Lecture 6 Flashcards
(108 cards)
how many ice ages have there been in the last 3 Ga
5-6
ice age
relatively long period of time where the earths surface temperature and atmospheric temperature are reduces that allow for continental, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers to grow. within one ice age there are several glacial and interglacial periods
most recent ice age
late cenezoic ice age, 34 Ma - present
glacial periods
major ice sheets on the continents, lowered sea levels, there was one 20,000 to 25,000 years ago that was the last glacial maximum
interglacial periods
restricted ice volumes, raised sea levels, like the present time one that started
how much of the world is covered in ice right now
less than 10 %
how much of the world was covered in ice at the last glacial maximm
30%
oldest canadian animals
ediacaran biota, from the ediacaran period (635 to 539Ma). they are seen in mistaken point, newfoundland, and all the life forms are from 575 to 541 Ma
examples of some ediacaran biota
osmotrophs and matground grazers
examples of cambrian fauna
trilobite, hyolithis, lingulid brachiopod, eocrinoid
cambrian period
541 to 485.4 Ma
walcott Quarry, Burgess shale
collapse of the reef top deposited shallow water fauna that were previously higher in muds at the base of the escarpment. the conditions allowed preservation of soft parts (lagerstatte). shale is 508 Ma, well into the cambrian period
cambrain explosion of life
started 538.8 Ma. possible causes were increse in oxygen, or increase in carbonate concentration, allowing skeletons to form. all principal animal groups developed between 530 and 520 Ma. shelled forms developed and trace fossils showed complex behaviour.
panarthropods
the lobopods and radiodonts (spoke teeth) are now thought to be the stem-ancestors of the arthropods. modern genomics as well as the burgess and similar fossils help understand how tardigrades, onychophorans and arthropods are related
tectonics in cambrain north america
a period of tectonic stability with no divergent or convergent boundaries only transform from 538.8 to 485 Ma. divergent margins along the east and west coast. Carbonates, sands deposited in shallow inland seas are found in the ottawa area now
what did the taconic mountains do
supplied a lot of sediment inland to the appalachian foreland basin which created the NE
mid-ordovician in north america
most of the continent is covered by shallow inland seas - carbonate deposition. erosion of mountains provided source of clastic sediments
epeiric
shallow inland seas
queenston clastic wedge
thick acumulation of sediment or sedimentary rocks in a lens shape. thin near the mountain fron, thickens landwards, then becomes thinner further inland
niagaran paleozoic stratigraphy
queenston clastic wedge is in the NE as queenston shale, whirlpool sandstone, grimsby shale, thorold sandstone.
middle silurian rocks record some mud deposition (shales) and reef formations (limestones and dolomites)
middle silurian in NA
input of clastic sediments reduced. depostion of limestones (clear water) and some shales
largest salt mine in the world
goderic ontario. in a really ideal spot to reach rocks from the silurian period which are mainly halites and evaporites
paleozoic sedimentary basins
paleozoic rocks 800 m thick below hamilton. it thickens westward to michigan basin and eastward to the appalachian basin
structure of paleozoic layer
strata gently dips to the SW(less than 1 deg.) because it is a basin. there is a strike NE-SW, younging to the SW. resistant silurian limestones and dolostones form the NE