Microfossils of the Upper Part of the Fort Union Formation Southeastern Montana
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University of Montana ScholarWorks at University of Montana Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers Graduate School 1974 Microfossils of the upper part of the Fort Union formation southeastern Montana Sylvia Frances Spindel The University of Montana Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Spindel, Sylvia Frances, "Microfossils of the upper part of the Fort Union formation southeastern Montana" (1974). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 7079. https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/7079 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at ScholarWorks at University of Montana. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at University of Montana. For more information, please contact [email protected]. MICROFOSSILS OF THE UPPER PART OF THE FORT UNION FORMATION, SOUTHEASTERN MONTANA by Sylvia Splndel A. B. Vassar College, 1970 Presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA 1974 Approved by: (hairman. Board of Examiners Date UMI Number: EP37880 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMT Dissertation Pubtishmg UMI EP37880 Published by ProQuest LLC (2013). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code ProQuest' ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106 - 1346 Acknow!edgements I am indebted to Dr. James A. Peterson for his guidance, sugges tions, and assistance throughout the course of this study. Special thanks are due to Dr. Robert Fields and Dr. Charles M iller for their valuable ideas and constructive criticism. I t is a pleasure to acknowledge assistance received from my husband, Michael Burnside, who aided with the photography, and Jim Ferguson, who prepared some of the drafting. My parents and brother and sister have provided continued under standing and encouragement. I thank them a l l . This work was supported in part by a grant from the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology. The Bureau also furnished pollen samples fo r the study. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. i i LIST OF FIGURES ..... ............................................................................. v LIST OF PLA TE S...................................................................................................vi LIST OF TA B LES...................................................................................................v ii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................... 1 Purpose ............................................................................................ 1 Previous W ork ............................................................................... * 3 Geologic Setting ............................................................................ 4 Stratigraphy .................................................................................... 6 I I METHODS....................................................................................................11 Field Procedure ...................................................................................11 Microfaunal Lab Procedure ....................................................... 12 Palynological Lab Procedure ................................................... 12 I I I OSTRACODA................................................................................................14 IV RESULTS.................................................................................................... 17 Palynological Control Section .............................................. 17 Analytical Procedures ............................................................... 18 Discussion of Assemblages ....................................................... 20 Assemblage A ...................................................................................20 Transition Zone ...........................................................................21 Assemblage B ................................................................................... 22 Discussion and Comparison ....................................................... 23 i i i CHAPTER Page V INTERPRETATIONS ...................................................................................... 26 Family Relationships ..................................................................... 26 Relationships of Pollen to Climate ........................................ 27 Vertebrate Evidence ......................................................................... 30 Environment of Deposition ............................................................. 30 Age and C o rre la tio n ...........................................................................31 VI SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS........................................................ 32 VII TAXONOMY....................................................................................................33 SELECTED REFERENCES .......................................................................................... 42 APPENDIX A ............................................................................................................ 45 APPENDIX B ............................................................................................................ 48 IV LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1 Index Map .................................................................................................. 2 2 Cross section of Cretaceous and early Tertiary rocks in Wyoming, Montana and North Dakota ..................... 8 3 Measured stratigraphie sections .................................................... 11a 4 Histogram showing the re la tiv e abundances of the taxa selected for quantitative analysis .......................... 19a 5 Histogram showing the re la tiv e abundances of the taxa selected for quantitative analysis, exclusive of taxodium ........................................................................ 19b 6 Comparison between th is paper's histogram and Leffingwell's ................................................................................... 23a LIST OF PLATES Plate Page 1 49 2 ...................................................................................................................50 3 ...................................................................................................................51 VI LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1 List of species ............................................................................ ...... V ll CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Purpose This investigation comprises a study of the micropaleontology of the Tongue River Member of the Fort Union Formation in the Sheridan coal field located in southeastern Montana and northeastern Wyoming. Samples were collected from three outcrop sections located in Rosebud and Bighorn counties, Montana (Fig. 1). Seven subsurface core samples obtained from the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology were also included in the study. The Fort Union sedimentary deposits in the vicinity of the Sheridan coal field vary so much in lithology that the sequence of beds shown in one columnar section is scarcely recognizable in another section measured a few feet away. Stratigraphie correlation within this com plex section is very difficult, and a major objective of this study is to investigate whether or not microfauna and microflora can be used as a correlation tool. A second objective is to determine whether or not any paleontological changes occur w ithin the upper Paleocene rocks of the Fort Union Formation so th at a possible Paleocene-Eocene boundary can be defined. R 39 E R 41 E R 43 E 61,63 Pyramid/'Butte ^«9 Worn MONTANA LEGEND . -B^EBUD_CpUNTY BIGHpRN COUNTY/ — X Sample Site 3 / Road Tongue River Irrigation Scale \ Resevoir 1:250.000 D ecker. \ Post O ffice Badger R.30E. ' R.41E R43E\ Previous Work During the early half of this century U.S. Geological Survey reconnaissance parties were sent to eastern Montana primarily for the purpose of classifying the public land of the area in regard to coal. As a result, much of the area was divided into blocks of land, designated as coal fields, usually 700 square miles in size. A significant publication resulting from this work was that of Baker (1929), on the northward extension of the Sheridan coal field, in which he described and mapped a major portion of the study area. Since th a t time there have been no published papers on the geology of the Sheridan coal fie ld . However, beginning in the early 1960's renewed interest in coal as a prime source of fuel resulted in fu rth e r study, especially by the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology, including an extensive coring and surface geology program. Publications by G roff (1966) and Matson (1966) and others from the Bureau have added considerably