Sedimentary development of a continuous Middle Devonian to Mississippian section from the fore-reef fringe of the Brilon Reef Complex (Rheinisches Schiefergebirge, Germany)

Abstract

The Brilon-reef complex is one of the biggest Devonian carbonate buildups (*80 km 2 ) of the Rheinisches Schiefergebirge. The Burgberg section is located in the southeastern fore-reef area of the Brilon Reef Complex and exposes a succession of strata (117 m thick), which extends from the Middle Givetian (middle varcus conodont Zone) to the Vise ´an (bilineatus conodont Zone). Field and microfacies observations led to the definition of nine microfacies that are integrated into a sedimentary model divided into off-reef, intermediate fore-reef, and proximal fore-reef sedimentary domains (SD). The off-reef domain (SD1) is the most distal setting observed and is characterized by fine-grained sediments, dominated by pelagic biota and the local occurrence of gravity-flow deposits. The intermediate fore-reef (SD2) is characterized by a mixture of biota and sediments coming from both deeper-water and shallow-water sources and is influenced by storm and gravity-flow currents. In this domain, Renalcis moundlike structures developed locally. Finally, the proximal fore-reef (SD3) corresponds to the most proximal setting that is strongly influenced by gravity-flow currents derived from the Brilon Reef Complex. The temporal

Insight into the development of a carbonate platform through a multi-disciplinary approach: a case study from the Upper Devonian slope deposits of Mount Freikofel (Carnic Alps, Austria/Italy)

“…Considering the presence of wackestone-packstone intraclasts (MF2), which are interpreted as background sedimentation (see interpretation of MF2), the depositional setting of MF5 might be located under the FWWB. Similar microfacies have been described by May (1994) and Pas et al (2013) for the fore-reef-slope environment from the Rhenisches Schiefergebirge (Germany) and are interpreted as a part of the general pattern visible in ''allodapic'' limestone (Zone 1b; Meischner 1964) and in the ideal turbiditic sequence of Bouma (division Tb;Bouma 1962). Other sedimentological criteria such as the presence of lamination, local fining upward sequences also support a deposition related to turbidity currents.…”

“…Complex (eastern Rheinisches Schiefergebirge), the highest proportion in reef-related debris extends from the Late Givetian to the Early Frasnian period (Pas et al 2013), which is consistent with the maximal extension of the platform. This relationship between maximal extension of platform and highest proportion of reef-related debris was also recognized in the reef complex of the Australian Canning Basin (Playford et al 1980).…”

“…In numerous sedimentological studies (Rabien 1956;Tucker 1973;Vai 1980;Wendt and Aigner 1985;Pas et al 2013;Königshof et al 2012), the Devonian thinbedded cephalopod limestone in Europe has been interpreted as being accumulated upon submarine rises at depths reaching several tens to about one hundred meters. Wendt and Aigner (1985) also suggested that thin-bedded cephalopod limestones were probably formed during times of reduced sedimentation rate.…”

Facies, origin, and palaeontological inventory of an Early Carboniferous neptunian dyke in the Devonian reef limestone near Rösenbeck (Brilon Anticline, Rhenish Mountains)

“…In the area of the Brilon Anticline, the basinal facies of the Late Viséan succession is developed as siliceous black shales and grey Posidonia-bearing shales with very thin limestone intercalations, which document a continuous sedimentary record as exposed in the road section south of Scharfenberg (Korn, 2010). A condensed shale succession was described by Pas et al (2013) from the Burgberg, located only 1250 m south of the occurrence in the Rösenbeck quarry, but with a position on the northern flank of the Messinghausen Anticline. In the Burgberg quarry and also the section above the Beringhausen Tunnel on the south flank of the Messinghausen Anticline (Clausen et al, 1991;Schülke et al, 2003;Schülke and Popp, 2005), there occurs a more or less continuous succession from the Middle to the earliest Late Devonian reef limestone through to the Late Devonian nodular limestone.…”

“…Both sections show an incomplete Carboniferous record. At Burgberg, the entire Tournaisian and large parts of the early Viséan are represented by only 4 m of dark shales (Pas et al, 2013), indicating that this succession is either extremely condensed or that substantial parts of it are missing.…”