Lusitaniadalen Member, Vikinghøgda Formation, Svalbard Lower Triassic: Olenekian, Norway

List of taxa
Where & when
Geology
Taphonomy & methods
Metadata & references
Taxonomic list
unclassified
Micrhystridium sp. marine palyn Deflandre 1937
Cycadopites sp. microspore Wodehouse 1933
Punctatisporites fungosus microspore
Lunatisporites sp. microspore Leschik
Algae
Algae indet. marine palyn
sp. A
Lycopodiopsida - Selaginellales
Densoisporites nejburgii microspore
unclassified
Pretricolpipollenites sp. microspore
see common names

Geography
Country:Norway
Coordinates: 78.0° North, 23.0° East (view map)
Paleocoordinates:42.2° North, 10.4° East
Basis of coordinate:estimated from map
Geographic resolution:local area
Time
Period: Triassic Epoch: Early Triassic
Stage: Olenekian 10 m.y. bin: Triassic 1
*Period:Early/Lower Triassic *Epoch:Scythian
*International age/stage:Early/Lower Olenekian
Key time interval: Olenekian
Age range of interval: 251.2 - 247.2 m.y. ago
* legacy (obsolete) database fields
Stratigraphy
Geological group:Sassendalen Formation:Vikinghøgda Member:Lusitaniadalen
Stratigraphic resolution:member
Lithology and environment
Primary lithology:planar lamination,concretionary,gray siltstone
Secondary lithology:bioturbation sandstone
Lithology description: 88 meters thick Siltstone and very fine-grained sandstone interbeds are less common in this member compared to the Deltadalen member. Calcite concretions are the most abundant in the upper part of the Lusitaniadalen Member. Transition from the underlying Deltadalen Member is often covered in scree. The base is well defined where dark grey laminated silty mudstone sharply overlies the hummockly laminated sandstone at the top of the Deltadalen Member. Most of the mudstone is finely laminated and only sparse bioturbation is observed. The lower part is dominated by dark grey silty laminated mudstone. Some meters above the base sandstone beds occur, arranged in faint coarsening-up sequences. Some of these display hummocky lamination and cross lamination. Small globular or flattened carbonate nodules occur in few horizons from ca. 15 meters above the base of the member. Calcite concretions are abundant in the middle and upper parts of the member. These concretions formed early in diagenesis, as evident by deformation of the enclosing shales, and the fact that the enclosed fossils are not crushed. Abundant ammonoids and bivalves occur in a calcareous lens, close to the top of the member. The top of the Lusitaniadalen Member- Vendomdalen Member boundary is placed at the top of the dolomite cemented sandstone.
Environment:deltaic indet. Tectonic setting:foreland basin
Glacial or sequence phase:transgressive
Geology comments: The lower part represents a transgressive development from the underlying member towards a distal shelf environment. The overall setting represents moderately deep shelf deposition, distal to the deltaic input from the west.
Taphonomy
Modes of preservation:body,adpression
Size of fossils:macrofossils,microfossils
Spatial resolution:parautochthonous
Collection methods and comments
Collection excludes:some macrofossils
Collection methods:bulk,chemical,mechanical,field collection
Reason for describing collection:biostratigraphic analysis
Metadata
Database number:31368
Authorizer:C. Looy Enterer:W. Puijk
Modifier:W. Puijk Research group:paleobotany,paleoentomology
Created:2003-05-09 06:07:41 Last modified:2003-05-09 09:33:50
Access level:the public Released:2003-05-09 06:07:41
Creative Commons license:CC BY
Reference information

Primary reference:
8474. A. Mørk, G. Elvebakk, A.W. Forsberg, M.W. Hounslow, H.A. Nakrem, J.O. Vigran, and W. Weitschat. 1999. The type section of the Vikinghøgda Formation: a new Lower Triassic unit in central and eastern Svalbard. Polar Research 18(1):51-82 [C. Looy/W. Puijk/W. Puijk]