Ma Butte Formation

Ma Butte Formation
Stratigraphic range: Early Cretaceous (Albian)

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Ma Butte Formation; Stratigraphic range: Early Cretaceous (Albian) PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Type	Geological formation
Unit of	Blairmore Group
Underlies	Crowsnest Formation
Overlies	Beaver Mines Formation
Thickness	up to 132 metres (430 ft)
Lithology
Primary	Sandstone, siltstone, mudstone
Other	Conglomerate, bentonite, tuff
Location
Region	Alberta
Country	Canada
Type section
Named for	Ma Butte
Named by	J.R. McLean
Year defined	1980[1]

The Ma Butte Formation is a stratigraphic unit of Early Cretaceous (Albian) age in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin.[2] It was named for Ma Butte, a mountain north of Coleman, Alberta, by J.R. McLean in 1980.[1] It is present in the foothills of southwestern Alberta and it contains plant fossils.[1][3]

Stratigraphy and lithology

The Ma Butte Formation is a unit of the Blairmore Group. It consists primarily of fine-grained sandstones interbedded with siltstones and mudstones. Some coarser grained sandstones and conglomerate beds are also present. Beds of bentonite and tuff increase upward toward the contact with the overlying Crowsnest Formation. The sandstones of the Ma Butte Formation are quartzose, in contrast with the feldspathic sandstones of the underlying Beaver Mines Formation.[1][3]

Distribution and thickness

The Ma Butte Formation is present in the southern foothills of Alberta as far north as the Red Deer River. It has a maximum reported thickness of 132 metres (430 ft) near the Bow River.[3]

Depositional environment and paleontology

The sediments of the Ma Butte Formation were derived from erosion of mountain ranges to the west, transported eastward by river systems, and deposited in a variety of floodplain environments. They include angiosperm (flowering plant) fossils, in contrast to the underlying Beaver Mines Formation. This marks the first appearance of angiosperms in this area.[1]

Relationship to other units

The Ma Butte Formation is also known as the Mill Creek Formation. It disconformably overlies the Beaver Mines Formation. It is conformably overlain by the Crowsnest Formation in the south and the contact between the two is gradational. It is disconformably overlain by the Blackstone Formation in the north, and it is correlative with the Bow Island Formation to the east.[3]

References

McLean, 1980. Lithostratigraphy of the Lower Cretaceous coal-bearing sequence, foothills of Alberta. Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 80-29.
Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists and Alberta Geological Survey (1994). "The Geological Atlas of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin, Chapter 19: Cretaceous Mannville Group of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin". compilers : Mossop, G.D. and Shetsen, I. Archived from the original on 2016-07-01. Retrieved 2016-06-20.
Glass, D.J. (editor) 1997. Lexicon of Canadian Stratigraphy, vol. 4, Western Canada including eastern British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and southern Manitoba. Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists, Calgary, 1423 p. on CD-ROM. ISBN 0-920230-23-7.

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[McLean-1] McLean, 1980. Lithostratigraphy of the Lower Cretaceous coal-bearing sequence, foothills of Alberta. Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 80-29.

[Mossop19-2] Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists and Alberta Geological Survey (1994). "The Geological Atlas of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin, Chapter 19: Cretaceous Mannville Group of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin". compilers : Mossop, G.D. and Shetsen, I. Archived from the original on 2016-07-01. Retrieved 2016-06-20.

[Glass-3] Glass, D.J. (editor) 1997. Lexicon of Canadian Stratigraphy, vol. 4, Western Canada including eastern British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and southern Manitoba. Canadian Society of Petroleum Geologists, Calgary, 1423 p. on CD-ROM. ISBN 0-920230-23-7.