Upper Cretaceous), West—Central New Mexico
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LIBRARY Mkth Shh University This is to certify that the dissertation entitled PALYNOLOGIC INVESTIGATION OF THE MORENO HILL FORMATION (UPPER CRETACEOUS), WEST—CENTRAL NEW MEXICO presented by Kurtis C. Kelley has been accepted towards fulfillment of the requirements for Master of Sciencedegree in Botany and Plant Pathology % Major professor Date W "(III-n- Am...’ A - r In . l . 042771 1 RETURNING MATERIALS: MSU Place in book drop to LIBRARIES remove this checkout from .—_—. your record. FINES will be charged if book is returned after the date stamped below. PALYNOLOGIC INVESTIGATION OF THE MORENO HILL FORMATION (UPPER CRETACEOUS), WEST-CENTRAL NEW MEXICO by Kurtis C. Kelley A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE Department of Botany and Plant Pathology 1987 ABSTRACT PALYNOLOGIC INVESTIGATION OF THE MORENO HILL FORMATION (UPPER CRETACEOUS), WEST CENTRAL NEW MEXICO By Kurtis C. Kelley One outcrop and three subsurface coal-test well-sections were sampled for palynologic analysis in the Upper Cretaceous Rio Salado Tongue of the Mancos Shale, Atarque Formation and Moreno Hill Formation from the Fence Lake area of west-central New Mexico. A potential problem with contamination of samples by a Middle Cretaceous, fossiliferous drilling-mud was encount- ered and resolved. Palynologic correlation was made between sections based on local pollen-spore occurrence and range, cluster analy- sis, and relative frequency peaks of selected pollen-spore groups. These correlations resulted in the establishment of six palynologic zones. The abrupt occurrence of marine microfossils in the upper part of the Lower Moreno Hill Formation indicates a marine transgression into the study area not previously identified. Analysis of five recurring pollen-spore assemblages and other micro- and macroscOpic-sized plant detritus included in these sediments indicates the presence of a diverse land flora occupying shifting habitats on the prograding sediment buildup. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my sincere thanks to Professor Aureal T. Cross for the considerable amount of time and labor he put into the the development of this thesis and for his concern and efforts in assuring that my family and I did not starve in the process. I would also like to express my appreciation to Professor Ralph Taggart and Professor Chilton Prouty for their aid during the research and writing of this manuscript. I am very grateful to the United States Geological Survey and the New Mexico Bureau of Mines and Mineral Resources for the generous grants they awarded in partial support of this thesis project and to the Department of Botany and Plant Pathology and the Department of Geological Sciences of Michigan State University for their financial support in the form of graduate assistantships. Finally I would like to thank Dr. Abolfazl Jameossanaie, Kyle Walden and Feng Bing Cheng for their aid and no small measure of moral support. 11 TABLE OF CONTENTS: I. BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE ......OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO H Objectives .............................. Previous Studies ........................ Geology and stratigraphy ............. Palynology ........................... Geology ................................. Atarque Sandstone..................... Moreno Hill Formation ................ \DUU‘bUUD-I II. METHODS AND PROBLEMS ......OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO 11 Source of Samples ....................... 11 Preparation Procedure ................... 14 Analytical Methods ...................... 15 Quantitative Analysis ................... 17 Unknown or unidentifiable species .... 17 Analytical Problems ..................... 18 Stratigraphic distribution of palynomorphs ....................... 18 Drilling mud contamination ........... 19 Weathered vs. unweathered samples .... 19 III. RESULTS OF STUDY 0............OOOOOOOOOOOOO 21 Resolution of Drilling Mud Contamination Problem ............................... 21 The Relative Representation of Palynomorphs in Weathered vs. Unweathered Samples ................... 22 Problem of Representation of Palynomorphs from Well-cuttings .................... 24 Palynologic Zonation of Principal Reference Sections .................... 26 Selection of pollen-spore assemblages 26 Zonation of the Moreno Hill outcrOp section ............................ 26 Rio Salado zone ................... 26 Atarque zone ...................... 27 Lowest coal zone (AnteIOpe) ....... 28 Middle coal zone (Lower Rabbit) ... 29 Upper coal zone (Upper Rabbit) .... 29 Zonation of well 517-25-1 ............ 30 Cerro Prieto coal zone ............ 30 Lower Rabbit coal zone ............ 31 Upper Rabbit coal zone ............ 31 111 Zonation of well 519-21-1 ............ 32 Rio Salado zone ................... 32 Atarque zone ...................... 32 Lower zone of the Lower Member of the Moreno Hill Fm. ............. 33 Upper zone of the Lower Member of the Moreno Hill Fm. ............. 33 Upper Moreno Hill Member .......... 34 Cluster Analysis ........................ 46 IV. PALYNOLOGICAL CORRELATION ......... 52 Rio Salado Zone ................ 54 Atarque Zone ................... 55 Coal Zone A (Antelope) ......... 56 Coal Zone B (Cerro Prieto) ..... 60 Coal Zone C (Lower Rabbit) ..... 61 Coal Zone D (Upper Rabbit) .............. 64 Correlation To Other Wells and Outlying outcrop sections ......OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO 65 V. PALEOENVIRONMENTAL INTERPRETATIONS 67 Pollen-Spore Assemblages ................ 71 Assemblage l. Off-shore marine shale and siltstone (Figure 20) .......... 71 Assemblage 2. Near-shore or brackish shale and siltstone (Figure 21) .... 77 Assemblage 3. Fern-dominated shale (Figure 22) ........................ 77 Assemblage 4. Angiosperm-dominated shale (Figure 23) .................. 78 Assemblage 5. Interbedded coal and shale (Figure 24) ................. 79 Other Dispersed MicroscOpic-Sized Plant Detritus .............................. 79 Paleoecological Reconstruction .......... 81 VI. CONCLUSIONS 00............OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO 9O BIBLIOGRAPHY O......OOOOOOOOOOO......OOOOOOOOOOOO 92 APPENDIX 1. List of Samples used and Abbreviated Lith01°81c Description ......OOOOOOOOOOOOOOIOO 102 APPENDIX II. Species List .............. 105 PLATES 0.0.0.0....O0.0.........OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO 110 iv LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE Map of New Mexico indicating area of study ..... p. 2 Diagram showing stratigraphic relationships in BtUdy area O.......OOIOOOOOOIOOOOOOO00.0.0000... Stratigraphic cross-section from Moreno Hill to Gallup area OOOOOOOOOIOOOOOO......OOOOOOOOOOOOO. Diagram showing measured sections and sample intervals from the Moreno Hill locality ........ Map showing sample localities and extent of Gretaceous outcrop exposure ......OOOOOOOOOOOOOO 12 Diagram showing generalized stratigraphic columns and sample intervals of the four principal reference sections ................... 13 Diagram showing local range and occurrence of selected pollen and spores from the principal reference sections ......OOOOOOOOOOO......OOOOOO 36 Diagram of well 519-21-1 showing relative frequencies of pollen and spore groups relative to the total pollen-spore assemblage ........... 37 Diagram of well 519-21-1 showing the frequency of major gymnosperm groups relative to the total gymnosperm pOPUIation 000............OOOOIOOOOOO 38 10. Diagram of the Moreno Hill section showing relative frequencies of pollen and spore groups relative to the total pollen-spore assemblage .. 39 11. Diagram of the Moreno Hill section showing the frequency of major gymnosperm groups relative to the total gymnosperm population .... 40 12. Diagram of well 517-25-1 showing relative frequencies of pollen and spore groups relative to the total pollen-spore assemblage .. 41 13. Diagram of well 517-25-1 showing the frequency of major gymnosperm groups relative to the total gymnosperm population .... 42 V 14. Diagram of the USGS well #1 showing relative frequencies of pollen and spore groups relative to the total pollen-spore assemblage .. 43 15. Diagram of the USGS well #1 showing the frequency of major gymnosperm groups relative to the total gymnosperm population .... 44 16. Diagram of the principal reference sections with lines indicating correlations between sections based on relative abundance peaks of selected pollen-spore groups and taxa ........ 45 17. Diagram resulting from cluster analysis .. ...... 50 18. Diagram of the principal reference sections showing stratigraphic and geographic distribution of sample clusters indicated in Figure 17 ....... 51 19. Diagram of the principal reference sections indicating palynologic zones of correlation ..... 53 20. Pollen-spore Assemblage 1 of off-shore marine shale and siltstone ..... 72 21. Pollen-spore Assemblage 2 of near-shore or brackish shale and siltstone .................... 73 22. Pollen-spore Assemblage 3 of fern-dominated shale in the Lower Member of the Moreno Hill Fm., Moreno Hill section ..... 74 23. Pollen-spore Assemblage 4 of angiosperm dominated shale in the Lower Member of the Moreno Hill Fm.. 75 24. Pollen spore Assemblage 5 of interbedded coal and shale in the Lower Member of the Moreno Hill Fm.. 76 vi Palynological Investigation of the Moreno Hill Formation (Upper Cretaceous), west-central New Mexico Kurtis C. Kelley BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE A project of geologic subsurface mapping of the Atarque and Moreno Hill formations was begun several years ago by the New Mexico Bureau of Mines and Mineral Resources and the U.S. Geological Survey as part of a larger mapping project in the San Juan and