Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
www.elsevier.nl/locate/palaeo
Late Palaeozoic evolution of the North Atlantic
margin of Pangea
Lars Stemmerik
Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, Thoravej 8, DK-2400 Copenhagen NV, Denmark
Abstract
Eleven palaeogeographic maps, spanning the earliest Carboniferous ( Tournaisian) to Late Permian ( Kazanian),
have been constructed for the northern North Atlantic, based on available onshore and offshore data. Each
palaeogeographic map corresponds to an epoch (i.e., 4–17 Ma); there are no reconstructions of the Serpukhovian
and Tatarian, and the Kungurian–Ufimian are treated as one. The palaeogeographic reconstructions outline a change
in the overall depositional environment of the Barents Sea–North Greenland area from huge humid flood plains in
the Early Carboniferous, over shallow warm seas in the mid-Carboniferous to mid-Permian, to cooler and possibly
deeper marine environments in the Late Permian. In East Greenland, non-marine conditions occurred during the
entire Carboniferous, and following a prolonged, early Permian hiatus, warm-water carbonates were deposited during
the Late Permian. The changes reflect large-scale shifts in palaeoclimatic and subsidence patterns related to the
northward drift of the area and ongoing rifting in the region. © 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction
The well-exposed Upper Palaeozoic sedimentary successions along the eastern and northern margins of Greenland and on Spitsbergen and
Bjørnøya allow detailed examination of the sedimentary response to changes in palaeoclimate and
basin-forming processes in the northern North
Atlantic following the Caledonian and Franklinian
orogenies. The overall palaeogeography of the
North Atlantic margin of Pangea changed during
Carboniferous and Permian times as the results of
northward drift of the Pangea supercontinent and
ongoing rifting in the region. The Barents Sea
region thus moved, as part of the European plate,
from a late Carboniferous position of approximately 25 to 50°N in the late Permian (Scotese
and McKerrow, 1990). This latitudinal shift in
position clearly affected the depositional conditions and is particularly well expressed in an abrupt
regional shift from Carboniferous and earliest
Permian warm-water carbonate sedimentation to
Artinskian and younger Permian cool-water carbonate deposition in North Greenland and the
western Barents Sea (Stemmerik, 1997). As a result
of petroleum exploration in the Barents Sea and
new mapping of the Wandel Sea Basin in eastern
North Greenland, considerable new biostratigraphical and sedimentological data were extracted
from these areas over the last 10 years. These data
form the basis of a more detailed understanding
of this vast depositional area through time
(Stemmerik and Worsley, 1989, 1995; Gerard and
Buhrig, 1990; Nakrem, 1991; Stemmerik and
Håkansson, 1991; Stemmerik et al., 1991b, 1994,
1995; Johannesen and Steel, 1992; Cecchi, 1993;
Nilsson, 1993, 1994; Mangerud, 1994; Stemmerik
and Elvebakk, 1994; Bugge et al., 1995; Håkansson
and Stemmerik, 1995; Lønøy, 1995; Stemmerik,
1995, 1996a,b, 1997; Pickard et al., 1996;
0031-0182/00/$ - see front matter © 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
PII: S0 0 3 1 -0 1 8 2 ( 0 0 ) 0 0 11 9 - X
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L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
Ehrenberg et al., 1998; Gudlaugsson et al., 1998;
Vigran et al., 1999; Worsley et al., 2000).
The Carboniferous and Permian palaeogeography of the North Atlantic margin of Pangea is
reconstructed here, based on published and unpublished data from Spitsbergen, Bjørnøya, North and
East Greenland and with additional information
from IKU Shallow Cores on the Finnmark
Platform, deep exploration wells, and seismic data
(Piasecki, 1984; Steel and Worsley, 1984; Nilsson,
1988, 1993, 1994; Simonsen, 1988; Rasmussen
et al., 1990; Mangerud and Konieczny, 1991;
Nakrem, 1991; Nilsson et al., 1991; Stemmerik
and Håkansson, 1991; Stemmerik et al., 1991b,
1993, 1995, 1996; Nakrem et al., 1992; Mangerud
and Konieczny, 1993; Mangerud, 1994; Vigran,
1994; Stemmerik, 1995; Bugge et al., 1995;
Håkansson and Stemmerik, 1995; Stemmerik and
Worsley, 1995; Utting and Piasecki, 1995; Vigran
et al., 1999). The reconstructions are presented in
11 palaeogeographic maps, each corresponding to
an epoch (i.e., 4–17 Ma); there are no reconstructions of the Serpukhovian and Tatarian, and the
Kungurian–Ufimian are treated as one. The
biostratigraphic resolution of the outcrops in
Greenland, Spitsbergen and Bjørnøya and in the
IKU Shallow Cores allows for reconstruction on
an even finer scale than that presented here,
whereas the stratigraphy of the deeply buried
offshore areas is less certain with a resolution
roughly corresponding to that of the maps. The
palaeogeographic reconstructions outline a change
in the overall depositional environment of the
Barents Sea from huge humid flood plains in the
early Carboniferous, over shallow warm seas in
the mid-Carboniferous to mid-Permian, to cooler
and possibly deeper marine environments in the
late Permian. These changes reflect large-scale
shifts in the palaeoclimate and subsidence patterns
related to the northward drift of the area and
ongoing rifting in the region (Stemmerik and
Worsley, 1995).
The palaeogeographic reconstructions provide
the first step towards a better understanding of the
climatic control on Late Palaeozoic sedimentation.
Superimposed on the long-term depositional patterns are semi-regional and local changes related
to tectonically controlled shifts in circulation pat-
terns and drainage area. Firm correlation of these
events is often possible within the present biostratigraphic resolution. Even higher frequency shifts in
deposition are related to sea-level fluctuations triggered by glaciations on the southern hemisphere.
They are particularly well documented in the midCarboniferous to mid-Permian succession, but are
of a duration below biostratigraphic resolution
and can only be correlated in general terms
(Stemmerik and Worsley, 1995).
The application of sedimentary facies analysis,
to understand past climate, is best documented by
the Kazanian (Late Permian) palaeogeographic
map that shows marked regional changes in depositional facies, from cool-water carbonates in the
North Greenland area to warm-water carbonates
in East Greenland (Stemmerik, 1997).
2. Regional geology
The North Greenland–Barents Sea region
formed a complex, rift-related system of rapidly
subsiding basins and more stable platforms during
the late Palaeozoic ( Fig. 1; Stemmerik, 1995;
Stemmerik and Worsley, 1995). The limits of this
depositional area are well defined in Greenland
where the Harder Fjord, Trolle Land and East
Greenland fault zones separated the depositional
areas from the stable Greenland shield, whereas it
is less well defined along the Norwegian coastline
( Fig. 1; Håkansson and Stemmerik, 1989;
Stemmerik and Håkansson, 1991; Stemmerik et al.,
1996). The initiation of the Atlantic rift system
between Greenland and Norway extending eastwards through the Nordkapp basin in the Barents
Sea, and the Arctic rift systems that extended
westwards between North Greenland and
Spitsbergen to the Sverdrup Basin, took place
during the latest Devonian and earliest
Carboniferous (Stemmerik et al., 1991b).
Important late Palaeozoic rift phases occurred
during the mid-Carboniferous (Bashkirian) and
mid- to late Permian (Artinskian–Kazanian)
(Stemmerik et al., 1991b; Stemmerik, 1995;
Stemmerik and Worsley, 1995). This latest
Devonian to Early Carboniferous ( Tournaisian–
Visean) rift pulse is characterized by non-marine
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
Fig. 1. Pre-drift reconstruction of the northern margin of Pangea. Modified from Stemmerik (1997).
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sedimentation in narrow, isolated half-grabens. It
is well documented in East Greenland, Spitsbergen
and Bjørnøya where sedimentation started during
the latest Devonian and in eastern North
Greenland where sedimentation began during the
Visean (Håkansson and Stemmerik, 1984; Steel
and Worsley, 1984; Stemmerik et al., 1991b; Vigran
et al., 1999).
Serpukhovian to mid-Bashkirian deposits are
missing in Greenland and in most other areas in
the northern north Atlantic and western Barents
Sea. On the Finnmark Platform, floodplain
sedimentation continued into the earliest
Serpukhovian (Bugge et al., 1995). Also, palynomorphs of earliest Serpukhovian age have been
reworked into younger Carboniferous deposits in
East Greenland (Stemmerik et al., 1991b). This
suggests that basin subsidence and sedimentation
stopped during the earliest Serpukhovian and that
uplift and erosion took place during the midSerpukhovian to mid-Bashkirian. The extent of
the mid-Carboniferous hiatus implies that it was
caused by a regional uplift involving the East
Greenland margin as well as Spitsbergen, Bjørnøya
and the western Barents Sea. In eastern North
Greenland, this event was associated with faulting
of the Visean succession, possibly in a transpressional tectonic regime (Håkansson et al., 1981).
The mid-Serpukhovian to mid-Bashkirian
regional uplift was followed by renewed rifting
and basin subsidence during the mid- to late
Bashkirian. The Late Carboniferous rift pulse is
widely recognized throughout the northern North
Atlantic and western Barents Sea where it involved
both rejuvenation of older basins and formation
of new half-graben systems (Steel and Worsley,
1984; Stemmerik et al., 1991b). Main rifting took
place during the late Bashkirian and early
Moscovian, where locally, up to 3000 m of sediments were deposited. This was followed by
regional subsidence and decreasing rates of sedimentation during the late Moscovian to Gzelian.
During the Late Carboniferous rift pulse, the
sedimentary basins in North Greenland, on the
northern part of the East Greenland shelf and in
the Barents Sea area became connected with the
ocean, and most basins are filled with marginal
marine to shallow shelf deposits. Only in the
central parts of the rift systems does subsidence
outpace sedimentation; deep mainly halite-filled
basins formed. The sedimentary basins of East
Greenland remained non-marine also during the
Late Carboniferous.
The East Greenland and North Greenland margins and structural highs like the Loppa High and
the Stappen High in the western Barents Sea were
uplifted during the early Permian, and Lower
Permian sediments are missing or very condensed.
A new episode of rifting and basin subsidence
started in the Artinskian. This late Early Permian
tectonic event is well documented only in the
offshore areas of the Barents Sea. It is followed
by a widely recognized mid- to late Permian event
in the northern North Atlantic and western Barents
Sea. This tectonic event is in most areas recognized
as a rejuvenation of older lineaments. It connected
the sedimentary basins in central East Greenland
with the boreal ocean of the present day Arctic,
and, for the first time since the Silurian, marine
deposition took place in East Greenland and offshore mid-Norway. The mid-Permian rifting
eventually connected the Zechstein basin of northern Europe with the boreal ocean (Stemmerik,
1995).
The Carboniferous–Permian succession in the
western Barents Sea and the onshore areas of
North Greenland, Spitsbergen and Bjørnøya consists of four, low-order depositional sequences
( Fig. 2). Three of these sequences are also present
in the East Greenland basin further to the south.
The second-order sequences have a duration of 8–
50 Ma. Their boundaries record regional changes
in relative sea-level, palaeohydrographic conditions and palaeoclimate, and they are most likely
linked to the most important of the tectonic events
in the North Atlantic and Arctic rift systems,
described above (Stemmerik and Worsley, 1995).
Non-marine deposits dominate the uppermost
Devonian–lowermost Serphukovian sequence.
Marine sediments are limited to the Finnmark
Platform where shallow marine deposition took
place during a brief interval in the Visean. The
lower sequence boundary is a first-order tectonic
unconformity that separates the sediments from
Caledonian and Ellesmerian affected rocks.
Sedimentation took place in isolated half-grabens,
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
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Fig. 2. Time distribution of second-order depositional sequences in the North Greenland–Barents Sea–East Greenland area.
and this depositional sequence exhibits great lateral
facies variations.
The mid-Carboniferous to mid-Permian
sequence was deposited in a warm and arid climate
during a period with high-frequency and highamplitude glacioeustatic sea-level fluctuations
(Stemmerik and Worsley, 1989; Stemmerik et al.,
1995, 1996; Stemmerik, 1996). Sedimentation was
dominated by deposition of warm-water carbonates, evaporites and locally siliciclastic deposits
(Håkansson and Stemmerik, 1984; Steel and
Worsley, 1984). The lower sequence boundary is
an erosional and, in some cases, tectonic unconformity that separates Visean and older rocks from
upper Bashkirian and younger sediments. The
boundary is of tectonic origin and records an
episode of regional uplift and erosion in the northern North Atlantic and Barents Sea during the
mid-Carboniferous. Likewise, in the northern part
of the region, there is a marked climatic shift
across the boundary from generally humid to more
arid climatic conditions. Initial deposition took
place in isolated half grabens. Later, as the sea
gradually transgressed the region, sediments
onlapped structural highs and the marginal parts
of the basin. The Bashkirian to Moscovian
( Kasimovian) part of the sequence thus displays
great lateral variations in thickness. Structural
highs and platform areas were sites of shallow
marine carbonate sedimentation with abundant
phylloid algae—Palaeoaplysina—and bryozoan
build-ups. The main grain producers are foramini-
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fers and calcareous algae, and the carbonate mud
was most likely composed of aragonite. Evaporites
are widespread both in the deeper basinal areas
and in peritidal settings. The upper sequence
boundary is an erosional unconformity along the
basin margins and on structural highs. Elsewhere,
it is a conform, slightly erosive surface that coincides with a pronounced shift in depositional facies
reflecting a climatic shift towards more temperate
and possibly humid climatic conditions.
The Artinskian–early Kungurian sequence is
only present in the North Greenland–Barents Sea
area, where it is separated from the underlying
sequence by an erosional unconformity with evidence of subaerial exposure in most areas. The
hiatus separating the two sequences spans much
of the Early Permian time interval in the onshore
areas of North Greenland and Svalbard, whereas
it is of very short duration in more basinal settings
(Fig. 2). The boundary coincides with a shift from
warm tropical carbonates to cool-water carbonates
and from high-frequency, high-amplitude sea-level
fluctuations to low-frequency, low-amplitude fluctuations. Deposition of the Artinskian–early
Kungurian sequence took place during an overall
rise in relative sea-level that gradually led to flooding of the margins of the basins. Thick aggradational to slightly retrogradational successions of
bryozoan-dominated cementstones and crinoiddominated packstones and grainstones dominate
the lower part of this sequence in the offshore
areas. The upper part is composed of brachiopodand bryozoan-dominated shelf facies in North
Greenland and on Bjørnøya, and of shales and
chert in more basinal settings on Spitsbergen.
In the northern part of the region, the latest
Kungurian–Kazanian sequence is separated from
the underlying sediments by a subaerial exposure
surface in the platform areas (Stemmerik et al.,
1996; Ehrenberg et al., 1998). Development of the
exposure surface was followed by a very rapid rise
in relative sea-level that outpaced sedimentation,
and in most areas, deep-water spiculites and shales
rest directly on the sequence boundary. The sealevel rise was most likely caused by a combination
of increased rates of tectonic subsidence and
eustatic rise in sea-level. In North Greenland, this
sequence is divided into two distinctive, 80–100 m
thick transgressive–regressive units, each composed of a transgressive succession of black shales
and spiculites and a thick regressive succession of
bryozoan-dominated rudstone or biogenic floatstone. A similar twofold division is seen in the
deep water, shale and spiculite dominated successions in the offshore areas. In East Greenland, the
base of the sequence is a first-order sequence
boundary. Sediments belonging to the Foldvik
Creek Group unconformably overlie Carboniferous and older rocks. The sequence consists of
at least five third-order depositional sequences, the
lower four of which are dominated by warm-water
carbonates and evaporites along the basin margins.
In the deeper parts of the basin, fine-grained
siliciclastic sediments dominate.
3. Upper Palaeozoic biostratigraphy
Many fossil groups, including fusulinids, conodonts, small foraminifers, ammonoids and palynomorphs, have been used for dating of the Upper
Palaeozoic successions in Greenland, Svalbard,
Bjørnøya and the offshore areas of the Barents
Sea (Dunbar et al., 1962; Cutbill and Challinor,
1965; Piasecki, 1984; Simonsen, 1988; Mangerud
and Konieczny, 1991; Nakrem, 1991; Nilsson et al.,
1991; Stemmerik and Piasecki, 1991; Stemmerik
et al., 1991b, 1995, 1996; Nakrem et al., 1992;
Nilsson, 1993, 1994; Mangerud, 1994; Vigran,
1994; Utting and Piasecki, 1995; Vigran et al.,
1999). Problems arise when zonations based on
different fossil groups have to be correlated. In the
present case, it is most obviously a problem in the
Upper Carboniferous part of the succession, where
non-marine sediments of central East Greenland
have to be correlated with the marine deposits
further to the north. In the post-Artinskian part
of the succession, biostratigraphic resolution is
generally poor, and dating is based on many
different fossil groups.
In this paper, the West European miospore
zonation of Clayton et al. (1977) has been used
for correlation of the Lower Carboniferous rocks
as they are all dated by local palynological assemblages. Palynomorphs have also been used to date
the Upper Carboniferous continental deposits in
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
East Greenland. During latest Devonian and
Carboniferous times, climatic zones were wide,
and the palynological zones recorded from the
region are easy to correlate to the West European
miospore zones. Clayton et al. (1977) have divided
the Tournaisian–Bashkirian into 18 miospore
zones (Fig. 3). This means that each zone on
average represents a time span of approximately
3 Ma. Correlation to the European standard zonation starts to be more difficult for the midCarboniferous as bisaccate pollen apparently
developed earlier in the Arctic than it did in
Europe. Accordingly, dating and correlation of
the continental Upper Carboniferous deposits in
East Greenland are less certain ( Vigran et al.,
1999).
The Russian fusulinid-based standard zonation
has been used for correlation of the midCarboniferous to Lower Permian successions.
Fusulinids have been used to date the midCarboniferous to Artinskian successions on the
Finnmark Platform, Spitsbergen, Bjørnøya and
North Greenland (Dunbar et al., 1962; Cutbill
and Challinor, 1965; Nilsson, 1988, 1993, 1994;
Simonsen, 1988; Nilsson et al., 1991; Stemmerik
et al., 1995, 1996). Fusulinids are benthic foraminifers, mainly found in the shallow carbonate platform areas, and therefore have some limits as
zonal fossils. The mid-Carboniferous to Early
Permian fusulinids recorded in the Arctic region
were parts of a distinctive northern faunal province
that was widely dispersed throughout the shelf
areas from the Sverdrup Basin in the west across
North Greenland and the Barents Sea to the
Timan–Pechora Basin and the Russian Platform.
The Russian standard zonation divides the
Bashkirian–Artinskian time interval into 25 fusulinid zones. The best stratigraphic resolution is
obtained in the Upper Carboniferous where individual zones are in the range of 1–3 Ma (average
2 Ma). Fusulinid zones correspond to time
intervals between 2 and 4 Ma (average 3 Ma) in
the Lower Permian.
Conodonts, small foraminifers and palynomorphs have been used to date Artinskian and
younger sediments in Svalbard, North Greenland
and East Greenland (Rasmussen et al., 1990;
Nakrem, 1991; Stemmerik et al., 1996). In
101
Svalbard and North Greenland, the occurrence of
the conodont, Neostreptognathodus pequopensis, is
used to define the uppermost Artinskian. This
species co-occurs with the fusulinid, Schwargerina
jenkinsison, on Bjørnøya and confirms a late
Artinskian age for this fusulinid zone. The presence
of Neogondolella idahoensis in the Kapp Starostin
Formation on Spitsbergen is used as an indicator
for a late Kungurian to Ufimian age (Nakrem
et al., 1992). In East Greenland, the Ravnefjeld
Formation contains a conodont fauna dominated
by Neogondolella rozenkranzii. This species indicates a late Kazanian age, and the fauna is clearly
younger than that recorded from Svalbard. The
palynologically based stratigraphy has much
broader zones than in the Carboniferous miospore
zonation due to pronounced Late Permian flora
provincialism, and only two assemblages have been
identified (Piasecki, 1984; Mangerud and
Konieczny, 1991, 1993; Mangerud, 1994; Utting
and Piasecki, 1995; Stemmerik et al., 1996).
4. Correlation and palaeogeographic
reconstructions
The palaeogeographic reconstructions of the
North Atlantic margin of Pangea are based on a
correlation of major lithostratigraphic units in the
outcrop areas and offshore (Fig. 4), using the
biostratigraphic framework presented in Fig. 3.
The reconstructions are mainly based on sedimentological data from East and North Greenland,
Bjørnøya, Spitsbergen and the Finnmark Platform,
where there is good biostratigraphic control. The
reconstruction of the offshore areas is based on
less firmly dated information from deep wells and
seismic data.
4.1. Tournaisian (363–350 Ma)
The Tournaisian spans approximately 13 million
years (Harland et al., 1990). Sediments of this age
are known from East Greenland, Spitsbergen and
Bjørnøya. They are non-marine and dated by
palynomorphs. The oldest Tournaisian sediments
are included in the upper Røedvika Formation on
Bjørnøya and the basal Traill Ø Group in East
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L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
Fig. 3. Biostratigraphic zonations used for correlation of the Upper Palaeozoic sediments in the North Greenland–Barents Sea–East
Greenland area. Based on data in Dunbar et al. (1962), Cutbill and Challinor (1965), Clayton et al. (1977), Piasecki (1984), Nilsson
(1988, 1993, 1994), Simonsen (1988), Rasmussen et al. (1990), Nakrem (1991), Nilsson et al. (1991), Stemmerik et al. (1991b, 1995),
Nakrem et al. (1992), Mangerud (1994), Vigran (1994), Bugge et al. (1995), Utting and Piasecki (1995), Stemmerik et al. (1996),
and Vigran et al. (1999).
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
103
Fig. 4. Correlation of major lithostratigraphic units in the North Greenland–Barents Sea–East Greenland area. Based on data in
Dunbar et al. (1962), Cutbill and Challinor (1965), Clayton et al. (1977), Piasecki (1984), Surlyk et al. (1986), Nilsson (1988, 1993,
1994), Simonsen (1988), Rasmussen et al. (1990), Nakrem (1991), Nilsson et al. (1991), Stemmerik et al. (1991b, 1995, 1996),
Nakrem et al. (1992), Mangerud (1994), Vigran (1994), Bugge et al. (1995), Utting and Piasecki (1995), and Vigran et al. (1999).
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Fig. 5. Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Tournaisian showing overall depositional environments. For further details, see the text.
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
Greenland and belong to the LE and LN Miospore
Zones ( Fig. 4) ( Vigran, 1994; Vigran et al., 1999).
Upper Tournaisian sediments are more widespread
in the region. They include the lower Traill Ø
Group in East Greenland, the lower part of the
Nordkapp Formation on Bjørnøya and the lower
part of the Hoelbreen Member of the Hørbyebreen
Formation in Spitsbergen ( Vigran, 1994; Vigran
et al., 1999). These sediments belong to the VI,
BP, PC and CM Miospore Zones (Fig. 4).
Deposition took place in narrow isolated halfgrabens (Steel and Worsley, 1984; Stemmerik et al.,
1991b), and it is therefore likely that Tournaisian
sediments are also present in the deep offshore
basins along the central parts of the rift systems
(Fig. 5). In East Greenland, the Tournaisian succession consists of red braidplain sandstones and
red lacustrine siltstones in the basal part. These
sediments are overlain by a succession of cyclically
interbedded fluvial sandstones and coal-bearing
flood plain shales. On Bjørnøya, the succession
starts with interbedded fluvial sandstones and coal
bearing shales that pass upward into alluvial fan
conglomerates and sandstones with minor intercalated coaly shales. Similar sediments are recorded
from Spitsbergen, where alluvial fan deposits pass
laterally into coaly sediments deposited in swamps
and flood basins (Steel and Worsley, 1984).
The sedimentary record thus indicates that
during the Tournasian time, active sedimentation
along the north Atlantic margin of Pangea was
limited to isolated half-grabens, where non-marine
sediments were deposited in an overall warm and
humid climate. This is further supported by the
presence of kaolinite-bearing terrestrial sediments
in northern Kolguyev further to the east. The sea
was located to the east of the study area, and
shallow to deep marine carbonates and spiculites
were deposited in the Timan–Pechora Basin and
on Novaya Zemlya during this time interval.
4.2. Visean (350–333 Ma)
The Visean spans approximately 17 million
years (Harland et al., 1990). Sediments of Early
Visean age are restricted to East Greenland and
Spitsbergen, where fluvial deposits belonging to
the Pu Miospore Zone occur in the lower part of
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the Traill Ø Group and the middle part of the
Hoelbreen Member, respectively (Fig. 4). In contrast, Upper Visean sediments are widespread in
the area. Fluvial sediments belonging to the TC
and NM Miospore Zones occur in East and North
Greenland and on Spitsbergen ( Traill Ø Group,
upper Sortebakker Formation, uppermost
Hoelbreen Member and Svenbreen Formation).
Fluvial sediments, belonging to the NM-NC
Miospore Zones, are present in the upper
Nordkapp Formation on Bjørnøya, and fluvial to
shallow marine sediments of the TC, NM and VF
Miospore Zones have been recorded from IKU
Shallow wells from the Finnmark Platform (Fig. 4;
Bugge et al., 1995).
In East Greenland, the Visean succession is
composed of stacked fining-upward cycles of fluvial sandstones and coaly shales, and it is suggested
that deposition took place on a wide floodplain
( Fig. 6;Surlyk et al., 1986; Vigran et al., 1999).
Similar deposits are recorded from the Visean
Sortebakker Formation in eastern North
Greenland. On Bjørnøya, braided stream sandstones and conglomerates and interbedded coaly
shales form the Lower Visean part of the
Nordkapp Formation (Gjelberg, 1981). Also on
Spitsbergen, humid alluvial fan deposits and coal
bearing flood-plain deposits accumulated during
the Visean (Steel and Worsley, 1984). In the western part of the Finnmark Platform, a thick succession of stacked flood-plain sandstones and coalbearing shales accumulated during the Late Visean.
These deposits pass eastward into shallow marine
limestones, shales and sandstones of Late Visean
age in IKU Shallow Core 7129/03-U-01 from the
eastern Finnmark Platform. Marine Visean deposits also accumulated further to the east on
Kolguyev and Novaya Zemlya, and during the
Late Visean in the Timan–Pechora basin.
The sedimentary record thus indicates that,
during the Early Visean time, active sedimentation
along the north Atlantic margin of Pangea was
limited to isolated half-grabens where non-marine
sediments were deposited in an overall warm and
humid climate. The depositional area became
much larger during the Late Visean with deposition
on extensive flood plains that passed eastwards
into a shallow marine sea (Fig. 6).
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Fig. 6. Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Visean showing overall depositional environments. For further details, see the text.
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
4.3. Serpukhovian (333–323 Ma)
The Serpukhovian spans approximately 10 Ma
(Harland et al., 1990); it is regarded as equivalent
to the Namurian A in the European zonation, and
the correlation between the Russian and the
European zonation follows Harland et al. (1990)
(Fig. 3).
Lower Serpukhovian deposits are missing in
Greenland, Spitsbergen and Bjørnøya. They are
recorded from the Finnmark Platform where
continental deposits belonging to the NC and
TK Miospore Zones occur (Fig. 4). Upper
Serphukhovian deposits are missing in Greenland,
Bjørnøya and Spitsbergen. On the Finnmark
Platform, coastal plain deposits of mottled silty
shales with root structures, coaly beds and thin
fining-upwards sandstones were deposited (Bugge
et al., 1995). These sediments are of oldest
Serpukhovian age.
4.4. Bashkirian (323–311 Ma)
The Bashkirian spans approximately 12 Ma
(Harland et al., 1990) and correlates to the
Namurian B and C and the main part of the
Westphalian A in the European zonation according
to Harland et al. (1990). Following this correlation, the Namurian B and C correspond to the
lower Bashkirian, and the main part of the
Westphalian A corresponds to the upper
Bashkirian.
Lower Bashkirian deposits are not present in
Greenland, Spitsbergen and the Finnmark
Platform. The lower part of the Landnørdingsvika
Formation on Bjørnøya contains an early
Bashkirian palyno-assemblage ( Vigran, 1994).
Upper Bashkirian deposits are not known from
North Greenland and the Finnmark Platform. In
East Greenland, thick accumulations of fluvial and
alluvial sediments of the upper Traill Ø Group
contain a miospore assemblage that can be correlated to the latest Bashkirian RA Miospore Zone
( Vigran et al., 1999). Sediments of similar age also
occur in the lower part of the Ebbadalen
Formation on Spitsbergen ( Fig. 4). The upper part
of the Ebbadalen Formation, the upper part of the
Landnørdingsvika Formation and the lowermost
107
part of the Kapp Kåre Formation on Bjørnøya
contain an upper Bashkirian fusulinid fauna
(Cutbill and Challinor, 1965; Simonsen, 1988).
During the late Bashkirian, the sea transgressed
localized grabens on Spitsbergen, Bjørnøya and
elsewhere on the Barents Sea (Fig. 7). On
Spitsbergen, alluvial fan conglomerates accumulated along the margins of narrow rift basins
(Gjelberg and Steel, 1981; Steel and Worsley, 1984;
Johannesen and Steel, 1992). These conglomerates
pass laterally into sabkha anhydrite and shallow
shelf carbonates. Similar alluvial fan, coastal
plain and shallow shelf sediments occur in
the Landnørdingsvika Formation on Bjørnøya
(Gjelberg, 1981). In both areas, the sedimentary
succession records an overall transgression during
the Bashkirian, and cyclic shelf siliciclastics and
carbonates were deposited over large areas by the
end of the Bashkirian.
Further to the south, rift-associated continental
sediments were deposited in central East
Greenland where alluvial fan conglomerates pass
laterally into stacked successions of meandering
stream sandstones and coaly flood-plain shales
( Fig. 8). Lacustrine deposits are of minor importance (Christiansen et al., 1990; Piasecki et al.,
1990; Stemmerik et al., 1991a).
The sedimentary record implies that there was
a marked climatic shift from the Visean to the
Bashkirian in the northern part of the region. The
overall humid subtropical climate that characterized the Visean was replaced by an overall arid
climate with widespread deposition of evaporites.
Sediments in central East Greenland were more
likely deposited in a humid, subtropical climate,
implying a marked climatic zonation during the
late Bashkirian ( Fig. 7).
4.5. Moscovian (311–303 Ma)
The Moscovian spans approximately 8 Ma
( Harland et al., 1990) and correlates with the
uppermost part of Westphalian A and Westphalian
B, C and D following Harland et al. (1990). The
Moscovian is subdivided into four fusulinid zones
in the Russian zonation. Lower Moscovian strata
are missing in East Greenland and on the
Finnmark Platform. In North Greenland, the Kap
108
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Fig. 7. Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Bashkirian showing overall depositional environments. For further details, see the text.
Jungersen Formation is dated as early Moscovian,
based on fusulinids (Dunbar et al., 1962). The
Efuglvika Member of the Kapp Kåre Formation
on Bjørnøya contains a Profusulinella assemblage
of early Moscovian age (Simonsen, 1988;
Stemmerik et al., 1998), and the lowermost part
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
109
Fig. 8. Stacked Upper Bashkirian–lowermost Moscovian fluvial sandstones and shales (dark) of the Traill Ø Group, central East
Greenland. The cliff is approximately 600 m high.
of the Nordenskiöldbreen Formation on
Spitsbergen contains a Profusulinella assemblage
also of early Moscovian age (Cutbill and Challinor,
1965; Nilsson, 1988).
Upper Moscovian strata are missing in East
Greenland. In North Greenland, the Foldedal
Formation is of late Moscovian age, based on
fusulinids (Stemmerik and Håkansson, 1989;
Nilsson et al., 1991; Nilsson, 1994). The uppermost
Kapp Kåre and the lower Kapp Hanna
Formations on Bjørnøya contain fusulinids
belonging to the late Moscovian Fusulinella,
Wedekindellina and Fusulina zones (Simonsen,
1988; Stemmerik et al., 1998). On Spitsbergen, the
lower part of the Nordenskiöldbreen Formation
contains fusulinids belonging to the upper
Moscovian Wedekindellina zone (Cutbill and
Challinor, 1965; Nilsson, 1988).
During the early Moscovian, the transgression
reached part of North Greenland and the
Nordfjord High on Spitsbergen, and during the
late Moscovian, the Wandel Sea Basin of North
Greenland and the Finnmark Platform were transgressed, and the northern margin of Pangea formed
a huge shelf area (Fig. 9). The lower Moscovian
successions in the western Barents Sea and North
Greenland are dominated by interbedded shallow
marine siliciclastics and carbonates in the platform
areas and by evaporites in the deep basins. In
North Greenland, interbedded shallow water
carbonates and siliciclastics dominated in most
areas. Locally, bryozoan, phylloid algae and
Palaeoaplysina build-ups formed. Shallow subaqueous evaporites and sabkha type anhydrite are
restricted to the mid-Moscovian of Amdrup Land
in eastern part of North Greenland (Stemmerik,
1993, 1996). These sediments are most likely a
shallow-water equivalent to the thick halite and
anhydrite successions that accumulated in the
Nordkapp Basin and other deep basins during the
Moscovian. The same overall depositional conditions are recorded in the western part of the
Barents Sea and on Bjørnøya and Spitsbergen
(Lønøy, 1995; Pickard et al., 1996; Stemmerik
et al., 1998).
During the late Moscovian time, the siliciclastic
input gradually diminished in the western Barents
Sea and North Greenland, and stacked shallow
marine carbonates dominated in the platform
areas. On Spitsbergen, alluvial fan conglomerates
were deposited along the margins of fault blocks.
Elsewhere, normal marine to shallow restricted
marine and lagoonal warm-water carbonates accumulated (Pickard et al., 1996). Small bryozoan
110
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Fig. 9. Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Moscovian showing overall depositional environments. For further details, see the text.
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
build-ups have been recorded locally on
Spitsbergen (Lønøy, 1995; Pickard et al., 1996).
On the Finnmark Platform, the condensed
Moscovian succession is dominated by siliciclastic
sediments. Upward-fining sandstones of fan delta
origin were deposited in the southern part of the
platform (Bugge et al., 1995). Northwards, they
interdigitate with shallow shelf carbonates
( Ehrenberg et al., 1998). Further to the east, on
Kolguyev, shallow marine to supratidal carbonates
and evaporites were deposited, and comparable
sediments dominate in the Timan–Pechora basin.
The sedimentary record thus indicates that
deposition was limited to the northern part of the
region. Pangea, at this time, was fringed to the
north by a huge warm-water shelf dissected by
deeper water basins. The sediments were deposited
during an interval with high-frequency and highamplitude sea-level fluctuations, and there are several bodies of evidence in the sedimentary record
for widespread subaerial exposure of the inner
shelf areas. The halite, in the deeper basins, most
likely accumulated during sea-level lowstands,
when the basins were partly isolated.
4.6. Kasimovian (303–295 Ma)
The Kasimovian spans approximately 8 Ma,
according to Harland et al. (1990). It is divided
into three fusulinid zones in the Russian zonation.
Biostratigraphic data from North Greenland and
the Barents Sea are not good enough to allow such
detailed correlation, and the unit will be treated
as one.
Kasimovian sediments are missing in East
Greenland. On the Finnmark Platform, sediments
belonging to the upper Kasimovian–lower Gzelian
Rugosofusulina prisca zone unconformably overlie
older strata. The upper part of the Foldedal
Formation in North Greenland is of Kasimovian
age, based on fusulinids (Nilsson et al., 1991;
Nilsson, 1994). On Spitsbergen, Kasimovian
deposits comprise three fusulinid zones and are
included in the lower part of the Cadellfjellet and
Kapitol Members of the Nordenskiöldbreen
Formation (Nilsson, 1993).
In North Greenland, subsidence rates decreased
near the Moscovian–Kasimovian boundary, and
111
the Kasimovian succession is relatively thin.
Shallow-water carbonates with isolated tabular
phylloid algal mounds dominate (Fig. 10). They
pass basinwards into bioturbated deeper subtidal
carbonates, mainly wackestones (Stemmerik et al.,
1996). On Spitsbergen, normal marine to partially
restricted inner platform carbonates covered the
Nordfjorden Block and adjacent areas. On the
Finnmark Platform, upper Kasimovian shallow
shelf to shoreface siltstones and fine-grained sandstones were deposited towards the south (Bugge
et al., 1995). They pass northwards into cyclically
interbedded outer shelf to shoreface shale and
siltstone, occasionally capped by thin phylloid
algal buildups ( Ehrenberg et al., 1998). In the
Timan–Pechora basin, shallow shelf carbonates
continued to dominate.
The sedimentary record thus indicates an
absence of major changes in palaeogeography and
palaeoclimate from the Moscovian to the
Kasimovian. The gradual decrease in siliciclastic
supply to the shelf area, which started during the
Moscovian, continued into the Kasimovian with
Bjørnøya as the exception. Local tectonic uplift of
eastern Bjørnøya led to renewed siliciclastic sedimentation ( Worsley et al., in press).
4.7. Gzelian (295–290 Ma)
The Gzelian spans approximately 5 Ma, according to Harland et al. (1990). This stage is divided
into three or four fusulinid zones depending on
where the Gzelian–Asselian boundary is placed.
Here, the Sphaeroschwagerina fusiformis–S. vulgaris zone is regarded as representing the
lowermost Asselian.
Gzelian deposits are missing in East Greenland.
The oldest Gzelian is missing on Bjørnøya. The
top part of the Foldedal Formation in North
Greenland is of Gzelian age, based on the presence
of the Rauserites ex. gr. rossicus and Schellwienia
arctica zones. The lower part of the Kapp Duner
Formation on Bjørnøya is regarded as Gzelian in
age. In Spitsbergen, the upper part of the Kapitol
and Cadellfjellet Members and the lower
Tyrrellfjellet Member of the Nordenskiöldbreen
Formation contain four Gzelian fusulinid zones
(Nilsson, 1993). Gzelian sediments are also
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Fig. 10. Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Kasimovian showing overall depositional environments. For further details, see
the text.
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
113
recorded in the IKU Shallow Cores 7029/03-U-02
and 7030/03-U-01 from the Finnmark Platform.
Throughout
eastern
North
Greenland,
Spitsbergen and Bjørnøya, condensed sections of
shallow shelf carbonates were deposited (Fig. 11).
In central North Greenland, outer ramp shallowing-upwards cycles of bioturbated carbonate mudstones and phylloid algal/Palaeoaplysina build-ups
were deposited on the deeper parts of the shelf,
whereas the shallow marine, fusulinid-rich carbonates dominated in the near-shore areas. On
Bjørnøya, a NE–SW-trending Palaeoaplysina complex formed during late Gzelian times (Lønøy,
1988; Stemmerik et al., 1994), and on Spitsbergen
small isolated Palaeoaplysina build-ups occurred
on the Nordfjorden block during latest Gzelian
time (Skaug et al., 1982). They overlie a laterally
widespread, shallow subtidal to supratidal inner
shelf succession of mid-Gzelian age (Pickard et al.,
1996). Major changes in depositional environments are seen on the Finnmark Platform where
inner shelf to sabkha sediments with small isolated
Palaeoaplysina build-ups dominated in the southern part (Stemmerik et al., 1995). Comparable
changes are also recorded further offshore where
Kasimovian silt-dominated shelf deposits are overlain by shallow to deeper shelf carbonates with
abundant phylloid algal buildups (Ehrenberg et al.,
1998). Thick subaqueous anhydrite beds also occur
in the late Gzelian succession of the Finnmark
Platform, and most likely, halite and anhydrite
accumulated in the Nordkapp Basin during this
time interval. In the Timan–Pechora Basin, deposition of open marine platform carbonates
dominated.
The most important change in palaeogeography, from the Kasimovian to the Gzelian, is the
shift from siliciclastic-dominated sedimentation to
carbonate deposition on the Finnmark Platform
and on Bjørnøya ( Fig. 11). The depositional
record implies that a warm and arid climate continued to dominate the region also during the latest
Carboniferous.
Asselian strata are missing in East Greenland
and most of North Greenland. The upper part of
the Kapp Duner Formation on Bjørnøya contains
middle to upper Asselian fusulinids, and on
Spitsbergen, the middle part of the Tyrrellfjellet
Member of the Nordenskiöldbreen Formation is
of Asselian age (Nilsson, 1993). Asselian sediments
also occur in IKU Shallow cores 7129/10-U-02
and 7030/03-U-01 from the Finnmark Platform.
In North Greenland, Asselian shallow marine
shelf carbonates are limited to the northeastern
part of the basin. Elsewhere, the older platforms
were subaerially exposed during this time period
( Fig. 12). On Spitsbergen and Bjørnøya, shallow
shelf carbonates dominated. Palaeoaplysina-phylloid algae build-ups are restricted to the western
part of Bjørnøya and the central parts of
Spitsbergen (Fig. 12). This facies pattern extended
eastward along the southern margin of the
Finnmark Platform (Bugge et al., 1995; Stemmerik
et al., 1995). Further offshore, in the northern part
of the Finnmark Platform, inner shelf carbonates
with Palaeoaplysina buildups dominated during
the early Asselian. They pass upwards into
restricted marine, lagoonal to intertidal sediments
and, finally, late Asselian open marine inner shelf
deposits ( Ehrenberg et al., 1998). Anhydrite and
halite were deposited in the deeper basinal areas
like the Nordkapp Basin, and occasionally, thick
subaqueous anhydrite beds extend into the shallower parts of the platforms.
The most important change in palaeogeography, from the Gzelian to the Asselian, is the uplift
and exposure of the Greenland margin of the basin
( Fig. 12). The depositional record implies that the
warm and arid climate continued to dominate the
region also during the latest Carboniferous, and
that high-frequency and high-amplitude glacioeustatic sea-level oscillations still had a strong
influence on sedimentation.
4.8. Asselian (290–282 Ma)
The Sakmarian spans approximately 13 Ma
( Harland et al., 1990) and is subdivided into three
fusulinid zones in the Russian zonation.
Sakmarian strata are missing in East Greenland,
most of North Greenland and possibly Bjørnøya.
The Asselian spans approximately 8 Ma
(Harland et al., 1990). This stage is subdivided
into three fusulinid zones in the Russian zonation.
4.9. Sakmarian (282–269 Ma)
114
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
Fig. 11. Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Gzelian showing overall depositional environments. For further details, see the text.
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
115
Fig. 12. Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Asselian showing overall depositional environments. For further details, see the text.
116
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
On the Finnmark Platform, Sakmarian sediments
are recorded in IKU Shallow Core 7129/10-U-02.
Lower Sakmarian fusulinids have been recorded
from the upper part of the Nordenskiöldbreen
Formation (Nilsson, 1993). The overlying
Gipshuken Formation is poorly dated as late Early
Permian and is regarded here as Sakmarian in age.
In North Greenland, outer shelf limestones
accumulated in an isolated subbasin towards the
northeast (Nilsson et al., 1991; Stemmerik et al.,
1991b). Elsewhere in the Wandel Sea Basin, the
older carbonate platforms were subaerially
exposed during the Sakmarian. A similar rapid
drowning of the Asselian carbonate platforms
occurred along the Finnmark Platform, and during
the early to ?middle Sakmarian, this area was a
deep siliciclastic shelf (Fig. 13). During the later
Sakmarian, carbonate platform deposits started to
prograde, and the Finnmark Platform became an
open marine carbonate platform. The same transgressive–regressive pattern is seen on Spitsbergen,
where restricted marine carbonate deposits of late
Asselian age are overlain by open marine deeper
water carbonates of early to? mid-Sakmarian age
(Limestone B of Pickard et al., 1996, for example).
The Gipshuken Formation evaporites and
restricted marine, inner-shelf carbonates at
Spitsbergen represent deposition on a local, latest
Sakmarian high. These sediments are the youngest
sediments, indicative of a warm and arid climate
in the Barents Sea area.
The most important change in palaeogeography
from the Asselian to the Sakmarian is the rapid
deepening of the shelf areas and the uplift of
Spitsbergen, during the latest Sakmarian times.
The depositional record implies that the warm and
arid climate continued to dominate the region,
although the overall deepening of the shelf areas
led to colder conditions and local dominance of
bryozoans and crinoids.
4.10. Artinskian (269–260 Ma)
The Artinskian spans approximately 9 Ma
(Harland et al., 1990) and is subdivided into four
substages, of which the lower three contain
fusulinids.
Lower Artinskian strata are missing from East
Greenland, most of North Greenland, Bjørnøya,
Finnmark Platform and Spitsbergen. They are
widespread in the offshore areas of the Barents
Sea. Upper Artinskian strata are missing from
East Greenland. Fusulinids are rare in the later
part of the Artinskian in the Arctic, and in most
areas, the presence of upper Artinskian deposits is
documented by the occurrence of conodonts
belonging to the Neostreptognathodus pequopensis
Zone (Nakrem, 1991; Rasmussen and Håkansson,
1996). The lower part of the Kim Fjelde Formation
in North Greenland contains N. pequopensis and
is regarded as late Artinskian in age. N. pequopensis
occurs, associated with the fusulinid Schwagerina
jenkinsi in the upper part of the Hambergfjellet
Formation on Bjørnøya, suggesting a late
Artinskian age for this formation. S. jenkinsi also
occurs in IKU Shallow Cores from the Finnmark
Platform (Nilsson, 1993). The Vøringen Member
of the Kapp Starostin Formation also contains N.
pequopensis, and is regarded here as late Artinskian
in age.
In the Barents Sea, a new rapid transgression
took place during the earliest Artinskian, and the
sediments gradually onlapped structural highs and
the marginal parts of the basin during the
Artinskian ( Fig. 2). The transgression was associated with a shift in depositional conditions towards
cool-water carbonate deposition (Stemmerik,
1997). During the rise in sea-level, large bryozoandominated build-ups formed along the northern
margin of the Finnmark Platform, on the Loppa
High and elsewhere in the Barents Sea (Gerard
and Buhrig, 1990; Bruce and Toomey, 1993; Nilsen
et al., 1993). The maximum relative sea-level
occurred during the mid-Artinskian, and the later
part of the Artinskian is dominated by widespread
cool-water carbonate platforms throughout the
region (Fig. 14). These platforms are dominated
by bryozoan-crinoid grainstones in the outer shelf
areas of the Finnmark Platform, whereas brachiopod-dominated packstones were deposited in inner
shelf areas of North Greenland, Spitsbergen and
Bjørnøya (Stemmerik, 1997). In the Timan–
Pechora Basin, depositional pattern changed and
deeper water siliciclastic sediments were deposited
throughout the basin.
The palaeogeography changed very significantly
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
117
Fig. 13. Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Sakmarian showing overall depositional environments. For further details, see the text.
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L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
Fig. 14. Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Artinskian showing overall depositional environments. For further details, see the text.
from a relatively shallow warm-water platform in
the Sakmarian to a much deeper cool-water platform in the Artinskian. In the deep basinal area,
evaporite sedimentation was replaced by deepwater resedimented carbonates, shales and chert.
The Artinskian transgression reached North
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
Greenland during late Artinskian times, and over
large areas, deposition was resumed for the first
time since the latest Carboniferous. The change in
climate was associated with a shift in fauna from
foraminifer- and algally dominated to brachiopod,
bryozoan
and
locally
crinoid-dominated
(Stemmerik, 1997).
4.11. Kungurian–Ufimian (260–255 Ma)
The Kungurian spans approximately 4 Ma, and
the Ufimian spans 1 Ma (Harland et al., 1990).
The two stages correspond to the upper
Leonardian in the North American zonation and
the ?uppermost Rotliegendes to ?lowermost
Zechstein in the European zonation. Stratigraphic
resolution of this stratigraphic interval is relatively poor.
Kungurian deposits are included in the Kim
Fjelde Formation and, possibly, lower Midnatfjeld
Formation in North Greenland. In East
Greenland, sedimentation possibly started during
the Kungurian–Ufimian with deposition of the
Huledal Formation (Surlyk et al., 1986).
Kungurian–Ufimian deposits are dated on the
basis of palynomorphs assigned to the Dyupetalum
sp.–Hamiapollenites bullaeformis assemblage in
two IKU Shallow Cores from the Finnmark
Platform (Mangerud, 1994). The Miseryfjellet
Formation on Bjørnøya contains Neogondolella
idahoensis and is regarded as Kungurian–Ufimian
in age (Nakrem, 1991). The upper part of the
Kapp Starostin Formation (above the Vøringen
Member) contains relatively few fossils of stratigraphic significance. This part of the formation is
regarded as Kungurian–?Kazanian in age, based
on the occurrence of Neogondolella idahoensis in
the upper part of the formation.
Kungurian–Ufimian depositional patterns differ
significantly from those recorded in the Lower
Permian (Fig. 15). Marine sedimentation started
in East Greenland during this time interval, and
throughout the Barents Sea area, cool-water carbonates, spiculites and shales were deposited.
Inner-shelf brachiopod and bryozoan dominated
packstones were deposited locally on Spitsbergen,
Bjørnøya and along the margins of the Finnmark
Platform. Cool-water carbonate platforms formed
119
along the margins of the Wandel Sea Basin. They
are seen to pass basinwards into deeper water
shales and spiculitic chert (Stemmerik, 1997).
In the Timan–Pechora Basin, shallow marine
sandstones and marginal marine sabkha deposits
were deposited during the Kungurian. The area
became a vast coastal plain during the Ufimian,
and coastal sandstones and coal-bearing shales
were deposited.
The most important changes in palaeogeography from the Artinskian to the Kungurian–
Ufimian is the establishement of a marine connection southward, along the axis of the Greenland–
Norway rift to connect the East Greenland basin
with the Barents Sea region. The depositional areas
of the Barents Sea region became gradually deeper,
and deposition took place in a cooler, temperate
climate.
4.12. Kazanian (255–251 Ma)
The Kazanian spans approximately 4 Ma
( Harland et al., 1990) and corresponds to the
Wordian and lower Capitanian in the North
American zonation and the ?middle to upper
Zechstein in Europe. Stratigraphic resolution is
poor in this interval.
Kazanian deposits are missing on Bjørnøya. On
Spitsbergen, the uppermost part of the Kapp
Starostin Formation may be of Kazanian age. The
Midnatfjeld Formation in North Greenland is of
Kazanian age (Stemmerik et al., 1996), and
Kazanian sediments are also present in IKU
Shallow Cores from the Finnmark Platform, based
on the presence of a Scutasporites–Lunatisporites
assemblage (Mangerud, 1994). In East Greenland,
the Karstryggen, Wegener Halvø and Ravnefjeld
Formations are of Kazanian age, based on palynomorphs and conodonts (Piasecki, 1984; Rasmussen
et al., 1990).
In East Greenland, restricted marine carbonates
were deposited during the early Kazanian. Later
in the Kazanian, open marine carbonate platforms
with bryozoan build-ups (Fig. 17a) formed along
platform margins, and on structural highs, deeper
water anoxic shales were deposited in the basinal
centre (Fig. 16). Offshore mid-Norway, carbonates
of this age have been drilled on a structural high
120
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
Fig. 15. Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Kungurian–Ufimian showing overall depositional environments. For further details,
see the text.
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
121
Fig. 16. Palaeogeographic reconstruction of the Kazanian showing overall depositional environments. For further details, see the text.
122
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
(a)
(b)
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
(Nordland Ridge), and possibly, similar depositional patterns occurred there. In the Barents Sea
area and on the Finnmark Platform, deeper water
shales were deposited during the Kazanian. Along
the margins of North Greenland, cool-water platforms with a ramp-like profile developed. The
inner shelf sediments consist mainly of brachiopod
rudstones ( Fig. 17b) and coarse-grained siliciclastic deposits. These pass into outer platform bryozoan rudstones, where most bryozoans are delicate
fenestrate forms (Stemmerik, 1997). The outer
ramp sediments pass laterally into a deeper water
succession of siliciclastic-dominated shale and
spiculitic chert.
Towards the east, the Timan–Pechora Basin
was a huge fluvial plain that passed northwards
into coastal plain sandstones and shales of the
Pechora Shelf.
The most important change in palaeogeography
from the Kungurian–Ufimian to the Kazanian is
the deposition of warm-water carbonates in the
East Greenland basin. The sea way established
along the axis of the Greenland–Norway rift from
the Barents Sea and southwards to the East
Greenland basin extended further southwards to
the Zechstein basin of northern Europe, where
thick accumulations of halite are present. The
sediments in central East Greenland were more
likely deposited in a semi-arid, subtropical climate,
implying a marked climatic zonation from the
temperate areas in North Greenland and the
Barents Sea over East Greenland to the arid areas
of northern Europe (Stemmerik, 1995).
4.13. Tatarian (251–245 Ma)
The Tatarian spans approximately 6 Ma
(Harland et al., 1990) and corresponds to the
upper Capitanian and Ochoan in North America
and the Buntsandstein in Europe. The stratigraphic
resolution is extremely poor in this interval due to
problems in correlating the continental sediments
of the stratotype with the marine zonation.
123
Firmly dated Tatarian deposits are restricted to
the Schuchert Dal Formation in East Greenland,
which contains a transitional latest Permian to
earliest Triassic palynoflora (Piasecki, 1984; Utting
and Piasecki, 1995)
The Tatarian sediments in East Greenland are
dominated by shallow marine sandstones along
the basin margins and bioturbated siltstones in the
basin centre (Surlyk et al., 1986).
5. Palaeoclimatic evolution
The palaeogeographic reconstructions outline
the gross palaeoclimatic changes at the North
Atlantic margin of Pangea during the Late
Palaeozoic time. In the Barents Sea–North
Greenland area, there was a shift in palaeoclimate
from warm and humid in the Early Carboniferous
to warm and arid in the Late Carboniferous and
earliest Permian. There is a shift towards a cold
temperate climate in the mid- and Late Permian.
This pattern is somewhat paralleled by that seen
in East Greenland where the palaeoclimate was
warm and humid in the Carboniferous and generally warm and dry during the Late Permian.
The gross change in palaeoclimate at the northern margin of Pangea, from subtropical to temperate, can be linked to the northward drift of the
region during the Late Palaeozoic. The Barents
Sea was located around 25 N in the early
Carboniferous and around 50 N in the Late
Permian (Scotese and McKerrow, 1990). The
reconstructions can be used to locate the boundary
between the Late Carboniferous humid and arid
subtropical climatic belts in a ca. 200 km wide
zone between the present-day 74°30∞ and 76°30∞N
in East Greenland. This is between the northernmost humid flood plain sediments and the southernmost halite deposits on the adjacent shelf
( Figs. 7 and 9). Similarly, the Late Permian
boundary between areas with semi-arid, subtropical climate and humid temperate climate was
Fig. 17. Typical Upper Permian sediments. (a) Massive Kazanian bryozoan buildup ( WH ) passing into well-bedded flank deposits,
East Greenland. The exposure is approximately 80 m high. (b) Kungurian–Kazanian bryozoan-rich cool-water carbonates, Kim
Fjelde Formation, North Greenland. The scale is in centimetres.
124
L. Stemmerik / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 161 (2000) 95–126
located somewhere between 74°45∞ and 80°15∞N in
East Greenland. The repeated superposition of
mature karstic horizons on shallow marine evaporites in the Upper Permian carbonate platforms of
East Greenland led Scholle et al. (1993) to suggest
that this zone was forced southwards to at least
70°N several times during the Late Permian.
Acknowledgements
Much of the information in this paper was
compiled as part of IKU Petroleum Research’s
Arctic Correlation and Exploration Program
‘Upper Paleozoic geology in the Barents Sea and
adjacent areas’ supported financially by A/S
Norske Shell, Amerada Hess Norge A/S, Amoco
Norway Oil Co., Elf Petroleum Norge A/S, Esso
Norge a.s., Norsk Hydro a.s., Mobil Exploration
Norway Inc., Saga Petroleum a.s. and Statoil, and
managed by Atle Mørk, IKU Petroleum Research.
I would like to thank Inger Nilsson, Oslo, Jorunn
O. Vigran, Trondheim, and Stefan Piasecki,
Copenhagen, for numerous discussions on Upper
Palaeozoic biostratigraphy and correlation of the
Arctic successions. This paper forms a contribution
to the project ‘Resources of the sedimentary basins
of North and East Greenland’ supported by the
Danish Research Councils. Published with permission of the Geological Survey of Denmark and
Greenland.
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