Fence Lake Formation

Last updated
Fence Lake Formation
Stratigraphic range: 14.5–7  Ma
Type Geological formation
Underlies Quemado Formation
Overlies Moreno Hill Formation
Thickness230 feet (70 m)
Lithology
Primary Sandstone, conglomerate
Location
Coordinates 34°36′03″N108°40′32″W / 34.6009°N 108.6756°W / 34.6009; -108.6756
RegionFlag of New Mexico.svg  New Mexico
CountryFlag of the United States.svg  United States
Type section
Named for Fence Lake, New Mexico
Named byMcLellan, Haschke, Robinson, Carter, and Medlin
Year defined1982
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Fence Lake Formation (the United States)
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Fence Lake Formation (New Mexico)

The Fence Lake Formation is a geological formation in western New Mexico whose strata were deposited in the Miocene. [1]

Contents

Description

The formation consists of two informal members. The lower member is 60 feet (18 m) of coarse conglomerate consisting mostly of fragments of volcanic rock. The upper member is 180 feet (55 m) of calcareous grayish-pink sandstone, poorly sorted and very fine- to coarse-grained. The upper member also includes scattered lenses of conglomerate. [2]

The formation unconformably overlies the Moreno Hill Formation. It is relatively resistant to erosion and so forms cliffs and shelves [3] and caps mesas in the area. Drainages eroded through the formation are filled by younger beds of the Quemado Formation. [4]

The formation is interpreted as fluvial deposits. [5] The volcanic rock fragments making up the formation are thought to come from the Oligocene Mogollon-Datil volcanic field and the formation itself is thought to be Miocene in age. [6] from before 14.5 to 7 million years old. [7]

History of investigation

The beds making up the unit were originally included in the Bidahochi Formation by Charles Repenning and James Irwin in 1954, along with all other Tertiary beds of the Zuni Plateau. [8] In !956, R.J. Marr informally named the gravel beds of the lower member as the Fence Lake Gravel, [9] and in 1958, Repenning, Lance, and Irwin excluded the high-level gravels near Fence Lake, New Mexico from the Bidahochi. [10] In 1982, Marguerite McLellan and coinvestigators recognized that these beds were older than the beds inset in nearby drainages (identified at the time as Bidahochi Formation and later redefined as Quemado Formation) [7] and defined them as the Fence Lake Formation. [2]

Related Research Articles

Red Hill volcanic field, also known as Quemado volcanic field, is a monogenetic volcanic field located in the vicinity of the ghost town of Red Hill in Catron County New Mexico. Red Hill is 24 kilometers (15 mi) east of the larger Springerville volcanic field and immediately south of the Zuni Salt Lake field. The area is made up of scoria cone and silicic dome fields. Over 40 volcanic vents have been identified in the field. These erupted basaltic flows, with no other rock types evident in the field.

Mogollon-Datil volcanic field Volcanic field in western New Mexico, United States

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Arroyo Ojito Formation

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References

  1. McLellan, M.; Robinson, L.; Haschke, L.; Carter, M.D.; Medlin, A. (November 1982). "Fence Lake Formation (Tertiary), west-central New Mexico" (PDF). New Mexico Geology. 4 (4): 53–55. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  2. 1 2 McLellan et al. 1982, pp. 54–55.
  3. McLellan et al. 1982, p. 54.
  4. Cather, S.M.; McIntosh, W.C. (1994). "The Plio-Pleistocene Quemado Formation of west-central New Mexico" (PDF). New Mexico Geological Society Field Conference Series. 45. Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  5. McLellan et al. 1982, pp. 53.
  6. McLellan et al. 1982, p. 55.
  7. 1 2 Cather & McIntosh 1994.
  8. Repenning, Charles A.; Irwin, James H. (1954). "Bidahochi Formation of Arizona and New Mexico: Geological Notes". AAPG Bulletin. 38: 1821–1826. doi:10.1306/5CEAE040-16BB-11D7-8645000102C1865D.
  9. Marr, R.J. (1956). Geology of Lynch Ranches, Catron and Valencia Counties, New Mexico (M.A.). University of Texas.
  10. Repenning, C.A.; Lance, J.F.; Irwin, J.H. (1958). "Tertiary stratigraphy of the Navajo country" (PDF). New Mexico Geological Society Field Conference Series. 9: 123–129. Retrieved 11 October 2021.