| Rundle Group | |
|---|---|
| Stratigraphic range:Middle to LateMississippian | |
 The massive limestone beds form outcrops at the top ofMount Rundle. | |
| Type | Geological formation |
| Sub-units | Debolt,Shunda,Pekisko,Mount Head,Livingstone,Turner Valley,Prophet |
| Underlies | Fernie Formation,Belloy Formation |
| Overlies | Banff Formation |
| Thickness | up to 741 m (2,430 ft)[1] |
| Lithology | |
| Primary | Limestone |
| Other | Chert |
| Location | |
| Coordinates | 51°09′N115°30′W / 51.15°N 115.50°W /51.15; -115.50 |
| Region | Alberta, British Columbia |
| Country | Canada |
| Type section | |
| Named for | Mount Rundle |
| Named by | R.J.W. Douglas, 1953 |
TheRundle Group is astratigraphic unit ofMississippianage in theWestern Canadian Sedimentary Basin.
It takes the name fromMount Rundle (itself taking the name fromRobert Terrill Rundle), and was first described in outcrops at the northern side of the mountain inBanff National Park by R.J.W. Douglas in 1953.[2]
The Rundle Group consists of massivelimestone interbedded with dark argillaceous limestone.Chert nodules are observed in the shaley beds, andcrinoids andbrachiopods are observed in the clean massive beds.[1]Dolimitization is observed in theElkton Member of theTurner Valley Formation.
The Rundle Group reaches a maximum thickness of 741 feet (230 m) atTunnel Mountain. It thins out toward east and north and is completelyeroded or absent in eastcentral and only the lower part occurs insouthern Alberta.[1]
The Rundle Group isdisconformably overlain by theRocky Mountain Formation in the front ranges of theCanadian Rockies and by theFernie Formation in the foothills and byCretaceous beds in the prairies. It conformably overlies theBanff Formation.[1]
The Rundle Group can be correlated with theMission Canyon Formation in southern Saskatchewan, northeastern Montana and North Dakota.
The Rundle Group includes theMount Head Formation andLivingstone Formation in theRocky Mountains; by theTurner Valley Formation,Shunda Formation andPekisko Formation in the foothills and plains. It is equivalent to theDebolt Formation andProphet Formation in north-eastern British Columbia and west-northern Alberta.[1]Debolt,Shunda andPekisko formations are staked in theFort Nelson area.
| Sub-unit | Age | Lithology | Max. Thickness | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Head Formation | Visean | Wileman Member - siltydolomite Baril Member -ooidgrainstone, dolomite Salter Member -dolomite,boundstone andwackestone, ooidgrainstone,anhydritechert Loomis Member - massivegrainstone Marston Member - microcrystalline dolomite,boundstone,breccia, ooid limestone,shale,marlstone Opal Member -grainstone, subordinatemarlstone,chertpackstone andwackestone,shale,marlstone,breccia Carnarvon Member -wackestone topackstone,shale interbeds | 7.6 m (20 ft) 39 m (130 ft) 67 m (220 ft) 101 m (330 ft) 68 m (220 ft) 161 m (530 ft) 90 m (300 ft) | [3] |
| Livingstone Formation | Tournaisian toVisean | crinoidallimestone, massive limestone, thin argillaceous limestone beds, dolomite | 452 m (1,480 ft) | [4] |
| Sub-unit | Age | Lithology | Max. Thickness | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turner Valley Formation | Visean | crinoidallimestone and crystalline dolomite; two porous intervals are separated by a middle tight unit;diagenetically dolomitized in westsouthern Alberta; Lower porous zone is defined asElkton Member | 110 m (360 ft) | [5] |
| Shunda Formation | Tournaisian toVisean | argillaceouslimestone and dolomite,siltstone,sandstone,shale,breccia,anhydrite | 122 m (400 ft) | [6] |
| Pekisko Formation | Tournaisian | Upper Pekisko - lithographic limestone Lower Pekisko - massivecrinoidallimestone | 134 m (440 ft) | [7] |
| Sub-unit | Age | Lithology | Max. Thickness | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Debolt Formation | Meramecian | Upper Debolt - crystalline dolomite,anhydrite,micriticlimestone Lower Debolt -cherty bioclastic (crinoidal)limestone,argillaceous in the north | 366 m (1,200 ft) | [8] |
| Prophet Formation | middleTournaisian to lateVisean | chert, skeletal toooidlimestone,shale,marlstone, dolomite | 760 m (2,490 ft) | [9] |