The Natural History of Pikes Peak State Park, Clayton County, Iowa ______
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
THE NATURAL HISTORY OF PIKES PEAK STATE PARK, CLAYTON COUNTY, IOWA ___________________________________________________ edited by Raymond R. Anderson Geological Society of Iowa ______________________________________ November 4, 2000 Guidebook 70 Cover photograph: Photograph of a portion of the boardwalk trail near Bridal Veil Falls in Pikes Peak State Park. The water falls over a ledge of dolomite in the McGregor Member of the Platteville Formation that casts the dark shadow in the center of the photo. THE NATURAL HISTORY OF PIKES PEAK STATE PARK CLAYTON COUNTY, IOWA Edited by: Raymond R. Anderson and Bill J. Bunker Iowa Department Natural Resources Geological Survey Bureau Iowa City, Iowa 52242-1319 with contributions by: Kim Bogenschutz William Green John Pearson Iowa Dept. Natural Resources Office of the State Archaeologist Parks, Rec. & Preserves Division Wildlife Research Station 700 Clinton Street Building Iowa Dept. Natural Resources 1436 255th Street Iowa City IA 52242-1030 Des Moines, IA 50319 Boone, IA 50036 Richard Langel Chris Schneider Scott Carpenter Iowa Dept. Natural Resources Dept. of Geological Sciences Department of Geoscience Geological Survey Bureau Univ. of Texas at Austin The University of Iowa Iowa City, IA 52242-1319 Austin, TX 78712 Iowa City, IA 52242-1379 John Lindell Elizabeth Smith Norlene Emerson U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Department of Geosciences Dept. of Geology & Geophysics Upper Mississippi Refuge University of Massachusetts University of Wisconsin- Madison McGregor District Office Amherst, MA 01003 Madison WI 53706 McGregor, IA 52157 Stephanie Tassier-Surine Jim Farnsworth Greg A. Ludvigson Iowa Dept. Natural Resources Parks, Rec. & Preserves Division Iowa Dept. Natural Resources Geological Survey Bureau Iowa Dept. Natural Resources Geological Survey Bureau Iowa City, IA 52242-1319 Des Moines, IA 50319 Iowa City, IA 52242-1319 Brian J. Witzke Luis González Robert M. McKay Iowa Dept. Natural Resources Department of Geoscience Iowa Dept. Natural Resources Geological Survey Bureau The University of Iowa Geological Survey Bureau Iowa City, IA 52242-1319 Iowa City, IA 52242-1379 Iowa City, IA 52242-1319 November 4, 2000 Geological Society of Iowa Guidebook 70 Additional Copies of this Guidebook or other GSI Guidebooks May be Ordered from the GSI Webpage at http://www.igsb.uiowa.edu/gsi/gsi.htm Geological Society of Iowa TABLE OF CONTENTS The Natural History of Pikes Peak State Park: Introduction to the Field Trip Raymond R. Anderson............................................................................................................................. 1 General Geologic Section at Pikes Peak State Park Brian J. Witzke ........................................................................................................................................ 3 Lower Sandstone – Cambrian Strata................................................................................... 3 Lower Dolomite Ledges – the Ordovician Prairie du Chien Group ................................... 4 Thick Massive Sandstone – the Middle Ordovician St. Peter Sandstone ........................... 5 Dolomite and Limestone – the Ordovician Platteville Formation ...................................... 5 Ordovician Shale and Limestone – the Lower Galena Group, Decorah Formation ........... 7 Uppermost Dolomite Ledges – the Ordovician Dunleith Formation, Galena Group ......... 8 Valleys, Alluvium, Colluvium, and Loess - Quaternary Erosion and Deposition at Pikes Peak ................................................................................................................. 10 References......................................................................................................................... 11 The Cambrian Jordan Sandstone at Point Ann, Pikes Peak State Park, and in McGregor Robert M. McKay ................................................................................................................................. 13 A Bit of Stratigraphic History........................................................................................... 13 The Point Ann Sections .................................................................................................... 15 The “A” Street Section...................................................................................................... 20 References......................................................................................................................... 21 A Profile of the Mid-Caradoc (Ordovician) Carbon Isotope Excursion at the McGregor Quarry, Clayton County, Iowa G.A. Ludvigson, B.J. Witzke, C.L. Schneider, E.A. Smith, N.R. Emerson, S.J. Carpenter, and L.A. González................................................................................................................................... 25 Abstract............................................................................................................................. 25 Introduction....................................................................................................................... 25 The McGregor Quarry Section ......................................................................................... 26 The Dickeyville North Section, Southwest Wisconsin..................................................... 27 The Eureka, Missouri, Roadcut Section ........................................................................... 28 Discussion......................................................................................................................... 29 Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................ 30 References......................................................................................................................... 30 Andrew Clemens Sand Art Richard J. Langel................................................................................................................................... 33 Reference .......................................................................................................................... 33 Color Plates ..........................................................................................................................................34-35 Quaternary Geology of the Paleozoic Plateau Region of Northeastern Iowa Stephanie A. Tassier-Surine .................................................................................................................. 37 Introduction....................................................................................................................... 37 Early Studies of Northeastern Iowa - the “Driftless Area”............................................... 37 General Description of the Paleozoic Plateau................................................................... 38 Quaternary materials in the Paleozoic Plateau.................................................................. 39 Glacial Till and Loess Deposits ........................................................................................ 39 iii Guidebook 67 Mississippi River .............................................................................................................. 39 References......................................................................................................................... 41 Vegetation of Pikes Peak State Park John Pearson .......................................................................................................................................... 43 Forest ................................................................................................................................ 43 Prairie openings and glades ............................................................................................. 46 Old fields .......................................................................................................................... 47 Comparison with Wyalusing State Park, Wisconsin ....................................................... 47 Flora and rare species ....................................................................................................... 47 Literature Cited ................................................................................................................. 48 Wildlife of Pikes Peak State Park Kim S. Bogenschutz .............................................................................................................................. 49 Wildlife Species................................................................................................................ 49 Wildlife Management ....................................................................................................... 50 References......................................................................................................................... 51 Archaeology of Pikes Peak State Park William Green ....................................................................................................................................... 53 Introduction....................................................................................................................... 53 Previous Archaeological Research ................................................................................... 54 Interpretive Summary ....................................................................................................... 56 References Cited ..............................................................................................................