THE CAMPBELLTON FORMATION, NEW BRUNSWICK, CANADA: A SEDIMENTOLOGICAL AND PALEOENVIRONMENTAL DESCRIPTION OF AN EARLY DEVONIAN (EMSIAN) VEGETATED LANDSCAPE by Kirsten Kennedy Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science at Dalhousie University Halifax, Nova Scotia August 2011 © Copyright by Kirsten Kennedy, 2011 DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF EARTH SCIENCES The undersigned hereby certify that they have read and recommend to the Faculty of Graduate Studies for acceptance a thesis entitled ―THE CAMPBELLTON FORMATION, NEW BRUNSWICK, CANADA: A SEDIMENTOLOGICAL AND PALEOENVIRONMENTAL DESCRIPTION OF AN EARLY DEVONIAN (EMSIAN) VEGETATED LANDSCAPE‖ by Kirsten Kennedy in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. Dated: August 17, 2011 Supervisor: ________________________________ Readers: _________________________________ _________________________________ _________________________________ _________________________________ ii DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY DATE: August 17, 2011 AUTHOR: Kirsten Kennedy TITLE: THE CAMPBELLTON FORMATION, NEW BRUNSWICK, CANADA: A SEDIMENTOLOGICAL AND PALEOENVIRONMENTAL DESCRIPTION OF AN EARLY DEVONIAN (EMSIAN) VEGETATED LANDSCAPE DEPARTMENT OR SCHOOL: Department of Earth Sciences DEGREE: MSc CONVOCATION: October YEAR: 2011 Permission is herewith granted to Dalhousie University to circulate and to have copied for non-commercial purposes, at its discretion, the above title upon the request of individuals or institutions. I understand that my thesis will be electronically available to the public. The author reserves other publication rights, and neither the thesis nor extensive extracts from it may be printed or otherwise reproduced without the author‘s written permission. The author attests that permission has been obtained for the use of any copyrighted material appearing in the thesis (other than the brief excerpts requiring only proper acknowledgement in scholarly writing), and that all such use is clearly acknowledged. _______________________________ Signature of Author iii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................ vii LIST OF FIGURES .............................................................................. viii ABSTRACT ........................................................................................... x CHAPTER 1 — INTRODUCTION ........................................................... 1 1.1 Objectives ................................................................................................................ 3 1.2 Organization of Thesis ............................................................................................. 3 1.3 Contributions of Author........................................................................................... 4 CHAPTER 2 — BACKGROUND ............................................................. 6 2.1 The Ordovician-Devonian Tectonic Setting of Eastern North America ................. 6 2.2 Plant Evolution ........................................................................................................ 9 2.2.1. Laying the Groundwork ........................................................................................... 9 2.2.2. Stages of Plant Evolution in the Paleozoic .............................................................. 9 2.2.3. Introduction to the Major Plant Groups of the Early Devonian ........................... 11 2.3 Terrestrial Arthropods ........................................................................................... 19 2.4 Fish ........................................................................................................................ 20 2.5 Consequences of the Terrestrialization Process on Earth Systems ....................... 23 CHAPTER 3 — THE CAMPBELLTON FORMATION, NEW BRUNSWICK, CANADA: PALEOENVIRONMENTS IN AN IMPORTANT EARLY DEVONIAN TERRESTRIAL LOCALITY .............. 24 3.1 Abstract .................................................................................................................. 24 3.2 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 25 3.3 Geologic Setting .................................................................................................... 27 3.4 Methodology .......................................................................................................... 32 3.5 Facies Associations................................................................................................ 39 3.5.1. Facies Association 1: Lacustrine with Restricted Circulation .............................. 44 iv 3.5.2. Facies Association 2: Marginal Lacustrine .......................................................... 45 3.5.3. Facies Association 3: Near-Shore Lacustrine ....................................................... 48 3.5.4. Facies Association 4: Sandy Coastal-Deltaic ....................................................... 49 3.5.5. Facies Association 5: Sandy to Gravelly Braided Alluvial Plain ......................... 51 3.5.6. Facies Association 6: Gravelly Proximal Alluvium .............................................. 54 3.6 Provenance ............................................................................................................. 55 3.7 Alteration ............................................................................................................... 58 3.8 Western Belt Stratigraphy and Paleoenvironments ............................................... 58 3.9 Eastern Belt Stratigraphy and Paleoenvironmental Synthesis ............................... 60 3.9.1. Mainly Lacustrine Sedimentation: Section III ....................................................... 60 3.9.2. Mainly Alluvial Sedimentation: Sections IV, V, VI ................................................ 63 3.10 Basinal Evolution .................................................................................................. 66 3.11 Conclusions ........................................................................................................... 68 3.12 Acknowledgments ................................................................................................. 69 CHAPTER 4 — PALEOENVIRONMENTAL INFERENCES FROM THE CLASSIC EARLY DEVONIAN PLANT-BEARING LOCALITY OF THE CAMPBELLTON FORMATION, NEW BRUNSWICK, CANADA ....... 70 4.1 Abstract .................................................................................................................. 70 4.2 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 71 4.2.1. Location and Geologic Setting .............................................................................. 72 4.2.2. Summary of Sedimentological Work...................................................................... 76 4.2.3. Brief History of Paleontological Work .................................................................. 79 4.3 Methods ................................................................................................................. 79 4.4 Paleoenvironments at Key Fossil Localities .......................................................... 80 4.4.1. Section I and Basal Breccia ................................................................................... 80 4.4.2. Section III .............................................................................................................. 83 v 4.4.3. Section IV ............................................................................................................... 88 4.4.4. Taphonomic Caveats ............................................................................................. 93 4.4.5. Summary: Inferred Vegetated Environments of the Campbellton Formation .............................................................................................................. 94 4.5 Discussion .............................................................................................................. 98 4.5.1. Tracheophyte Innovations and Ecology ................................................................ 98 4.5.2. Emsian-Eifelian Phytogeography of Laurentia ................................................... 103 4.5.3. Earth Systems ...................................................................................................... 107 4.6 Conclusion ........................................................................................................... 107 4.7 Acknowledgements ............................................................................................. 108 CHAPTER 5 — DISCUSSION AND REMAINING QUESTIONS .................. 110 5.1 Other Fossiliferous Localities of the Campbellton Formation ............................ 110 5.2 Coal-Bearing Strata ............................................................................................. 115 5.3 Regional Stratigraphy .......................................................................................... 119 5.4 Basin Formation .................................................................................................. 121 CHAPTER 6 — CONCLUSIONS ......................................................... 123 REFERENCE LIST ............................................................................. 125 Appendix 1: Access to Outcrops ....................................................................................