Besa River Formation

The Besa River Formation is a stratigraphical unit of Devonian age in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.

Besa River Formation
Stratigraphic range: Givetian to Serpukhovian
TypeGeological formation
UnderliesProphet Formation, Banff Formation
OverliesDunedin Formation, Slave Point Formation
Thicknessup to 1,655 metres (5,430 ft)[1]
Lithology
PrimaryShale
OtherSandstone, chert, limestone
Location
Coordinates57°56′30″N 123°43′00″W
RegionWCSB
Country Canada
Type section
Named forBesa River
Named byF.A. Kidd, 1963

It takes the name from Besa River, a tributary of the Prophet River, and was first described in outcrop near the Muskwa River, in the Muskwa Ranges by F.A. Kidd in 1963.[2]

Lithology

The Besa River Formation is composed primarily of dark shale. Sandstone, bedded chert or limestone beds can occur at the top of the formation. The shale is slightly calcareous or siliceous and contains sponge spicules and radiolarians. [1]

Distribution

The Besa River Formation reaches a maximum thickness of 1,655 metres (5,430 ft) in the foothills .[1] The lower Besa River Formation is faulted and folded in the Northern Rockies. It occurs in the sub-surface in east-central British Columbia, in the folded Rocky Mountain Thrust Belt and southern Mackenzie Fold Belt.

Relationship to other units

The Besa River Formation is conformably overlain by the Prophet Formation or Banff Formation in its eastern extent, while to the west it is overlain by the Mattson Formation and Stoddart Group, and abruptly overlays the Dunedin Formation in the west of its extent in British Columbia, and the Slave Point Formation in the east.[1] In the Northwest Territories, it rests on the Nahanni Formation in the east and the Road River Formation in the west.

Towards the southwest, it passes laterally into the Fort Simpson Formation and Exshaw Formation. To the south, it passes into the Dunedin Formation, Horn River Formation and Exshaw Formation. To the east it transforms into the calcareous Rundle Group and Stoddart Group. It is stratigraphically equivalent with the Fort Simpson Formation, as well as the Canol Formation and Earn Group.

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References
  1. Lexicon of Canadian Geologic Units. "Formation". Archived from the original on 2013-02-22. Retrieved 2010-01-01.
  2. Kidd, F.A., 1963. The Besa River Formation: Bulletin of Canadian Petroleum Geology, vol. 11, no. 4, pp. 369-372.
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