An Early Tertiary Outcrop in North-Central Baffin Island, Northwest Territories, Canada: Environment and Significance

• Published in: Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences
• Main Authors: Andrews, J. T., Ives, J. D., Guennel, G. K., Wray, J. L.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Canadian Science Publishing 1972
• Subjects: General Earth and Planetary Sciences; Northwest Territories; Baffin Bay; Baffin Island; Canada; Barnes Ice Cap; Baffin; Davis Strait; Ice cap
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/e72-019; http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/e72-019

A thin, impure limestone was found in situ on Precambrian bedrock at latitude 70°36.6′ N and longitude 75°20′ W some 26 km northwest of the Barnes Ice Cap. The unit consists of undulating laminations composed of alternating fine- and coarse-grained sediment, which are interpreted as a series of algal mats or algal-laminated sediments. An analysis of enclosed palynomorphs indicates the presence of Ulmus, Taxodiutm, Liriodendron, Carpinus, and Engelhardtia plus other genera. On the basis of the microflora a Paleogene age is assigned to the unit. The climate at that time was warm-temperate and the environment suggested is a freshwater marsh or swamp. The outcrop is restricted to a single hill summit and its location suggests considerable Neogene geomorphological activity, primarily river-cutting associated with vertical movements along the western margin of the Davis Strait/Baffin Bay Tift.