A Late Devonian Reef Tract On Northeaster N Banks Island, N .W.t.

BULLETIN OF CANADIAN PETROLEUM GEOLOG Y
VOL . 19, NO . 4 (DECEMBER, 1971) P . 730-78 1
A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT ON NORTHEASTER N

BANKS ISLAND, N .W .T .'-
by
ASHTON F. EMBRY III 2 and J . EDWARD KLOVAN °
ABSTRACT
The Upper Devonian Weatherall Formation, outcropping on northeastern Bank s
Island, N .W .T ., contains a 200-ft-thick limestone unit here termed the Mercy Ba y
Member . The member is Middle to Late Frasnian in age . Gyrfalcon Bluff ha s
been chosen as the type section .
Mercy Bay Member outcrops on the extreme northeastern portion of Bank s
Island, and many excellent exposures permit detailed paleogeographical an d
paleoecological studies . The member contains numerous organic build-ups an d
represents a Late Devonian reef tract located in the marine-shelf environmen t
of an exogeosyncline situated between a tectonic highland to the northwest an d
a stable craton to the southeast .
The main facies changes in the Mercy Bay Member occur in an east-wes t
direction . The organic build-ups in the eastern part of the study area ar e
narrow, linear bioherms trending north-south . They are encased in younge r
terrigenous clastic rocks . To the west the organic build-ups, which are bioherma l
in the lower part and biostromal in the upper, are more numerous . The lowe r
bioherms trend east-west . Penecontemporaneous interbiohermal strata consis t
of dark, fine-grained argillaceous limestone . Organic build-ups on the western
edge of the outcrop area are bioherms which trend north-south .
The lower portion in all organic build-ups consists of corals and tabula r
stromatoporoids . These are interpreted as biogenetic banks constructed in th e
quiet and intermediate-energy zones (water depths more than 30 ft) . The upper
portion is composed of massive stromatoporoids . This facies represents rigi d
reefs constructed in the high-energy zone (above 30 feet) . Successive sea-leve l
rises allowed the reefs to grow upward . Cessation of reef growth was cause d
by an influx of terrigenous sediment related to the seaward migration of th e
northern and western shorelines .
The outcropping organic build-ups of the Mercy Bay Member are tightl y
cemented, but frequent bitumen occurrences indicate that they were once oil -
bearing . Organic build-ups of the Mercy Bay Member probably occur in th e
subsurface to the west .
1 Revised Manuscript received June 30, 1971 .

`Mobil Oil Canada Ltd ., Calgary, Alberta .
3 Department of Geology, The University of Calgary .
This paper is based on a portion of an M .Sc . thesis submitted to the Universit y
of Calgary by the senior author . Operating expenses were covered by contribu-
tions from Alminex Ltd ., Amoco Canada Ltd ., Banff Oil Ltd ., Canadian Superio r
Oil Ltd ., Chevron Standard Ltd ., and King Resources Co . Financial assistanc e
was also provided by two N .R .C . scholarships to the senior author and an N .R .C .
grant to the junior author . The Inuvik Research Laboratory provided the part y
with accommodation in Inuvik and supplied camp gear. Polar Continental Shel f
Project provided transportation to the study area and served as a vital link t o
the outside world . Charles Ellsworth ably piloted the Piper Super Cub (CF-GOD )
which was the mode of transportation within the study area . Bernard Plauchu t
of Elf Oil Canada gave invaluable advice on both logistical and geologica l
problems . Gordon Marney of Amoco Canada acted as the field assistant . The
University of Calgary provided laboratory and photographic facilities .
730

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT 731
INTRODUCTIO N
The Upper Devonian stratigraphy of northeastern Banks Island ha s
been outlined by Klovan and Embry (1971) . The lone carbonate uni t
occurring within the strata is herein named the Mercy Bay Member o f
the Weatherall Formation . It is Middle to Late Frasnian in age . It ha s
been studied in detail because it contains numerous organic build-ups ,
occurrences which, in the Devonian of Western Canada, are of grea t
economic importance . The purpose of this paper is to describe th e
member from paleogeographical, paleoecological and economical point s
of view .
PREVIOUS WOR K
Rocks from the Mercy Bay Member were first described by A . Arm -
strong (1857) who was the surgeon on M'Clure's ill-fated ship Investigator .
Investigator became entrapped in the ice of Mercy Bay during the searc h
for the Northwest Passage, and the crew remained there for two year s
before finally abandoning ship . Armstrong collected fossils from th e
exposure of the Mercy Bay Member at the head of Mercy Bay (Gyrfalco n
Bluff) and described the member as " . . . a remarkable limestone forma-
tion rising almost vertically to a height of 500 feet . Its character i s
mountain limestone and contained fossils . "
Armstrong's fossil identifications led Washburn (1949) to assign a
Permian age to the strata . This error was corrected when Porsild (1950 )
collected fossils from Gyrfalcon Bluff which were assigned a Devonia n
age by Dr . Alice Wilson of the G.S .C . Thorsteinsson and Tozer (1962 )
briefly describe the Mercy Bay Member in their account of the regiona l
geology of Banks, Victoria and Stephansson islands, Their description s
and illustrations prompted the present study .
PRESENT STUDY
Figure 1 is a map of the study area showing the outcrop pattern o f
the Mercy Bay Member . The member outcrops in the northern half o f
the Devonian outcrop area . It is approximately 200 ft thick and therefor e
constitutes a very small portion of the total Devonian section . Outcrop s
are usually found as very steep cliffs in many of the river valleys . Fo r
ease of reference to sections, names have been assigned to major river s
in the study area (Fig . 1) . These names are not recognized by th e
Canadian Board on Geographical Names .
In the eastern part of the study area, the Mercy Bay Member outcrop s
only in M'Clure River valley and on the sea cliffs on M'Ciure Strait nea r
the mouth of M'Clure River . To the west, the next exposures of th e
member occur in Manning River valley and the eastern valley of Merc y
River . Here, the member forms a marked bench on the valley walls ,
the tops of which are usually capped by rubble of the Hecla Bay Forma-
tion . Westward and southward, the member forms the cap of the valle y
walls and, in Mercy River valley, numerous, small, irregular mesas cappe d
by the member occur (Plate 1) . Further to the west, in the area nea r
the head of Mercy Bay, the member occurs as scattered hills on a low -
land . Gyrfalcon Bluff is the most spectacular of these hills . In the

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southern part of the area the Mercy Bay Member is thin (50-100 ft), but
as it forms the cap of the valley walls the top has probably been eroded .
The member was studied at four localities : 1 . Manning River, 2 . Eas t

Mercy River, 3 . Gyrfalcon Bluff, 4 . M'Clure River (Fig . 1, Locs . 1-4) .
At these localities detailed descriptions of the Mercy Bay Member were
made, and representative samples of all different rock types encountere d
were collected . Polaroid snapshots were found to be useful for plottin g
obvious facies changes and sample locations . Other exposures of th e
member were briefly examined (Fig . 1, Loc . 5-9), but by no means wa s
the entire outcrop examined in detail .
CARBONATE TERMINOLOGY AND CLASSIFICATIO N
Since the Mercy Bay Member contains numerous organic build-ups ,

the terminology used to describe organic build-ups and the rock type s
in them is briefly reviewed . The term organic build-up is applied to an y
carbonate rock body composed primarily of fossil organisms, regardles s
of the shape or mode of origin of the rock body . Reef, bank, bioher m
and biostrome are terms applied to specific types of organic build-u p
according to the shape and mode of origin of the rock body . They hav e
been recently discussed by Dolphin and Klovan (1970) .
The various types of carbonate particles which compose carbonat e

rocks have been thoroughly described in many previous papers (Folk ,
1959 ; Leighton and Pendexter, 1962 ; Klovan, 1964 ; Murray, 1966 and
Fischbuch, 1968) . Terminology used to describe carbonate particles ha s
become standard and is followed in this study .
The widely used limestone classifications of Folk (1959, 1962) an d

Dunham (1962) have been found inadequate for describing the divers e
rock types that occur in organic build-ups . This inadequacy has bee n
noted previously (Murray, 1966 ; Leavitt, 1968) .
Folk's 1959 classification makes the basic distinction between organic -

ally bound (autochthonous) and not organically bound (allochthonous )
limestones . For allochthonous carbonate rock types he used particl e
type and size as the bases for his classification . The important paramete r
that Folk disregarded is grain-to-matrix relationship ; i .e ., whether th e
grains or the matrix form the supporting framework . Another short -
coming of Folk's classification is that all autochthonous limestones ar e
described by one term — biolithite . It is recognized that organisms bin d
sediment in different ways and these differences, which of course produc e
different rock types, should not be ignored in a basic classification .
Dunham's classification also distinguishes between autochthonous an d

allochthonous limestones . For all allochthonous limestones the classifica-
tion is based on the grain-to-matrix relationship . The only size distinc-
tion made is between mud (< .03mm) and grains (> .03mm) . Thi s
classification is more flexible than that of Folk because particle type s
are used as modifiers . A defect in Dunham's classification is the lac k
of size differentiation . Dunham made the same oversimplification a s
Folk and grouped all autochthonous limestones into one term — bound-
stone .

734 A . F . EMBRY III cold J . E . KLOVA N
The classification we propose in Figure 2 is an attempt to differentiat e

the autochthonous limestones into meaningful categories . Further, th e
limestone conglomerates are recognized as important rock types . Essen-
tially this scheme is an expanded version of Dunham's classification .
Limestones are first divided into autochthonous and allochthonou s
groups . The allochthonous group is classified according to particle siz e
and grain-to-matrix relationship . A third size division, >2mm compon-
ent, has been adopted, and the size divisions used are, mud (< .03mm) ,
grains (> .03mm - <2mm) and >2mm component . This particle - siz e
classification is basically that used in classifying terrigenous clastic rocks .
Klovan (1964) has elaborated on the practicality of this size classificatio n
for carbonate rocks . The combination of the parameters, particle siz e
and grain-to-matrix relationship results in six rock types : Mudstone,
wackestone, packstone, grainstone, floatstone and rudstone . Mudstone ,
wackestone, packstone and grainstone are used in exactly the same sens e
as originally defined by Dunham (1962) . Floatstone and rudstone (rudus ,
rubble) are new terms and describe rocks which contain greater tha n
10 percent >2mm component. These rock types are the 'carbonate con-
glomerates .' There is an obvious need to recognize these two rock type s
because >2mm particles are usually the most important constituent s
for describing and interpreting rocks of organic build-ups . The differenc e
between the two rock types is that in a rudstone the >2mm particle s
form the supporting framework whereas in a floatstone they 'float' in th e
finer-grained matrix that forms the framework .
Autochthonous limestones may also be further subdivided . They hav e
been split into three types because there are three main ways in whic h
organisms bind sediment : 1 . constructing a rigid framework, 2 . encrustin g
and binding, 3 . baffling (Klement, 1967) . The three rock types have there -
fore been named framestone, bindstone and bafflestone .
These rock types are not purely descriptive as are those of the alloch-
thonous group, but involve interpretation as regards the paleoecologica l
role of the fossils in the rock . The interpretations of the geologist as t o
whether in situ fossils in a rock bound the original sediment durin g
deposition and, if so, by which method of binding, are the basic criteri a
for assigning rocks to the various classes of autochthonous limestones .
Thus, good outcrop exposures or continuous cores are usually needed t o
recognize these different classes .
Framestones contain in situ massive fossils which constructed a rigi d
three-dimensional framework during deposition . The in situ fossils there -
fore form the supporting framework of the rock, with matrix materia l
occurring in the interstices between the fossils .
Bindstones contain in situ, tabular or lamellar fossils which encruste d
and bound sediment during deposition . In bindstones the matrix, not th e
in situ fossils, forms the supporting framework of the rock, and the fossil s
may form as little as 15 percent of the constituents of the rock .
PLATE 1
Looking eastward over the Mercy River Volley . Mesas copped by the Mercy Bo y
Member are in the foreground and left centre . Further to the east the Mercy Bay Membe r
is visible as a white band on the valley wall (RCAF T421 R-202) .

PLATE 1

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A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT 73 7
Bafflestones are the least common and most interpretive of the autoch-
thonous limestones . They contain in situ stalk-shaped fossils which, dur-
ing deposition, trapped sediment by acting as baffles (i .e ., reducing th e
rate of flow of water, thus causing deposition) . The ingredients for th e
recognition of a bafflestene are the presence of a large number of in sit u
stalk-shaped fossils, and a good imagination on the part of the geologist .
The term boundstone of Dunham is retained for authochthonous lime -

stones in which the specific mode of organic binding cannot be recognized .
Modifiers such as particle type, further grain-size qualification (Went -

worth scale), impurities and colour can add to the terminology of th e
basic classification .
The proposed limestone classification can be used in two ways . Th e

different classes can be used both as rock names and as textural modifier s
for describing the matrix of a rock type . An example of the use of thi s
classification is : "thamnoporid floatstone with a fine-grained, skeleta l
wackestone matrix ." In this case floatstone is used as the rock nam e
whereas wackestone is a textural modfier . Another example is : "tabu-
lar stromatoporoid bindstone with a thamnoporoid floatstone matrix with
a fine-grained wackestone matrix ." In this case bindstone is the roc k
name whereas both floatstone and wackestone are textural modifiers . I n
the description of autochtonous limestones, as illustrated above, th e
matrix of the rock type often has to be described on two scales : th e
>2mm particle-size scale and the <2mm particle-size scale . This result s
in `the matrix having a matrix . '
This classification may seem complicated at first but it gives a relativel y

complete description of the rock type . The last rock type described above ,
Folk's classification would name a "tabular stromatoporoid biolithite ; "
Dunham's a "tabular stromatoporoid boundstone ." In both the matri x
of the rock is ignored . Thus the proposed classification conveys a muc h
more complete picture of the rock type than does either Folk's or Dun -
ham's .
PALEONTOLOGY AND PALEOECOLOG Y
The main fossil types found in the present study are stromatoporoids ,
corals, crinoids, brachiopods, gastropods and bryozoans .
No generic identifications have been attempted for the stromatoporoids .

They have been classified according to shape into four types : massive ,
tabular, cylindrical, and irregular . For laterally extensive stromatopor-
oids, any colonies less than two inches thick were arbitrarily assigned t o
the tabular growth form ; those greater than two inches thick are term-
ed massive .
Corals were given generic names where possible ; e .g ., Alveolites, bu t

often `basket' names such as thamnoporid were applied to corals (an d
perhaps bryozoans) which are distinctive but may consist of several ver y
similar genera . Shape adjectives were also added to these names .
Crinoids, brachiopods, gastropods, and bryozoans were not identifie d

further .

738 A . F . EMBRY III and J . E . KLOVA N
Paleoecological studies of Upper Devonian organic build-ups (Klovan ,

1964) have established a faunal-zonation model for the common fossils o f
this age. Dolphin and Klovan (1970) have summarized this model an d
applied it successfully to an Upper Devonian carbonate bank .
Three major paleoecological zones are recognized :
1. An underturbulent or quiet-water zone, which receives a minimu m
amount of wave agitation and is located well below wave base . This zon e
is characterized by corals (Alveolites, disphyllids and thamnoporids) .
2. A subturbulent or semi-rough water zone, which is located belo w
average wave base but is still within the reach of storm waves . Thi s
zone is characterized by tabular stromatoporoids .
3. A turbulent or rough-water zone, which receives the maximu m
amount of wave agitation and is located above wave base . This zone i s
characterized by massive stromatoporoids .
Logan (1969) has studied Recent organic build-ups on the Yucata n
shelf and has recognized a similar ecological zonation for their mai n
organisms. His ecological zones are :
1. A quiet low-energy zone occurring at a depth of water below 75 f t
and characterized by an Agaricia-Montastrea community .
2. An agitated to quiet intermediate-energy zone occurring between 7 5
and 30 ft of water depth and characterized by a Diplo p ia-Montastrea -
Porites community .
3. A wave-agitated, high-energy zone occurring between 30 feet an d
sea level and characterized by an Acropora palmata community .
Logan has demonstrated that these three zones correlate with tw o
thresholds of wave action ; one at 30-35 ft (average wave base) and th e
other at 70-75 ft (storm wave base) . These thresholds were delineated o n
wave-current velocity curves plotted against depth . The thresholds wer e
taken at marked inflections on the curves .
There is a parallelism between Recent and Late Devonian ecologica l
zones ; three zones, reflecting increasing water energy, have been recog-
nized in each case . Late Devonian paleoecological zones are qualitativ e
with regard to water depth whereas Recent ecological zones have bee n
related to absolute water depths . It is suggested that the water depth s
critical for the three organic communities of Recent organic build-up s
are directly applicable to the Late Devonian paleoecologic zones (Fig . 3) .
This comparison implies that massive stromatoporoids grew mainly be-
tween sea level and 30 ft, that tabular stromatoporoids were predominan t
between 30 and 75 ft, and that below 75 ft corals were predominant .
Later it will be demonstrated that these depths for Late Devonian organi c
communities are reasonable estimates .
It should be emphasized that these depth estimates can be applied onl y
to Devonian organic build-ups that were situated on an open-marine shelf .
Further, the build-ups must have had relatively steep slopes, so that wav e
energy was not dissipated while the waves transversed the outer slope .
Dolphin and Klovan (1970) have demonstrated that the large, Devonia n
carbonate banks of southwestern Alberta had very shallow slopes an d
that wave energy over the slope was greatly reduced . In such a case th e
proposed depths would not apply .

REGIONAL STRATIGRAPHY OF THE MERCY BAY MEMBE R
The Mercy Bay Member is approximately 200 ft thick throughout th e

study area, and outcrops as steep cliffs on many river valley walls . The
member is composed of organic build-ups and interorganic build-up strata .
The organic build-ups, which are biohermal and biostromal, are usuall y
well exposed and weather a light grey to yellow-orange color . The inter -
organic build-up strata are poorly exposed and weather a dark grey to
black . It is emphasized that the Mercy Bay Member is a limestone an d
that no dolomite was observed in outcrop, hand sample or thin section .
The member was studied in detail at four localities : Manning River,

East Mercy River, Gyrfalcon Bluff and M'Clure River . The observation s
and interpretations made for the Mercy Bay Member at these localitie s
are presented in the following sections, with an effort having been mad e
to separate the facts from the speculations .
Mercy Bay Member at Manning Rive r

Manning River is located east of Mercy Bay and flows westward fo r
part of its course, then turns abruptly northward and flows into M'Clure
Strait just west of Cape Vesey Hamilton (Fig . 1) . Mercy Bay Member
outcrops along the southern portion of the river valley and was studie d
near the point where the river turns northward . Plate 2 presents a n
over-all view of this locality .
Description . Strata underlying the Mercy Bay Member are exposed onl y
on the western valley wall . Eighty-seven feet of terrigenous clastic rocks
are exposed . The lower 60 ft consist of drab green to grey, very fine -
grained, argillaceous, quartz sandstone . The upper 27 ft contain sporadi c
exposures of siltstone with 3 ft of massive, fine-grained sandstone at th e
top . The sandstone is red and, where it underlies the organic build-up ,
contains scattered corals, crinoids and brachiopods . Underlying the inter -
organic build-up strata the sandstone is green and contains only a fe w
scattered crinoid ossicles .
The organic build-up, exposed on the valley walls of a tributary whic h

joins Manning River at its northward turn, was studied in detail (Plat e
2 ; A,B) . The organic build-up has been divided into six vertically separ-
able rock stratigraphic units . The lower two units are the first an d
second coral - tabular stromatoporoid units . They are lithologically simi-
lar but are separated by a thin recessive interval . Overlying these unit s
are four massive-stromatoporoid units separated by thin recessive an d
covered intervals .
Plate 3 illustrates the organic build-up on the western valley wall (Plat e
2 ; A) whereas Plate 4 illustrates the same organic build-up on the easter n
valley wall (Plate 2 ; B) .
The first (lowermost) coral - tabular stromatoporoid unit is bioherma l

with a maximum thickness of 35 ft. The bioherm is approximately 20 0
ft wide . The lowermost 3 ft form a horizontal extension over the entir e
Manning River locality . The lithology of the extension is a dark grey ,
Alveolites bindstone with a fine-grained, skeletal wackestone to packston e
matrix . Alveolites content decreases with increasing distance from th e
maximum development of the bioherm .

740 A . F' . EMBRY III and J . E . KLOVA N
PLATE 2
An over-all view of the Manning River locality . The various organic build-ups describe d
and illustrated in the text are lettered . View looking south .
The central part of the bioherm (core) is massive whereas the edge s
(flank) are crudely bedded with depositional dips up to 20°, The lowe r
15 feet of the bioherm consist of Alveolitos and tabular-stromatoporoi d
bindstone which has a thamnoporid floatstone matrix with a fine -
grained, skeletal wackestone matrix . Alveolites and tabular stromatopor-
oids make up from 20 to 50 per cent of the rock . Bushes of in situ
disphyllid corals occur in places but often the colonies are disoriente d
and encrusted by Alveolites and stromatoporoids (Plate 5, Fig . 1) . Brach-
iopods are found in scattered `nests' in which some of the brachiopod s
are in situ . Crinoid ossicles are ubiquitous but not volumetrically im-
portant . Argillaceous material is present in small pockets, and thin shal e
partings occur in the flank portion .
In the upper part of the bioherm corals become far less abundant an d
tabular stromatoporoids predominate . Fragmented thamnoporids are als o
common . Tabular stromatoporoids form bindstone but generally make u p
less than 40 percent of the rock . The matrix is a thamnoporid floatston e
with a skeletal wackestone matrix .
PLATE 3
An organic build-up of the Mercy Bay Member which outcrops on the western valley wal l
of the Manning River (Plate 2 ; A) . This organic build-up was studied in detail . View
looking west .
A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRAC T 741
PLATE 3

742 A . F . EMBRY III and J . E. KLOVA N
ECOLOGICAL ZONE S PALEOECOLOGICA L

STRUCTUR E ZONE S P o
P RECENT ORGANIC BUILDUPS ENVIRONMENT
T BUILDING POTENTIAL DEVONIA N TH
YUCATAN SHELF ORGANIC BUILDUPS
SL SL
MASSIV E
Acropora pa Imo ra WAVE AGITATE D WAVE-RESISTAN T
STROMATOPOROI D
COMMUNIT Y HIGH ENERGY REEF
COMMUNITY
30' 30 '
Qplorio - TABULA R
Montostreo - AGITATED TO QUIE T BIOGENETI C
STROMATOPOROI D
Pori tes INTERMEDIATE ENERGY BANK
COMMUNIT Y COMMUNITY
70 ' - 70 '
Agaricia CORA L
QUIE T BIOGENETI C 1' Alveolites 1
Montostreo disphyllid s
LOW ENERGY BANK .thamnoporids J
COMMUNITY COMMUNIT Y
Fig . 3 . Comparison of Recent and Devonian ecological zones .
Flank beds, like the core, consist mainly of in situ or nearly in situ
fossils . This type of flank bed is not to be confused with a detrital flan k
bed, which consists mainly of transported and abraded fossils .
The second coral - tabular stromatoporoid unit, with a maximum thick-
ness of 20 ft, is biohermal on the western valley wall . On the easter n
valley wall it is tabular in form and extends southward over the under -
lying unit (Plate 4) . The lithology is predominantly tabular-stromato-
poroid bindstone which has a thamnoporid floatstone matrix with a
mottled, red, yellow, and grey, fine-grained, skeletal wackestone matrix .
The first massive-stromatoporoid unit has a flat top with an irregula r
base conforming to the shape of the underlying unit . The unit is 30 ft
thick where it overlies the maximum development of the two coral -
tabular stromatoporoid units and thickens to 50 ft along the flanks .
The unit is divisible into a massive core and a bedded flank . The cor e
is a white, massive-stromatoporoid framestone (Plate 5, Fig . 2) wit h
stromatoporoids laterally and vertically continuous over large areas (5 0
sq ft) . Matrix material is rare (5 ; ) and consists of medium to coarse -
grained stromatoporoid grainstone . Towards the south, the core lithology
changes and stromatoporoid rudstone is interbedded with massive-stroma-
toporoid framestone . Matrix material in both rock types consists o f
brown, medium-grained, skeletal grainstone to packstone .
Flank beds vary in thickness between 1 and 3 ft and in depositiona l

dip between 5 and 20° (Plate 5, Fig . 3) . The main lithologies are dar k
brown, stromatoporoid rudstone and floatstone with a fine-grained, skele -

tal packstone matrix . Large stromatoporoid fragments become less abun-

dant down dip, and there is an increase in argillaceous content . The flan k
beds eventually pass into the interorganic build-up strata .
The lithology of the overlying 1-ft-thick recessive interval is variable .
Slightly argillaceous, stromatoporoid rudstone is the main lithology
present .
The second massive-stromatoporoid unit is lithologically and faunall y
similar to the first . The unit is 25 ft thick with a flat top and bottom .
As seen on the western valley wall, this unit oversteps the first massive-
stromatoporoid unit in a southward direction (Plate 3) . On the easter n
valley wall it appears to contain interorganic build-up strata (Plate 4) .
Stratigraphically equivalent to the two coral - tabular stromatoporoi d
units and the first two massive-stromatoporoid units are horizontall y
bedded, interorganic build-up strata . Beds vary between 3 in and 3 f t
thick (Plate 5, Fig . 4) . The main lithologies are platy-weathering, dar k
grey, argillaceous, very fine-grained, skeletal wackestone and massive -
weathering, fine-grained skeletal packstone . Insoluble residues indicat e
that the wackestones contain as high as 30 percent argillaceous materia l
and bitumen . Ostracods and brachiopods are the only fossils present .
The two coral - tabular stromatoporoid units and the first two massive-
stromatoporoid units form a bioherm 110 ft high, 600 ft wide and o f
unknown length . It is elongate in an east-west direction . The north
side is linear and slopes steeply upward toward the south ; the south sid e
is irregular with the units overstepping each other in a southward direc-
tion .
The third massive-stromatoporoid unit, in contrast to the precedin g
ones, occurs as a continuous biostrome over the entire Manning Rive r
locality . It is thicker (30 ft) above the underlying bioherm than ove r
the interbioherm strata (20 ft) . The unit does not drape over the
bioherm, indicating that the interorganic build-up strata have not bee n
differentially compacted . The unit is massive over its entire extent an d
consists of massive-stromatoporoid framestone and stromatoporoid rud-
stone with a skeletal grainstone matrix .
A 35-ft-thick covered interval overlies the third massive-stroma-
toporoid unit . The lithology is inferred to be similar to that of the in-
terorganic build-up strata .
Overlying the covered interval is the fourth massive-stromatoporoid

unit, a 40-ft-thick, continuous biostrome . The unit is well bedded (Plat e
5, Fig . 1), with beds 1 to 3 ft thick . The main lithologies are, once again ,
massive-stromatoporoid framestone and stromatoporoid rudstone, bot h
with medium-grained, skeletal grainstone matrices . Massive stromatopor-
oids of this unit are large hemispheres over half a foot in diameter, an d
give the rock the appearance of a conglomerate . At one locality a larg e
wood fragment occurs imbedded in massive-stromatoporoid framestone .
The middle of the unit has beds of thamnoporid floatstone with a dar k
brown, fine-grained, skeletal packstone matrix . Thin, tabular stromato-
poroids and Alveolites are also present, possibly forming bindstone . A few
Ph-illipsastrea and Hexagonaria colonies occur in this interval . This is th e
only place in the entire organic build-up where these corals were found .

744 A . F . EMBRY III and J. E . KLOVA N
Overlying beds are not exposed but are presumed to be terrigenou s

clastic rocks .
Plate 6 illustrates some of the different rock types that have bee n
described and shows their relative positions in the Mercy Bay Member.
More organic build-ups are exposed at the Manning River locality bu t
they were not studied in detail . Panoramic photographs were taken o f
some of them and interpretations of lithologies made from the photo -
graphs . One thousand feet to the south of the organic build-up de -
scribed above is another well-exposed organic build-up (Plate 2 ; C) . Th e
same six units appear to be present (Plate 7, Figs . 1 and 2) .
In an organic build-up outcropping 1500 ft to the north of the on e
studied (Plate 2 ; D), the various units are not as well displayed . How-
ever, the lower bioherm and the two upper biostromes are easily delineat-
ed (Plate 7, Figs. 3 and 4) .
An insight into the evolution of an organic build-up is gained by study-
ing a panoramic view of one outcropping to the north of the one studie d
(Plate 2 ; E), (Plate 8) . Three coral - tabular stromatoporoid bioherm s
are present, one at each end of the cliff and one in the middle . Th e
massive-stromatoporoid units that occur on top of the northern bioher m
extend progressively southward . The fourth massive-stromatoporoid uni t
extends over the southern bioherm and forms a continuous biostrome .
Detritus from the third stromatoporoid unit of the northern bioher m
apparently caused the massive-stromatoporoid growth on the souther n
bioherm to cease . Detritus from the two end bioherms evidently cause d
an earlier cessation of growth on the middle bioherm .
Interpretation .Figure 4 illustrates the fossil distribution in the Mercy
Bay Member at Manning River . This distribution is very important fo r
the interpretation of environment and depositional history . Figure 5
summarizes the interpreted depositional history discussed below .
Immediately before the start of Mercy Bay Member deposition, th e
depositional environment was a shallow-marine shelf of the quiet-energ y
zone . Very fine sand, silt, and clay accumulated on the shelf, with brach-
iopods, crinoids and corals growing on slightly elevated areas . The influ x
of terrigenous sediment became drastically reduced, and thus prolifi c
organic growth was able to commence . Corals built small, 100 to 200 f t
wide, biogenetic banks, elongate in an east-west direction (Fig 5a) . Thes e
banks grew upward into the intermediate-energy zone, where tabula r
stromatoporoids became the predominant faunal element (first and secon d
coral - tabular stromatoporoid units) . Upward growth of these banks con-
tinued until the high-energy zone was entered (Fig . 5b) . At this poin t
massive stromatoporoids colonized the upper surface of the biogeneti c
bank and built a rigid, wave-resistant, platform reef up to the surfac e
PLATE 4
The same organic build-up as Plate 3, outcropping on the eastern valley wall of th e
Manning River (Plate 2 ; B) . Interorganic build-up strata are well exposed to the left o f
the organic build-up . View looking east .
The size of this organic build-up can be appreciated by noting Mr . Marney (the blac k
dot to which the arrow points) .

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF' TRACT 745

ZON E
-- -- - MASSIVE STROMATOPOROID S
ALVEOLITES, HEXAGONARIA, PHILLIPSASTRE A
6 MASSIVE STROMATOPOROID S
BRACHIOPODS, OSTRACOD S
5 MASSIVE STROMATOPOROID S
4 ~V\pko?o0.0\0
MASSIVE STROMATOPOROID S
3 MASSIVE STROMATOPOROIDS BRACHIOPOD S

OSTRACOD S
STROMATOPORpi
2 4,07 1
, 0MNO PORlD S , RO/~S~S
- -
\O
~~ YO~PQ SSROMAippp
CH/pP
1 ` ~P0
THAMNOPORIDS OAS
CRINOIDS BRACHIOPODS
ALVEOLITES DISPHYLLIDS THAMNOPORIDS
Fig . 4 . Fossil distribution in the Mercy Bay Member at Manning River .
of the water (Fig. 5c) . A reef flat then developed and reef constructio n
was limited to the windward edge . Most of the stromatoporoid detritu s
in the first massive-stromatoporoid unit occurs in the southern portion .
As modern reefs often have the main accumulations of detritus on th e
windward side (Mesolella et al ., 1970), the windward edge is interprete d
to be the south side . The recessive interval of the top of the first massive-
stromatoporoid unit is interpreted as a reef-flat deposit . Continual erosio n
and regeneration of the reef produced skeletal debris which graduall y
filled up the deeper interreef areas .
The next event in the depositional history was a rise in sea level .
Massive stromatoporoids were able to recolonize the entire reef surface .
The reef eventually grew up to the surface, and another reef flat forme d
over most of the reef platform (second massive-stromatoporoid unit )
(Fig . 5d) . Eventually organic growth ceased because of extreme shallow-
ing of the interreef areas . Further degradation of the reefs created a n
PLATE 5
Fig . 1 . Lower port of the first coral - tabular stromatoporoid unit, with disoriente d
disphyllid corals encrusted by Alveolites and thin, tabular stromatoporoids . The division s
on the pole are in feet .
Fig . 2 . Massive-stromatoporoid fromestone with the laminae of the stromatoporoid s
being visible .
Fig . 3 . Flank beds of the first massive-stromatoporoid unit dipping at 15" .
Fig . 4 . Bedded interorganic build-up strata with platy weathering, argillaceous, skeleta l
wackestone and massive weathering, skeletal packstone . The large divisions on the pole ar e
in feet .

PLATE 5

748 A . F . EMBRY III ct»d J . E . KLOVAN
-
a) b)
SL SL
fi e
~ 4I+i~~ ♦111 \
4122.
1nr.4n vie
nn iw;N* --- / ~ LLe*~ :~~
~
~~rI/A _
\~_~ _ •~/~ ~
j ~I~w'sw*1 tw -~
~ ~~
.~.ln
.n ~
g ) b)
SL
-
sL
7♦n 1, Tie4i
nI P
+ .4r.'o-O.-W41.0 :fi~i~i~ iiii~i iii+~,lFt~1*1•+~s+~i ~•+i*A
i~fi~~fi+~~i~~~i+i~i~I~ir+i
w i.awwa~ww.~ •mawti f~
' ~i~i~i i/~ia~~~law~~•: i
aw.. 1 1i1
.r . aw~.I w .a.w w ~ .~ fi
i~1~if1~~~7~
.Aa~~~ .1aa
11~1~i1
.*.. fj
i~i._ i~ia
a~~ ..i~.w
fi
ai+ ai~i1~
~r~~~~w~r,~1
•f~i~iw7~7
MASSIVE STROMATOPOROID SKELETAL DETRITU S
TABULAR STROMATOPOROID TERRIGENOUS SEDIMEN T
C - CORAL S
Fig . 5 . Depositional history of the Mercy Bay Member at Manning River .

extensive, debris-covered surface . Two lines of evidence support this con-

clusion : 1 . The site of organic growth must have been a topographic hig h
on the sea floor . 2 . When the next period of organic growth began, th e
organic build-up extended laterally over the former interreef areas . Thu s
organic growth must have ceased, with the entire area becoming a near -
level surface . Exposure of the reef to subaerial erosion could also account
for the above observations, but no evidence was found to support thi s
interpretation .
A rise of sea level again created a high-energy environment over th e
area . An extensive, stromatoporoid, platform reef formed (third massive-
stromatoporoid unit) and grew up to the surface, where another reef
flat formed (Fig . 5f) .
When sea level rose again, massive stromatoporoids did not recoloniz e
the area . Instead, the area received interreef sediment or possibly la-
goonal sediment (covered interval) . Evidence from other localities show s
that reef growth was occurring elsewhere at this time .
Eventually massive stromatoporoids did recolonize the area and anothe r
extensive platform reef grew up to the surface, where a reef flat forme d
(Fig . 5g) . The bedded nature of the fourth massive-stromatoporoid uni t
and the presence of coral beds indicates that it was probably well withi n
the interior of the platform reef . Similar bedded, `conglomerate,' massiv e
stromatoporoids and corals have been described for the backreef deposit s
of an Upper Devonian organic build-up in Australia (Playford, 1967) .
An influx of terrigenous sediment combined with a rise in sea leve l
ended reef growth (Fig . 5h) .
Absolute Water Depths of Devonian Paleoecological Zones . In a precedin g
section, absolute water depths were assigned to the three Late Devonia n
paleoecological zones on the basis of a comparison with Recent ecologica l
zones . The first part of the interpreted depositional history of the Merc y
Bay Member at Manning River provides a check for these absolute wate r
depths .
If, as postulated, the lower part of the organic build-up (first an d
second coral - tabular stromatoporoid units, and first massive-stromato-
poroid unit) was built upward from the sea floor to the surface during a
time of static sea level, it is possible to calculate approximate wate r
depths for the three faunal communities from the thicknesses of th e
different units . The aggregate thickness of the two coral - tabula r
stromatoporoid units is 55 ft, of which the lower 15 ft is composed o f
corals and the upper 40 ft is predominantly tabular stromatoporoids . Th e
first massive-stromatoporoid unit is 30 ft thick .
According to this interpretation, the coral biogenetic bank began in 8 5
ft of water, with the tabular stromatoporoids becoming the predominan t
fauna at a depth of 70 ft . Massive stromatoporoids began at a depth o f
30 ft and grew up to the surface . These calculated depths of the thre e
Late Devonian paleoecological zones are remarkably similar to the depth s
previously postulated (Fig . 3) .
The Mercy Bay Member at East Mercy Rive r
The Mercy Bay Member is well exposed on the valley walls of th e
Mercy River . The cliff face studied is 7 mi due south of the Mannin g
River locality (Fig . 1) .

Descr i,ptioii .Plate 9 is a panoramic view of the Mercy Bay Member at

this locality . Organic build-ups are located at the ends of the cliff, wit h
interorganic build-up strata in between . The organic build-up on th e
left side was the only one studied. It is 225 ft thick .
The Mercy Bay Member here is similar to that exposed at Mannin g
River, and the same faunal zones were delineated . Plate 10, Figs, 2 an d
3 illustrate typical lithologies . Recessive intervals separate the upper part
of the organic build-up into massive-stromatoporoid units (Plate 10, Fig .
1) . Two biostromes are again present, but here they are separated by a
thin recessive interval . At Manning River, the biostromes are alway s
separated by a thick, covered interval (interorganic build-up strata) .
Overlying the second massive-stromatoporoid biostrome (Unit 6) is a
red to grey, coarse-grained, brachiopod, coral, bryozoan and crinoid grain -
stone (coquina) . Many of the skeletal fragments have a hematite coatin g
(Plate 10, Fig . 4) . This rock type is interpreted to be a subaerial, reef -
flat accumulation of skeletal debris . This type of deposit is common o n
Recent reefs (Maxwell, 1968 ; Logan, 1969), and Lowenstam (1950, 1957 )
has described an identical rock type overlying the Silurian, Marine reef .
He too interpreted it as a subaerial deposit, and presented considerabl e
evidence to support his interpretation .
Directly overlying the coquina are 10 ft of fissile, black shale . Abov e
the shale is a sequence of drab green to grey, very fine-grained, argilla-
ceous sandstones, siltstones and shales with scattered brachiopods . Th e
Hecla Bay Formation is 130 ft above the Mercy Bay Member at thi s
locality .
Interpretation, The depositional history of the member at this locality i s
similar to that interpreted for the Manning River locality . The onl y
notable difference is that, in places, massive-stromatoporoid growth bega n
immediately after the first biostrome became submergent . This stroma-
toporoid growth was biohermal and occurred only over the sites of under -
lying bioherms . Interreef areas were filled after the reefs reached th e
surface, and another rise in sea level allowed the massive stromatoporoid s
to form an extensive platform reef. When this reef reached the surface ,
PLATE 6
Fig . 1 . An outcrop of the fourth massive-stromatoporoid unit showing the bedded natur e
of the unit . Approximately 20 ft of section is exposed .
Fig . 2 . Massive-stromatoporoid floatstone with a fine-grained, skeletal packstone matrix .
Fig . 3 . Massive-stromatoporoid rudstone with a fine- to medium-grained, skeletal pack -
stone matrix .
Fig . 4 . Massive-stromatoporoid rudstone with a coarse- to fine-groined, skeletal grainston e
matrix .
Fig . 5 . Massive-stromatoporoid framestone .
Fig . 6 . Photomicrograph of a very fine-grained, skeletal wackestone .
Fig . 7 . Photomicrograph of an argillaceous, fine-grained, quartz sandstone with scattere d
crinoid ossicles .
Fig . 8 . Globular Alveolites in a coral floatstone matrix .
Fig . 9 . Disphyllid coral bafflestone with a mudstone matrix .
Fig . 10 . Thin, tabular-stromatoporoid bindstone with a mottled, skeletal wackeston e
matrix .
0 i 0 I
o ~ | ,
C.m
0 I
SCALE I 50ft. HOE. & VERT.
? . : • .:
o !
I i
CrY.
9!
I
9 __1
1,.+,.rY~ ~m
PLATE 6
752 A. F. E M B R Y III and J. E. K L O V A N
islands of debris accumulated on the reef flat. The presence of a marine

shale overlying the subaerial coquina unit indicates that a rise in sea level
accompanied the influx of terrigenous clastic material that ended reef
growth.
Mercy Bay Member at Gyrfalcon Bluff
Gyrfalcon Bluff is located on the eastern side of t h e head of Mercy Bay.
The locality has been chosen as t he type section of t he Mercy B a y Member
for two reasons: 1. T h e entire car bona t e unit is well exposed with terri-
genous clastic rocks outcropping above and below t he carbonate. 2. The
locality is unmistakable, and is easily accessible because a i r c r a f t on large
tires can land on the flat lands n e a r t h e bluff. A detailed description of
th e ty p e Mercy B a y Member is included in the appendix.
Description. Gyrfalcon Bluff is an imposing landmark, rising 475 ft above
sea level. Th e bluff itself is f o r m e d by t h e Mercy Bay Member, which is
exposed on steep cliffs on t he w e s t er n and sout hern sides. The n o r t h e r n
side has been rounded by glacial action (Plate 11).
Below t h e steep cliffs is a talus slope, and a small exposure of terrigen-
ous clastic rocks occurs on t he southwest corner of t he hillside. Ninety-
five feet of t e r r i g e n o u s clastie rocks ar e exposed. T he lower 70 ft consist
of drab, g r ey to green, v e r y fine to fine-grained, argillaceous, quartz sand-
stone. Fine laminations, planar cross-laminations and burrow s are com-
mon s e d i m e n t a r y structures. T h e u p p e r m o s t p a r t is ferruginous (hema-
titic) and contains corals.
T h e upper 25 ft consist of poorly exposed, green siltsto.ne. A green,
fine-grained, highly b u r r o w e d sandstone occurs at the top of this unit.
Th e Mercy B a y Member rests a b r u p t l y on this sandstone (Plate 12, Fig.
1).
Two sections were m e a s ur e d in the Mercy B a y Mem ber on Gyrfalcon
Bluff, one on the south face and the o t h e r on the west. As the south
face, consisting of two outcrop areas, exposes eastward-dipping beds, the
section was m e a s ur e d along t he base of the bluff. T h e west face is ap-
p r o x i m a t e l y parallel to t h e strike of the beds, and a vertical section
was m e a s u r e d up t he precipitous surface.
A thin (3-5 ft) horizontal limestone bed occurs along t he base of the
south face. It is a d a r k grey, Alveolites and t a b u l a r - s t r a m a t o p o r o i d bind-
stone with a fine-grained, skeletal p ackstone t o grainstone matrix. To the
east t h e content of in situ fossils decreases almost to zero. Above this
bed, beds dip eas t w ar d at angles up to 20 °. Beds are between 2 and 10
f t thick, and t h e y thicken upward to the west.
T h e lithology of t he distal ends of t hese beds is consistent along the
entire south face, and is t a b u l a r - s t r o m a t o p o r o i d bindstone with a light
grey-yellow-maroon mottled, fine-grained, skeletal wackestone matrix.
PLATE 7
Figs. 1, 2. The organic build-up that outcrops to the south of the one pictured in Plates
3 and 4 (Plate 2; C). View looking west.
Figs. 3, 4. The organic build-up that outcrops to the north of the one pictured in Plates
3 and 4 (Plate 2; D). View looking east.

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRAC T 75 3
PLATE 7
.
.--~~.-- .1 "rte ~•~'--rte'-r
r'1+--•
T` r-` _KT-+r~'-r'1'r ,--n -

4 -rl'~~` t r 4
CORAL-TABULAR STROMATOPOROID MASSIVE STROMATCPOROID

UNIT UNIT
N,ELCRGA\:!C 8;; .;JUP TERRIGENOUS CLASTIC ROCK S
M1 5'RA,
S
N
~t~ .i'' :i}'.. ::j•i

r.•
lhi :ii:r:
• .• A' AL AT AT
iii.• S:• ':
-l• •A
.~: a Alij••
i q)fi
y i :I~ iii
AT.T
~
••'A •,' .i•'~y'Y •{ ,-E ,-L ~ AT ,-L f ~~ r'- •~ • r`
AL
44'4'- .+-r','r44',441r'-r ' * 4'-r44-ri 4+4
•t t•f r T AT 4 A•TA,--rL,
'Tit 4
CORAL - TABULAR STROMATOPOROID UNIT MASSIVE STROMATOPOROID UNI T

INLLRORGAN,C BUILDUP TERRIGENOUS CLASTIC ROCK S
t Q
STRATA

754 A . F . EMBRY III and J. E . KLOVA N
Disphyllids, thamnoporids, brachiopods, crinoids and infrequent massive-

stromatoporoid fragments are often present, forming a floatstone matrix .
Thin tabular stromatoporoids vary in abundance from 20 to 60 percent .
They are usually in situ but fragmented ones are not uncommon (Plat e
12, Fig . 2) . In thin section, corals and stromatoporoids are seen to b e
coated by the blue-green alga Sphaerocodium magnum Wray ( Roth-
pletzella Wood) . This alga also occurs as discontinuous strands in th e
wackestone matrix .
Pockets of argillaceous material and thin shale partings are common ,
and the wackestone matrix is slightly argillaceous . Limonite is commo n
as finely disseminated flecks or concentrated along stylolites .
The west face exposes 190 ft of limestone which has been divided int o
three units . Unit 1 is 65 ft thick and consists of approximately the sam e
lithology as was described for the south-face section . The only notabl e
difference is that tabular stromatoporoids in this unit tend to be thicke r
and sometimes swell into massive and irregular forms . The upper boun-
dary of this unit is taken at the first occurrence of massive-stromatopor-
oid framestone .
Unit 2 is 75 ft thick and contains tabular-stromatoporoid bindston e
similar to that of the preceding unit, except that massive-stromatoporoi d
fragments are more common . Massive-stromatoporid framestone with a
medium-grained, skeletal packstone to grainstone matrix is also a commo n
rock type, and is interbedded with the tabular-stromatoporoid bindstone .
The upper 50 ft of the section (Unit 3) consists predominantly of mas-

sive-stromatoporoid framestone (Plate 12, Fig . 3) with minor occurrence s
of tabular - stromatoporoid bindstone .
Overlying the Mercy Bay Member is a green, very fine-grained, highl y

argillaceous, quartz sandstone . Only one small outcrop is present and i t
occurs on the northeastern part of the bluff . The contact of this sand -
stone and the Mercy Bay Member at this location definitely appears to b e
topographically lower than the frontal portion of the bluff, As the bas e
of the Mercy Bay Member is horizontal, this apparent eastward slope o f
the top may be depositional .
Interpretation . Interpretations of environment and depositional history o f

the Mercy Bay Member at this locality are difficult because a large par t
of the organic build-up has been removed by erosion, However, by apply-
ing the paleoecological model and by comparing the fades relationship s
with those of the Recent reefs of the Yucatan shelf, the following inter-
pretations have been made .
The presence of abundant tabular stromatoporoids at the base of th e

organic build-up suggests that it began to form in the intermediate-energ y
zone . A tabular-stromatoporoid biogenetic bank, centered to the wes t
PLATE 8
The same organic build-up as Plate 7, Figs . 3 and 4, which outcrops on the opposit e
valley wall (Plate 2 : E) . The southward growth of the massive-stromatoporoid units i s
clearly illustrated . Detritus from the third growth unit of the north bioherm (right side )
evidently caused a cessation of growth over the south bioherm . View looking west .

PLATE 8
U

756 A . F . EM1IBRY III and J. E . KLOVA N
~~~• +,~~•^•••~~I .:.i.~~~;•~.•, + ' *'T

- •• ~ r~ ~ Ty T T T!' T " T
J- L ~' ~
+.'•.\• 1
-r rL 41r-rL '-1 --
rT''ti--i-,-I
~ fry ;
. .. . .~.~ ~ ~i'',-rte- -,--,--,-
CORAL-TABULAR STROMATOPOROID MASSIVE STROMATOPOROI D

UNIT UNI T
PLATE 9
A panoramic view of the Mercy Bay Member at East Mercy River valley . The bioherm s
are at the ends of the cliff . The coral - tabular stromatoporoid unit of the organic build-u p
on the left can be distinguished by its lighter tone . View looking northeast .
of the present exposure, grew upwards . The thin, horizontal extensio n

of this mound formed a platform over most of the area . When the high -
energy zone was reached, massive stromatoporoids became predominan t
and formed a rigid platform reef which grew up to the water surface .
Following the reasoning given earlier, the eastern edge of the organi c
build-up is interpreted to have had a massive-stromatoporoid zone fro m
0 to 30 ft of water depth, and a tabular-stromatoporoid zone from 30 f t
to the bottom . Algae probably played an important role as carbonate -
mud producers and binders in this lower zone . Zonation up the edg e
of the organic build-up does not occur at the localities previously describ-
ed . At these localities the reefs were more closely spaced and thus th e
water would have contained a greater amount of reef detritus . The wate r
below 30 ft may have been too turbid for stromatoporoid growth alon g
the deeper reef edges .
As sea level rose, these two zones shifted upward and eastward . Th e
interorganic build-up areas received some sediment but never came clos e
to being filled . The eastward extent of the organic build-up cannot b e
established because of erosion, but the uppermost massive-stromatoporoi d
unit does not form a biostrome .

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF' TRACT 75 7
Erosion has also removed the western part of the organic build-up . Thi s
presumably contained the massive-stromatoporoid framestone equivalen t
to the lower portion of the tabular-stromatoporoid bindstone exposed o n
the south face .
Figure 6 illustrates the reconstruction of the organic build-up and th e

outline of the present outcrop area .
A similar organic build-up was briefly studied at location 7 (Fig . 1) ,

and the same facies relationships that occur at Gyrfalcon Bluff were recog-
nized . Tabular stromatoporoids were found in situ in the underlyin g
quartz sandstone .
The Mercy Bay Member at M'Clure Rive r

M'Clure River is located in the eastern part of the study area and flows
northeastward into M'Clure Strait 12 mi southeast of Rodd Head (Fig .
1) . The river is deeply incised into the plateau and at its mouth the wall s
are over 700 ft high . It is 8 mi long, and the Mercy Bay Member an d
its stratigraphical equivalents are exceptionally well exposed along th e
valley walls (Fig . 7)

758 A . F. EMBRY III and J . E . KLOVA N
WEST
MASSIVE STROMATOPOROID S SKELETAL DETRITU S
TABULAR STROMATOPOROID S TERRIGENOUS SEDIMENT S
O OUTLINE OF PRESENT OUTCROP AREAS
Fig . 6 . Diagrammatic reconstruction of the Gyrfalcon Bluff organic build-up .
Description . Six miles upstream from the mouth of the river, the Merc y
Bay Member is exposed in the valley of a northward-flowing tributary .
Here the Mercy Bay Member consists of an organic build-up in which a
lower, coral - tabular stromatoporoid unit and two massive-stromatoporoi d
units were recognized . The thickness of the organic build-up was esti-
mated to be at least 200 ft .
In the northern part of the valley, a sequence of terrigenous clasti c
rocks, predominantly sandstones, is stratigraphically equivalent to th e
organic build-up . The contact between this sequence and the organi c
build-up trends east-west (Plate 13, Fig . 1) . The actual contact was no t
exposed, but evidence from other localities suggests that the clastic rock s
onlap the organic build-up with no interfingering . At the base of th e
clastic sequence is a 10-ft-thick, white-weathering, covered interval whic h
is probably time-equivalent to the Mercy Bay Member ; the rest of th e
sequence is definitely younger . These conclusions will be substantiate d
later .
The sequence of terrigenous clastic rocks continues northeastward alon g
M'Clure River Valley for the next 11 mi, after which the Mercy Ba y
PLATE 1 0
Fig . 1 . The recessive intervals that separate the massive-stromatoporoid units are easil y
seen . The cliff is approximately 130 ft high .
Fig . 2 . Massive-stromatoporoid framestone . Note the absence of matrix and the "wavy "
growth pattern of the massive stromatoporoids .
Fig . 3 . Thamnoporid floatstone with most of the thamnoporid corals lying disoriented .
Fig . 4 . Photomicrograph of the " coquina " . Note the hematite coating on the coral s
and the spar matrix .

PLATE 10
O=
sW 6 MILES --- NE
Fig . 7 . Diagrammatic SW-NE stratigraphic cross-section of the Mercy Bay Membe r

along the M'Clure River .
Member reappears on the valley wall as a 200-ft-thick (visual estimate )

600-ft-wide bioherm which is linear in a north-south direction (Plate 13 ,
Fig . 2) . The bioherm's total length is unknown, but it extends for a t
least 1000 ft . The lower half is composed of corals and tabular stroma-
toporoids ; the upper half consists of massive-stromatoporoid frameston e
with stromatoporoid rudstone predominating near the edges . The massive-
stromatoporoid portion could not be subdivided . Flank beds are not appar-
ent on the edges of the bioherm and it is completely encased in terrigen-
ous clastic rocks .
The Mercy Bay Member at this locality and at the previous one ar e
probably the same type of organic build-up : a narrow, linear bioherm ,
trending north-south and completely surrounded by terrigenous clasti c
rocks . The first locality exposes a north-south cross-section parallel t o
the long axis of the bioherm, while the second exposes an east-west cross -
section perpendicular to the long axis .
The sequence of terrigenous clastic rocks continues northeastward alon g
the valley walls with the thin, white-weathering covered interval at th e
PLATE 1 1
" The Three Faces of Gyrfalcon Bluff"
Fig . 1 . The west face of Gyrfalcon Bluff (approximately V2 mi long and 200 ft high) .
View looking east .
Figs . 2, 3, The south face of Gyrfalcon Bluff . Note the eastward-dipping flank beds .
The arrow in Fig . 2 points to the terrigenous clastic rock outcrop on top of the bluff . Vie w
looking north .
Fig . 4 . The north face of Gyrfacon Bluff, which has been rounded by glacial action .
Part of the eastward slope may be depositional . View looking south .

PLATE it

base . This covered interval swells to a thickness of approximately 100 f t

and remains at this thickness for 2 mi, then thins to less than 10 ft ove r
a distance of 100 ft . Sporadic outcrops of dark brown, silty, fine-grained ,
skeletal packstone occur in this interval . Brachiopods and ostracods ar e
the only fossils present .
Near the mouth of the M'Clure River the Mercy Bay Member is agai n
present and is divisible into two units . The lower unit is 100 ft thick an d
recessive . It appears as a distinctive, yellow-white weathering mud . A
2-ft bed of Alveolites - tabular stromatoporoid bindstone with a fine -
grained, skeletal wackestone matrix outcrops near the base of the unit .
On M'Clure Strait, dark brown, fine-grained, skeletal wackestones, quart z
siltstones and shales are exposed in this interval . Numerous large cora l
heads, mainly Alveolites and disphyllids, occur in the soft mud talus o f
the upper portion .
The upper unit of the Mercy Bay Member is a 90-ft-thick bioherm

(Plate 14, 15) . Corals and tabular stromatoporoids predominate in th e
lower half and form bindstone ; massive stromatoporoids are present i n
the upper half, forming framestone and rudstone . The 400-ft-wide bio-
herm is elongate in a north-south direction and outcrops on both sides o f
the valley and on M'Clure Strait (Plate 16) .
A bed of coral and stromatoporoid rudstone with a medium-grained ,

skeletal packstone matrix occurs on the west side of the bioherm . The
bed starts at the top of the bioherm and dips westward at an angle of 20° .
It falls stratigraphically below the bioherm and almost cuts off the entir e
underlying covered interval . Downdip the bed contains fewer large fossi l
fragments and becomes very arenaceous . Eventually, it becomes a hori-
zontal, fine-grained, argillaceous, quartz sandstone, beneath which is th e
distinctive, white-weathering, covered interval (10 ft) (Plate 14 ; Plate 15 ,
Fig . 1) .
Terrigenous clastic rocks, consisting of interbedded sandstone, siltston e

and shale, with brachiopods and crinoids at various intervals, onlap th e
dipping limestone bed and eventually cover the Mercy Bay Member . Thu s
the sequence of terrigenous clastic rocks, which is stratigraphically equiva-
lent to the Mercy Bay Member, is obviously younger .
Horizontal beds of argillaceous and arenaceous limestones, interbedde d

with quartz sandstones, siltstones and shales occur to the east of th e
bioherm . The limestone beds pass into the bioherm (Plate 15 ; Plate 16) ,
indicating time equivalence with it . Near the bioherm, the limestone s
consist of coral and stromatoporoid floatstone with a silty, skeletal pack -
stone matrix . Away from it, large fossil fragments become less abundan t
and quartz sand and silt content increases . Eventually, the beds becom e
very fine-grained, argillaceous, quartz sandstones . This transition occur s
PLATE 1 2
Fig . 1 . Abrupt contact of the Mercy Bay Member and the underlying quartz sandstone .
The divisions on the pole are in feet .
Fig . 2 . Tabular-stromatoporoid bindstone with a coral floatstone matrix .
Fig . 3 . Massive-stromatoporoid framestone with no visible matrix . The cracks follow
laminae of the stromatoporoids . The exposure is 2 ft thick .

PLATE 12

764 A . F. EMBR,Y III chid J . E . KLOVA N
over a distance of 300 ft . The entire sequence appears to be convergin g

to the east (Plate 15, Fig, 1) .
Along M'Clure Strait the same facies distribution is present . To th e
north a sequence of terrigenous clastic rocks is stratigraphically equiva-
lent to the Mercy Bay Member (Plate 16, Fig . 2) ,
Plate 17 illustrates the main rock types found in the Mercy Bay Membe r
at this locality .
Interpretation . Figure 7 is a diagrammatic stratigraphic cross-section o f

the Mercy Bay Member and its stratigraphic equivalents along the M'Clur e
River Valley . The Member's depositional history is interpreted from thi s
diagram . Linear, coral-tabular stromatoporoid, biogenetic banks, oriente d
in a north-south direction, grew up through the low- and intermediate -
energy zones into the high-energy zone . Here, massive-stromatoporoi d
reefs began, and grew upward to the surface of the water . Strong cur -
rents paralleled the reefs, from the vicinity of which much of the detritu s
was carried away and deposited as large mounds . Terrigenous sedimen t
was also deposited in these mounds . As sea level rose, the massive-
stromatoporoid reefs grew upward, as did the detrital mounds . On the
edge of at least one of these mounds, coral growth became prolific and a
coral biogenetic bank formed . This bank grew upwards and became a
tabular-stromatoporoid biogenetic bank . When the high-energy zone wa s
reached, a massive-stromatoporoid reef formed. This reef grew alon g
the edge of the mound, and skeletal detritus along with terrigenous sedi-
ment was deposited in the backreef area on top of the mound . The fore -
reef side was a 150-ft-deep channel . A talus bed, which is probably a
storm deposit, accumulated on the slope of the forereef channel . An in -
crease in the influx of terrigenous sediment, combined with a rise in se a
level, caused the cessation of organic growth, The interreef and inter -
mound channels were filled with terrigenous sediment, and the reefs wer e
eventually covered .
Mercy Bay Member of the Mesas

The mesas of the 1Vlercy River valley, pictured in Plate 1, are spectacula r
topographic features of northeastern Banks Island . The Mercy Bay Mem-
ber, which forms the resistant cap of the mesas, was not studied in detai l
in this area, but panoramic pictures were taken along one of the mesa s
(Fig . 1, Location 5) . Plate 18 illustrates the panoramic view and th e
interpretation of the nature of the Mercy Bay Member at this locality .
The member is approximately 125 ft thick and consists of mounds o f

massive limestone (cores of biohermal organic build-ups) with well-bedde d
PLATE 1 3
Fig . 1 . The organic build-up exposed in a tributary valley near the head of the M'Clur e
River . A sequence of quartz sandstones, which is stratigraphically equivalent to th e
organic build-up, is on the right . The view looks southwest, and the contact between th e
organic build-up and the quartz sandstones trends east-west . The largest talus block is th e
size of a two-storey house .
Fig . 2 . The organic build-up exposed in the M ' Clure River valley 1 1/2 mi downstrea m
from the one pictured in Fig . 1 . A sequence of quartz sandstones occurs to the right o f
the organic build-up . View looking north, parallel to the trend of the organic build-up .

PLATE 13

limestones (flank and interorganic build-up strata) between the mounds.

The bioherms are close together and the flank beds often merge . Becaus e
there is only a small amount of interorganic build-up strata, the Merc y
Bay Member is well exposed everywhere and forms a continuous cliff .
This contrasts with exposures to the east and northeast of the Mesas ,
where there is a much larger amount of interorganic strata and exposure s
of the member, except for the upper biostromal unit, are discontinuous .
RECONSTRUCTIO N
This section attempts to synthesize observations and interpretation s

made for the localities previously described . It presents a depositiona l
pattern and history for the Mercy Bay Member over the entire stud y
area .
Paleogeogrcrphy
In any attempt to interpret the depositional history of the Mercy Ba y
Member, regional paleogeographical setting is of prime importance . A
very general picture of the paleogeography of the Canadian Arctic durin g
the Late Devonian has been put forward by previous authors . Durin g
Late Devonian time a tectonic highland extended along the entire contin-
ental shelf from the northern Yukon Territory to Ellesmere Island (Martin ,
1961 ; Tozer and Thorsteinsson, 1964 ; Ziegler, 1969) . The tectonic high -
land probably consisted of folded and intruded, Proterozoic to Lowe r
Paleozoic, miogeosynclinal and eugeosynclinal rocks similar to those out -
cropping on northern Ellesmere Island (Trettin, 1969) . The actual tren d
of this highland through the Arctic Islands is open to speculation becaus e
of the extensive Late Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Tertiary cover throughou t
the area . The interpretation offered here (Fig . 8) is based on facie s
trends of the Upper Devonian strata throughout the Arctic Islands .
Between the highland and the stable craton to the southeast was a n
area of strong subsidence which accumulated large thicknesses of marin e
and nonmarine strata —• an exogeosyncline in the terminology of Ka y
(1951) . The Mercy Bay Member represents a reef tract which was lo-
cated in the marine-shelf environment of the exogeosyncline (Fig . 9) .
Land areas were present to the north and west, with the shorelines fa r
removed from the reef tract . Very fine clastic sediment derived from th e
north and west was deposited in the areas surrounding the reefs, but thi s
influx of sediment was apparently small enough to allow prolific organi c
growth . The actual areal extent of the reef tract is unknown because o f
erosion and Mesozoic-Tertiary cover .
Physical Environmen t
The physical environment of the Mercy Bay reef tract must also b e
considered . By taking into account the proposed paleogeography and th e
PLATE 1 4
The Mercy Bay Member on the southeastern valley wall at the mouth of the M'Clur e
River . The lower 100 ft is a white-weathering, covered interval with the upper 90 ft bein g
an organic build-up . On the right a limestone bed dips steeply off the top of the organi c
build-up and a sequence of quartz sandstones and shales onlaps the bed . To the left o f
the organic build-up there is a horizontal sequence of interbedded limestones and shales .
View looking southeast .

PLATE 14
A- 4-
s~~
~~~ : l
1. -I t
1
Z
~ + -~-~ '~ as
',f'
t t t-It i
I tt
V Q
i>
i•.r~ ~ r~~~ l -I- . . 1
4 x ~ -fi
r
o
~~~
t
x r~+~~1
I -~ F 1 1 w N
_1-44
x.~ 1-t-4 - I 1 I
- III }
3f
~ . f.~♦~
_ i 44J ~lF
T
x
ii ~ JL
r Z
xa--t fi ~ 1 0
F1 1
IF ' ' x--x~r-4--tt 4- 4-1' 0 Z
, V t-1 4-
T -r -
1-, t
11
-1-~~
m Q
~ A- w ~
8 Z
1 1 1 _Ft -r
11 I- -Ill
I~ . x~x~ }t~
I I ri r~ >

Fig . 8 . Upper Devonian paleogeography, Arctic Canada .

orientations, shapes, sizes, and facies distributions of the organic build -
ups, some interpretations regarding the physical environment can be made .
The main changes in over-all character of the Mercy Bay Membe r
appear to occur in an east-west direction . For ease of discussion th e
area of study has been divided into three north-south trending areas : 1 .
western area (Gyrfalcon Bluff and Loc . 7) ; 2, central area (Mannin g
River, East Mercy River, Loc . 5) ; 3 . eastern area (M'Clure River) .
In the eastern area the organic build-ups are narrow, linear, north-sout h
trending bioherms . Interorganic build-up strata are mostly younger tha n
the organic, indicating the former presence of deep east-west and north -
south channels between the bioherms . Organic build-ups are widel y
spaced, being over a mile apart .
In the central area organic build-ups are a combination of lower, smal l
bioherms (banks and reefs) and overlying, extensive biostromes (reefs) .
The spacing of the bioherms is approximately 1 per 1000 ft, and thei r
orientations vary from east-west to northeast-southwest . Interbioherm
areas have penecontemporaneous strata, indicating that currents in thes e
areas were not strong . A southerly current or wave direction is indicate d
at the Manning River locality .
In the western area erosion has made any interpretation difficult . Th e
organic build-ups maintained a biohermal shape throughout and wer e
PLATE 1 5
Fig . 1 . A view of the southeastern valley wall at the mouth of the M'Clure River .
Note the organic build-up (90 ft high) in the centre of the picture and the differen t
stratigraphic sequences on either side of the orgonic build-up . View looking south .
Fig . 2 . View of the ' backreef' side of the organic build-up pictured in Plate 14 an d
Plate 15, Fig . 1 . Note the limestone beds passing into the organic build-up . Vie w
looking southwest .
Fig . 3 . Close-up of the 'backreef' side of the organic build-up . View looking southwest .

PLATE 15

770 A . P . EMBRY III crud J. E . KLOVA N
Fig . 9 . Schematic paleogeography of the Mercy Bay reef tract .
quite large . They definitely grew eastward and probably were oriente d
in a north-south direction .
Figure 10 illustrates the observed orientations of organic build-ups i n
the Mercy Bay Member, and the inferred wave and current directions .
The two most prominent directions are east to west and south to north .
These are the onshore directions on the paleogeographic map (Fig . 9), an d
are interpreted to be the paths of the dominant winds . Logan (1969 )
has demonstrated that the onshore winds, although not the prevailing
PLATE 1 6
Fig . 1 . The Mercy Bay Member outcropping along M'Clure Strait just north of th e
mouth of M'Clure River . Note the lower recessive interval and the upper organic build-up .
The sea cliff is approximately 700 ft high . View looking west .
Fig . 2 . Terrigenous clastic rocks are stratigraphically equivalent to the Mercy Ba y
Member to the north along M'Clure Strait . Note the Hecla Boy Formation outcroppin g
above the Mercy Bay Member . View looking southwest .
Fig . 3 . A view of the 'backreef ' side of the organic build-up on the right side o f
Figure 1 . Note the close resemblance of this picture to that of Plate 15, Fig . 2 . Vie w
looking west .
Fig . 4 . A close-up of the ' backreef ' side of the organic buildup . The massive cliff i s
45 ft high and is the upper half of the organic build-up . View looking west .

PLATE 16

Porke r
\PO, N
— BIOHER M MILE S
0 5 10
--• CURRENT
Fig . 10 . Organic build-up orientations and postulated wave and current directions .
ones, are the dominant ones affecting the Recent reefs of the Yucata n
shelf . The reason for this is that in the onshore direction fetch for wav e
build-up is long and bottom drag minimal .
The climate of the area during the Late Frasnian was most likel y
different from the present `frozen desert .' Many authors have assume d
that organic build-ups grow only in warm climates, but this assumptio n
is questionable since large, deep-water, organic build-ups are at presen t
growing in cold-water areas (Teichert, 1958) . Recent shallow-water ,
organic build-ups,, however, are found only in warm-water areas . Th e
PLATE 1 7
Fig . 1 . Coral-stromatoporoid floatstone with a highly arenaceous, skeletal wackeston e
matrix .
Fig . 2 . Tabular-stromatoporoid Alveolites bindstone with on argillaceous, skeleta l
wackestone matrix .
Fig . 3 . Coral-stromatoporoid framestone . A thick, tabular stromatoporoid overlies tham-
noporids and is overlain by a Phillipsastrea colony .
Fig . 4 . Photomicrograph of the ironstone band with brachiopods and crinoids in a highl y
silty, hematitic, clay matrix .
Fig . 5 . Coral-stromatoporoid - crinoid rudstone with a medium-grained, skeletal packston e
matrix .
Fig . 6 . Photomicrograph of a very fine-grained, highly argillaceous, quartz sandstone .
Fig . 7 . Coral-stromatoporoid floatstone with an arenaceous, fine-grained, skeletal pack -
stone matrix .
Fig . 8 . Photomicrograph of a fine-grained, argillaceous, quartz sandstone with scattere d
coral fragments .
Fig . 9 . Tabular Alveolites and stromatoporoid bindstone with a very fine-grained, skeleta l
wackestone matrix .
Fig . 10 . Very fine-grained, highly argillaceous, quartz sandstone . Note the coral frag-
ment in the upper left corner .
o I D.
I . I
C~
~!i ¸ •
0
I
0 t ~l 4i
I i I
crib
c.lft
SCALE I I 50 ft. HOR. & VERT.

5
~i ¸¸~ •
9 0 I O
O
o I I I
cm ~m
| . • IMit~
Cm
PLATE 17
A. F. EMBRY III and J. E. KLOVAN
CORAL & STROMATOPOROID BIOHERM f * INTERORGANIC BUILDUP TERRIGENOUS CLASTIC ROCKS

& # :
STRATA em I I
PLATE 18
Panoramic view of the Mercy Bay Member capping one of the mesas in the Mercy River
Valley (Lot. 5). Note the massive cores of the organic build-ups and the bedded flanks and
interorganic build-up strata. View looking east.
occurrence of abundant tree fragments and plant material, coal and red
beds in the Upper Devonian strata adds support for a warm climate in the
study area during the Late Devonian.
Paleomagnetic reconstruction of the paleogeography of the world during
the Devonian period (Creer, 1967) places northern Banks Island at 25”
south latitude. This agrees with the interpretation of a warm climate.
DEP~SITIONAL HISTORY OF THE MERCY BAY MEMBER

The development of the Mercy Bay Member was undoubtedly very
complicated. The interpretations offered are based on observations from
four localities, three of which form an east-west line across the Mercy Bay
Member. The depositional history has been divided into six stages, and
a schematic cross-section is presented for each stage.
Stage 1. The influx of terrigenous elastic sediment into the marine-
shelf environment of the study area was greatly reduced. This reduction
was probably caused by a rise in sea level which drowned portions of the
source area. Coral growth became prolific, and small coral biogenetic
banks grew up on the sea floor in the low-energy zone. The orientation,

size, shape and density of these coral banks over the area was strongl y
influenced by the prevailing physical environment .
In the western and central areas biogenetic banks grew upward throug h
the intermediate-energy zone and reached the high-energy zone . Here ,
massive stromatoporoids formed rigid platform reefs which grew up t o
the surface . Reef flats formed over portions of the platforms . Interree f
areas received skeletal detritus and began to fill up . In the western are a
a tabular-stromatopor oid fauna grew on the deeper reef edges, and thes e
reefs gradually grew eastward . In the central area the interreef area s
received much more sediment because reef density was very high . In th e
eastern area the biogenetic banks did not reach the high-energy zone a t
this time (Fig . 11a) .
Stage 2 . A rise in sea level allowed massive stromatoporoids to re -
colonize the reef platforms . The reefs grew upward to the surface, wher e
reef flats again formed over portions of the reefs . In the western are a
the reefs continued to grow eastward as well as upward . In the central
area the interreef areas became filled with skeletal detritus . Organi c
growth ceased, with the area becoming a vast carbonate-sand waste . In
the eastern area the biogenetic banks reached the high-energy zone an d
massive stromatoporoids formed narrow, linear, 'ribbon' reefs which gre w
up to the surface . The formation of these outer barrier reefs was probabl y
partly responsible for the rapid accumulation of skeletal detritus in th e
central area at this time . The outer reefs may have caused a sligh t
restriction of water movement in the central area, so that detritus coul d
accumulate rather than being carried away by currents . Detritus fro m
the 'ribbon' reefs was swept away from their vicinity by strong current s
and deposited in large mounds to seaward . Terrigenous, clastic sedimen t
transported from the north was also deposited in these mounds (Fig . 11b) .
Stage 3 . Sea level rose again, and in the western area the reefs con-
tinued to grow upward and eastward . Large, extensive, platform reef s
formed in the central area and grew up to the surface, where extensiv e
reef flats formed . In the eastern area the 'ribbon' reefs grew upward s
as did the detritus mounds . Coral biogenetic banks started to grow o n
the edges of some of these mounds (Fig . 11c) .
Stage 4 . Another rise in sea level resulted in the continued upwar d
and eastward growth of the western reefs . In the central area small plat -
form reefs grew up over the sites of underlying bioherms . The interree f
areas eventually became filled and organic growth ceased once again . I n
the eastern area the 'ribbon' reefs continued their upward growth . Th e
biogenetic banks on the detrital mounds reached the high-energy zone ,
resulting in the formation of linear reefs on the edges of the mounds .
Locally derived skeletal material and terrigenous sediment from the north
were deposited on top of the mounds in the backreef area (Fig . 11d) .
Stage 5 . Sea level rose again and the reefs of the western area continue d
their upward and eastward growth . Large platform reefs formed in th e
central area . These reefs grew up to the surface, and reef flats wit h
islands of skeletal debris formed on the platforms . The reefs of the east -
ern area continued their upward growth (Fig . 11e) .
Stage 6 . An influx of terrigenous sediment due to the seaward pro -

gradation of the shorelines resulted in the cessation of organic growth

776 A . F. EMBRY III and J . E . ICLOVA N
GYRFALCON BLUFF MESAS EAST MERCY R M'CLURE RIVE R
:;;~N 1._'mss
r . ~., I 3r I
Ana;IL
GYRFALCO N MESAS EAST MERCY R M'CLURE RIVE R
BLUFF
-5L
S. . ir4
4
cA y;ye .
`v1/ x 4
GYRFALCO N
BLUFF
MESA S EAST MERCY R M'CLURE RIVER
D
.41 RI °'s:f
GYRFALCON MESAS EAST MERCY R . M'CLURE RIVE R

BLUFF
.r
~C'sir~" '~Eti~~~s:~~•ir /Z . . . .~.ki~ : ._ ~ Yry' ~t ~h ~ .

GYRFALCON MESAS EAST MERCY M'CLURE RIVE R
BLUFF RIVE R
40
GYRFALCON MESAS EAST MERCY M'CLURE RIVE R

BLUFF RIVE R
EMERGENT REEF l SKELETAL DETRITU S

® SUBMERGENT BIOGENETIC BANK TERRIGENOU S
CLASTICS
Fig, 11 . Depositional history of the Mercy Bay Member .
over the entire area . The interreef channels were filled with terrigenou s
sediment, and eventually the entire Mercy Bay Member was covere d
(Fig . 111') .
ECONOMIC GEOLOGY
Since the close association of Devonian organic build-ups and hydro -

carbons has been well documented in western Canada, the Mercy Ba y
Member must be regarded as a potential hydrocarbon-bearing unit . Th e
outcropping organic build-ups of the member have very low porosity .
In a few outcrops weathering has produced a rock riddled with larg e

vugs (Plate 19, Fig . 1), and some of the massive stromatoporoids hav e
intrafossil porosity (Plate 19, Fig . 2), but in general most of the rock s
are tightly cemented . However, porosity, or the lack of it, in surfac e
exposures is very difficult to evaluate, and is usually a poor indicatio n
of the porosity of the same unit in the subsurface . If the organic build -
ups are porous in the subsurface, they definitely would form attractiv e
potential reservoirs .
Dead oil was often found in the organic build-ups . Black, massiv e
stromatoporoids, which were tightly cemented, were found to be com-
pletely saturated with bitumen (Plate 19, Fig . 3) . Bitumen was als o
found in fractures and interparticle areas in tightly cemented grainstone s
(Plate 19, Fig . 4) . Thus the outcropping organic build-ups were probabl y
oil-bearing at one time, but the oil was oxidized and the rocks tightl y
cemented when the organic build-ups were uplifted and exposed to surfac e
conditions .
Organic build-ups of the Mercy Bay Member probably occur in the sub -
surface to the west of the study area .
CONCLUSIONS
The Mercy Bay Member of the Weatherall Formation is a 200-ft-thic k

limestone unit within a thick sequence of terrigenous clastic rocks . Gyrfal-
con Bluff has been designated as the type section, and the age of th e
member is Middle to Late Frasnian .
The Mercy Bay Member contains numerous organic build-ups and repre-
sents a Late Devonian reef tract . The reef tract was located in th e
marine shelf environment of an exogeosyncline, which was situate d
between a tectonic highland to the northwest and the stable craton t o
the southeast . The predominant wave and current directions were eas t
to west and south to north, and represent the paths of the onshore winds .
The initiation of prolific organic growth occurred during a reductio n
of terrigenous-sediment influx caused by a rise in sea level and transgres-
sion of the sea over portions of the source area to the north and west .
Small, coral biogenetic banks formed the pioneer organic build-ups i n
water depths of approximately 90 ft . Rapid organic growth raised thes e
banks through the intermediate-energy zone, where tabular stromatopor-
oids were the predominant fauna, into the high-energy zone where massiv e
stromatoporoids built rigid reefs up to sea level . Reef flats formed whe n
the reefs surfaced .
The geometry of the reef tract and individual reefs was closely relate d
to the physical environment . Reefs along the eastern edge of the ree f
tract were linear `ribbon' reefs, oriented north-south and over a mile apart .
Reefs in the central area were oriented east-west and spaced approximate-
ly one per thousand feet . Reefs in the western area were oriented north -
south and, unlike those to the east, were faunally zoned with tabula r
stromatoporoids growing on the basal slopes .
Periodic sea-level rises allowed the reefs to grow upward . In th e
central area very extensive platform reefs formed during the later stage s
of development, due to the infilling of the interreef areas during sea-leve l
standstills . Stromatoporoid reefs also formed on the edges of large car-

bonate-detritus mounds located seaward of the reef tract . An increase

in the supply of terrigenous sediment due to the seaward migration o f
the shorelines probably was responsible for the permanent cessation o f
reef growth in the area .
The outcropping organic build-ups of the Mercy Bay Member ar e

tightly cemented . However, bitumen freqently occurs in them, indicatin g
that they were once oil-bearing . Organic build-ups of the Mercy Ba y
Member probably occur in the subsurface to the west .
In the final analysis, one has to agree with Armstrong (1857), who ,
over 100 years ago, recognized that the Mercy Bay Member "is a re-
markable formation ."
REFERENCES CITE D
Armstrong, A ., 1857, A personal narrative of the discovery of the Northwes t

Passage : London, Hurst and Blackett, 616 p .
Creer, K . M ., 1967, Devonian geography deduced by the Paleomagnetic method ,
in Oswald, D . H ., ed ., Intern . Symp . Devonian System : Calgary, Alberta Soc .
Petroleum Geologists, v . II, p . 1371-1377.
Dolphin, D . R ., and Klovan, J . E ., 1970, Stratigraphy and paleoecology of a n
Upper Devonian carbonate bank, Saskatchewan River Crossing, Alberta : Bull .
Can . Petroleum Geology, v . 18, p . 289-331 .
Dunham, R . J ., 1962, Classification of carbonate rocks according to depositiona l
texture, in Ham, W . E ., ed ., Classification of carbonate rocks — a symposium :
Am . Assoc ., Petroleum Geologists, Mem . 1, p . 108-121 .
Fischbuch, N . R ., 1968, Stratigraphy of the Devonian Swan Hills reef complexe s
of central Alberta : Bull . Can . Petroleum Geology, v . 16, p . 444-556 .
Folk, R . L ., 1959, Practical petrographic classification of limestones : Am . Assoc .
Petroleum Geologists Bull ., v . 43, p . 1-38.
1962, Spectral subdivision of limestone types, in Ham, W . E ., ed ., Classifica-
tion of carbonate rocks — a symposium : Am . Assoc . Petroleum Geologists ,
Mem . 1, p . 62-84 .
Jamieson, E . R ., 1967, The Alexandra reef-complex (Frasnian), Hay River area ,
N .W .T ., Canada : Stratigraphy, sedimentology and paleoecology : Unpublishe d
Ph .D . thesis, University of Reading .
Kay, M ., 1951, North American geosynclines : Geol . Soc . America, Mem . 48 .
Klement, K . W., 1967, Practical classification of reefs and banks, bioherms an d
biostromes : Am . Assoc . Petroleum Geologists Bull., v . 51, p . 167-168 .
Klovan, J . E ., 1964, Facies analysis of Reclwater reef complex, Alberta, Canada :
Bull . Can . Petroleum Geology, v . 12, p . 1-100 .
, and Embry, A . F ., 1971, Upper Devonian Stratigraphy, Northeastern Bank s
Island N .W.T . : Bull . Can . Petroleum Geology, v . 19, p . 705-729 .
Leavitt, E . M ., 1968, Petrology, paleontology, Carson Creek north reef complex ,
Alberta : Bull . Can . Petroleum Geology, v. 16, p . 244-317 .
PLATE 1 9
Fig . 1 . A highly porous area in a coral-tabular stromatoporoid unit . Weathering i s

responsible for the vugular porosity .
Fig . 2 . Massive stromatoporoid with intrafossil and vugular porosity .
Fig . 3 . Black, massive stromatoporoid which is tightly cemented and is saturated wit h
bitumen (dead oil) .
Fig . 4 . Bitumen occurs in the interparticle areas of the stromatoporoid floatstone with a
skeletal grainstone matrix . Note that the large stromatoporoid fragments were cemente d
before the grainstone matrix .

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF' TRAC T 779
PLATE 19
C ! m
0 I
L . I
' C M
Leighton, M . W . and Pendexter, C ., 1962, Carbonate rock types, in Ham, W . E . ,

ed., Classification of carbonate rocks — a symposium : Am . Assoc. Petroleu m
Geologists, Mem . 1, p . 33-60 .
Logan, B . W ., 1969, Carbonate sediments and reefs, Yucatan Shelf, Mexico, Par t
2, Coral reefs and banks, in Logan, B . W . and McBirney, A ., eds ., Yucatan -
Bonacca : Am . Assoc . Petroleum Geologists, Mem . 11, p . 129 . 198 .
Lowenstam, H . A ., 1950, Niagaran reefs of the Great Lakes area : Jour . Geology ,
v . 58, p . 430 . 487.
, 1957, Niagaran reefs in the Great Lakes area : Geol . Soc . America, Mom .
67, v . 2, p . 215 .248 .
Martin, L . J., 1961, Tectonic framework of northern Canada, in Raasch, G . O . ,
ed ., Geology of the Arctic, v. 1 : Toronto, Univ . Toronto Press, p . 442-457 .
Maxwell, W . G . H ., 1968, Atlas of the Great Barrier Reef : Amsterdam, Elsevier ,
258 p .
Mesolella, K . J ., Sealy, H . A . and Matthews, R . K ., 1970, Facies geometries withi n
Pleistocene reefs of Barbados, West Indies : Am . Assoc . Petroleum Geologist s
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Devonian Swan Hills Member, Judy Creek, Alberta : Bull . Can . Petroleu m
Geology, v . 14, p . 1-103 .
Playford, P . E ., 1967, Devonian reef complexes in the northern Canning Basin ,
Western Australia, in Oswald, D . H ., ed . Intern . Symp . Devonian System :
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85 p .
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Archipelago : Geol . Surv . Canada, Mem . 332, 242 p .
Trettin, H . P ., 1969, Pre-Mississippian geology of northern Axel Heiberg an d
northwestern Ellesmere islands, Arctic Archipelago : Geol . Surv. Canada ,
Bull . 171 .
Washburn, A . L ., 1947, Reconnaissance geology of portions of Victoria Island
and adjacent regions, , Arctic Canada : Geol . Soc . America, Mem . 22, 142 p .
Ziegler, P . A ., 1969, The development of sedimentary basins in western and Arcti c
Canada : Calgary, Alberta Soc . Petroleum Geologists, 94 p .

Appendi x
DESCRIPTION OF THE TYPE SECTION OF THE IVIERCY BAY MEMBER

OF THE WEATHERALL FORMATIO N
Location : West face of Gyrfalcon Bluff, which is on the eastern side o f

the head of Mercy Bay on northeastern Banks Island, N .W .T . (lat.
73°59'N ; long . 118°57'W) .
Heigh t
above
Thickness bas e
Unit Lithology (feet) (feet )
Post-carbonate unit of the Weatherall Formation .

13 Sandstone, quartzose, very fine-grained, argillaceous ;
light grey, olive-green weathering, laminated . 15 298
Mercy Bay Member .
12 Limestone, massive stromatoporoid framestone wit h
coarse to medium-grained, skeletal grainston e
matrix ; white, weathers light grey . 50 283
11 Limestone, tabular-stromatoporoid bindstone with fine -
grained, skeletal wackestone matrix, Alveolite s
present ; light grey, weathers yellow . 25 233
10 Limestone, massive-stromatoporoid framestone ; white ,
weathers light grey to yellow . 10 208
9 Limestone, tabular-stromatoporoid bindstone with tham-
noporoid-brachiopod floatstone matrix with a ver y
fine-grained, skeletal wackestone matrix ; mottle d
light grey to yellow, weathers light yellow . 30 198
8 Limestone, massive-stromatoporoid framestone wit h
medium-grained, skeletal grainstone matrix ; white ,
weathers light grey . 10 168
7 Limestone, tabular-stromatoporoid bindstone with a
coral (thamnoporids, disphyllids, Alveolites) float -
stone matrix with a very fine-grained skeletal ,
wackestone matrix . Corals are more abundant i n
the lower part of the unit . Tabular stromatoporoid s
make up from 20 . 60= of the rock . Occasionall y
the tabular stromatoporoids swell into irregula r
forms . Crinoids and brachiopods are also pres-
ent ; mottled light grey-yellow-maroon, weather s
light yellow . 65 15 8
Pre-carbonate unit of the Weatherall Formation .
6 Sandstone, quartzose, fine-grained, argillaceous ; ligh t
grey, weathers olive green ; laminated, burrows . 6 93
5 Siltstone, quartzose, argillaceous ; light grey, weath-
ers olive green ; laminated ; concretions containin g
brachiopods ; poor exposure . 17 87
4 Sandstone, quartzose, fine-grained ; argillaceous, hema-
titic ; red, weathers brown-red ; contains scattered
corals (Alveolites, disphyllids, thamnoporids), crin-
oids, brachiopods . Alveolites in situ . 2 70
3 Sandstone, quartzose, fine-grained, argillaceous ; light
grey, weathers olive green ; planar cross-laminations ;
contains ironstone nodules . 16 68
2 Siltstone, quartzose, argillaceous ; grey, weathers oliv e
green ; laminated ; contains ironstone nodules . 17 52
Covered Interval . 9 35
1 Sandstone, quartzose, very fine-grained, argillaceous ;
grey, weathers olive green ; thin-bedded ; contain s
ironstone nodules . 24 24

A Late Devonian Reef Tract On Northeaster N Banks Island, N .W.t.

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A Late Devonian Reef Tract On Northeaster N Banks Island, N .W.t.

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BULLETIN OF CANADIAN PETROLEUM GEOLOG Y

VOL . 19, NO . 4 (DECEMBER, 1971) P . 730-78 1

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT ON NORTHEASTER N

ASHTON F. EMBRY III 2 and J . EDWARD KLOVAN °

1 Revised Manuscript received June 30, 1971 .

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT 731

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT 733

The member was studied at four localities : 1 . Manning River, 2 . Eas t

CARBONATE TERMINOLOGY AND CLASSIFICATIO N

Since the Mercy Bay Member contains numerous organic build-ups ,

The various types of carbonate particles which compose carbonat e

The widely used limestone classifications of Folk (1959, 1962) an d

Folk's 1959 classification makes the basic distinction between organic -

Dunham's classification also distinguishes between autochthonous an d

734 A . F . EMBRY III cold J . E . KLOVA N

The classification we propose in Figure 2 is an attempt to differentiat e

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT 735

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT 73 7

The term boundstone of Dunham is retained for authochthonous lime -

Modifiers such as particle type, further grain-size qualification (Went -

The proposed limestone classification can be used in two ways . Th e

This classification may seem complicated at first but it gives a relativel y

PALEONTOLOGY AND PALEOECOLOG Y

No generic identifications have been attempted for the stromatoporoids .

Corals were given generic names where possible ; e .g ., Alveolites, bu t

Crinoids, brachiopods, gastropods, and bryozoans were not identifie d

738 A . F . EMBRY III and J . E . KLOVA N

Paleoecological studies of Upper Devonian organic build-ups (Klovan ,

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT 739

REGIONAL STRATIGRAPHY OF THE MERCY BAY MEMBE R

The Mercy Bay Member is approximately 200 ft thick throughout th e

The member was studied in detail at four localities : Manning River,

Mercy Bay Member at Manning Rive r

The organic build-up, exposed on the valley walls of a tributary whic h

The first (lowermost) coral - tabular stromatoporoid unit is bioherma l

740 A . F' . EMBRY III and J . E . KLOVA N

742 A . F . EMBRY III and J . E. KLOVA N

ECOLOGICAL ZONE S PALEOECOLOGICA L

Fig . 3 . Comparison of Recent and Devonian ecological zones .

Flank beds vary in thickness between 1 and 3 ft and in depositiona l

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT 74 3

tal packstone matrix . Large stromatoporoid fragments become less abun-

Overlying the covered interval is the fourth massive-stromatoporoid

744 A . F . EMBRY III and J. E . KLOVA N

Overlying beds are not exposed but are presumed to be terrigenou s

746 A . F . EMBRY III and J . E . KLOVA N

3 MASSIVE STROMATOPOROIDS BRACHIOPOD S

Fig . 4 . Fossil distribution in the Mercy Bay Member at Manning River .

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT 747

748 A . F . EMBRY III ct»d J . E . KLOVAN

MASSIVE STROMATOPOROID SKELETAL DETRITU S

TABULAR STROMATOPOROID TERRIGENOUS SEDIMEN T

Fig . 5 . Depositional history of the Mercy Bay Member at Manning River .

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRACT 749

extensive, debris-covered surface . Two lines of evidence support this con-

750 A . F . EMBRY III and J . E . KLOVA N

Descr i,ptioii .Plate 9 is a panoramic view of the Mercy Bay Member at

islands of debris accumulated on the reef flat. The presence of a marine

A LATE DEVONIAN REEF TRAC T 75 3

T` r-` _KT-+r~'-r'1'r ,--n -

CORAL-TABULAR STROMATOPOROID MASSIVE STROMATCPOROID

~t~ .i'' :i}'.. ::j•i

CORAL - TABULAR STROMATOPOROID UNIT MASSIVE STROMATOPOROID UNI T

~• +,•^•••I .:.i.~;•~.•, + ' *'T

~C'sir~" '~Eti~s:•ir /Z . . . .~.ki~ : ._ ~ Yry' ~t ~h ~ .