BIOSTRATIGRAPHY, MICROFACIES ANALYSIS AND SEQUENCE STRATIGRAPHY OF THE MIOCENE SUCCESSIONS IN CAIRO-SUEZ DISTRICT, EGYPT

Document Type : Original Article

Abstract

Two Miocene sections in Cairo-Suez district at Tall Zamzam and Wadi Hommath are detailed examined for their foraminiferal, nannofossil contents and microfacies types. Wadi Hommath section is named as the Sadat Formation, while Tall Zamzam section is named as the Genefe Formation. 21species of planktonic, 20 species of benthic, 19 species of nannofossils are identified. Two zones of planktonic foraminifera and one zone of nannofossil attributed the Sadat Formation to Globigerinoides bisphericus (M4) Zone, Praeorbulina sicana (M5a) Zone and Genefe Formation to Praeorbulina glomerosa (M5b) Zone, while Helicosphaera ampliamperta Zone (NN4) of (Burdigalian-Langhian) age is recorded in the two studied secions. The identified benthic foraminifera was used to recognize three biofacies types: Nonion biofacies of inner-shelf environment, Cibicides biofacies of middle-shelf environment and Uvigerina biofacies of outer-shelf environment. Six microfacies types are identified. These successions are subdivided into three depositonal sequences of which 2 fourth order and one third order sequences.

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