Whitemud Formation

Whitemud Formation
Stratigraphic range: Maastrichtian
TypeGeological formation
Unit ofEdmonton Group
UnderliesFrenchman Formation and Battle Formation
OverliesEastend Formation, Horseshoe Canyon Formation and St. Mary River Formation
ThicknessUp to 23 metres (75 ft)
Lithology
PrimarySandstone, siltstone, clay
Othershale, lignite
Location
Region Saskatchewan  Alberta
Country Canada
Type section
Named byN.B. Davis, 1918[1]

The Whitemud Formation is a geologic formation of Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) age in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin.[2] it is present through the plains of southern Saskatchewan, southeastern Alberta and south-central Alberta.[3] Named by N.B. Davis in 1918,[1] the formation is characterized by white kaolinitic clay and is a source of high-quality refractory clay.[1][4][5] The type locality has been designated as Dempster's clay pit northwest of Eastend, Saskatchewan.[6]

Although fossils are generally lacking in the Whitemud Formation, in southern Saskatchewan the Whitemud contains coprolites (fossilized feces) and fossilized intestines of fish.[7]

  1. ^ a b c Davis, N.B., 1918. Report on the clay resources of southern Saskatchewan. Canada Department of Mines, Report 468, p. 9.
  2. ^ Mossop, G.D. and Shetsen, I. (compilers), Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists (1994). "The Geological Atlas of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin, Chapter 24: Upper Cretaceous and Tertiary strata of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin". Retrieved 2016-06-20.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ Prior, G. J., Hathaway, B., Glombick, P.M., Pana, D.I., Banks, C.J., Hay, D.C., Schneider, C.L., Grobe, M., Elgr, R., and Weiss, J.A. (2013). "Bedrock Geology of Alberta. Alberta Geological Survey, Map 600". Retrieved 2016-06-20.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Lindoe was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Lerbekmo, J.F. 1985. Magnetostratigraphic and biostratigraphic correlations of Maastrichtian to early Paleocene strata between south-central Alberta and southwestern Saskatchewan. Bulletin of Canadian Petroleum Geology, vol. 33, no. 2, p. 213-266.
  6. ^ Kupsch, W.O. 1956. The Frenchman Formation of the eastern Cypress Hills, Saskatchewan. Geological Society of America Bulletin, vol. 6a, p. 413-420.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Broughton was invoked but never defined (see the help page).