Paleoenvironmental Interpretation of the Messinian Kalavasos Formation, Kato Moni, Cyprus

Degree Year

1996

Document Type

Thesis - Open Access

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Geology

Advisor(s)

Bruce M. Simonson

Abstract

Wide-scale evaporite deposits both fringe and fill the Mediterranean basin and have been the source of geological controversy since their presence was first detected in the early 1960s. Evaporites are particularly useful for paleoenvironmental analyses because the narrow environmental window permitting their deposition allows specific paleoenvironments to be inferred. The Kalavasos Formation gypsum deposits of Cyprus are no exception, and through them a history of environments operating in the Mesaoria basin, on the north margin of the Troodos massif, can be devised. My paleoenvironmental reconstruction reveals that some gypsum deposits that have traditionally been thought of as deep-water deposits may actually represent shallow-water deposits in stratified basins. In addition, the presence of certain carbonate impurities, including Globigerinid fossils, suggests that detrital reworking played a role in shaping the Kalavasos Formation and may provide a signal for times of greater tectonic activity.

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