SNSF | P3 Research Database | Publication Discovery of Miocene to early Pleistocene deposits on Mayaguana, Bahamas: Evidence for recent active tectonism on the North American margin

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Discovery of Miocene to early Pleistocene deposits on Mayaguana, Bahamas: Evidence for recent active tectonism on the North American margin

Type of publication	Peer-reviewed
Publikationsform	Original article (peer-reviewed)

Author	Kindler P, Godefroid F, Chiaradia M, Ehlert C, Eisenhauer A, Frank M, Hasler CA, Samankassou E,
Project	Sea-level and climate events during the past 5 million years: the record from fossil reefs, coastal deposits and dolostones from Mayaguana and Little Inagua Islands, SE Bahamas

Type of publication

Peer-reviewed

Publikationsform

Original article (peer-reviewed)

Author

Kindler P, Godefroid F, Chiaradia M, Ehlert C, Eisenhauer A, Frank M, Hasler CA, Samankassou E,

Project

Sea-level and climate events during the past 5 million years: the record from fossil reefs, coastal deposits and dolostones from Mayaguana and Little Inagua Islands, SE Bahamas

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Original article (peer-reviewed)

Journal	GEOLOGY
Volume (Issue)	39(6)
Page(s)	523 - 526
Title of proceedings	GEOLOGY

Abstract

We report here the discovery of Miocene, Pliocene and lower Pleistocene shallow-marine carbonates on Mayaguana Island (SE Bahamas) which have so far not been observed on any other Bahamian island. Spanning more than 17 Ma, but less than 12 m thick, this stratigraphic succession only occurs along the northern coast of the island, indicating that the Mayaguana bank experienced minor subsidence throughout the late Cenozoic and was tilted towards the South during the Quaternary. In addition to considerably extending the stratigraphic record of the Bahamas Islands, our findings demonstrate that these carbonate banks stood at different elevations and subsided at different rates during the Neogene. The young age of the tilting event detected on Mayaguana further shows that portions of the SE margin of North America has recently experienced tectonic activity a long way from its actual boundary with the Caribbean plate.