Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation Research Articles

The Geology of Canaan Valley

Abstract Canaan Valley (hereafter, the Valley) is located in the Folded Plateau Physiographic Province of the Appalachian Mountains. The Province features broad, gentle folds and low, structural dips. The Valley lies over the Blackwater Anticline, one of three structures that characterize the high plateau in which the Valley is set. The Anticline plunges northward, creating a broad amphitheater at the Valley's northern end. Southward, the Anticline truncates against a zone of discordance. The cause of the discordance is unknown. South of this zone, the Plateau is more deeply dissected, and the Anticline cannot be traced. In its place, there are three structures that terminate northward against the zone. Local stratigraphy controls the Valley's landscape. Six stratigraphic units—the Pennsylvanian Kanawha Formation, New River Formation, Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation, Greenbrier Limestone Formation, Price Formation, and Devonian Hampshire Formation—outcrop in the Valley. The ridges in the Valley are su...

High-density bioturbated sandstones in the Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation, eastern Pennsylvania, USA: Implications for continental ecospace exploitation

Continental communities represented by complex, rapidly evolving invertebrate ecosystems first appeared during the Early Palaeozoic Era and are recorded in surface and subsurface bioturbation. The Mississippian-age Mauch Chunk Formation contains several high-density bioturbated, fine-grained sandstones that are preserved as erosively based fluvial channel fills. Several of these channel sandstone bodies are almost completely homogenized by subsequent bioturbation throughout their entire thickness, up to a maximum depth of 1.6m.The Mauch Chunk ichnofossil record demonstrates that high-density bioturbation occurred at least 30my prior to the Permian and well before its widespread distribution in the Triassic. Hence, the Late Mississippian high-density bioturbated sandstones demonstrate a much earlier high-density exploitation of the continental subsurface ecospace than previously known.

The Fish Swimming Trace Undichna from the Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation, Eastern Pennsylvania

Undichna, the swimming trace of fish, was recovered from the middle member of the Mauch Chunk Formation in eastern Pennsylvania in strata of Late Mississippian (Visean) age. These traces represent the only evidence of fish known from the Mauch Chunk Formation and the Carboniferous of Eastern Pennsylvania. The Mauch Chunk Formation in the study area is characterized by an ephemeral fluvial depositional environment that yields a diverse invertebrate ichnoassemblage of the Scoyenia ichnofacies and a tetrapod footprint assemblage dominated by the tracks of temnospondyl amphibians. The Undichna specimens are preserved on fine-grained, mudstone-draped, rippled sandstone. Two specimens, assigned to U. Britannica, consist of pairs of well-defined, narrowly incised, sinusoidal wave traces that are out-of-phase. Two specimens, assigned to U. quina, consist of two pairs of in-phase sinusoidal waves intersected by an additional single wave with a greater amplitude. Two specimens, each composed of a single wave, are assigned to U. unisulca. The slabs of rock with the Undichna traces also preserve tetrapod undertracks assigned to Batrachichnus, Matthewichnus, and Hylopus. This trace fossil association indicates the presence of small fish, some with caudal and/or anal fins and some with pectoral, pelvic, and anal and/or caudal fins, that touched the sediment during periods of intermittent flooding of subaerial surfaces walked upon by early tetrapods. Examples of Undichna from Mississippian or older deposits, especially from a fluvial paleoenvironment, are rare; few have been reported from the Devonian and the Lower Carboniferous.

Large vertebrate burrow from the Upper Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation, eastern Pennsylvania, USA

A burrow of probable amphibian origin was discovered in the upper member of the Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation in eastern Pennsylvania. Facies analysis of the upper member indicates that deposition occurred in an ephemeral–braided stream setting. The burrow is housed in a mudstone and is filled by two graded beds of conglomerate to sandstone. It is characterized by a flared opening leading into a narrower slightly helical tunnel that ends in an inflated ovate chamber approximately 51 to 60 cm in diameter with a maximum height of 20 cm. The flared opening is stratigraphically higher than the elevation at the base of the chamber. The tunnel has a semicircular base. The geometries, abrupt angle changes, inflated termination, width-to-height ratios of the terminal chamber, and graded fill indicate that the structure was an open void prior to sedimentation. The geometry and size of this structure are incompatible with known invertebrate burrows and erosional features. Palaeosauropus primaevus, an amphibian footprint ichnotaxon, recovered from the Mauch Chunk Formation, was made by an amphibian of sufficient size to create such a large burrow. This type of burrowing was most likely a response to seasonal droughts as local water sources evaporated.

Invertebrate trace fossils in semi-arid to arid braided-ephemeral-river deposits of the Mississippian middle member of the Mauch Chunk Formation, eastern Pennsylvania, USA

The rapid diversification of terrestrial ecosystems was initiated in the Silurian and subsequently continued through the Mississippian. Detailed collecting of the middle member of the Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation in eastern Pennsylvania has yielded a number of important vertebrate and invertebrate trace fossils, indicating the presence of a significant terrestrial biotic diversity during the Early Carboniferous. This report illustrates the diverse invertebrate trace fossil assemblage associated with the ephemeral-river systems of the Mauch Chunk. The Mauch Chunk invertebrate ichnoassemblage consists of backfilled burrows of deposit feeders, both meniscate ( Taenidium) and non-meniscate ( Planolites) that typically cross-cut bedding; arthropod trackways ( Diplichnites, Diplopodichnus, Stiaria, Kouphichnium and Stialla); striated trails ( Cruziana) and resting traces ( Rusophycus); and surface or shallow subsurface grazing trails or burrows ( Gordia). Tetrapod footprints, mostly made by temnospondyl amphibians, are also part of this ichnoassemblage. The Mauch Chunk invertebrate ichnoassemblage corresponds well to the Scoyenia ichnofacies in consisting of simple burrows, trackways, striate and bilobate trails and pits and simple meniscate burrows. Typically, trace fossils of the Scoyenia ichnofacies indicate opportunistic behaviors in subaerial environments that are temporarily or periodically inundated. Indeed, the palaeoenvironmental setting of these traces is a semi-arid to possibly arid, braided-ephemeral-river system with extensive overbank deposits. The invertebrate traces were developed both as infaunal burrows in the tops and within channel sandstones and as surface and grazing traces on in-channel mudstone-draped bedforms and in proximal overbank deposits. The in-channel mudstone-draped bedforms display both vertebrate and invertebrate trace fossils. The Mauch Chunk invertebrate ichnofossil assemblage resembles other Devonian through Triassic ichnoassemblages from ephemeral fluvial red beds, confirming that the terrestrial invertebrate fauna had already fully colonized fluvial environments by Mississippian time. Furthermore, the development of the Scoyenia ichnoguild in the Mauch Chunk Formation, in the form of abundant traces of deposit feeders of a shallow to intermediate depth infauna (esp. Taenidium), is unusually early, when compared to the previously known Palaeozoic record.

Evaluation of paleomagnetic and finite strain relationships due to the Alleghanian Orogeny in the Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation, Pennsylvania

Three localities of the Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation around the Pennsylvania Salient (Broad Top Synclinorium, Minersville Syncline, and a sublocality in the Minersville Syncline) were sampled for detailed paleomagnetic and strain analysis. Paleomagnetic analysis showed three magnetization components: an intermediate‐temperature B component (Tb < 650°C), a high‐temperature C component (Tb > 620°C), and an SW component, unblocked over a wide range of temperatures and observed only on the northern segment of the salient. Normalized Fry strain and Rf/ϕ strain were measured in three dimensions and correlated to the paleomagnetic results. At one site (JTSF locality), a clear correlation between the amount of strain (εs) and remanence direction indicates that axial planar cleavage formation has caused remanence rotation. The correlations at the Minersville Syncline and Broad Top Synclinorium are not definitive, but suggest that different mechanisms are operating. The observed heterogeneity in paleomagnetic response to strain indicates that the effects will be strongly dependent on the strain history at a particular site.

Magnetic anisotropy and paleomagnetic inclination shallowing in red beds: Evidence from the Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation, Pennsylvania

Red, hematite‐bearing sedimentary rocks are an important source of paleomagnetic data, particularly for continental apparent polar wander paths during the Paleozoic. This study presents magnetic anisotropy data from the Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation of eastern Pennsylvania, indicating that these red beds have suffered from a significant amount of paleomagnetic inclination shallowing. Fourteen oriented block samples were collected from normal and reversed polarity strata identified in a previous study. Thermal demagnetization isolated the characteristic remanent magnetization at seven normal polarity horizons at unblocking temperatures greater than 670°C (mean direction, D = 354.0°, I = −18.4°, α95 = 10.2°). Anisotropy of remanence measurements (anisotropy of isothermal remanent magnetization and thermal remanent magnetization) indicate a bedding parallel, foliated magnetic fabric with foliations ranging from 1.1 to 1.35. Thermal demagnetization at 670°C of the isothermal remanent magnetization isolates the magnetic fabric of the characteristic remanence‐carrying grains and indicates stronger foliations (1.15–1.48). Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) also indicates bedding parallel magnetic foliations of 1.01–1.04, typical of red beds. Chemical leaching isolates the AMS of the characteristic remanence‐carrying grains to range from 1.02 to 1.07. This AMS fabric was used to correct the characteristic remanence inclination isolated by thermal demagnetization. The critical parameter needed for an accurate inclination correction, the individual particle anisotropy aχ, was determined from the correlation between the normalized principal axes of remanence and susceptibility anisotropy to be 1.06. The corrected Mauch Chunk direction, D = 354.5°, I = −56.4° results in a corrected Mauch Chunk Formation paleopole (12°N, 108°E) that is consistent with a European igneous paleopole.

Flexural flow folding and the paleomagnetic fold test: An example of strain reorientation of remanence in the Mauch Chunk Formation

The relationship between the remanent magnetization and the detailed strain geometry around a first‐order fold in the Appalachian Valley and Ridge Province was investigated to examine whether penetrative strains associated with folding can generate a apparent synfolding geometry from a prefolding magnetization. Paleomagnetic results from the Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation on both limbs of the Frackville Anticline near Lavelle, Pennsylvania, yield two magnetic components, an intermediate unblocking temperature (300°C–600°C) Kiaman remagnetization and a two‐polarity high unblocking temperature (650°C–680°C) characteristic magnetization. When the magnetic directions are incrementally corrected for bedding tilt, the intermediate‐temperature component is most tightly clustered at 85% unfolding (D=176°, I=3°) and the high‐temperature component is most tightly clustered at 75% unfolding (D=184°, I=27°). Mesoscopic and microscopic structural fabric analyses suggest a strain history that includes a significant component of flexural slip/flow folding. In the coarser‐grained sandstone units, folding has largely been accommodated by slip on bedding, while in the finer‐grained beds, folding has been accommodated by grain‐scale deformation mechanisms such as pressure solution and low‐temperature plasticity. Finite strain measurements, determined from center‐to‐center distances between quartz grains, yield strain ellipsoids consistent with this folding model. Inclination of the characteristic component varies as a function of the magnitude of the finite strain. This variation suggests that the characteristic magnetization has been systematically reoriented with respect to bedding during folding. Remanence directions on the south dipping limb have been rotated to shallower inclinations, while those on the north dipping limb have been rotated to steeper directions causing the prefolding magnetization to appear synfolding. These rotations are in agreement with models of rigid particle rotation in deforming viscous media. Unlike the characteristic magnetization, the secondary component appears to be unaffected by the deformation, and its synfolding behavior is interpreted as the acquisition of a secondary magnetization during Alleghenian folding. These results show that it is important to consider penetrative strains when evaluating the significance of apparent synfolding magnetizations.

Magnetic polarity stratigraphy in the uppermost Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation, Pottsville, Pennsylvania

Research Article| February 01, 1991 Magnetic polarity stratigraphy in the uppermost Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation, Pottsville, Pennsylvania V. J. DiVenere; V. J. DiVenere 1Department of Geology, University of Florida, 1112 Turlington, Gainesville, Florida 32601 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar N. D. Opdyke N. D. Opdyke 1Department of Geology, University of Florida, 1112 Turlington, Gainesville, Florida 32601 Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Geology (1991) 19 (2): 127–130. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1991)019<0127:MPSITU>2.3.CO;2 Article history first online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation V. J. DiVenere, N. D. Opdyke; Magnetic polarity stratigraphy in the uppermost Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation, Pottsville, Pennsylvania. Geology 1991;; 19 (2): 127–130. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1991)019<0127:MPSITU>2.3.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract We took 105 oriented cores from 340 m of the upper Mauch Chunk Formation at Pottsville, Pennsylvania, for a magnetostratigraphic study. The samples were subjected to progressive thermal demagnetization from 600 to 700 °C and analyzed by using principal-components analysis. A high-temperature component was isolated with a mean direction of declination = 351.7°, inclination = -28.4°, and α95 = 6.7°, and a corresponding paleopole at long 113.5°E, lat 33.7°N. Three normal and three reversed polarity magnetozones were defined, and it was found that the magnetic field was ∼59% normal and 41% reversed in the upper Chesterian. Herein we attempt to correlate the section to a previous study in New Brunswick on the basis of the paleolatitude (pole position) and the reversal pattern, and we postulate a correlation of the bottom part of the Maringouin section with the top off the Mauch Chunk. Such a correlation would place the Mississippian/Pennsylvanian boundary within the Maringouin Formation. Earth's magnetic field was of normal polarity at the time of the Mississippian/Pennsylvanian boundary. This content is PDF only. Please click on the PDF icon to access. First Page Preview Close Modal You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

Paleozoic Unconformities Favorable for Uranium Concentration in Northern Appalachian Basin: ABSTRACT

Unconformities can redistribute uranium from protore rock as ground water moves through poorly consolidated strata beneath the erosion surface, or later moves along the unconformity. Groundwater could migrate farther than in present-day lithified Paleozoic strata in the Appalachian basin, now locally deformed by the Taconic and Allegheny orogenies. Several paleoaquifer systems could have developed uranium geochemical cells. Sandstone mineralogy, occurrences of fluvial strata, and reduzate facies are important factors. Other possibilities include silcrete developed during desert exposure, and uranium concentrated in paleokarst. Thirteen unconformities are evaluated to determine favorable areas for uranium concentration. Cambrian Potsdam sandstone (New York) contains arkoses and possible silcretes just above crystalline basement. Unconformities involving beveled sandstones and possible fluvial strata include Cambrian Hardyston sandstone (New Jersey), Cambrian Potsdam Sandstone (New York), Ordovician Oswego and Juniata formations (Pennsylvania and New York), Silurian Medina Group (New York), and Silurian Vernon, High Falls, and Longwood formations (New York and New Jersey). Devonian Catskill Formation is beveled by Pennsylvanian strata (New York and Pennsylvania). The pre-Pennsylvanian unconformity also bevels Lower Mississippian Pocono, Knapp, and Waverly strata (Pennsylvania, New York, and Ohio), truncates Upper Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation (Pennsylvania), and forms paleokarst on Mississippian Loyalhanna Limestone (Pennsylvania) and Maxville Limestonemore » (Ohio). Strata associated with these unconformities contain several reports of uranium. Unconformities unfavorable for uranium concentration occur beneath the Middle Ordovician (New York), Middle Devonian (Ohio and New York), and Upper Devonian (Ohio and New York); these involve marine strata overlying marine strata and probably much submarine erosion.« less

Multicomponent magnetizations from the Mississippian Mauch Chunk Formation of the central Appalachians and their tectonic implications

Previous paleomagnetic study of Mississippian red beds of the Mauch Chunk Formation from the central Appalachians reported shallow inclination directions. A positive fold test was obtained after thermal demagnetization, typically to only 550°C. The near‐equatorial position for North America indicated by these results has been used to support the idea of a circa 15° latitudinal tectonic offset of the Acadia displaced terrain in the northern Appalachians. The present study of 153 samples from 29 sites occupied in the Mauch Chunk Formation of eastern and southern Pennsylvania reveals multicomponent magnetizations. A characteristic component (Declination (D) = 161.0°, Inclination (I) = 27.8°, alpha95 (a95) = 7.9°) with unblocking temperatures usually concentrated above 650°C and with dual polarity (10 sites normal, 13 sites reversed) is isolated in 23 sites and passes a fold test at the 99% confidence level. It is interpreted as an early acquired hematitic (detrital or chemical) magnetization of pre‐Alleghanian orogeny and pre‐Kiaman Reverse Polarity Interval age; a southern hemisphere paleolatitude of 15° for the sampling area is indicated. Another component has generally lower unblocking temperatures which, however, can extend up to 650°C or more and therefore is also likely to be carried by hematite. This secondary magnetization (D = 170.6°, I = −5.3°, a95 = 5.0°) isolated in 25 sites is of uniform reverse polarity, and application of fold tests suggests that it is of synfolding origin; a near‐equatorial paleolatitude (3°N) at the time of acquisition is obtained, consistent with Permo‐Carboniferous Kiaman directions from North America. Incomplete removal of the secondary component can explain the previous results from the Mauch Chunk. Comparison of the present paleomagnetic results with those from similar age rocks in the Canadian Maritimes does not support a latitudinal offset of Acadia with respect to interior North America in the Early Carboniferous. In fact, according to these and other paleomagnetic data thought to be representative of this age, the Atlantic‐bordering continents already were near to a Pangea configuration. The Alleghanian and particularly the Hercynian orogenies therefore may not be associated with the closure of a large (latitudinal) ocean later in the Carboniferous and Permian. Alleghanian deformation, however may have resulted in the partial bending of the Pennsylvanian salient on the basis of apparently systematic deviations in paleomagnetic declinations.

Paleomagnetic results from the Mauch Chunk Formation: A test of the origin of curvature in the Folded Appalachians of Pennsylvania

Specimens of red siltstone were collected at twenty-five sites in the Upper Mississippian Mauch Chunk formation of Pennsylvania. The sites were so distributed as to test whether the curve in the folded Appalachians was formed after the magnetization of the beds or whether the orginal geosyncline in Mississippian time was curved in plan. All specimens were partially demagnetized to isolate the stable component. When the beds are rotated back into a horizontal position, the stable components show a decrease in the scatter between the sites, indicating that the direction of magnetization was acquired before the folding of the Appalachians. The directions of demagnetization were found to be the same around the curve of the Appalachians, apparently ruling out their horizontal rotation after the acquisition of their stable magnetization. The pole position calculated from the Mauch Chunk is at 43°N, 127°E with a Δp = 3.1, Δm = 6.3. This pole position is in general agreement with other late Paleozoic poles.