A marine to fluvial transition in the Paleoproterozoic Koolbye Formation, Turee Creek Group, Western Australia

Abstract

Although no unambiguous biogenic criteria exist to discriminate Precambrian shallow-marine succes-sions from fluvial deposits, physical sedimentological evidence, including an association of primarysedimentary structures and textures, stratigraphic position, and comparison with Phanerozoic and Mod-ern examples has been found useful in identifying these deposit types. Our high resolution sedimentaryfacies analysis coupled with new mapping clearly indicates shallow-marine to beach-aeolian to fluvialsedimentation in the Paleoproterozoic Koolbye Formation of the Turee Creek Group, Western Australia.A falling stage systems tract within the Koolbye Formation has been documented. Our sedimentary faciesanalysis in combination with sedimentological analysis of the underlying Kungarra Formation indicatesdevelopment of at least three falling stage systems tracts within the Turee Creek Group across the rise ofatmospheric oxygen (the Great oxidation event).