KARST GEOMORPHOLOGY OF THE UPPER-MISSISSIPPIAN PENNINGTON FORMATION, SAVAGE GULF STATE NATURAL AREA, TENNESSEE

Mississippian aged carbonates underlie the fluviokarst landscape of central Tennessee, where river incision has long been linked with the development of solutional caves on the Cumberland Plateau escarpment. Relatively little attention has been given to discontinuous karstification in the uppermost Mississippian unit, the Pennington Formation, wherein pockets of carbonate rock occur irregularly in a matrix of insoluble shale and sandstone. This research takes a geomorphological approach towards understanding speleogenesis and controls on drainage in the Pennington Formation, using Tennessee’s Savage Gulf State Natural Area as a case study. Pennington caves, swallets, and karst springs in the upper reaches of Big Creek and its tributary, Firescald Creek, were surveyed and fluorescent dye tracer tests were conducted to establish connectivity between active parts of the hydrologic system. Discharge and saturation index of sinking and resurging waters were determined where possible. Data were digitized for spatial analysis in a GIS, which helps to visualize and contextualize the dynamic nature of drainage through the Pennington Formation. Karst processes in the Pennington Formation have implications not only for Cumberland Plateau geomorphology, but also for local ecology and biodiversity, water quality, and land management.