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... continued from Dougherty Gap Article...

Glossary

Biogenic - Applied to material, processes, or activities of living or once-living organisms (Allaby and Allaby, 1990, p. 40).

Clastic - Pertaining to a rock or sediment composed principally of broken fragments that are derived from preexisting rocks or minerals, and that have been transported some distance from their places of origin. Term is usually used in the plural; e.g., the commonest "clastics" are sandstone and shale (Bates and Jackson, 1987, p. 121).

Continental shelf - That part of the continental margin that is between the shoreline and the continental slope. It is characterized by its very gentle slope of 0.1 degree (Bates and Jackson, 1987, p. 143).

Deep sea fan - (also known as submarine fan) A terrigenous, cone- or fan-shaped clastic deposit located seaward of large rivers and submarine canyons (Bates and Jackson, 1987, p. 657).

Distal turbidites - A sedimentary deposit consisting of fine grained clastics and formed farthest from the source area (modified from Bates and Jackson, 1987, p. 190).

Endichnia - Traces within the casting medium; i.e., not in contact with the upper surface (Cowart and Froede, 1994).

Endobiontic - Said of an organism living in bottom sediments (Bates and Jackson, 1987, p. 213).

Epeiric Sea - A sea on the continental shelf or within a continent. Syn: inland sea; epicontinental sea (Froede, 1995b;

1995c).

Facies - The aspect, appearance, and characteristics of a rock unit, usually reflecting the conditions of its origin (Bates and Jackson, 1987, p. 232). Can be singular or plural depending upon its usage.

Hypichnia - Traces in primary contact with the lower surface (sole) of the casting medium; may appear as a ridge or a groove (Cowart and Froede, 1994).

Ichnofacies - A characteristic assemblage of trace fossils.

Prograding Delta - A river delta which is being built outward into a water body by the deposition and accumulation of continentally derived sediments (modified from Bates and Jackson, 1987, p. 530).

Proximal turbidites - A sedimentary deposit consisting of coarse clastics and formed nearest the source area (modified from Bates and Jackson, 1987, p. 534).

Substrate - For the purposes of this paper, this term is defined as the subaqueous stratum on or in which an organism lives.

Turbidity current - A bottom-flowing current laden with suspended sediment, moving swiftly (under the influence of gravity) down a subaqueous slope and spreading horizontally on the floor of the body of water, having been set and/or maintained in motion by locally churned- or stirred-up sediment that gives the water a density greater than that of the surrounding or overlying water. They originate in various ways, such as by storm waves, tsunamis, earthquake-induced sliding, tectonic movement, over-supply of sediment, and heavily charged rivers in spate with densities exceeding that of sea water (Bates and Jackson, 1987, p. 706).

Walther's law - An important statement relating to the manner in which a vertical sedimentary sequence of facies develops. Walther's law of facies implies that a vertical sequence of facies will be the product of a series of depositional environments which lay laterally adjacent to each other. This law is applicable only to situations where there is no break in the sedimentary sequence (Allaby and Allaby, 1990, p. 398).

Acknowledgements

We thank Dr. E.L. Williams for his valuable field assistance and review of this article. Dr. Williams also provided us with much needed reference material which has helped to make this a better article and his help is appreciated. We both offer Glory to God in the highest (Pr 3:5-6).

 

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Additional Resources

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Pashin, J.C. 1993. (editor). New perspectives on the Mississippian System of Alabama. Guidebook for the 30th annual field trip of the Alabama Geological Society. Tuscaloosa.

Perkins, B.F., W.P.S. Ventress, and M.B. Edwards. 1981. (editors). Recognition of shallow-water versus deep-water sedimentary facies in growth-structure affected formations of the Gulf Coast Basin. Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists Second Annual Research Conference. Tulsa.

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