Lower cretaceous calcareous nannofossil stratigraphy of the Great Valley Sequence, Sacramento Valley, California

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

13 Scopus citations

Abstract

The calcareous nannofossil stratigraphy of four sections in the Great Valley Sequence of the Sacramento Valley, California, has been investigated in detail. The ages of these sections, which have independently been studied by ammonite, pelecypod and radiolarian biostratigraphers, range from Berriasian to Albian. Nannofossil stratigraphy is more directly comparable to that of stratotype sequences in Europe than are the other fossil groups, but the ages given are generally similar. Two major discrepancies do exist, however. The results of this study indicate that the pelecypod, Buchia aff. B. okensis Zone is Berriasian in age, and not Tithonian as previously believed and that the B. pacifica Zone is partly Berriasian and not entirely Valanginian. Nannofossil data provide useful age calibrations for ammonite stratigraphy. The study illustrates that nannofossil biostratigraphy can be effectively used to date sediments deposited in convergent margin settings. One new species, Nannoconus paskentaensis, is described.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)101-123
Number of pages23
JournalCretaceous Research
Volume11
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 1990

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Palaeontology

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Lower cretaceous calcareous nannofossil stratigraphy of the Great Valley Sequence, Sacramento Valley, California'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this