Guaduas Formation

The Guaduas Formation (Spanish: Formación Guaduas, K₂P₁G, K₂E₁G, KPgg, KTg, TKg, Ktg) is a geological formation of the Middle Magdalena Basin and the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, Eastern Ranges of the Colombian Andes. The predominantly shale with coalbed formation dates to the Late Cretaceous and Paleogene periods; Maastrichtian-Paleocene epochs, and has a maximum thickness of 1,090 metres (3,580 ft). Fossils of Coussapoa camargoi, Ficus andrewsi, Berhamniphyllum sp. and Archaeopaliurus boyacensis have been found in coalbeds in Zipaquirá and Tasco, Boyacá.

Guaduas Formation
Stratigraphic range: Maastrichtian-Paleocene ~68–60 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Coal from the Guaduas Formation, Páramo de Ocetá
Type	Geological formation
Underlies	Cacho Formation
Overlies	Guadalupe Gp.  Arenisca Labor-Tierna Fm.
Thickness	up to 1,090 metres (3,580 ft)
Lithology
Primary	Shale
Other	Sandstone, coal
Location
Coordinates	5°05′N 74°36′W
Region	Middle Magdalena Basin Magdalena River Valley Altiplano Cundiboyacense Eastern Ranges, Andes
Country	Colombia
Type section
Named for	Guaduas
Named by	Hubach
Location	Guaduas
Year defined	1931
Coordinates	5°05′N 74°36′W
Approximate paleocoordinates	0.6°N 52.5°W / 0.6; -52.5
Region	Cundinamarca, Boyacá
Country	Colombia
Paleogeography of Northern South America 65 Ma, by Ron Blakey

Etymology

The formation was first described by Hettner in 1894 and named in 1931 by Hubach after Guaduas, Cundinamarca, former northern territory of the Panche.^[1]

Description

Lithologies

The Guaduas Formation consists mainly of shales with intercalated sandstone beds. The formation contains coalbeds that are widely explored in the area.^[2] Fossil remains of Coussapoa camargoi, Ficus andrewsi, Berhamniphyllum sp. and Archaeopaliurus boyacensis have been found in coalbeds in Zipaquirá and Tasco, Boyacá.^[3][4][5]

Stratigraphy and depositional environment

The Guaduas Formation unconformably^[6] overlies the Arenisca Labor-Tierna Formation of the Guadalupe Group and is overlain by the Cacho Formation. The age has been estimated to be Upper Maastrichtian-Lower Paleocene, spanning the K-T boundary.^[7] The Guaduas Formation is thicker in Cundinamarca than in Boyacá. This has been explained by a decrease in subsidence and a higher amount of erosion in the northern area of original deposition.^[8] The lateral thickness variations are thought to be the result of the movement of the Soapaga Fault.^[9] The formation has been deposited in a coastal plain setting.^[4]

Outcrops

Type locality of the Guaduas Formation to the west of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense

The Guaduas Formation is apart from its type locality, found in the Eastern Hills of Bogotá, the Ocetá Páramo and many other locations in the Eastern Ranges, such as Granada,^[10] the Dintel Synclinal north of Facatativá,^[11] the Suesca Synclinal,^[12] east of Junín,^[13] and surrounding Lake Tota.^[14] The northeast-southwest Canocas Fault crosscuts the Guaduas Formation near San Cayetano.^[15] The synclinals of the Río Frío, Neusa, Zipaquirá, Checua-Lenguazaque, Sesquilé, Sisga, Subachoque, Teusacá and Usme and Soacha are composed of the Guaduas Formation.^[2] The Suba Hills are entirely composed of the Guaduas Formation.^[16] The formation also has outcrops in the Sumapaz Páramo.^[17]

Regional correlations

Cretaceous stratigraphy of the central Colombian Eastern Ranges

Age	Paleomap	VMM	Guaduas-Vélez		W Emerald Belt		Villeta anticlinal		Chiquinquirá- Arcabuco	Tunja- Duitama	Altiplano Cundiboyacense		El Cocuy
Maastrichtian		Umir	Córdoba		Seca		eroded		Guaduas				Colón-Mito Juan
					Umir				Guadalupe
Campanian					Córdoba
					Oliní
Santonian		La Luna	Cimarrona - La Tabla										La Luna
Coniacian			Oliní				Villeta	Conejo		Chipaque
			Güagüaquí	Loma Gorda	undefined			La Frontera
Turonian				Hondita	La Frontera	Otanche
Cenomanian		Simití	hiatus		La Corona			Simijaca					Capacho
					Pacho Fm.			Hiló - Pacho	Churuvita	Une			Aguardiente
Albian					Hiló				Chiquinquirá	Tibasosa	Une
		Tablazo			Tablazo			Capotes - La Palma - Simití	Simití				Tibú-Mercedes
Aptian					Capotes			Socotá - El Peñón	Paja		Fómeque
		Paja			Paja	El Peñón		Trincheras					Río Negro
							La Naveta
Barremian
Hauterivian						Muzo					Cáqueza	Las Juntas
		Rosablanca							Ritoque
Valanginian					Ritoque	Furatena	Útica - Murca		Rosablanca	hiatus		Macanal
					Rosablanca
Berriasian		Cumbre			Cumbre				Los Medios			Guavio
		Tambor			Arcabuco				Cumbre
Sources

Stratigraphy of the Llanos Basin and surrounding provinces

Ma	Age	Paleomap	Regional events	Catatumbo	Cordillera	proximal Llanos	distal Llanos	Putumayo	VSM	Environments	Maximum thickness	Petroleum geology	Notes
0.01	Holocene		Holocene volcanism Seismic activity	alluvium								Overburden
1	Pleistocene		Pleistocene volcanism Andean orogeny 3 Glaciations	Guayabo	Soatá Sabana	Necesidad	Guayabo	Gigante Neiva		Alluvial to fluvial (Guayabo)	550 m (1,800 ft) (Guayabo)		[18][19][20][21]
2.6	Pliocene		Pliocene volcanism Andean orogeny 3 GABI		Subachoque
5.3	Messinian		Andean orogeny 3 Foreland		Marichuela			Caimán	Honda				[20][22]
13.5	Langhian		Regional flooding	León	hiatus	Caja	León			Lacustrine (León)	400 m (1,300 ft) (León)	Seal	[21][23]
16.2	Burdigalian		Miocene inundations Andean orogeny 2	C1		Carbonera C1		Ospina		Proximal fluvio-deltaic (C1)	850 m (2,790 ft) (Carbonera)	Reservoir	[22][21]
17.3				C2		Carbonera C2				Distal lacustrine-deltaic (C2)		Seal
19				C3		Carbonera C3				Proximal fluvio-deltaic (C3)		Reservoir
21	Early Miocene		Pebas wetlands	C4		Carbonera C4			Barzalosa	Distal fluvio-deltaic (C4)		Seal
23	Late Oligocene		Andean orogeny 1 Foredeep	C5		Carbonera C5		Orito		Proximal fluvio-deltaic (C5)		Reservoir	[19][22]
25				C6		Carbonera C6				Distal fluvio-lacustrine (C6)		Seal
28	Early Oligocene			C7		C7		Pepino	Gualanday	Proximal deltaic-marine (C7)		Reservoir	[19][22][24]
32	Oligo-Eocene			C8	Usme	C8	onlap			Marine-deltaic (C8)		Seal Source	[24]
35	Late Eocene			Mirador		Mirador				Coastal (Mirador)	240 m (790 ft) (Mirador)	Reservoir	[21][25]
40	Middle Eocene				Regadera				hiatus
45
50	Early Eocene			Socha		Los Cuervos				Deltaic (Los Cuervos)	260 m (850 ft) (Los Cuervos)	Seal Source	[21][25]
55	Late Paleocene		PETM 2000 ppm CO2	Los Cuervos	Bogotá				Gualanday
60	Early Paleocene		SALMA	Barco	Guaduas	Barco		Rumiyaco		Fluvial (Barco)	225 m (738 ft) (Barco)	Reservoir	[18][19][22][21][26]
65	Maastrichtian		KT extinction	Catatumbo	Guadalupe				Monserrate	Deltaic-fluvial (Guadalupe)	750 m (2,460 ft) (Guadalupe)	Reservoir	[18][21]
72	Campanian		End of rifting	Colón-Mito Juan									[21][27]
83	Santonian							Villeta/Güagüaquí
86	Coniacian
89	Turonian		Cenomanian-Turonian anoxic event	La Luna	Chipaque	Gachetá	hiatus			Restricted marine (all)	500 m (1,600 ft) (Gachetá)	Source	[18][21][28]
93	Cenomanian		Rift 2
100	Albian				Une	Une		Caballos		Deltaic (Une)	500 m (1,600 ft) (Une)	Reservoir	[22][28]
113	Aptian			Capacho	Fómeque			Motema	Yaví	Open marine (Fómeque)	800 m (2,600 ft) (Fómeque)	Source (Fóm)	[19][21][29]
125	Barremian		High biodiversity	Aguardiente	Paja					Shallow to open marine (Paja)	940 m (3,080 ft) (Paja)	Reservoir	[18]
129	Hauterivian		Rift 1	Tibú- Mercedes	Las Juntas	hiatus				Deltaic (Las Juntas)	910 m (2,990 ft) (Las Juntas)	Reservoir (LJun)	[18]
133	Valanginian			Río Negro	Cáqueza Macanal Rosablanca					Restricted marine (Macanal)	2,935 m (9,629 ft) (Macanal)	Source (Mac)	[19][30]
140	Berriasian			Girón
145	Tithonian		Break-up of Pangea	Jordán	Arcabuco	Buenavista Batá		Saldaña		Alluvial, fluvial (Buenavista)	110 m (360 ft) (Buenavista)	"Jurassic"	[22][31]
150	Early-Mid Jurassic		Passive margin 2	La Quinta	Montebel Noreán	hiatus				Coastal tuff (La Quinta)	100 m (330 ft) (La Quinta)		[32]
201	Late Triassic			Mucuchachi				Payandé					[22]
235	Early Triassic		Pangea		hiatus							"Paleozoic"
250	Permian
300	Late Carboniferous		Famatinian orogeny						Cerro Neiva ()				[33]
340	Early Carboniferous		Fossil fish Romer's gap		Cuche (355-385)	Farallones ()				Deltaic, estuarine (Cuche)	900 m (3,000 ft) (Cuche)
360	Late Devonian		Passive margin 1	Río Cachirí (360-419)					Ambicá ()	Alluvial-fluvial-reef (Farallones)	2,400 m (7,900 ft) (Farallones)		[30][34][35][36][37]
390	Early Devonian		High biodiversity	Floresta (387-400) El Tíbet						Shallow marine (Floresta)	600 m (2,000 ft) (Floresta)
410	Late Silurian		Silurian mystery
425	Early Silurian			hiatus
440	Late Ordovician		Rich fauna in Bolivia	San Pedro (450-490)		Duda ()
470	Early Ordovician		First fossils		Busbanzá (>470±22) Chuscales Otengá	Guape ()		Río Nevado ()	Hígado () Agua Blanca Venado (470-475)				[38][39][40]
488	Late Cambrian		Regional intrusions	Chicamocha (490-515)	Quetame ()	Ariarí ()		SJ del Guaviare (490-590)	San Isidro ()				[41][42]
515	Early Cambrian		Cambrian explosion										[40][43]
542	Ediacaran		Break-up of Rodinia		pre-Quetame		post-Parguaza		El Barro ()	Yellow: allochthonous basement (Chibcha terrane) Green: autochthonous basement (Río Negro-Juruena Province)		Basement	[44][45]
600	Neoproterozoic		Cariri Velhos orogeny	Bucaramanga (600-1400)				pre-Guaviare					[41]
800			Snowball Earth										[46]
1000	Mesoproterozoic		Sunsás orogeny			Ariarí (1000)			La Urraca (1030-1100)				[47][48][49][50]
1300			Rondônia-Juruá orogeny			pre-Ariarí	Parguaza (1300-1400)		Garzón (1180-1550)				[51]
1400				pre-Bucaramanga									[52]
1600	Paleoproterozoic						Maimachi (1500-1700)		pre-Garzón				[53]
1800			Tapajós orogeny				Mitú (1800)						[51][53]
1950			Transamazonic orogeny				pre-Mitú						[51]
2200			Columbia
2530	Archean		Carajas-Imataca orogeny										[51]
3100			Kenorland
Sources

Legend

• group
• important formation
• fossiliferous formation
• minor formation
• (age in Ma)
• proximal Llanos (Medina)^{[note 1]}
• distal Llanos (Saltarin 1A well)^{[note 2]}

Gallery

• 
  Coal mining in the Guaduas Formation
  Ocetá Páramo

See also

• Colombia portal
• Geology portal

Geology of the Eastern Hills

Geology of the Ocetá Páramo

Geology of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense