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Issue: Vol. 1 No. 3: September 2024
Type: Article
Published: 2024-09-30
DOI: 10.11646/mesozoic.1.3.17
Page range: 379–388
Abstract views: 84
PDF downloaded: 60

Palaeoenvironmental analysis of the Langshan Formation in the Xiongba area

State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
School of Geography and Environmental Engineering, Gannan Normal University, Ganzhou 341000, China
State Key Laboratory of Mineral Deposits Research, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
Lhasa block Langshan Formation carbonate microfacies mid-Cretaceous palaeogeography

Abstract

The mid-Cretaceous Langshan Formation is a massive limestone unit, outcropping typically in the northern Lhasa block. A Xiongba section, measured near the type section of the Langshan Formation, is here described. The succession consists of orbitolinids limestone, where eight microfacies have been recognized. The lower part of the Langshan Formation consists of discoidal orbitolinids with other heterotrophic associations, including echinoderms, sponge spicules, and bivalves. In contrast, the upper part of the Langshan Formation features conical orbitolinids with an abundance of green algae and small benthic foraminifers. We interpret the morphological changes in orbitolinids as being influenced by bathymetry. Consequently, the microfacies variations in the Langshan Formation in the Xiongba section represent a shallowing upward sequence.

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