Diphyphyllum nasorakensis and paratypes of Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) lisburnensis _______________________________________ 9 9-12. Photographs of 9. Section 68A-9, showing stratigraphic footage along line of traverse _____ 10 10. A persistent Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) sinuosum bed in section 68A-9 11 11. Cape Lewis and upper part of section 68A-9, showing Lithostrotionella biostrome at 880- to 900- foot level ______________________________________________ 12 12. Large Thysanophyllum sp. corallum in biostromal beds 895 feet above the base of section 68A-9 _ 13 13. Diagram showing stratigraphy and coral distribution in the west Sadlerochit Mountains section, 69A-1 13 14. Index map of section 69A-1 and location of type specimens of Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) ignekensis _ 14 15. Photograph of upper part of section 69A-1, showing stratigraphic footage along line of traverse 15 16. Diagrams showing corallite diameter and number of major septa in Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) lis burnensis n. sp ___________________________________ _ 17 VI CONTENTS Page FIGURE 17. Sections of Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) lisburnensis n. sp _________ _ A17 18. Diagrams showing corallite diameter and number of major septa in Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) dutroi n. sp _______________________________________________ _ 17 19. Sections of Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) dutroi n. sp _________________ 18 20. Diagram showing corallite diameter and number of major septa in Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) igne- kensis n. sp __________________________________________ __ - 18 21. Sections of Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) ignekensis n. sp ____________________ __ ___ 18 22. Diagram showing corallite diameter and number of major septa in Diphyphyllum nasorakensis n. sp _ 21 23. Sections of Diphyphyllum nasorakensis n. sp ___________________________-_ ____ 21 24. Diagrams showing corallite diameter and number of major septa in Lithostrotionella niakensis n. sp __ 23 25. Sections of Lithostrotionella niakensis n. sp ____________________ _ _ _ 24 CONTRIBUTIONS TO PALEONTOLOGY BIOSTRATIGRAPHY OF MISSISSIPPIAN LITHOSTROTIONOID CORALS, LISBURNE GROUP, ARCTIC ALASKA By AUGUSTUS K. ARMSTRONG ABSTRACT lithostrotionoid corals on the microfossil zones chart The biostratigraphy of four measured sections of the Lis- shows the vertical distribution of the lithostrotion burne Group is described: South Cape Lewis section, north oid corals within the Lisburne Group. Niak Creek section, and south Niak Creek section, all in northwestern Alaska; and the west Sadlerochit Mountains Armstrong's (1970b) study described the .biostra section, in northeastern Alaska. In addition, one new species tigraphy and the lithostrotionoid corals from the of coral is described from the well-documented Shainin Lake Meramec age parts (zones 13-15) of Sable and Du- section, in north-central Alaska. tro's (1961) Kogruk Formation of the DeLong Within the Lisburne Group carbonate rocks, lithostrotionoid Mountains and Campbell's (1967) Nasorak Forma corals are known only in Meramec age or younger beds. They are represented by 16 taxa and abundant individuals in tion of the Cape Thompson area. The following taxa strata of Meramec and very earliest Chester age, but they are were reported: Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) sin- rare in beds younger than earliest Chester. Middle and late uosum (Kelly), L. (S.) warreni Nelson, Lithostro Chester age beds contain only three taxa of lithostrotionoid tion (Siphonodendron) sp. A, Lithostrotionella corals. banffensis (Warren), L. aff. L. banffensis (War Five new species of lithostrotionoid corals are described from the Mississippian part of the Lisburne Group: Litho- ren), L. birdi Armstrong, L. mclareni (Sutherland), strotionella niakensis n. sp. and Lithostrotion (Siphonodend- Lithostrotionella sp. A, Lithostrotionella sp. B, Thy- ron) dutroi n. sp. from middle Meramec age beds, Lithostro sanophyllum orientale Thomson, T. astraeiforme tion (Siphonodendron) lisburnensis n. sp. and Diphyphyllum (Warren), Thysanophyllum sp. A, Sdophyllum lam- nasorakensis n. sp. from late Meramec and earliest Chester barti Harker and McLaren, S. alaskaensis Arm age beds, and Lithostrotion (Siphonodendron) ignekensis n. sp. from middle and late Chester age beds. strong, and Sciophyllum sp. A. The corals from the Lisburne Hills seacliffs were INTRODUCTION collected by J. Thomas Dutro, Jr., and myself in The most conspicuous macrofaunal elements in July and August 1968. I thank Irvin L. Tailleur, the much of the Lisburne Group carbonate rocks are 1968 field party chief, and Hillard N. Reiser, the the large colonial corals. The primary objective of 1969 field party chief, for their support of paleonto- this study is to describe five new species of litho logic and stratigraphic field studies and their stimu strotionoid corals and their stratigraphic ranges. lating discussions of regional geology and structural The system of microf ossil assemblage zones devel and stratigraphic problems. oped by Bernard L. Mamet has been applied to the I also thank the Naval Arctic Research Labora Lisburne Group of arctic Alaska in a series of pa tory (Barrow), Office of Naval Research, for their pers (Armstrong and others, 1970, 1971; Arm support of my field activities. strong and Mamet, 1970). The use of these zones I am most grateful to Dr. Bernard L. Mamet, has permitted detailed correlation among the sur University of Montreal, for his studies of the mi- face sections of the Lisburne Group shown in figure crofossils in the carbonate rock thin sections and 1 and between the Carboniferous type sections of for his age determinations of the stratigraphic sec Eurasia and North America (fig. 2). tions. Most of the corals appear to have stratigraphic The