Eureka Sound Formation
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The Eureka Sound Formation is a
geologic formation A geological formation, or simply formation, is a body of rock having a consistent set of physical characteristics ( lithology) that distinguishes it from adjacent bodies of rock, and which occupies a particular position in the layers of rock exp ...
found in the Canadian Territory of
Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...
on Ellesmere Island, which is part of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The Eureka Sound Formation is
Tertiary Tertiary (from Latin, meaning 'third' or 'of the third degree/order..') may refer to: * Tertiary period, an obsolete geologic period spanning from 66 to 2.6 million years ago * Tertiary (chemistry), a term describing bonding patterns in organic ch ...
in age.


History

During the early Tertiary period, marine beds began forming in the Eureka Sound Formation within an area that was previously thought to be almost exclusively non-marine. This discovery indicates that this region of the Arctic had been mild, temperate, and ice-free during the early to middle
Eocene The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...
, despite being well above the Arctic Circle. As of May 2014, this discovery had been restricted to the easternmost regions of the Canadian Arctic on Ellesmere Island. Because the Eureka Sound Formation contains the largest accumulation of Arctic
Paleogene The Paleogene Period ( ; also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene) is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Neogene Period Ma. It is the fir ...
deposits, studying its marine deposits is key in gaining a better understanding of the early Tertiary history of the Arctic Ocean.


Fossils

Some fossils discovered in the Eureka Sound Formation were Paleogene land vertebrates that include fish, turtles, and several types of mammals. Other types of fossils found were reptilian species and several types of birds. Fresh water
molluscs Mollusca is a phylum of protostome, protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant taxon, extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum ...
were also found.


Sediments and Geology

On Southern Ellesmere Island, the Eureka Sound Formation is up to 480 meters thick and consists of a sequence of predominantly non-marine sandstones, mudstones, coal and minor siltstones. Sandstone petrography and heavy mineral analyses indicate that the Eureka Sound sediments were derived mainly from Precambrian granulite-grade metamorphic rocks of the Canadian Shield located to the southeast of the Formation. Another finding states that significant amounts of the rocks of the Eureka Sound Formation on Western Ellesmere Island are marine in origin.


See also

*
List of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Nunavut This is a list of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Nunavut, Canada. References * {{Lists of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Canada Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territorie ...


References

* Paleogene Nunavut Geologic formations of Nunavut Sandstone formations of Canada Mudstone formations of Canada Coal formations Siltstone formations of Canada Shale formations of Canada {{Nunavut-geo-stub