Quantitative palynological analyses of Albian-Cenomanian (Lower to Upper Cretaceous) strata in the Sverdrup Basin: Insights into paleoecology, paleoclimatology and palynostratigraphy ...

• Main Author: Sulphur, Kyle
• Format: Master Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: Graduate Studies 2015
• Subjects: Geology; FOS Earth and related environmental sciences; Paleoecology; Palynology; Cretaceous; Biostratigraphy; Multivariate Statistics; Arctic; Arctic Ocean; sverdrup basin
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.11575/prism/27507; https://prism.ucalgary.ca/handle/11023/2118

Multivariate statistical analyses of terrestrial palynomorphs from Albian to Cenomanian (Lower to Upper Cretaceous), Sverdrup Basin strata reveal a landscape with wet lowlands inhabited by Pteridophytina and Bryophyta, with cooler, moist uplands inhabited by a variety of conifer plants. A humid and temperate climate prevailed at this time. Three sites from eastern Sverdrup Basin contain similar palynofloras with long-ranging taxa, but quantitative palynological analyses reveal important differences in relative abundances between localities. A total of eleven early angiosperm pollen were recovered, providing further evidence of a delay in the dispersal and diversification of angiosperms into the Sverdrup Basin relative to more southern locations. This latitudinal diachroneity may potentially be due to paleogeographic barriers, such as, the Arctic Ocean, the extent of the Western Interior Seaway, or due to limited insect pollination dispersal strategies. ...