DOCSLIB.ORG

The Morrison Formation Extinct Ecosystems Project

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Morrison Formation Extinct Ecosystems Project Turner et al.: The Morrison Formation Extinct Ecosystems Project THE MORRISON FORMATION EXTINCT ECOSYSTEMS PROJECT CHRISTINE E. TURNER + FRED PETERSON U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY+ DENVER+ CO D.J. CHURE +U.S. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE+ JENSEN+ UT T.M. DEMKO+ EXXON PRODUCTION RESEARCH Co. +HOUSTON+ TX G.F. ENGELMANN+ UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA+ OMAHA + ABSTRACT on strata as old as the Entrada Sandstone of Middle Jurassic (middle Callovian) age. The Morrison Project is a multidisciplinary effort to interpret the ancient ecosystem that was A series of paleosols with locally abundant present in the Western Interior of the United States termite nests were found in the middle of the during deposition of the Upper Jurassic Morrison formation, just above the Salt Wash Member, and Formation. The project began in June of 1994 and appear to represent a hiatus or at least a brief period the first two years of research (1994-95, 1995-96) of slowing in sedimentation rates. This is interpreted were devoted primarily to identifying problems and as a sequence boundary that probably has important gathering information that would form the basis for implications for regional correlations and later interpretations. Efforts during the fmal year understanding varying sedimentation processes in (1996-97) were directed toward resolving remaining the depositional basin. problems or conflicting findings and synthesizing the various research endeavors into a reconstruction The precise stratigraphic position and of the Late Jurassic ecosystem. nature of the upper contact was studied in considerable detail throughout the central and During the 1996 summer field season, the northern parts of the Western Interior and the Morrison Formation was studied in detail at selected contact appears to be a regional unconformity areas in the central and northern parts of the representing a time span of roughly 16 my (million Western Interior including eastern Utah, northern years) or more. Some beds, previously assigned to Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana. Lower Cretaceous formations, were found to be Late Jurassic in age and thus are properly included in the Stratigraphically, significant progress was Morrison Formation. Work in the type area of the made. At Dinosaur National Monument, it was Morrison and Ralston Creek Formations just west of determined that the lower contact of the formation Denver demonstrates that both of these formations may be a simple depositional contact rather than an correlate with the entire Morrison Formation farther unconformity as previous workers had thought west in most parts of the Colorado Plateau or farther although there is good evidence that this contact is north in Wyoming. The charophytes and osctacqdes indeed unconformity farther south on the Colorado also support our correlations into Wyoming and Plateau where, in places, the Morrison rests directly Montana that were based largely on physical stratigraphy. They demonstrate that the upper Published by Wyoming Scholars Repository, 1996 1 University of Wyoming National Park Service Research Center Annual Report, Vol. 20 [1996], Art. 4 21 Morrison contact there is stratigraphically higher crayfish, termites, soil-dwelling bees, dermistid than many previous workers had thought. The beetles, caddisflies, ants, earthworms, nematodes, calcretes that occur either in the uppermost beds of and other organisms were common in the Morrison the Morrison and in the lowermost beds of Lower ecosystem. Assemblages of these traces along with Cretaceous formations were originally thought to studies of paleosols can be used to define the have formed entirely by underground processes. position of the ancient water table with respect to However, recent studies suggest that at least some of the land surface. This gives a rough idea of soil the calcretes were intermittently exposed at the moisture as well as whether or not permanent water surface. existed at shallow depths and was therefore available to the plant community. Sedimentologic studies of the paleosols indicate that the terrain was wetter nearer fluvial Some of the bivalves show annual growth channels and became drier farther away in the bands whereas others do not. Perhaps those lacking overbank floodplains between the fluvial channels. these types of bands lived where equable conditions persisted throughout the year. The annual banding Palynological studies (that is, studies supports the interpretation of seasonality in the primarily of spores, pollen, and dinoflagellates) ecosystem that is suggested by other studies. resulted in detailed dating of much of the Morrison Formation. The research showed that the bulk of the Studies of the vertebrates reveal that a wide formation is Kimmeridgian in age and the uppermost variety of animals including dinosaurs, mammals, beds of the formation are Tithonian in age. The lizards, sphenodonts, choristodeirans, salamanders, spores and pollen suggest that the lowest beds in the snakes, small crocodilians, turtles, fish, lungfish, formation (Windy Hill Member) appear to be and frogs inhabited the Morrison ecosystem. With Kimmeridgian in age although a conclusive age the recent discovery and recovery of a new member determination for these beds awaits age of the Family Allosauridae from Dinosaur National determinations from dinoflagellates. These detailed Monument, we now know of at least three genera of age determinations allow us to compare the these theropods that existed within the Morrison Morrison ecosystem with the global Late Jurassic animal community. environment. In contrast to previous investigations, the formation was found to contain a surprisingly Samples from carbonate rocks (mostly rich and diverse fossil flora. The palynological limestone) were collected during the summer field research also revealed that the flora was much more season for analyses of stable isotopes and are diverse in the Late Jurassic Western Interior than undergoing laboratory preparation and analysis. previously had been thought. Stable isotopes yield information on the ancient climate, plant community structure, weather Research on charophytes (green algae) and patterns, storm tracks, temperature, trophic levels, ostracodes (crustaceans) resulted in age and eating habits of the vertebrate land animal. A determinations that correspond closely with those tentative conclusion based on preliminary data is obtained from the palynomorphs. Other conclusions that the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere derived from these micro-organisms suggest that was appreciably higher than today. Because this is a standing bodies of water in which strata in the "greenhouse" gas, it may have been responsible for middle of the formation were deposited were the warmer global climate during the Jurassic Period somewhat brackish whereas the water bodies that as compared with today's climate, although we do were present during deposition of the lower and not yet know why the carbon dioxide levels were so upper beds largely consisted of fresh water. More high during the Late Jurassic. Detailed studies of salinity-tolerant genera existed in northern Colorado paleosols in the Fruita Paleontological Area (FPA) and northeastern Utah than farther south or north, of western Colorado and elsewhere in the Western which might also reflect the nature of water bodies Interior suggest that the Morrison climate was at in these areas. These organisms also suggest a least seasonally dry. Detailed sedimentologic studies gradual cooling of the climate during Morrison are underway in the FPA and should lead to an deposition. improved understanding of Morrison sedimentation in a relatively small area that could have important Studies of trace fossils that can be related to implications for the overall project interpretations. specific organisms demonstrate that horseshoe crabs, Other studies of freshwater limestone beds indicate a 2 Turner et al.: The Morrison Formation Extinct Ecosystems Project 22 variety of life forms including charophytes, contains locally abundant and diverse fossil plant ostracodes, snails, fish, sponges, stromatolites, and and other animal communities that were fish lived in Morrison lakes and will likewise shed contemporaries of the dinosaurs and that shed light light on this aspect of the Morrison ecosystem. onto the nature of the Late Jurassic ecosystem. Research by 40Ar/39Ar isotopic dating 1/0• !OS" methodologies on altered volcanic ash deposits in the Morrison indicates that the formation was deposited during an approximately 8 million year so' time span from about 155 to 147 Ma (Ma = Milli­ annums = million years before the present). More samples were collected to better date the formation and to gain an understanding of the nature of the unconformities at the base and top of the Morrison. Tentative conclusions are that the time span represented by the K-1 unconformity at the top of the Morrison was approximately 16 my in duration but may be more or less depending on the locality. Geochemical studies of mineral grains recovered from Morrison bentonite beds (the altered volcanic ash deposits) indicate that the volcanoes that furnished the ash were rhyolitic in composition. This is consistent with the origin of the ash deposits in a volcanic belt above a subduction zone that extended along the west coast of North America during the Late Jurassic. The composition of certain mineral grains recovered from the bentonite beds -z----· and the known predominantly westerly to southwesterly winds over the Colorado Plateau region during the Late
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Jackpile Sandstone Member of the Morrison Formation in West
    TheJackpile Sandstone Member 0f the MorrisonFormation in west-central New Mexico- a formaldefinition byDonald E. jwen,Consulting Geologist, Tulsa, 0K 74152,and Lester J. Walters,Jr. andRonald G. Beck, ARCO Oil and Gas Co., Dallas, IX75221 The JackpileSandstone Member of the uranium mine. The JackpileSandstone is stonelenses Contactswith the underlying Morrison Formation(Upper Jurassic)in west- typically a whitish, crossbeddedsubarkose Brushy BasinMember of the Morrison For- central New Mexico is named here formallv with clay matrix and interbedded, varie- mation may be gradational, scoured, or from a stratotype near the Jackpile-PaguatL gated, pale-greento red, bentonitic mud- interbedded. The Jackpileextends only a short distancesouth of the stratotvDedue R.5W. to truncation along the basal Dakota un- conformity. However, it extendsnortheast to Lamy, north to near Cuba, and a short distancewest and a longer distancenorth- west into the subsurfaceof the San Juan Basin.Thickness of the Jackpileranges from near zero to 300ft (91 m); at the stratotype it is 100 ft (30 m) thick. Crossbeddingin- dicatesa regional easterlypaleocurrent-flow direction for the braided-streamand distal alluvial-fan complexesin which the Jackpile was deposited. Source areas were to the west and southwest,south of Gallup, and in the Mogollon Highlands. Introduction The Jackpile sandstone of economic usage has been employed informally in strati- graphic nomenclature for a distinctive bed in the uppermost part of the Brushy Basin Member of the Morrison Formation in west- central New Mexico since the Jackpile ura- nium body was discovered in that bed dur- ing 1951.The stratigraphic name fackpile has Alsoin this issue Temperatureof.mineralization in Mogollonmining district p.
    [Show full text]
  • By HENRY FAIRFIELD OSBORN and CHARL
    VoL. 6, 1920 PALAEONTOLOGY: OSBORN AND MOOK IS RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SKELETON OF THE SAUROPOD DINOSAUR CAMARASA URUS COPE (MOROSA URUS MARSH) By HENRY FAIRFIELD OSBORN AND CHARLES CRAIG MOOK AMERICAN MusEUM or NATURAL HISTORY, NEW YORK CITY Read before the Academy, November 11, 1919 The principles of modern research in vertebrate palaeontology are illustrated in the fifteen years' work resulting in the restoration of the massive sauropod dinosaur known as Camarasaurus, the "chambered saurian.." The animal was found near Canyon City, Colorado, in March, 1877. The first bones were described by Cope, August 23, 1877. The first at- tempted restoration was by Ryder, December 21, 1877. The bones analyzed by this research were found probably to belong to six individuals of Camarasaurus mingled with the remains of some carnivorous dinosaurs, all from the summit of the Morrison formation, now regarded as of Jurassic- Cretaceous age. In these two quarries Cope named nine new genera and fourteen new species of dinosaurs, none of which have found their way into. palaeontologic literature, excepting Camarasaurus. Out of these twenty-three names we unravel three genera, namely: One species of Camarasaurus, identical with Morosaurus Marsh. One species of Amphicaclias, close to Diplodocus Marsh. One species of Epanterias, close to Allosaurus Marsh. The working out of the Camarasaurus skeleton results in both the artica ulated restoration and the restoration of the musculature. The following are the principal characters: The neck is very flexible; anterior vertebrae of the back also freely movable; the division between the latter and the relatively rigid posterior dorsals is sharp.
    [Show full text]
  • Stratigraphic Correlation Chart for Western Colorado and Northwestern New Mexico
    New Mexico Geological Society Guidebook, 32nd Field Conference, Western Slope Colorado, 1981 75 STRATIGRAPHIC CORRELATION CHART FOR WESTERN COLORADO AND NORTHWESTERN NEW MEXICO M. E. MacLACHLAN U.S. Geological Survey Denver, Colorado 80225 INTRODUCTION De Chelly Sandstone (or De Chelly Sandstone Member of the The stratigraphic nomenclature applied in various parts of west- Cutler Formation) of the west side of the basin is thought to ern Colorado, northwestern New Mexico, and a small part of east- correlate with the Glorieta Sandstone of the south side of the central Utah is summarized in the accompanying chart (fig. 1). The basin. locations of the areas, indicated by letters, are shown on the index map (fig. 2). Sources of information used in compiling the chart are Cols. B.-C. shown by numbers in brackets beneath the headings for the col- Age determinations on the Hinsdale Formation in parts of the umns. The numbers are keyed to references in an accompanying volcanic field range from 4.7 to 23.4 m.y. on basalts and 4.8 to list. Ages where known are shown by numbers in parentheses in 22.4 m.y. on rhyolites (Lipman, 1975, p. 6, p. 90-100). millions of years after the rock name or in parentheses on the line The early intermediate-composition volcanics and related rocks separating two chronostratigraphic units. include several named units of limited areal extent, but of simi- No Quaternary rocks nor small igneous bodies, such as dikes, lar age and petrology—the West Elk Breccia at Powderhorn; the have been included on this chart.
    [Show full text]
  • Paleopathological Analysis of a Sub-Adult Allosaurus Fragilis (MOR
    Paleopathological analysis of a sub-adult Allosaurus fragilis (MOR 693) from the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation with multiple injuries and infections by Rebecca Rochelle Laws A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Earth Sciences Montana State University © Copyright by Rebecca Rochelle Laws (1996) Abstract: A sub-adult Allosaurus fragilis (Museum of the Rockies specimen number 693 or MOR 693; "Big Al") with nineteen abnormal skeletal elements was discovered in 1991 in the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation in Big Horn County, Wyoming at what became known as the "Big Al" site. This site is 300 meters northeast of the Howe Quarry, excavated in 1934 by Barnum Brown. The opisthotonic position of the allosaur indicated that rigor mortis occurred before burial. Although the skeleton was found within a fluvially-deposited sandstone, the presence of mud chips in the sandstone matrix and virtual completeness of the skeleton showed that the skeleton was not transported very far, if at all. The specific goals of this study are to: 1) provide a complete description and analysis of the abnormal bones of the sub-adult, male, A. fragilis, 2) develop a better understanding of how the bones of this allosaur reacted to infection and trauma, and 3) contribute to the pathological bone database so that future comparative studies are possible, and the hypothesis that certain abnormalities characterize taxa may be evaluated. The morphology of each of the 19 abnormal bones is described and each disfigurement is classified as to its cause: 5 trauma-induced; 2 infection-induced; 1 trauma- and infection-induced; 4 trauma-induced or aberrant, specific origin unknown; 4 aberrant; and 3 aberrant, specific origin unknown.
    [Show full text]
  • Attachment J Assessment of Existing Paleontologic Data Along with Field Survey Results for the Jonah Field
    Attachment J Assessment of Existing Paleontologic Data Along with Field Survey Results for the Jonah Field June 12, 2007 ABSTRACT This is compilation of a technical analysis of existing paleontological data and a limited, selective paleontological field survey of the geologic bedrock formations that will be impacted on Federal lands by construction associated with energy development in the Jonah Field, Sublette County, Wyoming. The field survey was done on approximately 20% of the field, primarily where good bedrock was exposed or where there were existing, debris piles from recent construction. Some potentially rich areas were inaccessible due to biological restrictions. Heavily vegetated areas were not examined. All locality data are compiled in the separate confidential appendix D. Uinta Paleontological Associates Inc. was contracted to do this work through EnCana Oil & Gas Inc. In addition BP and Ultra Resources are partners in this project as they also have holdings in the Jonah Field. For this project, we reviewed a variety of geologic maps for the area (approximately 47 sections); none of maps have a scale better than 1:100,000. The Wyoming 1:500,000 geology map (Love and Christiansen, 1985) reveals two Eocene geologic formations with four members mapped within or near the Jonah Field (Wasatch – Alkali Creek and Main Body; Green River – Laney and Wilkins Peak members). In addition, Winterfeld’s 1997 paleontology report for the proposed Jonah Field II Project was reviewed carefully. After considerable review of the literature and museum data, it became obvious that the portion of the mapped Alkali Creek Member in the Jonah Field is probably misinterpreted.
    [Show full text]
  • Mesozoic Stratigraphy at Durango, Colorado
    160 New Mexico Geological Society, 56th Field Conference Guidebook, Geology of the Chama Basin, 2005, p. 160-169. LUCAS AND HECKERT MESOZOIC STRATIGRAPHY AT DURANGO, COLORADO SPENCER G. LUCAS AND ANDREW B. HECKERT New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, 1801 Mountain Rd. NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104 ABSTRACT.—A nearly 3-km-thick section of Mesozoic sedimentary rocks is exposed at Durango, Colorado. This section con- sists of Upper Triassic, Middle-Upper Jurassic and Cretaceous strata that well record the geological history of southwestern Colorado during much of the Mesozoic. At Durango, Upper Triassic strata of the Chinle Group are ~ 300 m of red beds deposited in mostly fluvial paleoenvironments. Overlying Middle-Upper Jurassic strata of the San Rafael Group are ~ 300 m thick and consist of eolian sandstone, salina limestone and siltstone/sandstone deposited on an arid coastal plain. The Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation is ~ 187 m thick and consists of sandstone and mudstone deposited in fluvial environments. The only Lower Cretaceous strata at Durango are fluvial sandstone and conglomerate of the Burro Canyon Formation. Most of the overlying Upper Cretaceous section (Dakota, Mancos, Mesaverde, Lewis, Fruitland and Kirtland units) represents deposition in and along the western margin of the Western Interior seaway during Cenomanian-Campanian time. Volcaniclastic strata of the overlying McDermott Formation are the youngest Mesozoic strata at Durango. INTRODUCTION Durango, Colorado, sits in the Animas River Valley on the northern flank of the San Juan Basin and in the southern foothills of the San Juan and La Plata Mountains. Beginning at the northern end of the city, and extending to the southern end of town (from north of Animas City Mountain to just south of Smelter Moun- tain), the Animas River cuts in an essentially downdip direction through a homoclinal Mesozoic section of sedimentary rocks about 3 km thick (Figs.
    [Show full text]
  • (Morrison Formation: Brushy Basin Member) Peterson Quarry, Central New Mexico
    New Mexico Geological Society Guidebook, 54th Field Conference, Geology of the Zuni Plateau, 2003, p. 315-324. 315 GEOLOGY AND PALEONTOLOGY OF THE UPPER JURASSIC (MORRISON FORMATION: BRUSHY BASIN MEMBER) PETERSON QUARRY, CENTRAL NEW MEXICO ANDREW B. HECKERT1, KATE E. ZEIGLER1, SPENCER G. LUCAS1, JUSTIN A. SPIELMANN2, PATRICIA M. HESTER3, RONALD E. PETERSON1, RODNEY E. PETERSON1, AND N. V. “DAN” D’ANDREA1 1New Mexico Museum of Natural History, 1801 Mountain Road NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104-1375; 2Dartmouth College, Hinman Box 4571, Hanover, NH 03755; 3U.S. Bureau of Land Management, 435 Montaño NE, Albuquerque, NM 87107 ABSTRACT.—The Upper Jurassic Peterson quarry, located in Bernalillo County, central New Mexico, is New Mexico’s most extensive and productive Jurassic dinosaur locality. The quarry is developed in the upper part of the Brushy Basin Member of the Morrison Formation, approximately 26 m below its contact with the overlying Jackpile Member. Fossil bones occur low in a 1.1-m-thick sequence of well-indurated, trough-crossbedded, subarkosic sandstone. Preserved elements range from scattered bones to articulated assemblages of bones from a single individual, and the long bones are preferentially oriented along a generally east-west-trending axis. The occurrence of associated-to-articulated bones in a trough-crossbedded sandstone underlying a floodplain mudstone suggest deposition of the fossils in the mixed fill of an abandoned channel in a typical Brushy Basin Member fluvial system. Particularly important dinosaurs from the Peterson quarry include a large (1100 mm estimated femoral length) Saurophaganax-like allosaurid theropod and the anterior portion of a sauropod skull and lower jaws similar to Diplodocus.
    [Show full text]
  • Sedimentation, Pedogenesis, and Paleoclimate Conditions in the Paleocene San Juan Basin, New Mexico, U.S.A
    University of New Mexico UNM Digital Repository Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs Electronic Theses and Dissertations 7-1-2016 Sedimentation, pedogenesis, and paleoclimate conditions in the Paleocene San Juan Basin, New Mexico, U.S.A. Kevin Hobbs Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/eps_etds Recommended Citation Hobbs, Kevin. "Sedimentation, pedogenesis, and paleoclimate conditions in the Paleocene San Juan Basin, New Mexico, U.S.A.." (2016). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/eps_etds/104 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Electronic Theses and Dissertations at UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs by an authorized administrator of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Kevin Michael Hobbs Candidate Earth and Planetary Sciences Department This dissertation is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication: Approved by the Dissertation Committee: Dr. Peter Fawcett, Chairperson Dr. Leslie McFadden Dr. Gary Weissmann Dr. Thomas Williamson i SEDIMENTATION, PEDOGENESIS, AND PALEOCLIMATE CONDITIONS IN THE PALEOCENE SAN JUAN BASIN, NEW MEXICO, U.S.A. by KEVIN MICHAEL HOBBS B.S., Geology, The University of the South, 2006 M.S., Geological Sciences, The University of Idaho, 2010 DISSERTATION Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Earth and Planetary Sciences The University of New Mexico Albuquerque, New Mexico July 2016 ii ACKNOWLEDMENTS I thank the following persons for professional help in the form of discussions, critique of ideas, or suggestions during the research and writing of this dissertation: From the Earth and Planetary Sciences Department: Viorel Atudorei, Adrian Brearley, Ben Burnett, Jeff Carritt, Laura Crossey, Magdalena Donahue, Maya Elrick, John Geissmann, Nick George, Karl Karlstrom, Bekah Levine, Grant Meyer, Corrinne Myers, Lyman Persico, Jane Selverstone, Zach Sharp, Mike Spilde.
    [Show full text]
  • The Age of the Morrison Formation
    THE AGE OF THE MORRISON FORMATION BART J. KOWALLIS ",*, ERIC H. CHRISTIANSEN ", ALAN L. DEINO b, FRED PETERSONC,CHRISTINE E. TURNER", MICHAEL J. KUNK and JOHN D OBRADOVICH ' " Dcyartnlent of Geology, Briglzunz Young University, Proijo, UT 84602, USA; Berkelej~Ceocl~ronolog~~ Center., 2455 Ridge Road, Berkeley, CA 94709, USA; US Geologiciil Surve.~,Feilercrl Cmter, Denver, CO 80225, USA; US Grological Sclr11ej,,981 Natior~alCenter, Reston, VA 22092, USA IReceii~erlin fi~l~Ifvi.i??4 April 1997) The Morrison Formation in Utah and Colorado contams many volcanic ash layers and ashy beds, now altered rnostly to bentonite, that have yielded isotopic ages. The Brushy Basin Member. at the top of the formation, gives single-crystal. laser-fusion and step-heating, pla- teau 40~r/3'~rages on sanidine that range systematically between 148.1 50.5 (1 std. error of mean) at the top of the nlember to 150.3 rt 0.3 Ma near the bottom. The Tidwell Member, at the base of the Morrison Formation, contaills one ash bed about 3 m above the J-5 unconfor- lnity that occurs in at least two widely separated sections. This ash has been dated by "~r/'~Ardating of saliidi~leand gives ages of 154.75 rt 0.54 Ma (Deino NTM sample, laser- fusion), 154.82 31 0.58 Ma (Demo RAIN sample, laser-fusion), 154.87 !C 0.52 (Kunk NTM sample, plateau). and 154.8 !C 1.4 Ma (Obradovich NTM sample, laser-fusion). The Morrison Formation, therefore, ranges in age fron: about 148 to 155 Ma and, based upon fossll evi- dence appears to be entirely Late Jurassic, including the latest Oxfordian(?).
    [Show full text]
  • Stratigraphy of the Wasatch Range Near Salt Lake City, Utah
    GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CIRCULAR 296 STRATIGRAPHY OF THE WASATCH RANGE NEAR SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH .. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Douglas McKay, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY W. E. Wrather, Director · GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CIRCULAR 296 STRATIGRAPHY OF THE WASATCH RANGE NEAR SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH By Arthur E. Granger Washington, D. C., 1953 Free on application to the Geological Survey, Washington 25, D. C. 113° 112° 111° I D 0 42° 42° C!:) z c H • X E L I c H :g 0 B E R. \ Ogden ...._// l_ ---........ ...... _// ) 0 R G A N _ _,)__~ _f H SUMMIT I J AREA OF REPORT L A K E ').....-= I /~ / I T 0 0 E L E ..r' I I w A \ --~ \ ...___, • \ \ \ I 5 0 20 Miles I H ,, Index map of north-central Utah showing area of report. iv STRATIGRAPHY OF THE WASATCH RANGE NEAR SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH By Arthur E. Granger CONTENTS Page Page Introduction.. 1 Permian system-Continued Pre-Cambrian rocks.......................... 2 Park City formation . 3 Lower pre-Cambrian rocks. 2 Triassic system,. 3 Upper pre-Cambrian rocks............... 2 Woodside shale........................... 3 Cambrian system. 2 Thaynes formation . 4 Brigham quartzite...................... 2 Ankareh shale. 4 Ophir shale. 2 Jurassic system, . 4 Maxfield limestone . • . 2 Nugget sandstone......................... 4 Ordovician system. 2 Twin Creek limestone. 4_ Swan Peak(?) formation... • . 2 Preuss sandstone . 4 Devonian system . 2 Morrison(?) formation.................... 4 Pinyon Peak limestone.................. 2 Cretaceous system. 4 Carboniferous system......................... 2 Kelvin formation .................._....... 4 Mississippian series.................... 2 Frontier formation. 4 Madison limestone. 3 Conglomerate~ ... -. 5 Deseret limestone . 3 Tertiary system .
    [Show full text]
  • Hydrologic Assessment of Oil and Gas Resource Development of the Mancos Shale in the San Juan Basin, New Mexico
    HYDROLOGIC ASSESSMENT OF OIL AND GAS RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MANCOS SHALE IN THE SAN JUAN BASIN, NEW MEXICO Open-file Report 566 By Shari Kelley, Thomas Engler, Martha Cather, Cathryn Pokorny, Cheng-Heng Yang, Ethan Mamer, Gretchen Hoffman, Joe Wilch, Peggy Johnson, and Kate Zeigler New Mexico Bureau Geology & Mineral Resources New Mexico Institute of Mining & Technology Socorro, New Mexico 87801 November 2014 HYDROLOGIC ASSESSMENT OF OIL AND GAS RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MANCOS SHALE IN THE SAN JUAN BASIN, NEW MEXICO Prepared for the Farmington Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management Shari A. Kelley, New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, NM 87801, [email protected] Thomas W. Engler, Petroleum and Chemical Engineering Department, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, NM 87801 Martha Cather, Petroleum Recovery Research Center, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology Cathryn Pokorny, Cheng-Heng Yang, Ethan Mamer, Gretchen Hoffman, Joe Wilch, and Peggy Johnson, New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, NM 87801 Kate Zeigler, Zeigler Geologic Consulting, Albuquerque, NM 87123 1 Table of Contents ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................................................... 4 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Stratigraphy and Uranium Potential of the Burro Canyon Formation in the Southern Chama Basin, New Mexico A
    New Mexico Geological Society Downloaded from: http://nmgs.nmt.edu/publications/guidebooks/25 Stratigraphy and uranium potential of the Burro Canyon Formation in the southern Chama Basin, New Mexico A. E. Saucier, 1974, pp. 211-217 in: Ghost Ranch, Siemers, C. T.; Woodward, L. A.; Callender, J. F.; [eds.], New Mexico Geological Society 25th Annual Fall Field Conference Guidebook, 404 p. This is one of many related papers that were included in the 1974 NMGS Fall Field Conference Guidebook. Annual NMGS Fall Field Conference Guidebooks Every fall since 1950, the New Mexico Geological Society (NMGS) has held an annual Fall Field Conference that explores some region of New Mexico (or surrounding states). Always well attended, these conferences provide a guidebook to participants. Besides detailed road logs, the guidebooks contain many well written, edited, and peer-reviewed geoscience papers. These books have set the national standard for geologic guidebooks and are an essential geologic reference for anyone working in or around New Mexico. Free Downloads NMGS has decided to make peer-reviewed papers from our Fall Field Conference guidebooks available for free download. Non-members will have access to guidebook papers two years after publication. Members have access to all papers. This is in keeping with our mission of promoting interest, research, and cooperation regarding geology in New Mexico. However, guidebook sales represent a significant proportion of our operating budget. Therefore, only research papers are available for download. Road logs, mini-papers, maps, stratigraphic charts, and other selected content are available only in the printed guidebooks. Copyright Information Publications of the New Mexico Geological Society, printed and electronic, are protected by the copyright laws of the United States.
    [Show full text]