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Stratigraphic Completeness and Resolution in an Ancient Mudrock Succession

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Stratigraphic Completeness and Resolution in an Ancient Mudrock Succession Sedimentology (2018) 65, 1875–1890 doi: 10.1111/sed.12450 Stratigraphic completeness and resolution in an ancient mudrock succession DAVID B. KEMP*, WESLEY T. FRASER† and KENTARO IZUMI‡ *School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen, Old Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB24 3UE, UK (E-mail: [email protected]) †Geography, Department of Social Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford OX3 0BP, UK ‡Faculty and Graduate School of Education, Chiba University, 1-33 Yoyoi-cho, Image-ku, Chiba-shi, Chiba 263-8522, Japan Associate Editor – Vern Manville ABSTRACT Mudrocks are the most common rock type at the Earth’s surface, and they play a major role in informing current understanding of the palaeoenviron- mental history of the planet. Their suitability for this purpose is at least partly underpinned by the assumed stratigraphic completeness of mudrock successions, and the ostensible fidelity with which they record temporal changes in palaeoenvironment. Mud does not necessarily accumulate, how- ever, as a steady, near-continuous ‘rain’ under low energy conditions. Advective modes of mud transport and episodic, ephemeral accumulation have been shown to dominate in many ancient successions. This has impli- cations for the completeness of these records and their suitability for high- resolution sampling and analysis. In this study, a numerical model of mud accumulation, parameterized with data from the Lower Jurassic of Yorkshire (UK) is presented to explore completeness and resolution constraints on ancient epicontinental mudrock successions. Using this model, stratigraphic completeness of the analysed Yorkshire succession is estimated to be ca 13% and ca 98% at centennial and millennial timescales, respectively. The findings indicate that sub-millennial scale processes and events are unlikely to be accurately resolved, despite the largely unbioturbated and well- laminated nature of the succession. Epicontinental mudrock successions are a crucial archive of ancient environmental changes, and the findings of this study help to define a plausible upper limit on the resolution achievable in these successions. Even with high-resolution sampling, sub-millennial scale records of palaeoenvironmental change may not be attainable in ancient epicontinental mudrocks. Keywords Mudrock, palaeoenvironment, resolution, sampling, strati- graphic completeness. INTRODUCTION (Shaw, 1964; Ager, 1973; Sadler, 1981; Tipper, 1983). This incompleteness means that the Accurately linking strata and time is a core chal- stratigraphic record is an imperfect archive of lenge of stratigraphy. This endeavour is compli- Earth history. Sadler (1981) formalised the con- cated by the fact that sedimentation is an cept of a complete record: it is one that encom- inherently discrete and unsteady process, and passes no hiatuses longer than the timespan at stratigraphic successions are replete with hia- which the succession is sampled/studied tuses at multiple temporal and spatial scales (Sadler, 1981; see also Kemp, 2012). Intuitively, © 2018 The Authors Sedimentology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of 1875 International Association of Sedimentologists This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. 1876 D. B. Kemp et al. the minimum timespan at which a record is EPICONTINENTAL MUD DEPOSITION: complete also sets an upper limit on the tempo- THE LOWER JURASSIC OF YORKSHIRE, ral resolution of the record (Kemp & Sexton, UK 2014). In mud-dominated successions deposited Marine mudrocks (mean grain size <62Á5 lm) under low energy conditions, ostensible steadi- are very common at the Earth’s surface, and ness and continuity of sedimentation limits both form perhaps the most important and readily the frequency and duration of hiatuses (Sadler, examined archive of the palaeoenvironmental 1981; see also Hilgen et al., 2014, and references history of the Earth. Current understanding of therein), underpinning their suitability for high- the processes involved in the formation of resolution sampling and analysis. Consequently, mudrock successions is still incomplete, how- marine mudrocks play a major role in informing ever. Notably, the widespread occurrence of current understanding of the detailed palaeo- mudrock accumulations across what were environmental history of the Earth. Mudrock ancient, relatively shallow (<100 m) epiconti- successions are often implicitly assumed to be nental seaways raises questions about the dis- capable of faithfully recording geologically persal mechanisms of this material (Schieber, abrupt (<104 years) events and processes, with 2016). Recent advances have emphasized the minimal distortion of their true temporal pattern importance of advective transport. It has been replicated stratigraphically in a succession (e.g. shown, for instance, how the cohesive nature of Kemp et al., 2005; Mehay et al., 2009; Wright & mud and its propensity to flocculate into aggre- Schaller, 2013). However, this view is at odds gates means that muds can be deposited in cur- with evidence from both the modern oceans and rent regimes that are powerful enough to move the geological record that has demonstrated sand (Schieber et al., 2007). Modern field obser- instead the importance and prevalence of advec- vations, flume studies and microtextural analy- tive modes of mud transport and the likely epi- sis of ancient strata have all further revealed the sodic accumulation of mud under higher energy importance of high-energy processes in both the conditions than hitherto assumed (e.g. Schieber dispersal and accumulation of mud (e.g. Schie- et al., 2007; Schieber & Yawar, 2009; Macquaker ber, 1994; Macquaker & Taylor, 1996; Macquaker et al., 2010). & Howell, 1999; Traykovski et al., 2007; Schie- A key implication of these advances is that ber & Southard, 2009; Macquaker et al., 2010). the stratigraphic record of mudrocks may not be Small-scale structures familiar in high energy as complete as sometimes assumed (a point environments such as scours, grading, and low made in particular by Macquaker & Bohacs, amplitude-long wavelength ripples/inclined 2007; see also Schieber, 1998). The suitability of laminae are readily preserved in mudrocks, but mudrocks for preserving or accurately resolving can be easily missed (Schieber et al., 2007; rapid events and processes may not be assured, Schieber & Yawar, 2009; see also Macquaker & yet the precise stratigraphic completeness of Bohacs, 2007). mud-dominated successions is largely untested. Lower Jurassic mudrocks exposed along the Indeed, the work of Sadler (1981) provides only coastline of Yorkshire, UK, have proven impor- generalized constraints on completeness for dif- tant for the development of some of these fairly ferent sedimentary environments based on the recent ideas on mudrock accumulation, and compilation of sedimentation rate data from have been the subject of a great deal of past sed- multiple sections. Assessing completeness in a imentological research (see for example Sorby, single section is more problematic, but would 1908; Pye & Krinsley, 1986; O’Brien, 1990; Mac- ultimately be more useful. A key question quaker & Taylor, 1996; Macquaker et al., 2010; related to this might be, given ideal conditions Ghadeer & Macquaker, 2011, 2012; Trabucho- of little or no bioturbation, can mudrocks be Alexandre, 2014). Limited bioturbation in long sampled at such high-resolution that centennial intervals of the succession facilitates recognition or even decadal records can be generated? In and analysis of primary depositional features. this study, these issues are addressed using a Outcrop and thin section microtextural analysis numerical model of mud accumulation, parame- of various intervals from the Pliensbachian and terized by sedimentological observations, to Toarcian has shown that the strata frequently explore the implications of episodic accumula- comprise stacks of normally graded sub-parallel tion on the completeness and resolution of an layers (typically <10 mm) with sharp erosional ancient epicontinental mudrock succession. bases (Ghadeer & Macquaker, 2011, 2012). Each © 2018 The Authors Sedimentology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Association of Sedimentologists, Sedimentology, 65, 1875–1890 Stratigraphic completeness of mudrocks 1877 layer is readily interpreted as the product of a Yorkshire can be modelled as a simple renewal single, rapid depositional event with erosive process (Schwarzacher, 1975), fundamentally power (Macquaker et al., 2010; Ghadeer & Mac- similar to the probabilistic models investigated quaker, 2011, 2012; Trabucho-Alexandre, 2014). by many workers (e.g. Kolmogorov, 1951; Mizu- Macquaker et al. (2010) recognised a tripartite tani & Hattori, 1972; Dacey, 1979; Tipper, 1983, internal structure in some of these layers (silt- 2016; Strauss & Sadler, 1989). rich base, intercalated silt/clay laminae and In the simplest form of such a model, the overlying clay drape) consistent with the texture deposition of individual layers of mud is episo- predicted from sediments deposited from wave dic and instantaneous, and these layers are sepa- enhanced sediment gravity flows of fluidized rated by time gaps (hiatuses) with some mud (Macquaker et al., 2010). As the name sug- unknown but random distribution. Of key gests, the energy required to keep sediment in importance for assessing stratigraphic complete- suspension (and thus dispersed
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