Cenozoic

Cretaceous

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Yolde Formation

Yolde Fm

Period:

Cretaceous

Age Interval:

Cenomanian

Province:
Benue Trough North -Gongola Arm, Benue Trough North -Yola Arm

Type Locality and Naming

Typical localities of the Yolde Formation are found along the valley of Pantami River in Gombe town and in the village of Yolde, 50 km to Numan town (Obaje, 2009). [Note: Below the Bornu sub-basin of Chad Basin, this unit is included in an upward extension of the sandstones of the Bima Fm.

References: Carter et al., 1963; Reyment, 1965; Cratchley and Jones, 1965;

Adeleye,1975; Kogbe,1976; Dessauvagie, 1975; Petters, 1978; Offodile, 1980; Benkhelil,1989; Guiraud, 1993; Akandeet al., 1998; Jauroet al., 2007

[Fig 1. Stratigraphic successions in the Benue Trough and the Nigerian sector of the Chad Basin]

Lithology and Thickness

The Yolde Formation was deposited under a transitional/coastal marine environment and is made up of sandstones, limestones, shales, clays and claystones. This formation consists of a variable sequence of sandstones and shales. The sandstones are thin-bedded at the base and followed by alternations of sandy mudstones and shelly limestones. Thickness: Ranges from 200 to 300 meters

Lithology Pattern:

Clayey sandstone

Relationships and Distribution

Lower contact

The Yolde Fm has a transitional lower boundary from the underlying Bima Fm (Bima Sandstone Fm)

Upper contact

Gongila Fm and Pindiga Fm lie conformably on the Yolde Fm in Gongola Arm, and Dukul Fm limestones overlie conformably in the Yola Arm.

Regional extent

Gongola Arm and the Yola Arm

GeoJSON

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Fossils

Pollens and Spores, Bivalves and Gastropod

Age

Middle Cretaceous – Lower and Middle Cenomanian

Age Span:

Beginning stage:

Cenomanian

Fraction up in beginning stage:

0.0

Beginning date (Ma):

100.50

Ending stage:

Cenomanian

Fraction up in the ending stage:

0.8

Ending date (Ma):

95.22

Depositional setting

Marine-Transitional depositional environment. This formation was deposited at the beginning of marine incursion into this part of the Benue Trough. The formation shows a dynamic environment influenced by both fluvial and marine processes, represented by a deltaic system with complex interactions between riverine, estuarine, and shallow marine environments. Which record the transition from terrestrial to marine conditions, reflecting changes in sea level and sediment supply during the Cretaceous period

Depositional pattern:

Additional Information

Compiler:

Enam O. Obiosio, Solomon Joshua Avong and Henry Nasir Suleiman (2024)- Stratigraphic Lexicon compiled from the following books:

Nigeria: Its Petroleum Geology, Resources and Potential, by Arthur Whiteman, 1982; (Volume 1) Published by Graham and Trotman Ltd.

A review of the Cretaceous System in Nigeria by P. M. Zaborski (1998) In Africa Geoscience Review, Vol.5, No.4, pp385-483

Geology and Mineral Resources of Nigeria by Nuhu George Obaje, Published by Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2009; http://www.springer.com/series/772

Geology of Nigeria Sedimentary Basins, Nwajide C. S., 2013; Published by CSS Bookshops Limited, Lagos Nigeria.