Abstract: Foraminiferal Record of Miocene-Pliocene Sections as a Tool for Paleoenvironment and Sequence Stratigraphy Interpretation in the Piedritas and San Vicente Fields, Eastern Venezuela Basin

Rosina Pittelli, Genaro F. Giffuni

In the Piedritas and San Vicente fields, Eastern Venezuela Basin, the period between the Lower Miocene and the Pliocene is characterized by changes in the conditions of sedimentation, which are reflected by the foraminiferal content.

These variations in faunal composition and abundance, probably reflect the tolerance and adaptive response to different ocean-margin water depths. Faunal abundance and diversity histograms provide critical information to make a reproductive chronostratigraphic framework and permitted to identify ten biofacies and about 150 species. High and low fossil abundance and diversity peaks were used to recognize 7 maximum flooding surfaces and 8 sequence boundaries of the third order between 5.5 Ma and 16.5 Ma. An outline of the paleobathymetry of the area is given. The paleogeographic maps for the Lower, Middle and Upper Miocene and Pliocene reflect a shallowing tendency toward the western part of the studied area. A progradation toward the east probably reflects the migration of the Proto-Or noco delta from Lower Miocene to Pliocene.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90951©1996 AAPG International Conference and Exhibition, Caracas, Venezuela