Early Paleozoic
Periods of the Early Paleozoic
►
Cambrian: 570-505 mya
►
Ordovician: 505-438 mya
►
Silurian: 438-408 mya
Overview of Paleozoic
►
Broad Sequence of Events

Gradual Marine invasion of low continents
►
►

Epeiric seas retreated; instability occurred
►

Wide epeiric (shallow) seas; moderated climate
Wide shallow habitats for marine organisms
Thick sedimentary layers and Volcanic deposits
developed
Collisional Mountain ranges built
Plate Tectonic Events
►
►
Break-up of Rodinia
Oceanic closing and orogeny to
form Pangaea





Taconic orogeny
Acadia orogeny
Alleghenian orogeny
Caledonian Orogeny
Hercynian Orogeny
Clues to Paleogeography
►
►
Paleomagnetic evidence
Lithologic evidence
Limestone Shallow Sea
Equatorial Drying conditions
► Evaporites
► Lithic Sandstone and greywacke Mountain Building
Arid conditions-deserts
► Arkose
► Tillites
► Quartz sandstone
► Shales
►
Laurentia (N. America) and
Gondwanaland (first stage of Pangaea )
►
Gondwanaland
►
►
►
►
formed in southern hemisphere
consists of S. America, Africa, and other shields
Drifter south to polar position
Laurentia
►
►
Lay on equator
rotated counter clockwise
Continental framework
►
Stable interior
►
►
►
►
►
Arches
Synclines
Basins
Domes
Orogenic Belts
►
►
►
►
Cordilleran Mtn
Franklin Mtn
Appalachian Mtn
Caledonian mnt
Paleogeography of Laurentia
►
Equator: North-central Mexico to
Ellsmere Island, Canada
►
Vast epeiric Sea (30o Latitude; vast
carbonate deposits)
►
Vast lowlands of Canada Shield were
exposed (desert)
►
Volcanic Mnts: Texas and New England
Seaways
Appalachians (on east)
► Cordilleran (on west)
► Franklinian (on north)
► Caledonian (on northwest)
►

Extensive Sediment belts
Shales in seaways
► limestone in empieric seas
► Quartz sand on shoreline and deserts
►
Cratonic Sequence of
Paleozoic
►
Sauk Sequence: Late Proterozoic to early
Ordovician
►
Tippecanoe Sequence: Early Ordovician
to early Devonian
►
Kaskakia Sequence: Early Devonian to
end of Mississippian
►
Absaroka Sequence: Pennsylvanian to
Early Jurassic
Early Paleozoic History
Synopsis of Sauk Transgression
►

Canadian Shield eroded for 50 my prior to transgression

Gradual transgression covered shield

Transcontinental Arch (highlands) became island chain in
shallow epeiric sea

Transcontinental Arch: Ontario to Mexico, parallel to Cambrian
equator
As a Result:
►


Late Cambrian seas: MT to NY
Cordilleran deposits of Grand Canyon
►
►
►
Tapeat Sandstone (oldest)
Bright Angel Shale
Mauv Limestone (youngest)
Back to the Sauk Sequence
►
By the early Ordovician sea regresses and
deposition ends


Vast continental-scale uncomformity
Karst topography on carbonates rocks
Tippecanoe Sequence
► Massive
unconformity separates the
Tippecanoe from the Sauk Sequence
 Known for:
►
the “Super Mature” Sandstone, St. Peter Sandstone
 What could “Super Mature” mean?
►Carbonate
deposits contain abundant marine fauna
Fauna found in Tippecanoe
►
Shallow Marine limestones with vast fauna






Brachiopods
Bryozoans
Echinoderms
Mollusks
Corals
Algae
Close of the Tippecanoe
► Landlocked,
Lake region
reef-fringed basins develop in Great
Evaporite region
►
In some areas evaporites accumulated to 750 meters
 If this occurred due to evaporation of a single body of water,
the water would have to have been ~1000 kilometers deep
Barred Basin
Cordilleran Region History
 Sauk Interval
►
Passive Margin on opening ocean; deep marine basin on west
►
Western ocean opened; block rotated out; included Siberian
region of Asian continent
►
Arms of rift filled with thick sediments




Belt supergroup (MT, ID, BC)
Uinta Series (UT)
Pahrump Series (CA)
Canadian Rockies (BC, Alberta)
Tippecanoe Interval
►
Conversion to active margin with subduction (Wilson Cycle)
►
Volcanic Chain formed along western trench
►
Trench deposits; greywacke and volcanics
►
Western ocean deposits: Siliceous black shales and bedded cherts
with graptolites (graptolite facies)
►
East of subduction zone: shelly facies- deposited in back arch basins
(fossiliferous carbonates)
Appalachian History
Appalachian Trough: Deformed three times
during Paleozoic
►

Subdivisions of trough:
►
►

Eastern sediment belt: greywacke, volcanic siliceous shale
Western sediment belt: Shale, sandstone, limestone
Physiographic region of today
►
Eastern belt: Blue Ridge and Piedmont
►
Western Belt: Valley and Ridge and Plateau
Sauk Interval
Trough was a passive margin on opening ocean
►


Shelf sediments: sandstone and limestone
Oceanic sediments: shales
►
Transgression spread deposits westward across craton;
thick carbonates formed on subsiding shelf
►
Abrupt end with onset of subduction and ocean closure
during Middle Ordovician
Tippecanoe Interval
►
Carbonate sedimentation ceased; platform downwarped by
subduction
►
Thick graptolite black shale and shoreline immature sands spread
west
►
Volcanic flows and pyroclastic beds formed when volcanoes emerged
on coast

Rapid closing of eastern ocean (Iapetus); coastal and volcanic
arc developed
►
Millerburg Volcanic ash bed formed (454 my; 1-2 m thick)
Taconic Orogeny
►
Appalachian Mountains built in collision
with part of western Europe
►
Compression folded shelf sediments into
mnt and Logan’s Thrust formed (48 km
displacement)
Taconic Orogeny
►
Giant granitic
batholiths produced by
Taconic melting

Taconic Mountains
weathered to form vast
sandstones of PA, WY,
OH, and NY
►
Great clastic
wedges spread
westward (age
tracts
deformation)
Climates
►
Transgressions= Mild Climates, windswept
low terrains
►
Regressions and Orogenic Episodes=
Harsher more diverse climates; winds
diverted by mountains
►
Earth Rotation was faster (shorter days,
greater tidal effects)
Climate
►
No land Plants


Solar Radiation reflected, not absorbed
Sever temperature differences resulting
►
End of Late Proterozoic Glacial Cycle: Cool beginning
for Early Paleozoic
►
Melting Polar Caps= Rising sea levels and warming
►
Equitorial Position= tropical climates for
Laurentia, Baltica, and Antarctica
►
No Ice caps= warm polar seas
Climate
►
Cross Bedding in Desert Sand Deposits
 Shows wind blew NE to SW across eastern
Ordovician
►
Sea Levels and Biotic Extinctions
 African Glaciation lowered sea levels and
cooled global temperatures
 End-Ordovician extinctions in many
families
Bryozoans
► Tabulate corals
► Brachiopods
► Sponges
► Nautiloid cephalopods
► Crinoids
►
Silurian Climate
►
Temperature Zonation


Glacial deposits above
65o latitude
Reefs, evaporates,
eolian sands below
40o latitude
Late Paleozoic
► Devonian
(480-360 m.y.a.)
► Mississippian (360-320 m.y.a.)
► Pennsylvanian (320-286 m.y.a.)
► Permian (286-245 m.y.a.)
Pangea
►
During Silurian Iapetus sea closes - joins Baltica
and Lauretia (Caledonian Orogeny)
►
Devonian-Orogeny continues to south forming
Laurussia
►
Pennsylvanian collision joins Gondwanna Land and
Laurussia (Hercynian in Europe, the Alleghenian in
N. America
►
By the Late Permian Pangea is complete
Forming Pangea
Pennsylvannian
Silurian
Mississippian
Devonian
Permian
Kaskaskia Sequence
► Oriskany
sandstone- initial transgression
► Devonian
Clastics- material shed off rising
Appalachians
► Upper
Devonian-Mississippian
 Massive marine deposits
► Late
Mississippian- Regression
 Widespread erosion and development of Karst
topography
Absaroka Sequence
► Yet
another transgression
► Unique cyclical sediments
 Cyclothems
► Shale
► Limestone
► Shale
► Limestone
► Coal
► Caused
by either eustatic rise in sea level (Glacial
melting) or by subsidence.
Climate
► Zonation
paralled latitude
 Warm to hot within 40o of equator
► Reduced
CO2 in late Paleozoic causes
cooling and then late Paleozoic Ice Age
Mineral Deposits
► Fossil
Fuels
 Coal
►Present
in all post Devonian rocks
► Limestone-
used to produce cement’
► Silica- glass production
► Silver, gold- mountain building events