Depositional Environments – Sedimentary Rocks (Ken Bixgorin)

Reference -- http://itc.gsw.edu/faculty/speavy/spclass/Geo1/depenv-handout.pdf

Agents of Rock Types / Structures /

Location Environment Sediment Types
Deposition Fossils
1. Alluvial Fan water, gravity poorly sorted rock and any detrital rock type
Continental
mineral fragments including arkose
2. Desert Dunes wind rounded, well-sorted sand- sandstone with cross
Continental
sized quartz bedding
3. Lake (possibly a water sand, mud; halite and gypsum sandstone, mudstone or
Continental
playa lake) in dry climates shale; evaporites
4. Fluvial environment water sand in channels, mud and sandstones w/ ripple marks
Continental plant materials outside & cross beds, mudrocks,
possible coal / plant fossils
5. Glacial environment ice, water poorly sorted deposits with any detrital, except arkose
Continental
variable grain size
6. Beach water quartz sand and shell quartz sandstones with
Transitional
fragments shell fragments
7. Delta water sand in channels; mud and sandstones, shale, possible
Transitional
plant material coal / plant fossils
8. Tidal Flat water mud, calcite-rich mud mostly fossiliferous
Transitional
mudrocks, limestone
9. Barrier Island water quartz sand and shell sandstones with shell
Transitional
fragments fragments
10. Shallow marine water sand to mud to calcite-rich sandstone, mudrocks,
Marine
environment mud, shells limestone w/ marine fossils
11. Lagoon water fossils, mud and calcite-rich fossiliferous shales and
Marine
mud limestones
12. Continental Shelf Marine water mud mudrocks

13. Organic Reef water, corals calcite from abundant marine fossiliferous limestone
Marine
life, esp. corals
14. Submarine Fan water, turbidity graded beds, mud mudstone, sandstone
Marine
currents showing graded beds
15. Deep marine water clay-sized fragments, claystone, chalk, chert
environment Marine microscopic calcite & silica
shells