Eocene strata from the Sabinas Basin and their bearing in sedimentary basin correlation in NE Mexico

Abstract

The El Arco section, located on the southeast margin of the Sabinas Basin (Adjuntas Sub-basin), includes a succession consisting of Upper Cretaceous formations typical for this unit, as well as Paleogene strata similar to those previously reported from the La Popa Basin, adjacent to the Sabinas Basin. The El Arco carbonate lentil includes microfossils and nautiloids that indicate a middle Eocene age, which is consistent with previous stratigraphic inferences for the La Popa Basin. The presence of the nautiloid Hercoglossa sp. cf. H. peruviana in the El Arco Lentil and in the upper portion of the Rancho Nuevo Formation of Parras Basin, suggests a new correlation scheme for the Tertiary stratigraphic units of the three basins (Parras, La Popa and Sabinas basins). All three units had sediment input as late as middle Eocene time.

Hemipelagic cephalopods from the Maastrichtian (late Cretaceous) Parras Basin at La Parra, Coahuila, Mexico, and their implications for the correlation of the lower Difunta Group

“…correlates to SC 3 ofSoegaard et al (2003); seeSchafhauser et al (2007); 4: Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary within the Delgado Sandstone Member in the La Popa Basin(Lawton et al, 2001), 5: Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary in the upper Encinas Formation(Vega et al, 2007). SC: Sedimentary cycles ofSoegaard et al (2003).…”

“…Vega et al, 2007;Perrilliat et al, 2008), few biostratigraphic data exist from the late Cretaceous, mainly due to the absence of biostratigraphic marker fossils. For instance, planktonic foraminifers are absent in these near-coast environments, and ammonoids are mostly represented by endemic species, specialized to these extreme non-pelagic environments (Wolleben, 1977;Vega-Vera and Perrilliat, 1990;Ifrim et al, 2005).…”

“…To the north, Difunta Group sediments gradually decrease in thickness and near the Rio Grande, some 300 km north of Saltillo, only 100-200 m of coeval sediments are present, known as Escondido Formation (Cooper, 1971). The Difunta sediment complex is mostly Maastrichtian in age, but it occasionally reaches the Paleogene (McBride et al, 1974;Vega-Vera et al, 1989;Soegaard et al, 2003;Vega et al, 2007).…”

Provenance of Upper Cretaceous-Paleogene sandstones in the foreland basin system of the Sierra Madre Oriental, northeastern Mexico, and its bearing on fluvial dispersal systems of the Mexican Laramide Province

“…The Viento Formation overlies the lower Eocene (Ypresian) Adjuntas Formation and is considered to be early to middle Eocene in age (Vega and Perrilliat, 1989a, 1989bVega et al, 2007). The overlying Carroza Formation, at least 805 m thick, includes the youngest preserved strata in the La Popa Basin and consists of red mudstone, siltstone, and sandstone of continental origin (McBride et al, 1974;Waidmann, 2004).…”

“…The overlying Carroza Formation, at least 805 m thick, includes the youngest preserved strata in the La Popa Basin and consists of red mudstone, siltstone, and sandstone of continental origin (McBride et al, 1974;Waidmann, 2004). Its stratigraphic position indicates that it may be as young as middle Eocene in age (Vega et al, 2007).…”