Matthew Nellessen

Earth History 201L-002

Maya Elrick
February 23, 2016
Stratigraphic Reconstruction
This report is being written to show our understanding in knowing how to use
stratigraphy to determine ancient maps and knowing how to correlate rock types
given several regions. We used tools such as being able to correlate sedimentary
rock types, using diagnostic fossils, and using Walthers Law to make these
paleogeographic maps.
There were a couple of unconformities in the stratigraphic samples we were
given. The first unconformity is the obvious one at the surface which is just caused
by general weathering. The second unconformity comes at the boundary between
the granite and the sedimentary sandstone (fluvial) in locations 6-8. Granite is a
plutonic rock so a sedimentary layer cannot form directly on top right after since all
sedimentary layers are deposited at the surface. There is an unknown amount of
rock layer missing between these two layers that got eroded away in order to uplift
the granite.
Before the diagnostic fossil f appeared the area was going through
transgression as rock types were indicating increasingly deeper marine sedimentary
environments. Shortly after the coal deposits disappeared in 6 and 7 though, the
area started going through a regressive phase as the shoreline retreated to the
west. Rock types became increasingly coarser to the point where they eventually
became terrestrial deposits. This is why 5-8 currently have exposed fluvial
conglomerates, 3 & 4 have fluvial sandstones and floodplain mudstones, and only 1

& 2 have shoreline sandstones exposed. At the time when diagnostic fossil f
appeared, the shoreline was in the east near location 7 & 8, but over time migrated
to the west near 1 & 2.
Throughout the region the thickness of rock between the f and the ash bed
changes. Further to the west, on the sea side, it is thicker and it gets progressively
thinner as you go to the east. This leads me to conclude that marine sedimentation
rate is more rapid than terrestrial sedimentation rate due to basin subsidence rate.
A deep ocean, or even a shallow one, has less energy in it, hence why they deposit
finer grain sediments. This less energy means there is less disturbance of
sedimentation than on the land, which faces wind and water erosion. With less
disturbance in sedimentation, lithification of sediments can occur more rapidly in
marine environments which thus makes marine sedimentary layers thicker than
terrestrial ones. This accounts for this difference in thickness between fossil f and
the ash bed.
There is also evidence of climate change in the rock history. Locations 6 and 7
both have old layers of coal which indicates a wet climate with lots of plant matter,
such as a bog or a swamp. This layer was then followed by marine shales and
limestones when the shoreline transgressed and then regressed as terrestrial layers
formed after that. While regressing and in a state of sandstone/mudstone being
deposited, there is a layer of evaporites and eolian sandstone. The evaporites
indicate a drying climate as the water leaves the area. On top of the evaporites is
the eolian sandstone, formed from sand dunes, which indicates that after the region
dried and had evaporites, they got worn down to sand and sand dunes formed.
Sand dunes indicate a still dry and arid climate, and additionally a regularly windy

environment. So the climate changed from wet to marine to arid over the course of
this sample.
I was also able to determine there are volcanoes both to the east and west of
the area. The ash bed gets thinner to the east which indicates the volcano was to
the west as it deposits most of its debris in the west. There is also a volcano to the
east which caused the lava flow, since the lava flow bed is thicker in the east and
non-existent in the western locations. The siliciclastic sediments come from the east
since grain size increases as you go to the east. Coarse grained rocks are closer to
their source, therefore since the east has coarser grained rocks, their source is in
the east.