BARRANQUITA, Member

TERTIARY (Pliocene)

State of Falcón, Venezuela

Author of name: C. Wiedenmayer, 1931 (private report).

Original reference: H. H. Suter, 1937, p. 290.

See TUCUPIDO, Formation.

TUCUPIDO, Formation

TERTIARY (Pliocene)

State of Falcón, Venezuela

Author of name: H. G. Kugler, 1946 (private report).

Original reference: A. L. Payne, 1951, p. 1861.

Original description: ibid.

Payne (1951, p. 1861) stated that the Tucupido formation occurs only in a narrow belt north of Cumarebo field, following the present coast line. The type locality of the formation is between Tucupido and La Providencia in northeastern Falcón. Payne described the formation as consisting of beach and shallow-water marine deposits, including the "La Providencia limestone" of company reports and Suter's "Puerto Cumarebo limestone" and "Barranquita beds" (1937, p. 271-272). Payne pointed out that the Tucupido formation rests on El Veral beds with a slight angular discordance and stated that the beds of the Tucupido formation are neither folded nor affected by regional faulting, but that they are tilted dipping at 5° where the beds of the El Veral formation near the same locality dip at 10°. Payne mentioned that it is possible, however, that some faulting was active during or just prior to the deposition of the Tucupido beds since they show changing thickness, the maximum thickness being about 1,600 feet.

Suter (1937, p. 271-272) appears to have extended the use of his Punta Gavilán formation to include, in the Cumarebo area, 150 meters of sediments which he divided (from top to bottom) into the Puerto Cumarebo limestone, (termed "Calcáreo de Puerto Cumarebo" in Spanish edition, 1937, p. 289), the Barranquita beds and the El Veral beds. If, however, the El Veral beds are equivalent or synonymous with the Punta Gavilán formation (Suter, 1937, p. 270), the Puerto Cumarebo limestone and the Barranquita beds should be excluded from the Punta Gavilán formation. This was done by Payne (1951, p. 1861) when he established the Tucupido formation which includes the Puerto Cumarebo limestone and the Barranquita beds. Suter (1937, p. 271-272) described the Puerto Cumarebo limestone as yellow, soft clayish limestone, composed of algae, weathering as white caliche. The limestone alternates with sandy limestone of dark color and with conglomerates. The limestone received its name from Puerto Cumarebo where it is well developed. He described the Barranquita beds as "greenish to blue-gray clays interbedded with layer of dark sands with oyster and Pecten beds. Clay, diatomaceous beds are frequently found interbedded with the former; an occurrence of this type appears between Tucupido and Cumarebo". Suter gave Punta Barranquita, east of Cumarebo, as the type locality of the "Barranquita beds".

Leo Weingeist