Banff Formation

Last updated
Banff Formation
Stratigraphic range: Famennian–Tournaisian
MountRundle.jpg
The Banff Formation is visible on the eastern (left) slope of Mount Rundle
Type Geological formation
Sub-unitsMembers A to F
Underlies Pekisko Formation, Livingstone Formation
Overlies Palliser Formation, Wabamun Formation, Exshaw Formation
Thicknessup to 400 metres (1,310 ft) [1]
Lithology
Primary Shale, limestone
Other Chert, sandstone, siltstone
Location
Coordinates 51°09′54″N115°31′08″W / 51.16500°N 115.51889°W / 51.16500; -115.51889 (Banff Formation)
RegionFlag of Alberta.svg  Alberta, Flag of British Columbia.svg  British Columbia
CountryFlag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada
Type section
Named for Banff, Alberta
Named byE.M. Kindle, 1924

The Banff Formation is a stratigraphical unit of Devonian age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.

Contents

It takes the name from the town of Banff, Alberta, and was first described on the north-west slope of Mount Rundle, near Banff by E.M. Kindle in 1924. [2]

Lithology

The Banff Formation is composed of shale and marlstone in the base, chert and limestone in the middle, sandstone, siltstone and shale at the top.

Distribution

The Banff Formation extends from the 49th parallel in southern Alberta and the Kootenays region of British Columbia to north-eastern British Columbia, northern Alberta and the District of Mackenzie in the Northwest Territories. In its southern area, the thickness ranges from 400 feet (120 m) in the Rocky Mountains to 150 feet (50 m) in the sub-surface of the prairies. In the north, it ranges from 450 feet (140 m) in the Peace River Country to 450 feet (140 m) in northern Alberta.

The age of the formation ranges from late Famennian to Tournaisian.

Relationship to other units

The Banff Formation is overlies the Palliser Formation in the Canadian Rockies, the Wabamun Formation in central Alberta, the Exshaw Formation in southern Alberta and in the Fort Nelson area. It is overlain by the Pekisko Formation and the Livingstone Formation in north-central and southern Alberta respectively, and it is followed by the Shunda Formation in north-eastern British Columbia. An unconformity is observed between Banff and the Rundle Group in outcrop.

The Banff Formation is equivalent to the Lodgepole Formation in Montana. It can be correlated with the Besa River Formation in north-eastern British Columbia. In the southeastern Rocky Mountains, part of the formation passes laterally into the Pekisko Formation.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Rundle</span> Mountain in Banff National Park, Canada

Mount Rundle is a mountain in Canada's Banff National Park overlooking the towns of Banff and Canmore, Alberta. The Cree name was Waskahigan Watchi or house mountain. In 1858 John Palliser renamed the mountain after Reverend Robert Rundle, a Methodist invited by the Hudson's Bay Company to do missionary work in western Canada in the 1840s. He introduced syllabics there—a written language developed for the Cree, as part of his missionary work. He only visited the Stoney-Nakoda of the area around what is now called Mount Rundle in 1844 and 1847.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fernie Formation</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peace River Formation</span>

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The Smoky Group is a stratigraphical unit of Late Cretaceous age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.

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The Exshaw Formation is a stratigraphic unit in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. It takes the name from the hamlet of Exshaw, Alberta in the Canadian Rockies, and was first described from outcrops on the banks of Jura Creek north of Exshaw by P.S. Warren in 1937. The formation is of Late Devonian to Early Mississippian age as determined by conodont biostratigraphy, and it straddles the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pika Formation</span> Geologic formation in Canada

The Pika Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Middle Cambrian age that is present on the western edge of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin in the Canadian Rockies of Alberta and British Columbia. It was named for Pika Peak near Lake Louise in Banff National Park by C.F. Deiss in 1939. It is fossiliferous and preserves several genera of trilobites. Outcrops of the Pika Formation can be seen in Banff and Jasper National Parks.

The Arctomys Formation is a stratigraphic unit of late Middle Cambrian age. It is present on the western edge of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin in the Canadian Rockies of Alberta and British Columbia. It was named for Arctomys Peak near Mount Erasmus in Banff National Park by Charles Doolittle Walcott in 1920. Outcrops of the Arctomys can be seen in Banff and Jasper National Parks.


The Mount Wilson Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Late Ordovician age. It is present on the western edge of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta and British Columbia. It consists of quartz sandstone, and was named for the Mount Wilson in Banff National Park by C.D. Walcott in 1923.

References

  1. Lexicon of Canadian Geologic Units. "Banff Formation". Archived from the original on 2013-02-21. Retrieved 2009-02-10.
  2. Kindle, E.M., 1924b. Standard Paleozoic section of Rocky Mountains near Banff, Alberta; Pan-American Geologist, vol. 42, no. 2 (September), pp. 113-124.