WATER DEPTH INDICATIONS from LATE CRETACEOUS MOLLUSKS, SANTA ANA MOUNTAINS, CALIFORNIA Louella R. Saul Department of Earth &
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WATER DEPTH INDICATIONS FROM LATE CRETACEOUS MOLLUSKS, SANTA ANA MOUNTAINS, CALIFORNIA LouElla R. Saul Department of Earth & Space Sciences University of California, Los Angeles 90024 ABSTRACT The extensive boring, the eroded aspect to many frag- ments, the attached oysters, etc., all suggest accum- Water depths inferred from mollusks suggest very ulations of dead shells on the sea floor. Separation shallow water for the lower Baker Canyon Member, of bivalve shells under such conditions is due more deepening to middle and outer shelf for the lower to decay of ligament with time than to extensive Holz Shale Member. Molluscan remains are rare transport. through most of the Holz Shale. Mollusks indicative of outer to shallow shelf depths are present in the AGE upper Holz Shale and indicate shoaling. The Schulz Member apparently lacks mollusks. Overlying the Age of the Cretaceous sediments is shown on the Schulz is the lower Pleasants Member which has a shal- column (Fig. 1A). A late Turonian age for the Baker low shelf fauna. This is succeeded up-section by a Canyon Member and basal Holz Shale in indicated by slightly deeper shelf fauna. Two transgressions and the ammonites Subprionocyclus normalis (ANDERSON) a regression are thus suggested by the mollusks of and S. cf. S. neptuni (GEINITZ). In addition, most late Turonian to late Campanian age in the Santa Ana of the late Turonian species also occur in the Melton Mountains, Orange Co., California. Sandstone in the Redding area, Shasta Co., California. The Melton Sandstone is dated as late Turonian (Jones, INTRODUCTION SI iter, and Popenoe, 1978, p. XXI 1.3). An armionite, Canadocevas? sp. or Nowakitesl sp. from UCLA loc. Popenoe (1942) published a check list of mollusks 69152 suggests Santonian or early Campanian age for from the Late Cretaceous sediments in the Santa Ana beds below the middle of the Holz Shale. The upper Mountains which indicated abundant, common, and rare third of the Holz Shale is dated as early Campanian species from 57 localities. A paleoecologic inter- by Turritella ohiooensis holzana SAUL MS, Svibmorton- pretation of these collections and 20 others, predomi- icevas ohiooense (TRASK), and Canadoceras cf. C. nantly utilizing common and abundant species from yokoyamai (JIMBO). The uppermost Holz Shale is con- these collections, suggests a shallow, warm-water sidered to be of mid Campanian age (Saul, in press) fauna from sandstones of the Baker Canyon Member where it carries Ticcvitella chiooensis GABB. grading into a deeper, cooler-water fauna in the Pleasants Sandstone collections contain Metaplaoenti- lower Holz Shale. Above a relatively unfossiliferous oeras cf. M. paoifioum (SMITH) and are of late interval a similar molluscan fauna reappears, and Campanian age. There is no megafaunal evidence for again collections indicate grading into deeper water. beds of younger than late Campanian age in the northern Santa Ana Mountains. Most of the collections analyzed are from fos- sil iferous lenses or beds. In general the matrix at FAUNAL ANALYSIS these localities is indurated, and specimens must be broken out, thus making an accurate counting of fossil Stratigraphic position of the faunas is indicated content in a given volume impossible. For every bi- on Figure 1A and their interpreted relative water valve recovered, five are doubtless broken. Because depth is graphed on Figure 1C. Geographic distribu- of the difficulty of recovery, specimens of a less tion of the faunas is suggested by Figure IB. The common species receive priority over those of the localities are plotted on the outcrop map by fauna! more common ones, thus further skewing the count. symbol. Although the percent of forms in common Recovery of specimens is random. The volume of rock between deep and shallow water faunas is less than collected at the localities has varied greatly. The 50 per cent, there is a gradation from shallow to number of specimens recovered from any volume has de- deeper shelf faunas, and the deepest shallow-water pended as much on quality of preservation as upon the faunas could have been assigned to the moderate depth number of fossils in the rock. Species in these un- catagory. All of the faunal boundaries are similarly systematic samples have been subjectively divided somewhat arbitrary, as can be seen on the abridged into categories of abundant, common, or rare. check lists (Figs. 2 and 3). Listed are all abundant and common forms; some rare ones whose presence seems As most of the bivalves occur as single rather ecologically notable have also been listed. than paired valves, it is possible that the shells were transported and thus the site of deposition is Shallow Shelf Fauna of Late Turonian Age (#) not the site of habitation. At most localities the rock contains both relatively complete shells and Collections from the basal Baker Canyon Member shell fragments. Both shells and fragments are com- are of low diversity (See Figure 2). They are char- monly bored by more than one kind of endolith. It is acterized by common to abundant Alleinaein sulcata frequently possible to determine by the degree of (PACKARD), Liopistha ccnaana (ANDERSON), and boring which side of a shell lay upon the sediment. "Actaeonella" oviformis GABB. Trigonarca oalifovnioa Attached oysters and in some cases bryozoan colonies PACKARD is also common to abundant, but is not limited further indicate which side of a shell lay facing-up. to this fauna. Where Alleinaein sulcata is rare or in Bottjer, D.J., Colburn, I.P., and Cooper, J.D., eds., 1982. Late Crataceom Depoetfaaal EnvfrimniU nd Paleageograpliy, Suti Ana Moaatahn, Southern C«WmiiUI Pacific Section, SEPM, Field Trip Volume and Guidebook, pg. 69-76. 69 70 absent, Flaventia zeta POPENOE is common to abundant. Deeper Shelf Fauna of Late Turonian Age (fl) Except for "Aataeonella" oviformis the mollusks were probably suspension feeders. "Aataeonella" has been This grouping consists of a few localities from considered to be an opisthobranch by Kollmann (1967), the lower siltierpart of the Holz. Faunal diversity able to inhabit somewhat brackish water, but Popenoe is moderate, about the same as that of the moderate- (pers. comm.) considered it to be a neogastropod depth shelf assemblage (See Figure 2). Of the related to Oliva. The thick shells are invariably Tethyan forms only Trigonaraa aalifomiaa remains. worn as though rolled about by wave action. "Aataeon- Characteristically present are Opis cf. 0. triangu- ella" oviformis, Trigonaraa aalifomiaat and lata (COOPER), Eriphyla ovoides PACKARD, and Liopistha anaana are not part of the usual North Clisoaolus aorrugatus POPENOE. As in the moderate- Pacific fauna but are related to Tethyan groups. depth shelf fauna, Crassatella gamma, Tenea cf. T. Alleinaoin sulcata, which is thus far monotypic, may inflatas Cuaullaea (Idonearaa) gravida, Glossus delta, also be of Tethyan affinity, no other related species and Pterotrigonia klamathania are common to abundant. -- described or undescribed -- has yet been found in Turritella sp. and Flaventia zeta are rarely found. North Pacific faunas. Indogrammatodon sp. and aporrhaid gastropods, present in finer grained sediments of the moderate-depth This fauna suggests warm, very shallow water. shelf localities, are more common; and desmoceratoid "Aataeonella" oviformis may well have lived inter- ammonites, Mesopuzosia sp. and Tragodesmoaeras? aff. tidal ly, but the presence of Glyaymeris paaifiaus T. ? ashlandiaum (ANDERSON), have been collected. (ANDERSON), Synayolonema sp., Lima beta POPENOE, and Subprionocyalus spp. suggests that the fauna pre- Mollusks of this assemblage probably inhabited dominantly inhabited shallow sublittoral areas. deeper depth shelf areas. Some of the faunal change is probably due to finer grained substrate, but the Moderate Depth Shelf Fauna of Late Turonian Age (A) absence of Saaphites spp. may result from cooler, off-shore water. The weakly sculptured desmocera- Included in this grouping of fossil localities toids are suggestive of deeper water (Tanabe, 1979). are collections from the upper Baker Canyon Member and the sandier beds in the lowermost Holz Shale. Deeper Shelf Fauna of Early Campanian Age (•) These localities yield faunas at least twice as di- verse as those of the basal Baker Canyon Member. Localities yielding this fauna are predominantly Characteristically present are Turritella heami in small lenses in the upper third of the Holz Shale. MERRIAM or T. iota POPENOE, Pterotrigonia klamath- The fauna is of low to moderate diversity and con- onia (ANDERSON), Crassatella gamma POPENOE, Aphro- sists of typically North Pacific forms. The strati- dina arata (GABB), Corbula spp., Saaphites spp. and graphically lowest localities characteristically have Saiponoaeras aff. S. bohemiaum (FRITSCH)(See Figure Turritella paakardi MERRIAM and Eriphyla veatahii 2). Flaventia zeta and Ampullina pseudoalveata GABB and are of lowest diversity. Stratigraphically PACKARD, also found at shallow shelf localities, are higher localities have a moderately diverse fauna rarely present at deeper shelf localities, whereas characterized by Tixrritella ahiaoensis holzana SAUL Tenea cf. T. inflata (GABB), Cucullaea (Idonearaa) MS, Opis aff. 0. triangulata (COOPER), and Indogram- gravida (GABB), and Glossus delta (POPENOE) are matodon whiteavesi (REINHART). In addition present at deeper shelf localities but not at the Glyaymeris veatahii (GABB), Cuaullaea (Idonearaa) shallower. Collections included in the group which youngi WARING, Crassatella spp.,