Characteristics of a Campanian delta deposit controlled by alternating river floods and tides: the Loyd Sandstone, Rangely Anticline, Colorado, U.S.A.

2019 ◽  
Vol 89 (12) ◽  
pp. 1181-1206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter P. Flaig ◽  
Stephen T. Hasiotis ◽  
Timothy J. Prather ◽  
Darrin Burton
Keyword(s):  
Trace Fossil ◽  
High Abundance ◽  
Turbidity Currents ◽  
Piceance Basin ◽  
Delta Front ◽  
River Flooding ◽  
Mancos Shale ◽  
Sedimentary Structures ◽  
Normal Regression ◽  
High Diversity

ABSTRACT The Campanian Loyd Sandstone Member of the Mancos Shale (Loyd) along the Rangely Anticline, Piceance Basin, Colorado, contains a series of multi-meter-thick, heterolithic, coarsening-upward successions (CUSs) with internal clinoforms comprising low-angle-dipping (< 5°), parallel-laminated sandstone beds interbedded with bioturbated flaser-wavy-lenticular bedded sandstone and siltstone. Loyd clinoforms are delta foresets composed of prodelta and delta-front deposits, including mouthbars. Many CUSs exhibit scours filled with bioturbated sandstone, or interbedded bioturbated sandstone and siltstone or mudstone representing aggradational fill of subaqueous terminal distributary channels or the migration of mouthbars into channel scours. Mud drapes on sedimentary structures and mud rip-up clasts are extremely common. A high-abundance, high-diversity, trace-fossil assemblage includes vertical, 1–4-m-deep Ophiomorpha that may penetrate multiple bedsets of parallel-laminated sandstones and highly bioturbated finer-grained interbeds. Bioturbation increases sandstone content in finer-grained interbeds, and provides sandy conduits that increase connectivity between beds. Although parallel-laminated sandstones volumetrically dominate Loyd delta clinoforms, they likely represent relatively short-term freshwater and sediment input during river flooding that produced delta-front turbidity currents. Interbedded finer-grained beds, mud-draped sedimentary structures, and the high-abundance, high-diversity trace-fossil assemblages record longer amounts of time during reduced fluvial discharge, tidal reworking of sediments, and intense bioturbation under marine salinities. Controls on the internal characteristics of the Loyd delta deposits include: 1) a high sediment influx into a relatively shallow marine basin protected from wave action during normal regression; 2) relatively short-duration, episodic freshwater and sediment discharge from distributaries that reduced salinities, deposited sand as turbidity currents, and promoted delta-front channelization; and 3) longer-duration periods of reduced discharge with deposition of finer-grained sediment, tidal reworking, and bioturbation of sediments under higher salinities. These controls combined to produce the heterolithic, highly bioturbated, river-flood delivered, and tidally modified clinoforms of the Loyd that differ from deposits typically considered to be classic examples of fluvial-flood-dominated or extensively tidally modified deltas.

Insights into productivity drivers for the Niobrara-equivalent horizontal play in the Piceance Basin, Colorado

2020 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 309-354
Author(s):  
Jason Eleson ◽  
Chip Oakes ◽  
Graham McClave
Keyword(s):  
Powder River Basin ◽  
Fault System ◽  
Piceance Basin ◽  
Thermal Maturity ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Horizontal Drilling ◽  
Child Effects ◽  
Mancos Shale ◽  
Low Degree ◽  
Future Potential

Limited horizontal drilling has occurred within the Niobrara-equivalent section of the Mancos Shale in the Piceance Basin, and the results from individual wells are highly variable. Prior studies have suggested that thermal maturity and completion techniques were the primary drivers for the observed production trends, but further analysis of well results indicates there are more variables at play. This study leveraged a comprehensive data set from the Piceance Basin, including core analyses, pressure data, and drilling and completion methods to provide additional context for the production results. From this analysis, several key trends were identified. North/south variations in thermal maturity were confirmed, as well as additional trends were identified revealing later exhumation south of the Rangely fault system resulted in significant depressurization, particularly in the western Piceance Basin. The semi-regional depressurization was the result of decrease in overburden pressures that allowed vertical migration of hydrocarbons out of the Mancos Shale. In addition to the semi-regional depressurization, there were more local depressurization events that resulted from faulting in areas such as the Orchard Unit in the southern Piceance Basin where thrust faults allowed hydrocarbons to migrate vertically into overlying formations. Northwest to southeast production trends are present in the southern Piceance Basin and are interpreted to reflect structurally undeformed areas based on high formation pressures and better producing horizontal wells. Parent-child effects have been observed locally and are linked to lower initial production rates and faster decline rates. The northern Piceance Basin exhibits higher reservoir pressure in the liquids window than was observed to the south due to the relatively low degree of exhumation and/or faulting in areas where horizontal Niobrara wells were drilled. Horizontal well results in the northern Piceance Basin have been mixed, largely due to inefficient completion strategies. By comparing the northern Piceance Basin wells with similar horizontal Niobrara wells in the Powder River Basin of northeastern Wyoming, it is concluded that drilling into the over-pressured liquids rim and utilizing slickwater frac fluid with friction reducer and 100 mesh sand will yield improved economic results over those obtained so far in the Piceance Basin. Though relatively few laterals have been drilled in the Piceance Basin Niobrara play, the basin has great future potential.

Microseismic Feedback Enhanced Real-Time Diversion Evaluation in Mancos Shale, Piceance Basin Completions

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. L. Scott ◽  
J. H. Cape ◽  
K. D. Mahrer ◽  
N. Li ◽  
A. R. Childers
Keyword(s):  
Real Time ◽  
Piceance Basin ◽  
Mancos Shale

scholarly journals Richness and abundance of the cardini group of Drosophila (Diptera, Drosophilidae) in the Caatinga and Atlantic Forest biomes in northeastern Brazil

2014 ◽  
Vol 86 (4) ◽  
pp. 1711-1718 ◽  
Author(s):  
CLÁUDIA ROHDE ◽  
DIVA MARIA IZABEL O. SILVA ◽  
GEÓRGIA F. OLIVEIRA ◽  
LIV S. MONTEIRO ◽  
MARTÍN A. MONTES ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Altitude ◽  
Atlantic Forest ◽  
Northeastern Brazil ◽  
High Abundance ◽  
Northeastern Region ◽  
Mangrove Swamps ◽  
Historical Relationship ◽  
First Time ◽  
High Diversity

Brazil has a high diversity of flies of the genus Drosophila, and part of this richness is represented by the cardini group. We analyzed the fluctuations in the richness and abundance of this group, in environments that had never previously been studied in the northeastern region of Brazil. Among the 28,204 drosophilids sampled, 1,294 belonged to the cardini group and were represented by D. polymorpha, D. cardini, D. neocardini and D. cardinoides. Occurrences of D. neocardini and D. cardinoides were registered for the first time in the Caatinga. In this biome, D. cardini stood out as having the highest abundance, and D. polymorpha was not observed. In the coastal Atlantic Forest, D. cardini was not registered, but D. polymorpha was found in all the localities investigated. Mangrove swamps were the environment with the lowest abundance and richness of the cardini group. The High-altitude Forest presented the highest richness of this group. We suggest that the high abundance of D. polymorpha in the High-altitude Forest and in the coastal Atlantic Forest may be a reflection of the historical relationship between these two environments.

The Old Red Sandstone of Eastern Ekmanfjorden, Vestspitsbergen

1960 ◽  
Vol 97 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. L. Dineley
Keyword(s):  
Delta Front ◽  
Red Sandstone ◽  
The Core ◽  
Sedimentary Structures

AbstractThe Lower Old Red Sandstone deposits of Ekmanfjorden belong mainly to the Lykta Division, but pale sandstones with Giganthaspis representingthe Kapp Kjeldsen Division also occur in the core of what is probably a N.-S. striking anticline. The lower beds of the Lykta Division are soft, dull and silty and not very fossiliferous; above them are some 1,100 feet of sandstones and conglomeratic beds alternatingwith shales or marls. Locally abundant vertebrate remains include the guide fossil Doryaspis. Various sedimentary structures suggest rapid deposition on a broad shallow delta front.

The Sedimentary Structures and Depositional Mechanics of Certain Ordovician Turbidites, Cloridorme Formation, Gaspé Peninsula, Quebec

1975 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 1934-1952 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keith Skipper ◽  
Gerard V. Middleton
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Fine Sand ◽  
Coarse Sand ◽  
Turbidity Currents ◽  
Upstream Migration ◽  
High Concentration ◽  
Sedimentary Structures ◽  
The North ◽  
Gaspe Peninsula ◽  
Gaspé Peninsula

Turbidites, belonging to the β1, member, Cloridorme Formation, are exposed on the north shore of the Gaspé Peninsula, Quebec. Their structural attitude is such that vertical sections through turbidite beds are exposed on the wave-cut platform and their strike is approximately parallel to the paleocurrent direction, as shown by sole marks on the bases of beds.Certain thick turbidite beds, in a distal position, display a sequence of sedimentary structures which differs from the sequence defined by Bouma. Three broad divisions are recognized: a basal division consists of either limestone or quartz granule to pebble conglomerate (0–4 cm thick) or coarse sand graywacke or calcareous wacke (0–15 cm thick). Basal divisions of calcareous wacke frequently display ripple-lamination, parallel lamination, or upstream-inclined laminae. Where the upstream inclined laminae form a single set, they occur below a sinuous profile (wavelength 40–80 cm, and amplitude 2–5 cm).A second division (0–330 cm thick) consists in most places of spindle- or globular-shaped calcareous nodules scattered in an argillaceous host. In some beds, streaking and lobing of light colored, carbonate bearing material is associated with these nodules. Internal hemi-ellipsoid structures, arranged en echelon and convex towards the base of the bed, are displayed from the second division. The upper division consists of fine grained siltstone and shale.The upstream-inclined laminae in the basal division of calcareous wacke beds are interpreted as being the result of the upstream migration of antidunes. The nodules within the second division developed as 'pseudo-nodules'. The hemi-ellipsoid structures resemble damped, large scale (macroturbulent) eddies associated with the flow of dense grain dispersions.Correlation of these beds has been achieved over a distance of 12 km. Basal divisions of granule and pebble conglomerate persist over this distance and show that coarse particles may be transported by turbidity currents over long distances. The sedimentary structures of the basal divisions of several calcareous wacke beds might be interpreted as the result of either an increase in flow regime downcurrent, or of nonpreservation of structures at up-current localities.The beds were probably deposited from turbidity currents composed largely of mud and fine sand, but containing a zone of coarse grains concentrated near the bed. The basal division was deposited from this lower zone and a period of traction formed rippled, flat, or antidune bed forms. Stratification in the basal division was preserved by the rapid deposition on top of sediment that settled en masse from the subsequent high concentration body of the current. The formation of a succession of 'quick' beds led to the sedimentation of the second division. The flows responsible for the sequence of structures observed and the downcurrent persistence of the beds probably approached closely a state of 'autosuspension'.

Relations between optical properties, dinoflagellates and zooplanktonic crustaceans in Antofagasta Bay (23°S, Chile)

Crustaceana ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 93 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-49
Author(s):  
Patricio De los Ríos ◽  
Angel Contreras ◽  
Gladys Lara ◽  
Mirtha Latsague ◽  
Carlos Esse
Keyword(s):  
Optical Properties ◽  
Primary Productivity ◽  
Coastal Waters ◽  
Climate Changes ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
High Abundance ◽  
Global Climate Changes ◽  
High Diversity ◽  
High Reflectance ◽  
Chlorophyll Concentrations

Abstract Antofagasta Bay is characterized by a high primary productivity due to the presence of the cold Humboldt Stream that is associated with a high diversity in flora and fauna in the benthic and pelagial environments of the Chilean west coast. Nevertheless, due to the global climate changes, the existing biodiversity patterns change as well. The aim of the present study was to analyse Antofagasta Bay for determining the existence of patterns between optical properties of the water, and the phytoplankton and zooplankton. The results show that one site had high chlorophyll concentrations, high reflectance, a high abundance of the dinoflagellate genus Dinophysis, and a high abundance of copepodites, whereas five sites had low chlorophyll concentrations, a low reflectance value, low copepodite abundances, and high abundances of dinoflagellates of the genera Ceratium, Gymnodinium and Prorocentrum. These results are similar to earlier observations for the coastal waters along northern Chile.

Trace fossils from Lower Palaeozoic ocean-floor sediments of the Southern Uplands of Scotland

1982 ◽  
Vol 73 (2) ◽  
pp. 67-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. J. Benton
Keyword(s):  
Oxygen Content ◽  
Deep Sea ◽  
Trace Fossils ◽  
Trace Fossil ◽  
Ocean Floor ◽  
Turbidity Currents ◽  
Northern Margin ◽  
Iapetus Ocean ◽  
Lower Palaeozoic

ABSTRACTThe Ordovician and Silurian rocks of the Southern Uplands of Scotland have been interpreted as sediments deposited on the northern margin of the Iapetus Ocean. Trace fossils are abundant at many localities in ocean-floor turbidites and mudstones that usually lack all other evidence of life. Twelve ichnogenera are present, and they are mainly meandering locomotion and feeding trails and burrow networks: Dictyodora, Caridolites, Helminthoida, Neonereites, Nereites, Protovirgularia, Gordia, Megagrapton, Paleodictyon, Chondrites, Plano-lites and Skolithos. The trace fossils occur in at least five distinct assemblages and the composition of these was probably controlled by the frequency and nature of the turbidity currents, and possibly by the oxygen content of the mudstones. Where turbidity currents were weak, abundant Dictyodora, together with Caridolites, Neonereites, Nereites, Protovirgularia and Gordia occur in various combinations. Where currents were stronger, traces such as Gordia, Paleodictyon and Megagrapton may be exhumed and cast on turbidite soles, and the sand may contain Skolithos. The ‘deep-sea’ Nereites trace fossil facies is divisible into several assemblages, presumably environmentally controlled.

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