Stratigraphic and sedimentological characterization of the Sardinero Formation (Late Cretaceous) in Costa Quebrada (Cantabria, Northern Spain)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55407/rsge.115620Keywords:
Basque-Cantabrian Basin, calcisphers, hemipelagic, sedimentary truncation, Costa QuebradaAbstract
The Sardinero Formation (Turonian–Campanian), comprising limestone–marl alternations, has been analyzed in five stratigraphic sections along the Costa Quebrada (Northern Cantabrian Basin), where it reachs a thickness of ~450 m. This study presents a sedimentological characterization and interpretation of the main facies types and facies associations. The formation records the reinundation and reactivation of sedimentation in the northwestern Basque–Cantabrian Basin following an extended phase of non-deposition and condensation. The lower part consists of dark marly clay-shales with fine lamination (~1 cm thick), interpreted as distal turbidites or storm-induced deposits, interbedded with nodular calcareous strata indicative of low sedimentation rates and condensation (e.g., abundant planktonic fossils, glauconite, intense bioturbation, and Fe–P oxide concentrations). The bulk of the succession comprises hemipelagic, rhythmically bedded, chalcisphere-rich nodular limestones and marls, deposited on the distal sector of a low-energy, mixed siliciclastic–carbonate open-marine ramp. Estimated sedimentation rates average ~5 cm/kyr, with higher values documented elsewhere in the basin. The formation exhibits an overall shallowing-upward trend, culminating in the sandy limestones of the Cabo de Lata Formation (Upper Campanian–Maastrichtian). Deposition occurred under warm climatic conditions and high sea levels, following Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (Late Cenomanian–Early Turonian), which significantly impacted marine biota—most notably, the decline of benthic microfauna and the proliferation of chalcispheres. Pre-lithification differentiation between limestones and marls is inferred based on contrasts in skeletal grain content and the angular discordance of bedding across intraformational truncation surfaces. In contrast, irregular carbonate nodules with diffuse marl transitions are interpreted as diagenetic in origin, linked to vertical carbonate redistribution and bioturbation. Several intraformational truncation surfaces identified in the lower half of the succession resemble, by scale and geometry, those documented in contemporary successions in southern England, Normandy and other locations in northern France. These features are attributed to gravitational collapse associated with syn-sedimentary extensional tectonics during the final stages of Bay of Biscay rifting, or alternatively, to halokinetic deformation linked to Keuper salt mobilization.
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