The Cretaceous of North Greenland
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ZOBODAT - www.zobodat.at Zoologisch-Botanische Datenbank/Zoological-Botanical Database Digitale Literatur/Digital Literature Zeitschrift/Journal: Zitteliana - Abhandlungen der Bayerischen Staatssammlung für Paläontologie und Histor. Geologie Jahr/Year: 1982 Band/Volume: 10 Autor(en)/Author(s): Birkelund Tove, Hakansson Eckhart Artikel/Article: The Cretaceous of North Greenland - a stratigraphic and biogeographical analysis 7-25 © Biodiversity Heritage Library, http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/; www.zobodat.at 7 Zitteliana 10 7-25 München, 1. Juli 1983 ISSN 0373-9627 The Cretaceous of North Greenland - a stratigraphic and biogeographical analysis By TOVE BIRKELUND & ECKART HÄKANSSON*) With 6 text figures and 3 plates ABSTRACT Mapping of the Wandel Sea Basin (81-84°N) has revealed realites, Peregrinoceras, Neotollia, Polyptycbites, Astieripty- an unusually complete Late Jurassic to Cretaceous sequence chites) are Boreal and Sub-Boreal, related to forms primarily in the extreme Arctic. The Cretaceous pan of the sequence in known from circum-arctic regions (Sverdrup Basin, Svalbard, cludes marine Ryazanian, Valanginian, Aptian, Albian, Tu Northern and Western Siberia), but they also have affinities to ranian and Coniacian deposits, as well as outliers of marine occurrences as far south as Transcaspia. The Early Albian Santonian in a major fault zone (the Harder Fjord Fault Zone) contains a mixing of forms belonging to different faunal pro west of the main basin. Non-marine PHauterivian-Barremian vinces (e. g. Freboldiceras, Leymeriella, Arctboplites), linking and Late Cretaceous deposits are also present in addition to North Pacific, Atlantic, Boreal/Russian platform and Trans Late Cretaceous volcanics. caspian faunas nicely together. Endemic Turonian-Coniacian Scapbites faunas represent new forms related to European An integrated dinoflagellate-ammonite-5«c/;D stratigra species. The Valanginian and Albian ammonites are briefly phy of the Jurassic to Early Valanginian part of the sequence described and the Early Albian correlation of North Pacific shows that the Early Cretaceous dinoflagellate assemblage and Boreal zonations is revised. appeared later in the Wandel Sea Basin than further south, and that a discrete “Jurassic” dinoflagellate assemblage existed for A Late Cretaceous to Early Paleocene phase of movement some time in the Early Cretaceous, unaffected by the general has been verified by the setting of Late Cretaceous deposits in turnover at the Jurassic-Cretaceous boundary. pull-apart basins of the Wandel Hav Strike-Slip Mobile Belt and by pre Late Paleocene deformation of the deposits. This Ammonite occurrences show interesting palaeobiogeogra- has an important bearing on the early evolution of the North phical trends. Ryazanian-Valanginian ammonite faunas (Bo- Atlantic and Arctic Oceans. KURZFASSUNG Die geologische Kartierung des Wandel Sea Basin in Nord ten-Vergesellschaftungen später auftreten als weiter im Sü grönland (8I°-84°) lieferte eine ungewöhnliche vollständige den, und daß sich eine eigenständige „jurassische“ Dinofla- Abfolge des oberen Jura und der Kreide mit marinen Ablage gellaten-Vergesellschaftung unbeeinflußt vom allgemeinen rungen des Ryazan, Valangin, Apt, Alb, Turon und Coniac Umschwung an der Jura-Kreide-Grenze in die Unterkreide und in der Harder Fjord Störungs-Zone westlich des Haupt hinein fortsetzt. beckens auch des Santon, sowie nicht-marine Serien des Bei den Ammoniten zeigen sich interessante paläobiogeo- ?Hauterive-Barreme und einen oberkretazischen Vulkanis graphische Tendenzen. Die Ryazan-Valangin Ammoniten mus. fauna (Borealites, Peregrinoceras, Neotollia, Polyptycbites, Eine kombinierte Dinoflagellaten-Ammoniten-ßitcAw- Astieriptycbites) sind boreal und subboreal mit engen Bezie Stratigraphie vom höheren Jura bis ins untere Valangin zeigt, hungen zu Faunen anderer zirkumpazifischer Gebiete (Sver daß im Wandel-See-Becken die ersten Kreide-Dinoflagella- drup Basin, Svalbard, Nord- und Westsibirien); aber sie ha ben auch Ähnlichkeit mit südlichen Vorkommen wie z. B. vom Kaukasus. Das tiefere Alb enthält Mischfaunen ver *) Institute of historical Geology and Palaeontology, 0ster Voldga- schiedener Faunenprovinzen (z. B. Freboldiceras, Leyme de 10, DK-1350 Copenhagen K, Denmark. riella, Arctboplites) und zeigt Verbindungen zwischen dem 8 © Biodiversity Heritage Library, http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/; www.zobodat.at Nordpazifik, dem Nordatlantik, der borealen russischen Es kann eine Phase spätkretazischer-frühpaläozäner Bewe Plattform und dem transkaspischen Bereich auf. Endemische gungen nachgewiesen werden anhand von spätkretazischen Scaphiten-Faunen des Turon und Coniac führen neue For Ablagerungen in Senkungsräumen des Wandel Hav Strike- men mit Beziehungen zu europäischen Arten. Die Ammoni Slip Mobile Belt und anhand einer prä-oberpaläozänen De ten des Valangin und des Alb werden kurz beschrieben und formation dieser Sedimente. Sie sind von großer Bedeutung die Korrelation der Zonen des unteren Alb im nordpazifi für die frühe Entwicklung des Nordatlantiks und des arkti schen und im borealen Bereich wird revidiert. schen Ozeans. I. INTRODUCTION The geological history of the North Atlantic region for the Early Cretaceous sediments are abundantly preserved in period leading up to the separation of the Eurasian and North both areas, whereas Late Cretaceous strata are completely ab America/Greenland continents naturally should be based on sent in theSvalbard archipelago (although recently encounter as much information as possible from strata on both sides of ed in the Troms Basin just off the Norwegian north coast the ocean. In the extreme north, the Wandel Sea Basin in [Nils Fagerland , pers. comm. 1982]). In the Wandel Sea Ba North Greenland and Svalbard constitute a pair of depositio sin, on the other hand, recent investigations have revealed the nal centres, which were dissected and subsequently separated presence of substantial on-shore Late Cretaceous deposits from each other by more than 500 km in connection with the (H akansson et al. 1981b), and although work is still in prog complex movements along the Spitzbergen Fracture Zone and ress, a fairly complete biostratigraphic outline of the Cretace the generation of oceanic crust from the Nansen and Mohns ous has now been established here. North Greenland, Ridges (Fig. 1). Since actual separation along both the north therefore, should attain a central position in attempts to esta ern part of the Mohns Ridge and the “southern” part of the blish a better understanding of the early phases in the forma Nansen Ridge is documented by ocean crust formation at or tion of both the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans. somewhat prior to anomaly 24 time (T alvcani & E ldholm 1977, V ogt et al. 1979), Cretaceous and Paleocene strata in particular are relevant in this context. II. GEOLOGICAL ERAME The eastern part of North Greenland has undergone a long deposits in particular display an extreme separation into and complex structural history prior to the formation of the small, structurally determined units (Fig. 2). However, wit Atlantic and Arctic Oceans (HA kansson & Pfdersen in hin this erratic pattern the effect of two distinctly different press), resulting in a high degree of patchiness in the distribu geological regimes is apparant. tion of most sediments in the Wandel Sea Basin. Cretaceous Fig. 1. Eastern North Greenland and adjacent parts of the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans; main tectonophysic structures indicated. © Biodiversity Heritage Library, http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/; www.zobodat.at 9 Early Cretaceous deposits, in general, are characterised by in a muddy, sheltered, coastal environment, whereas subse high sediment maturity reflecting deposition in a comparati quent sediments are dominated by shelf mud with increasing vely quiet period subsequent to the last pulse of the Late Pala amounts of storm sand layers (HA kansson et al. 1981b). eozoic to Mesozoic episodes of transcurrent faulting (Ha Kap R igsdagen (Fig. 2, loc. 7). Here, at a considerable kansson & Pedersen in press). In strong contrast to this pictu distance from all other sediments of the Wandel Sea Basin, re, Late Cretaceous sediments are mainly immature, rapidly 85 m of coarse sandstones gradually giving way to mudstones accumulated infill in pull-apart basins of the Wandel Hav have been preserved. The sediments apparently rest directly Strike-Slip Mobile Belt which, furthermore, contain the only on Ordovician sediments. Very thin coal seams and root hori magmatic rocks known from the Wandel Sea Basin (HA kans - zons together with the very low diversity assemblages of di- son & Pedersen in press). noflagellate cysts suggest a prevailing near-coastal and lagoo- nal, mainly restricted marine environment with associated protective bar systems (H akansson et al. 1981b). The dinofla- LATE JURASSIC - EARLY CRETACEOUS DEPOSITS gellate floras indicate an Aptian age for most of the sequence (Piasecki in HA kansson et al. 1981b); no macrofossils are L adegardsaen F o rm atio n (Fig. 2, Iocs 5 & 6). This known. formation is restricted to east Peary Land and has been consi dered in some detail by H akansson et al. (1981 a), who presen East Peary Land (Fig. 2, loc. 5). From a very restricted, ted an integrated ammonite-5«U»<i-dinoflagellate stratigra fault-bound locality next to the Ladegardsaen Formation, phy for the marine intervals. The formation records a Middle R olle (1981) recorded about 100 m of black mudstones with