Palaeokarst at Portrane, County Dublin: Evidence for Hirnantian Glaciation

Palaeokarst at Portrane, County Dublin: Evidence for Hirnantian Glaciation

A small bay on the outcrop of the Portrane Limestone Formation is now recognised as a palaeokarstic feature rather than a fault graben. Attempts at palaeontological determination of the ages of the relevant section are reviewed, but have been unsuccessful. A new look at the stratigraphy has recognis...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Irish journal of earth sciences Vol. 12; pp. 75 - 81
Main Author: Parkes, Matthew A.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Royal Irish Academy 01-01-1993
Subjects:
Beaches
Bedrock inliers
Caves
Fauna
Geology
Glaciation
Limestones
Outcrops
Shales
Subsidence sinkholes
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:A small bay on the outcrop of the Portrane Limestone Formation is now recognised as a palaeokarstic feature rather than a fault graben. Attempts at palaeontological determination of the ages of the relevant section are reviewed, but have been unsuccessful. A new look at the stratigraphy has recognised that probable Wenlock rocks are overthrust on a thin black shale horizon near Priest's Chamber, but are unconformable on the Portrane Limestone Formation at the south-western junction. Re-examination of the stratigraphical relationships in a global context permits the reasonable suggestion that the palaeokarst, with a relief of more than 10m, was caused by sea-level fall induced by the Hirnantian glaciation.
ISSN:0790-1763
2009-0064