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Paper No. 42-6
Presentation Time: 8:30 AM-2:30 PM
THE NEW ENGLAND CONODONT DATA REPOSITORY: A DIGITAL ARCHIVE OF CONODONT BIOSTRATIGRAPHIC DATA AND COLOR ALTERATION INDEX VALUES
For decades, researchers have recognized the functionality of using conodont elements in biostratigraphic investigations. A growing need now exists, however, for a dedicated digital space to store and retrieve this critical fossil data. The New England conodont data repository is the region's first publicly accessible digital archive of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conodont paleontological data and Color Alteration Index (CAI) values. The repository aids in the regional correlation of geologic units and the resolution of stratigraphic inconsistencies across the state borders of VT, NY, ME, NH, MA, and CT. Resolution of inconsistencies is in support of the 1:500,000-scale geologic map compilation of New England. CAI values provide burial temperatures to determine the thermal maturity of host rocks, the thermal stability of hydrocarbons and superposed metamorphic temperatures. The first version of the repository includes published conodont sample collections sourced from the USGS National Geologic Map Database’s paleontological dataset; subsequent versions of the repository will include data captured during previous and ongoing investigations. Geologic mapping at 1:24,000 scale in the southern Lake Champlain Valley highlights the importance of such an archive, showing that some formations are locally missing (e.g. Fort Ann Limestone and Day Point Formation) but are observed regionally elsewhere, thus providing evidence for the existence of several unconformities. The utility of conodont biostratigraphy is also demonstrated by the mapping of the Knox unconformity, wherein conodonts from adjacent outcrops revealed correlations that are supported by the lithologies of various formations. The primary goal of the New England conodont data repository is to serve as a prototype for conodont taxonomic, biostratigraphic, and CAI data for the Appalachians as a resource for resolving regional stratigraphic inconsistencies.