Menuha Formation

Menuha Formation
Menuha Formation
Stratigraphic range: Upper Cretaceous (Santonian)

Menuha Formation exposed in Makhtesh Ramon.
Type Sedimentary
Unit of Mount Scopus Group
Underlies Mishash Formation
Overlies Zihor Formation
Thickness 14 to 50 m
Lithology
Primary chalk, marly chalk
Other conglomeratic chalk, limestone
Location
Region Makhtesh Ramon, Negev desert
Country Israel
Extent Israel

The Menuha Formation is the name given to an Upper Cretaceous (Santonian) chalk, marly chalk and conglomeratic chalk unit exposed throughout the Makhtesh Ramon region of southern Israel and parts of northern Israel (Avni, 1991).

Stratigraphy and paleoenvironment

The Menuha Formation records the earliest occurrence of the structural activity that formed the eroded anticline that is Makhtesh Ramon (Avni, 1993). It consists of white and yellow/brown chalk that is often glauconitic and sometimes conglomeratic or marly. The Menuha Formation likely represents a temperate to subtropical, outer continental shelf or middle slope environment. This is based on the occurrences of several shark and fish teeth, oysters, trace fossils, phosphatic peloids, and planktic/benthic foraminiferans. The isolated teeth represent at least ten different species:

In order to sustain such a shark population, this environment would have also included plesiosaurs, ichthyodectids, mosasaurs, shrimp, and squid.

References

  • Avni, Y. (1991). "The geology, paleogeography and landscape evolution in the central Negev Highlands and the western Ramon structure". Geological Survey of Israel, Report GSI/6/91: 153 p.. 
  • Avni, Y. (1993). "The structural and landscape evolution of the western Ramon structure". Israel Journal of Earth Sciences 42: 177–188. 

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