Gravelbourg Formation

Last updated
Gravelbourg Formation
Stratigraphic range: Bajocian
O
S
D
C
P
T
J
K
Pg
N
Type Geological formation
Sub-units Upper Gravelbourg
Lower Gravelbourg
Underlies Shaunavon Formation
Overlies Watrous Formation
Madison Group
Thicknessup to 60 metres (200 ft) [1]
Lithology
Primary Shale, limestone
Other Chert, anhydrite, sandstone
Location
Coordinates 49°27′50″N108°35′34″W / 49.4638°N 108.5927°W / 49.4638; -108.5927 (Gravelbourg Formation)
Region WCSB
CountryFlag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada
Type section
Named for Gravelbourg, Saskatchewan
Named byR.L. Milner and G.E. Thomas, 1954

The Gravelbourg Formation is a stratigraphical unit of Bajocian age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.

Contents

It takes the name from the town of Gravelbourg, and was first described in well Tidewater Eastend Crown No. 1 by R.L. Milner and G.E. Thomas in 1954. [2]

Lithology

The Gravelbourg Formation is divided in two members, Lower and Upper Gravelbourg. The lower member is composed of dolomitic limestone with green shale laminations in the upper part, chalcedonic chert and anhydrite in the lower part and a basal shale bed with fish scales and anhydrite. The upper Gravelbourg consists of dark shale with sandstone and argillaceous limestone stringers and a tan mudstone bed at the top. [1]

Distribution

The Gravelbourg Formation reaches a maximum thickness of 60 metres (200 ft) in the Williston Basin. At its type locality in southwestern Saskatchewan, it is 27 metres (90 ft) thick. [1] It thins out westwards at the eastern flank of the Sweetgrass Arch in southern Alberta and eastwards into southwestern Manitoba.

Relationship to other units

The Gravelbourg Formation is conformably overlain by the Shaunavon Formation. It conformably overlies the Watrous Formation in Manitoba and southeastern Saskatchewan, and unconformably overlays the Madison Group in south-eastern Alberta. [1]

The Lower Gravelbourg is equivalent to the Reston Formation in Manitoba and parts of the Nesson Formation in North Dakota and Montana, while the Upper Gravelbourg is equivalent to the lower Melita Formation in southeastern Manitoba and the Tampico Shale of the Piper Formation in North Dakota and Montana.

Related Research Articles

The Muskeg Formation is a geologic formation of Middle Devonian (Givetian) age in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. It extends from the plains of northwestern Alberta to northeastern British Columbia, and includes important petroleum and natural gas reservoirs in the Zama lake and Rainbow Lake areas of northwestern Alberta.

Colorado is a geologic name applied to certain rocks of Cretaceous age in the North America, particularly in the western Great Plains. This name was originally applied to classify a group of specific marine formations of shale and chalk known for their importance in Eastern Colorado. The surface outcrop of this group produces distinctive landforms bordering the Great Plains and it is a significant feature of the subsurface of the Denver Basin and the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin. These formations record important sequences of the Western Interior Seaway, and as the geology of this seaway was studied, this name came to be used in states beyond Colorado, but was later replaced in several of these states with more localized names.

The Wabamun Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Late Devonian (Famennian) age in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. It takes the name from Wabamun Lake and was first described in the Anglo Canadian Wabamun Lake No. 1 well by Imperial Oil in 1950.

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.

The Lea Park Formation is a stratigraphical unit of Late Cretaceous age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin, Canada.

The Joli Fou Formation is a allostratigraphicalunit of middle Albian age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin. It takes the name from the Joli Fou Rapids on the Athabasca River, and was first described in an outcrop along the river, 8 kilometers (5.0 mi) downstream from Joli Fou Rapids, by RTD Wickenden in 1949.

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

The Palliser Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Late Devonian (Famennian) age in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. It is a thick sequence of limestone and dolomitic limestone that is present in the Canadian Rockies and foothills of western Alberta. Tall cliffs formed of the Palliser Formation can be seen throughout Banff and Jasper National Parks.

The Beaverhill Lake Group is a geologic unit of Middle Devonian to Late Devonian age in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin that is present in the southwestern Northwest Territories, northeastern British Columbia and Alberta. It was named by the geological staff of Imperial Oil in 1950 for Beaverhill Lake, Alberta, based on the core from a well that they had drilled southeast of the lake, near Ryley, Alberta.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elk Point Group</span>

The Elk Point Group is a stratigraphic unit of Early to Middle Devonian age in the Western Canada and Williston sedimentary basins. It underlies a large area that extends from the southern boundary of the Northwest Territories in Canada to North Dakota in the United States. It has been subdivided into numerous formations, number of which host major petroleum and natural gas reservoirs.

The Woodbend Group is a stratigraphical unit of Frasnian age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edmonton Group</span>

Within the earth science of geology, the Edmonton Group is a Late Cretaceous to early Paleocene stratigraphic unit of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin in the central Alberta plains. It was first described as the Edmonton Formation by Joseph Burr Tyrrell in 1887 based on outcrops along the North Saskatchewan River in and near the city of Edmonton. E.J.W. Irish later elevated the formation to group status and it was subdivided into four separate formations. In ascending order, they are the Horseshoe Canyon, Whitemud, Battle and Scollard Formations. The Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary occurs within the Scollard Formation, based on dinosaurian and microfloral evidence, as well as the presence of the terminal Cretaceous iridium anomaly.

The Shaunavon Formation is a stratigraphical unit of Bathonian age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.

The Saskatchewan Group is a stratigraphical unit of Frasnian age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.

The Manitoba Group is a stratigraphical unit of middle to late Devonian age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.

The Watrous Formation is a stratigraphical unit of Triassic to Jurassic age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.

The Elk Formation is a stratigraphic unit of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin that is present in southeastern British Columbia and southwestern Alberta. It is probably of Early Cretaceous age, but in some areas its strata could be as old as Late Jurassic. It includes minor thin coal beds and was named for outcrops near the now-abandoned Elk River coal mine east of Fernie, British Columbia.

The Mount Whyte Formation is a stratigraphic unit that is present on the western edge of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin in the southern Canadian Rockies and the adjacent southwestern Alberta plains. It was deposited during Middle Cambrian time and consists of shale interbedded with other siliciclastic rock types and limestones. It was named for Mount Whyte in Banff National Park by Charles Doolittle Walcott, the discoverer of the Burgess shale fossils, and it includes several genera of fossil trilobites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prairie Evaporite Formation</span> Geologic formation of Givetian age

The Prairie Evaporite Formation, also known as the Prairie Formation, is a geologic formation of Middle Devonian (Givetian) age that consists primarily of halite and other evaporite minerals. It is present beneath the plains of northern and eastern Alberta, southern Saskatchewan and southwestern Manitoba in Canada, and it extends into northwestern North Dakota and northeastern Montana in the United States.

The Gladstone Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Early Cretaceous (Aptian) age in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. It is present in the foothills of southwestern Alberta and is named for outcrops along Gladstone Creek, a tributary of the Castle River south of the Crowsnest Pass.

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

The Eldon Formation is a stratigraphic unit that is present on the western edge of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin in the southern Canadian Rockies of southwestern Alberta and southeastern British Columbia. It is a thick sequence of massive, cliff-forming limestones and dolomites that was named for Eldon Switch on the Canadian Pacific Railway near Castle Mountain in Banff National Park by Charles Doolittle Walcott, who discovered the Burgess Shale fossils. The Eldon Formation was deposited during Middle Cambrian time, and it includes fossil stromatolites. The Eldon forms the scenic cliffs at the top of Castle Mountain, and can also be seen at Mount Yamnuska and other mountains in Banff and Yoho National Parks.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Lexicon of Canadian Geologic Units. "Gravelbourg Formation" . Retrieved 2010-01-31.
  2. Milner, R.L. and Thomas, G E., 1954. Jurassic System in Saskatchewan. In: Western Canada Sedimentary Basin, American Association of Petroleum Geologists, p. 250-267