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Puerto Cansado Formation
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Puerto Cansado Fm base reconstruction

Puerto Cansado Fm

Period: 
Jurassic

Age Interval: 
Oxfordian-Tithonian


Province: 
Tarfaya Basin

Type Locality and Naming

Record of EA-1 and CHBK-1 wells (Choubert et al., 1966; LeRoy & Piqué, 2001).

Synonym:

References: Wenke, 2014

[Fig. 1. Regional crustal framework of the Moroccan Atlantic rifted-passive margin showing its three, major rifted-passive margin segments that are conjugate with eastern Canada: 1) Northern Central Atlantic; 2) Georges Bank- Tarfaya Central Atlantic, and; 3) Southern Central Atlantic (three zones modified from Nemcok et al., 2005). (Galhom, 2020).]

[Fig. 2. Schematic chrono-lithology chart from the basin to inner shelf settings of the Tarfaya Basin. (Table 6, page 110, in Wenke, 2014)

[Fig. 3. Summary chart for the Tarfaya Dakhla basin showing geologic time scale, lithostratigraphy, controlling tectonic events, and interpreted horizons (Galhom, 2020).]

[Fig. 4. Lithostratigraphy and log characteristics of the Triassic to Miocene succession at well W10, offshore Tarfaya Basin (El Jorfi et al., 2015).]


Lithology and Thickness

Transgression occurred in the early Late Jurassic and led to the deposition of open marine carbonates (Ghassal et al., 2016). Carbonate platform of oolitic and bioclastic limestones (more clayey offshore), passing laterally into marls or marginal sandstones. (El Jorfi et al., 2015). Well results indicate that the Upper Jurassic interval has a thickness that varies between 100 m and 1500 m.


Lithology Pattern: 
Oolitic limestone


Relationships and Distribution

Lower contact

It conformably (transitional) overlies the Tarfaya Mid-Jurassic Platform Fm

Upper contact

Is unconformably overlain by the Tan Tan Fm. This is the major MDU (Mature Drift Unconformity) of Wenke (2014); and onset of the Tan Tan Fm unit is delayed to mid-Valanginian in the inner shelf region.

Regional extent

The Dhakla, Laayoune and Tarfaya Basins (TB) extend along the southern Moroccan continental shelf approximately to the town of Sidi Ifni, where a gradual transition to the Souss-Basin (SB) in the north takes place (Wenke et al., 2010).


GeoJSON

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Fossils


Age 

Oxfordian through Tithonian interval, with compensation for the end-Tithonian onset of the major MDU.

Age Span: 

    Beginning stage: 
Oxfordian

    Fraction up in beginning stage: 
0.00

    Beginning date (Ma): 
161.53

    Ending stage: 
Tithonian

    Fraction up in the ending stage: 
0.9

    Ending date (Ma):  
143.71

Depositional setting

Open marine to lagoonal/deltaic (Ghassal et al., 2016).


Depositional pattern:  


Additional Information


Compiler:  

Enam O. Obiosio, Solomon Joshua Avong and Henry Nasir Suleiman (2024) - Stratigraphic Lexicon compiled from the following publications:

El Jorfi L., Süss M.P., Aigner T., and Mhammdi N. (2015): Triassic – Quaternary Sequence Stratigraphy of the Tarfaya Basin (Moroccan Atlantic): Structural Evolution, Eustasy and Sedimentation. Journal of Petroleum Geology, 38(1), pp. 77-98.

Ghassal B.I., Littke R., Sachse V., Sindern S., Schwarzbauer J. (2016): Depositional environment and source rock potential of Cenomanian and Turonian sedimentary rocks of the Tarfaya Basin, Southwest Morocco. Geologica Acta, 14(4), pp. 419-441.

Wenke A. A. O. (2014): Sequence stratigraphy and basin analysis of the Meso- to Cenozoic Tarfaya- Laâyoune Basins, on- and offshore Morocco. PhD Thesis at Naturwissenschaftlich-Mathematischen Gesamtfakultät der Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg.