Sedimentology and Depositional 

Environments of the Lower Permian 

Yeso Formation, 

Northwestern New Mexico

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 1808-M

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Chapter M

Sedimentology and Depositional 

Environments of the Lower Permian 

Yeso Formation, 

Northwestern New Mexico

By JOHN D. STANESCO

A multidisciplinary approach to research studies of sedimentary 

rocks and their constituents and the evolution of sedimentary 

basins, both ancient and modern

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 1808

EVOLUTION OF SEDIMENTARY BASINS SAN JUAN BASIN
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

MANUEL LUJAN, JR., Secretary

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

Dallas L. Peck, Director

Any use of trade, product, or firm names in this publication is for descriptive 

purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1991

For sale by the

Books and Open-File Reports Section

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Federal Center

Box 25425

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Stanesco, John D.

Sedimentology and depositional environments of the Lower Permian Yeso 

Formation, northwestern New Mexico : a multidisciplinary approach to 

research studies of sedimentary rocks and their constituents and the evolution 

of sedimentary basins, both ancient and modern / by John D. Stanesco.

p. cm. (Evolution of sedimentary basins San Juan Basin ; ch. M) 

(U.S. Geological Survey bulletin ; 1808)

Includes bibliographical references.

Supt. of Docs, no.: 1 19.3:1808M

1. Geology, Stratigraphic Permian. 2. Geology New Mexico. 3. Yeso 

Formation (N.M. and Tex.) I. Title. II. Series. III. Series: U.S. Geological 

Survey bulletin ; 1808. 

QE75.B9 no. 1808-M 

[QE674] 

557.3 s dc20

[551.7'56'09789] 91-30142

OP
CONTENTS

Abstract Ml 

Introduction Ml

Previous work Ml

Stratigraphy M2 

Acknowledgments M3 

Lithofacies descriptions M3

Cross-stratified sandstone facies M3

Horizontally stratified, wind-rippled-sandstone facies M3

Wavy-bedded, wind-rippled sandstone facies M5

Ripple-laminated sandstone facies M5

Gypsiferous rocks M5

Carbonate rocks M5 

Depositional model M5 

Interpretation of depositional environments M6

Cross-stratified sandstone facies M6

Horizontally stratified, wind-rippled sandstone facies M6

Wavy-bedded, wind-rippled sandstone facies M6

Ripple-laminated sandstone facies M6

Gypsiferous rocks M6

Carbonate rocks M7 

Lateral and vertical distribution of facies M7

Cyclicity M7 

Geologic history M7

Meseta Blanca Member M7

Torres, Los Vallos, and Cafias Members and lower part of the San Ysidro 

Member M9

Upper part of the San Ysidro Member and Joyita Member Mil 

Conclusions Mil 

References cited Mil

FIGURES

1. Map of northwestern New Mexico showing locations of measured sections M2

2. Chart showing stratigraphic terminology of the Permian Yeso Formation 

and De Chelly Sandstone in northwestern New Mexico and northeastern 

Arizona M3

3. Photographs of selected facies of the Yeso Formation, northwestern 

New Mexico M4

4. Columnar sections showing schematic distribution of lithofacies and inferred 

environments of deposition in the Yeso Formation and De Chelly 

Sandstone M8

5. Chart of measured sections showing examples of cyclic deposition in the 

Yeso Formation of northwestern New Mexico M9

6. Paleogeographic maps of study area during deposition of the 

Yeso Formation M10

Contents III

EVOLUTION OF SEDIMENTARY BASINS SAN JUAN BASIN

Sedimentology and Depositional Environments of the 

Lower Permian Yeso Formation, 

Northwestern New Mexico

£yjohn D. Stanesco

Abstract

In the Nacimiento Mountains of northwestern New 

Mexico, the Lower Permian (Leonardian) Yeso Formation is 

divided into a lower member, the Meseta Blanca, and an upper 

member, the San Ysidro. Farther south, the San Ysidro interval 

is equivalent to, in ascending order, the Torres and Joyita 

Members in the Zuni Mountains, the Los Vallos Member in the 

Lucero uplift, and the Torres, Canas, and Joyita Members at 

Mesa del Yeso.

The Yeso Formation is composed of several lithofacies 

that suggest a north to south transition from continental to 

marine depositional environments. These lithofacies and their 

interpreted environments of deposition include cross-stratified 

and horizontally stratified sandstones of eolian dune and 

sand-sheet origin, wavy-bedded sandstones formed in sanddominated sabkhas, gypsiferous rocks formed in coastal sabkhas and hypersaline lagoons, ripple-laminated sandstones 

originating in coastal-plain and tidal settings, and carbonate 

rocks formed in coastal sabkha, restricted-marine, and marineshelf environments.

Facies in the Meseta Blanca Member indicate a juxtaposition of eolian-dune and sand-sheet environments in the 

northern part of the study area with sabkha and tidal-flat 

environments in the southern part of the study area. Strata in 

the Torres, Los Vallos, and Canas Members formed in sabkha, 

lagoonal, restricted-marine, and marine-shelf settings during a 

northward transgression of Permian Basin seas. Strata in the 

upper part of the San Ysidro Member and in the Joyita Member 

represent southward progradation of eolian dune, sand-sheet, 

and inland sabkha environments. Eolian facies in the Yeso 

Formation are probably southward extensions of the erg 

represented by the Leonardian De Chelly Sandstone in northeastern Arizona.

Manuscript approved for publication July 12, 1991.

Superimposed on this transgressive and regressive 

pattern is a smaller scale cyclic pattern involving the lateral 

migration of eolian dune and sand-sheet strata over supratidal 

mud-flat and coastal sabkha deposits. At least 12 such eoliansabkha cycles are present in the Yeso Formation.

INTRODUCTION

The Yeso Formation in northwestern New Mexico 

consists of interbedded sandstone, siltstone, gypsum, 

limestone, and dolomite. The relative abundance of these 

lithologies changes from north to south across northwestern 

New Mexico: gypsum and carbonate rocks become more 

prevalent to the south. This north to south variation in 

lithologies suggests that the Yeso Formation formed in 

several depositional settings.

Although marine deposits have long been recognized 

in the Yeso Formation in southeastern New Mexico, little 

work has been done on the depositional environments north 

and west of the Yeso Formation type section near Socorro, 

New Mexico (fig. 1).

This report describes lithofacies of the Yeso Formation in northwestern New Mexico, interprets depositional 

environments associated with these lithofacies, and reconstructs the paleogeography of northwestern New Mexico for 

each member of the Yeso. To this end, sections were 

measured at seven locations and then correlated to a section 

of De Chelly Sandstone in the Defiance Plateau of 

northeastern Arizona (fig. 1).

Previous Work

Several workers have identified marine depositional 

environments in the Yeso Formation of southeastern and 

south-central New Mexico (Lee and Girty, 1909; KottLower Permian Yeso Formation, Northwestern New Mexico M1
109 C 108 C 107 C

36° P

Defiance 

Plateau

Oak Springs

Nacimiento 

Mountains

Gallup

35° ;-

San Diego 

Canyon

106 C

Santa Fe 

»

Rowe 

x

Grants Albuquerque

Zuni 

Mountains

EXPLANATION

X Measured section 

location

 Cities

x

Lucero

uplift

Mountainair

25 i 50 MILES -I

Abo ruins

Mesa del Yeso

Socorro,

34° i_L

36 C

35'

34 C

109' 108 C 107 C 106°

Figure 1. A, Index map showing location of study area. B, Map of study area showing names and locations of measured 

sections, selected cities, and major geographic features.

lowski and others, 1956). Hunter and Ingersoll (1981), in a 

study of the evaporites of the Canas Member of the Yeso 

Formation, interpreted the depositional setting as a hypersaline lagoon representing a shallow arm of the Permian sea 

to the south and east. Baars (1961, 1962) suggested that the 

Yeso was deposited in restricted-marine and coastal mudflat environments. Broadhead and others (1983) postulated 

a beach or shallow marine origin for elastics in the Meseta 

Blanca Member near Mesa del Yeso, east of Socorro, New 

Mexico (fig. 1).

Stratigraphy

The Yeso Formation was named by Lee and Girty 

(1909) and redescribed by Needham and Bates (1943) for 

outcrops near Mesa del Yeso, east of Socorro, New Mexico 

(fig. 1). The Yeso Formation ranges in thickness from 170 

m at the San Diego Canyon measured section to more than 

400 m at the Lucero uplift measured section (fig. 1). Four 

members are recognized in the Yeso Formation at Mesa del 

Yeso. Listed in order of decreasing age, they are the Meseta 

Blanca (Wood and Northrop, 1946), Torres, Canas, and

Joyita Members. Northwest of Mesa del Yeso, in the Lucero 

uplift (fig. 1), the Yeso is divided into the Meseta Blanca 

and Los Vallos Members (Kelley and Wood, 1946). In the 

Nacimiento Mountains (fig. 1), two members are also 

defined: the Meseta Blanca and the overlying San Ysidro 

Members (Wood and Northrop, 1946). This terminology 

was also used in the Zuni Mountains (fig. 1) by Read and 

Wanek (1961). Colpitts (1989) recently proposed extending 

the stratigraphic terminology from Mesa del Yeso, near 

Socorro, northwestward into the Zuni Mountains. Consequently, three members of the Yeso Formation are currently 

recognized in the Zuni Mountains: the Meseta Blanca, 

Torres, and Joyita Members. The stratigraphic terminology 

used in different parts of the study area is summarized in 

figure 2.

The Yeso Formation was designated as Leonardian in 

age based on fossils in the correlative Bone Spring Limestone of eastern New Mexico and West Texas (Skinner, 

1946). The Yeso Formation is conformable with both the 

underlying Abo Formation and the overlying Glorieta 

Sandstone. Though differing in terms of exact correlation, 

both Baars (1977) and Peirce (1966) defined parts of the

M2 Evolution of Sedimentary Basins San Juan Basin
Defiance 

Plateau

Triassic

/N/N/\/VN/N<N

Permian

Chinle 

Formation

H C 

H O

O T3

c 

<y fd

Q W

upper

member

tongue

of

Supai 

Fm.

Chelly De Sandstone

lower 

member

Supai

Formation

(part)

Zuni 

Mountains

Permian

Glorieta

Sandstone

Formatior Yes 

Joyita

Member

Torres 

Member

Meseta

Blanca

Member

Abo

Formation

Nacimiento 

Mountains

rmian

(P

d

Glorieta

Sandstone

o-H1 1

Forma

o

CO 

CD

San 

Ysidro

Member

Meseta

Blanca

Member

Abo

Formation

Lucero 

uplift

Permian

Glorieta

Sandstone

c 

o-H 

1 1

Formal Yeso 

Los 

Vallos

Member

Meseta 

Blanca

Ss.

Member

Abo

Formation

Mesa del 

Yeso

rmian

Q)

Oi

Glorieta

Sandstone

c 

o-H 

JJ

Formal

0 

CO

Joyita

Member

Canas

Member

Torres

Member

Meseta

Blanca

Member

Abo

Formation

Figure 2. Stratigraphic terminology of the Permian Yeso Formation and De Chelly Sandstone in northwestern New Mexico and 

northeastern Arizona. Terminology in the Defiance Plateau after Read and Wanek (1961); in Zuni Mountains, after Colpitts (1989); 

in Nacimiento Mountains, after Wood and Northrop (1946); in Lucero uplift, after Kelley and Wood (1946); and in Mesa del Yeso, 

after Needham and Bates (1943).

Yeso as equivalent to the De Chelly Sandstone of the 

Defiance Plateau of northeastern Arizona (fig. 1).

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I thank Russell Watts for his capable assistance in the 

field. I also thank Chris Schenk, Christine Turner, Curt 

Huffman, David Rubin, and Ralph Hunter of the U.S. 

Geological Survey for helpful discussions at the outcrop. 

The manuscript was improved as the result of comments by 

Tom Ahlbrandt and Chris Schenk of the U.S. Geological 

Survey.

LITHOFACIES DESCRIPTIONS

The lithofacies described in this report are defined on 

the basis of field descriptions of lithology, grain size, 

stratification, and sedimentary structures.

Cross-Stratified Sandstone Fades

of probable wind-ripple origin. Grain-flow layers of sandavalanche origin (fig. 3£) are common in the tabular-planar 

and wedge-planar cross-sets but are rare in trough crosssets. Sets of tabular-planar and wedge-planar sandstones 

several m thick (fig. 3A) are common in the San Diego 

Canyon measured section (fig. 1), which is the northernmost 

measured section in this report.

Paleo-transport directions in this facies, determined 

from vector slip-face orientations or trough orientations, are 

dominantly toward the south. In the Zuni Mountains, 

however, trough cross-sets in the Meseta Blanca Member 

and in the lower part of the Torres Member indicate 

transport to the north. In the southern part of the study area, 

trough cross-sets indicate both northerly and southerly 

directions of transport.

The cross-stratified sandstone facies occurs most 

commonly in the Meseta Blanca and Joyita Members and in 

the upper part of the San Ysidro Member of the Yeso. It is 

rare in the Torres, Los Vallos, and Canas Members.

Horizontally Stratified, Wind-Rippled 

Sandstone Facies

The cross-stratified sandstone facies consists of 

tabular-planar, wedge-planar, and trough cross-sets of fineto medium-grained sandstone (fig. 3A). Stratification is 

dominated by inversely graded, climbing translatent strata

The horizontally stratified, wind-rippled sandstone 

facies consists of very fine to fine-grained sandstone containing common discontinuous laminae of well-rounded, 

medium-grained sandstone. The horizontal to low-angle

Lower Permian Yeso Formation, Northwestern New Mexico M3
Figure 3. Photographs of selected facies of the Yeso Formation, northwestern New Mexico. A, Large-scale, tabularplanar and wedge-planar cross-sets of the cross-stratified 

sandstone facies in the Meseta Blanca Member at the San 

Diego Canyon measured section (fig. 1). Note person for scale 

in lower left-hand corner. B, Steeply dipping sand-avalanche 

layers (sal) and sand-flow toes (sft) of the cross-stratified 

sandstone facies overlying horizontal wind-ripple laminae 

(wrl) of the horizontally stratified, wind-rippled sandstone 

facies. Meseta Blanca Member at the San Diego Canyon 

measured section (fig. 1). Pencil is 14 cm long. C, Wrinkled 

bedding (wb) and "warty" weathering (ww) of the wavybedded, wind-rippled sandstone facies in the Torres Member

at the Zuni Canyon measured section (fig. 1). Hammer is 27 

cm long. "Warts" may represent calcite pseudomorphs after 

gypsum. D, Double-crested ripples (dcr) overlying ripples with 

a different orientation on bedding-plane surface of the ripplelaminated sandstone facies in the Torres Member at the Zuni 

Canyon measured section. Such features are common on tidal 

flats. E, Nodular, "chicken-wire" texture in gypsum in the Los 

Vallos Member at the Lucero uplift measured section (fig. 1). 

Dark zones surrounding nodules consist of carbonaceous silt. 

F, Photomicrograph showing mollusc shell fragments (ms) in 

bioclastic limestone of the carbonate rock facies in the Torres 

Member at the Zuni Canyon measured section. Field of view is 

4 mm from bottom to top.

M4 Evolution of Sedimentary Basins San Juan Basin
stratification consists largely of inversely graded, windripple laminations and commonly includes medium-grained 

lag grains and granule ripples (fig. 3B). Ripple foresets 

within the stratification occur locally.

This facies is found throughout the study area and is 

most common in the Meseta Blanca and Joyita Members 

and in the upper part of the San Ysidro Member. It is 

typically associated with the cross-stratified sandstone 

facies (fig. 35).

thin limestones. Gypsiferous units are commonly associated 

with underlying carbonates and overlying wavy-bedded 

sandstones.

Gypsum is found mainly in measured sections in the 

southern part of the study area, although its occurrence has 

recently been reported in the southern end of the Zuni 

Mountains (Colpitts, 1989). In the southern part of the study 

area, it is most common in the Canas Member but is also 

found in the Torres and Los Vallos Members.

Wavy-Bedded, Wind-Rippled Sandstone 

Facies

The wavy-bedded, wind-rippled sandstone facies (fig. 

3C) is texturally similar to the horizontally stratified, windrippled sandstone facies. The strata, however, are wrinkled 

and contorted and have contortion amplitudes ranging from 

one to several cm. Laminae consisting of medium-grained 

lag grains are common. Wavy-bedded sandstones commonly exhibit calcareous weathering "warts" that are 

approximately one cm in diameter (fig. 3C). This facies is 

found throughout the study area and is most common in the 

Torres and Los Vallos Members and in the lower part of the 

San Ysidro Member.

Ripple-Laminated Sandstone Facies

The ripple-laminated sandstone facies is comprised of 

very fine to fine-grained sandstone and lesser amounts of 

siltstone. Bedding is tabular and channel forms are rare. 

Strata consist primarily of ripple laminations. Small, discontinuous layers of micaceous silt and clay commonly 

occur along parting surfaces. Salt hoppers are common, 

mudcracks less so.

Low-index symmetric (wave) and asymmetric (current) ripples are common on bedding-plane surfaces. 

Double-crested ripples and ripples with bimodal orientations also occur (fig. 3D). In the southern part of the study 

area, siltstone units as much as 0.4 m thick interbed with 

ripple-laminated sandstones.

Gypsiferous Rocks

Gypsum occurs in a variety of associations including 

relatively pure, massive layers; interstitial gypsum in sandstone and siltstone; and vug infillings in limestone and 

dolomite. Most commonly, gypsum displaces sandstone and 

siltstone and exhibits a "chicken-wire" texture (fig. 3£) or a 

vein-like habit. Some gypsiferous sandstone is crossstratified and wavy bedded. In the southeastern part of the 

study area, thick units of massive gypsum and laminated 

gypsum occur. Some gypsum layers locally interbed with

Carbonate Rocks

Thin to thickly bedded limestones and dolomites, 

mostly micritic, occur throughout the study area but are 

much more abundant in the southern part of the study area. 

Symmetric (oscillation) ripples, small desiccation polygons, 

pseudomorphs after halite and gypsum, and possible 

stromatolitic structures are rare. Oolites are reported from 

one of the dolomites in the Zuni Mountains (Colpitts, 1989). 

In the Lucero uplift and Abo ruins measured sections (fig. 

1), some carbonate units are vuggy and have voids infilled 

with gypsum. Fossils are rare, but forams, small bivalves, 

conispiral gastropods, and infilled burrows were found 

during the present study in one of the limestones in the Zuni 

Mountains (fig. 3F). Colpitts (1989) reported scaphopods 

and possible brachiopods from the same area. In the Abo 

ruins measured section (fig. 1), several large, coiled 

cephalopods were found. The number of carbonate beds 

within the Yeso Formation increases to the south; these beds 

are confined to the Torres, Los Vallos, and Canas Members.

DEPOSITIONS. MODEL

Previous work on the Yeso Formation and correlative 

Leonardian strata in Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas has 

established a transitional position for the Yeso between an 

eolian erg to the northwest, i.e., the De Chelly Sandstone 

(Blakey, 1979; Stanesco, in press) and a marine 

environment to the southeast, i.e., the Bone Spring 

Limestone and the upper part of the Clear Fork Group 

(Kottlowski and others, 1956; Handford, 1981). Marine 

environments have also been shown in Leonardian paleogeographic reconstructions by Blakey and others (1988) and 

Peterson (1988). Environments of deposition that are 

associated with each of the lithofacies within the Yeso 

Formation indicate a transition from eolian to marine 

settings. These inferred depositional environments are 

described in the following section.

Lower Permian Yeso Formation, Northwestern New Mexico MS
INTERPRETATION OF DEPOSITIONAL 

ENVIRONMENTS

Cross-Stratified Sandstone Facies

The two most common stratification types in the 

cross-stratified sandstone facies (inversely graded, climbing 

translatent strata and grain-flow, sand avalanche layers; 

fig. 35) are both good indicators of deposition in eolian 

dunes (Hunter, 1977; Kocurek and Dott, 1981). This is 

particularly true when these two stratification types are 

found interbedded with each other this configuration 

suggests deposition on the lower slip-face and dune apron.

In the measured sections in the northern part of the 

study area, particularly in the San Diego Canyon measured 

section (fig. 1), the size of the cross-sets and the consistent 

southerly slip-face orientation in tabular-planar and wedgeplanar cross-stratified sandstones indicates deposition in 

transverse or barchanoid dunes migrating toward the southsouthwest (Blakey and Middleton, 1983). In the Zuni 

Mountains, however, dunes in the Meseta Blanca Member 

exhibit northerly transport directions. Farther to the south 

and east, in the Lucero uplift and Abo ruins measured 

sections, bimodal north-south transport is evident. This 

fluctuation in eolian transport direction may reflect onshore 

winds or seasonal changes in wind directions that are 

commonly associated with coastal dunes (Blakey and 

Middleton, 1983).

Horizontally Stratified, Wind-Rippled 

Sandstone Facies

The abundance of inversely graded, wind-ripple 

laminations; granule ripples; and lag grains in horizontally 

stratified to low-angle, cross-stratified sandstones suggests 

an eolian sand-sheet origin for the horizontally stratified, 

wind-rippled sandstone facies (Ahlbrandt and Fryberger, 

1982). This facies is commonly associated with the crossstratified sandstone (eolian dune) facies and probably 

formed in low-lying sand plains surrounding, or in advance 

of, dune-fields (Fryberger and others, 1979). Some of the 

units in this facies may also have formed in interdunes 

within dune fields.

Wavy-Bedded, Wind-Rippled Sandstone 

Facies

The occurrence of wind-ripple laminae and evenly 

disseminated lag grains along bedding surfaces in this facies 

suggests an eolian origin. The wrinkles and contortions in 

the laminae indicate disruption of the layering. Similar 

features have been found in modern sabkha environments

and have been attributed to displacive growth of evaporites 

in sand (Fryberger and others, 1983). The wavy-bedded, 

wind-rippled sandstone facies formed in sand-dominated 

sabkhas in both inland and coastal settings.

The "warty" weathering that characterizes this facies 

may represent small calcite replacements after gypsum in 

sand (D.M. Rubin, oral commun., 1988). This facies is 

commonly found in vertical association with sand-sheet 

deposits and sandy gypsum units. It may be considered 

transitional between the drier sand-sheet deposits and the 

wetter, more evaporitic, sandy gypsum deposits.

Ripple-Laminated Sandstone Facies

The presence of both wave and current ripples in the 

ripple-laminated sandstone facies suggests that it was 

deposited subaqueously. The occurrence of mudcracks and 

salt hoppers, however, indicates intermittent subaerial 

exposure (Baldwin, 1973). The mud drapes that commonly 

coat ripple laminae originate under conditions alternating 

between current deposition and suspension deposition 

(Klein, 1977).

Several features found in this facies commonly form 

in supratidal and intertidal settings. These include 

bidirectional ripples, double-crested ripples (fig. 3D), and 

interference ripples (Klein, 1977) as well as mudcracks and 

salt hoppers (Baldwin, 1973). In the southern part of the 

study area, interbedded sandstone and siltstone form a 

subfacies to the ripple-laminated sandstone facies this is 

also consistent with a tidal interpretation for the environment of deposition.

The measured sections in the northern part of the 

study area are farther removed from the influence of 

Permian Basin seas (Hunter and Ingersoll, 1981), and it is 

less likely that the ripple-laminated sandstone facies in these 

sections formed in a tidal environment. Here, deposition in 

playa mud flats or in coastal-plain or inter-fluvial settings is 

postulated (Kendall, 1984; Handford, 1981).

Gypsiferous Rocks

The variety of habits and associations of gypsiferous 

rocks in the Yeso Formation suggests several depositional 

settings for this facies. Massive and laminated gypsum 

found in the Mesa del Yeso, Abo ruins, and Lucero uplift 

measured sections (fig. 1) probably formed subaqueously 

(Kendall, 1984). This interpretation is supported by the 

stratigraphic association of massive and laminated gypsum 

with marine limestones in these sections. Hunter and 

Ingersoll (1981) interpreted the environment of deposition 

for this type of gypsum in the Canas Member as a salina or 

hypersaline lagoon associated with an arm of the Permian 

Basin sea in southeastern New Mexico.

M6 Evolution of Sedimentary Basins San Juan Basin
Other gypsiferous outcrops in the same measured 

sections exhibit displacive or replacive characteristics 

including "chicken-wire" texture (fig. 3£), vug infillings in 

carbonate rocks, and interstitial growth within siltstones and 

inferred eolian sandstones (Kendall, 1984). In these 

instances, deposition in a coastal sabkha is postulated.

Carbonate Rocks

Limestones and dolomites in the Yeso Formation are 

vertically associated with gypsiferous rocks, eolian sandstones, and supratidal sandstones. The presence of desiccation polygons, salt casts, algal mats, possible stromatolitic 

structures, and vugs infilled with gypsum suggest that some 

of the carbonates are of sabkha to intertidal origin (Shinn, 

1983). The middle carbonate unit in the Zuni Canyon 

measured section (figs. 1 and 4) contains casts of selenite 

crystals. It also contains forams, very small bivalves, 

gastropods, and scaphopods and may have formed in a 

restricted marine embayment. In the southeastern part of the 

study area, the presence of definitive marine megafossils (in 

the form of large, coiled cephalopods) indicates connection 

to an open marine environment. Here, origin on a shallow 

marine shelf is inferred.

LATERAL AND VERTICAL DISTRIBUTION 

OF FACIES

The various facies in the Yeso Formation are not 

uniformly distributed throughout the study area. Measured 

sections in the northern part of the study area are interpreted 

to consist primarily of eolian sandstones representing dunes, 

sand sheets, and inland clastic sabkhas. The southern 

measured sections include gypsiferous rocks, interbedded 

sandstones and siltstones, and carbonate rocks that formed 

in sabkha, tidal, restricted-marine, and marine-shelf 

environments (fig. 4).

Stratigraphically, eolian deposits are most prominent 

in the lowermost part of the Yeso Formation (the Meseta 

Blanca Member) and in the uppermost part of the Yeso 

Formation (the Joyita Member and the upper part of the San 

Ysidro Member) (figs. 2 and 4). Conversely, sabkha, tidal, 

restricted-marine, and shelf deposits are more prevalent in 

the middle part of the Yeso (the Torres, Los Vallos, and 

Canas Members) (fig. 4).

This pattern suggests a large-scale cyclicity in which 

two major episodes of eolian progradation from the north 

were separated by a marine transgression from the south.

1 to 8 m and commonly mimic the lateral distribution of 

lithofacies described in the previous section. Two 

representative cycles (from the Torres and Los Vallos 

Members at two different locations) are illustrated in figures 

5A and 5B. In each case, the cycles are initiated by a 

limestone with a sharp lower contact. This may indicate a 

rapid marine transgression (Blakey and Middleton, 1983). 

The cycles coarsen upward and are regressive because they 

represent the lateral migration of eolian sand-sheet and dune 

strata over supratidal mud-flat and coastal sabkha deposits. 

In measured sections from the northern part of the study 

area that are farther removed from direct marine influence, 

cycles are manifested in the alternation of eolian dune and 

sand-sheet deposits with wetter inland sabkha and mud-flat 

deposits (fig. 5C).

Poor outcrop exposure hinders determination of the 

exact number of cycles in the Yeso Formation. In several of 

the measured sections, however, twelve small-scale cycles 

averaging 5 m in thickness were identified.

Cyclic deposition is a common feature of Permian 

strata in the western United States (Mack and James, 1986; 

Blakey and Middleton, 1983; Johnson, 1989). Most workers 

have related these cycles to Milankovitch orbital parameters 

(Johnson, 1989) or to eustatic changes in sea level caused by 

fluctuating ice volumes in southern hemisphere ice sheets 

(Blakey and Middleton, 1983). The Yeso depositional 

cycles in the southern part of the study area appear to be the 

result of small-scale transgressions and regressions along a 

coastal plain of low relief, and, as such, it is likely that these 

transgressions and regressions were caused by fluctuating 

ice volumes in the southern hemisphere. The lack of age 

control on strata in the Yeso Formation precludes 

correlation of either the large- or small-scale Yeso cycles 

with Milankovitch parameters.

Cycles observed in measured sections in the northern 

part of the study area may reflect climatic changes induced 

by Milankovitch parameters but may also be the result of 

changes in the ancient water table caused by transgressive 

and regressive events farther south. Chan and Kocurek 

(1988) have postulated that marine transgression could 

induce rising water tables and could possibly generate 

inland sabkhas more than 100 km from a shoreline.

The number and regularity of cycles present in the 

Yeso interval and the absence of coarse-grained deposits in 

the formation favor eustatic as opposed to tectonic processes to explain the cyclicity.

GEOLOGIC HISTORY

Cyclicity

On a smaller scale, vertical repetition of facies within 

each member of the Yeso Formation also indicates cyclic 

deposition. These cycles generally occur over an interval of

Meseta Blanca Member

Deposition of the Meseta Blanca Member (fig. 6A) 

represents the encroachment of eolian facies in the form of 

dunes, sand sheets, and sand-dominated sabkhas southward

Lower Permian Yeso Formation, Northwestern New Mexico M7
NW SE

Oak Springs

measured

section

Zuni

Canyon

measured

section

Lucero 

uplift

Mesa del

Ye so

measured 

section

upper

member

of

De Chelly 

Sandstone

tongue of

Supai

Formation

lower

member

of

De Chelly 

Sandstone

section

-^r^

X X X X

_._._._.

'ffSSSSS

f/SSS/SS

S/\^v/vN

'SfS/SSS*

 ; x-; \s, "^ x. 

y\ yx-v s-.

'IV' 

'. W^ V«

A A rt rt

^0-

 ^VjVjVJ'

-<^

Joyita

Member

^"*^^^

^sx»x^

P^

Los Vallos 

Member

Meseta

Blanca

^<^

-"<x-

.^M 

y^VV^-O'

 ^WVT"

'SSS////

i i i i

Kw<i

r'vw"^

--------

: ir^rzl.-.'.

j'.y.T1. ;'.

-~<X

r^r^i^f^

T^i^-iT'

Joyita

Member

i

Canas

Member

Torres 

Member

Meseta

Blanca 

Member

Abo

ruins

neasure

section

./S/VA/vi

I 1 !'! 1 ! 1

F^3

^^

rftftfrTj

fSS/S/S/i 

ffSSSSSSs

'SW&<.

A A A/-"

:r*Tr*^iTE

 *ftftrt

Canas? 

Member

EXPLANATION

Cross-stratified 

sandstone (dune)

Horizontally stratified, wind-rippled 

sandstone (sand sheet)

Wavy-bedded sandstone 

(sand-dominated sabkha)

Ripple laminated sandstone 

(fluvial plain/tidal flat)

Gypsiferous rocks 

(coastal sabkha/lagoon)

Carbonate rocks (coastal 

sabkha/restricted marine/shelf)

Figure 4. Schematic distribution of lithofacies and inferred 

environments of deposition in selected measured sections of 

the Yeso Formation and De Chelly Sandstone in northwestern 

New Mexico and northeastern Arizona. See figure 1 for 

location of measured sections. Caps within sections indicate 

covered intervals. Stratigraphic nomenclature changes at

vertical dashed lines. The Torres and Los Vallos Members of 

the Yeso Formation probably correlate with the tongue of 

Supai Formation that separates the upper and lower members 

of the De Chelly Sandstone on the Defiance Plateau (Oak 

Springs measured section).

M8 Evolution of Sedimentary Basins San Juan Basin
A

Lucero

uplift

measured

O III 

6m 

4m A «M*h

2m 

Om

sectic

^<^

 ^VV^^VVV

?S^»ffiJT^S

jXJijijiJ!!!!

C iSi

>n

iZI

r

f i m i c Gr i

B

Bluewater

Creek 

measured 

8m - section

6m 

4m2mOm.

c

San Diego 

Canyon 

measured 

8m i section

' Sand 

Grain Size

i C i Si i f i m i c |Gr i ' Sand 1 

Grain Size

EXPLANATION

' Sand 

Grain Size

Cross-stratified 

sandstone (dune)

Horizontally stratified, wind-rippled 

sandstone (sand sheet)

Wavy-bedded sandstone 

(sand-dominated sabkha)

Ripple laminated sandstone 

(fluvial plain/tidal flat)

Gypsiferous rocks 

(coastal sabkha/lagoon)

Carbonate rocks (coastal 

sabkha/restricted marine/shelf)

Figure 5. Examples of cyclic deposition in the Yeso 

Formation of northwestern New Mexico. Grain size is 

indicated at base of each cycle. C, clay; Si, silt; f, fine sand; m, 

medium sand; c, coarse sand; Gr, granules. A, Coarsening 

upward regressive cycle indicating progradation of eolian 

dune and sand-sheet deposits over sabkha sandstones, evaporites, and carbonates. B, Coarsening upward regressive cycle

indicating progradation of eolian dune and sand-sheet deposits 

over sabkha sandstones, supratidal mudflats, and restrictedmarine carbonates. C, Repetitive interbedding of eolian sandsheet and sand-dominated sabkha deposits with coastal plain, 

fluvial, or supratidal mud-flat deposits. Cycles probably 

resulted from eustatic sea level changes caused by fluctuations 

in the volume of southern hemisphere ice sheets.

onto fluvial, flood-plain, and tidal deposits of the underlying 

Abo Formation (Broadhead and others, 1983). The 

Abo-Meseta Blanca contact is gradational and intercalated, 

suggesting a gradual change of environments. In the 

northern part of the study area, strike and dip data indicate 

that Meseta Blanca dunes were of the barchan or transverseridge type. These dunes were probably part of a southern 

extension of the prograding De Chelly erg in northwestern 

New Mexico (Stanesco, in press). Coastal dunes exhibiting 

northerly or bimodal north-south directions of transport 

developed in the Zuni Mountains and Lucero uplift regions.

In measured sections in the southeastern part of the 

study area, the Meseta Blanca Member is dominated by 

sand-sheet and sabkha deposits; fewer cross-stratified dune 

deposits are represented. Near Socorro, New Mexico, the 

Meseta Blanca Member was most likely deposited in an 

intertidal setting.

Torres, Los Vallos, and Cafias Members and 

Lower Part of the San Ysidro Member

Facies of the middle Yeso interval (fig. 6B) indicate a 

marine transgression from the south and a concurrent 

northward shift of sabkha and sand-sheet environments. In 

the northern part of the study area, sand-dominated sabkhas 

and lower coastal-plain mud flats developed in areas 

previously dominated by dunes and sand sheets. Farther 

south, coastal, evaporite-dominated sabkhas and supratidal 

mud flats formed. Sand sheets and small dunes migrated 

intermittently over the sabkha surfaces. Limestones and 

dolomites deposited during this interval originated in sabkhas, restricted marine embayments, and inner-shelf 

environments.

Lower Permian Yeso Formation, Northwestern New Mexico M9
36° P''

De Cl elly erg

EOLIAN DUNES/SAND SHEETS San^ Fe

Gallup

109°

A

Albuquerque

I _ SAND-DOMINATED SABKHA

TIDAL MUD-FLATS

asured section /paleo wind-direction 

ation ^

De Chelly erg

^} J SAND-DOMINATED SABKHA

Gallup

35= 35°

109°

B

RESTRICTED\ COASTAL SABKHA 

MARINE

asured section /paleo wind-direction 

ation ft

SHELF

36" I- 1 '

De Chelly erg

I/ SAND-DOMINATED

Gaiiup SABKHA

RESTRICTED 

MARINE

HYPERSALINE 

LAGOON

location

/paleo wind-direction

Figure 6. Paleogeographic maps of study area during deposition of the Yeso Formation. Facies boundaries, marked by 

curved lines, fluctuated during cyclic deposition. A, Meseta 

Blanca Member. Note north-south juxtaposition of eolian 

dunes and sand sheets with sand-dominated sabkhas and tidal 

mud flats. During this time, the anomalous northward wind 

direction, west of Albuquerque, may result from onshore 

winds associated with coastal dunes. B, Torres, Los Vallos, 

lower San Ysidro Members. Marine shoreline transgresses 

northward. Coastal and sand-dominated sabkhas cover 

northern part of the area. C, Canas, Torres, Los Vallos, lower

The middle Yeso interval contains numerous regressive cycles involving the progradation of eolian sandstones 

over coastal sabkha evaporites and carbonates. This suggests several oscillations of the marine shoreline during an 

overall transgression.

Portions of the Torres Member in the Zuni Mountains 

and the Los Vallos Member in the Lucero uplift probably 

correlate with the Canas Member, which is recognized in 

the measured section near Socorro (Needham and Bates, 

1943). This correlation is particularly apparent in the Lucero 

uplift, where the upper part of the Los Vallos Member 

contains abundant gypsum. Hunter and Ingersoll (1981)

De Ctielly erg

Gallup

35= 35= _

EOLIAN DUNES/SAND 

SHEETS

SABKHA

109°

D /"

San Ysidro Members. Transgression stabilizes. Restrictedmarine and hypersaline lagoon environments, characterized 

by massive and laminated gypsum deposits, develop in nearshore settings. Coastal and sand-dominated sabkha environments continue in northern part of the area. D, Joyita and 

upper San Ysidro Members. Eolian progradation from the 

north. Marine environment regresses southward. Sanddominated sabkhas develop in southern part of the area. Eolian 

dunes and sand sheets are probably part of the De Chelly erg 

in northeastern Arizona.

determined that the Cafias evaporites formed in a hypersaline lagoon or salina (fig. 6C) that was connected to the 

Permian sea to the south and east. Some gypsum units in the 

Lucero uplift probably formed in these same lagoonal or 

salina environments; other gypsum units are interbedded 

with definite eolian sandstones and probably represent 

coastal sabkha deposits. Carbonate rocks interbed with 

gypsum as far north as the Zuni Mountains (Colpitts, 1989). 

These rocks formed during periods of more normal salinity 

that may have been caused by influxes of marine waters 

associated with transgressive high stands. Transgressive 

deposits that are evident in the middle Yeso interval

M10 Evolution of Sedimentary Basins San Juan Basin
probably correlate with sandy sabkha deposits in the tongue 

of the Supai Formation that separates the upper and lower 

members of the De Chelly Sandstone in the Defiance 

Plateau of northeastern Arizona (figs. 2 and 4).

Upper Part of the San Ysidro Member and 

Joyita Member

Deposits formed during this interval represent a 

general southward regression of the sea and a return to 

eolian dune, sand-sheet, and sand-dominated sabkha 

conditions in the northern part of the study area (fig. 6D). 

This regression is probably associated with the progradation 

of the upper member of the De Chelly Sandstone (fig. 2). 

Cross-stratified dune deposits are found in all measured 

sections. The dominant direction of transport was toward 

the southwest. The eolian deposits grade upward into 

similar cross-stratified sandstones of the overlying Glorieta 

Sandstone.

CONCLUSIONS

Six lithofacies are recognized in the Yeso Formation 

in northwestern New Mexico. They include cross-stratified 

sandstones; horizontally stratified, wind-rippled sandstones; 

ripple-laminated sandstones; wavy-bedded sandstones; gypsiferous rocks; and carbonate rocks. These lithofacies 

formed in eolian dune, sand-sheet, fluvial-plain, playa, 

inland and coastal sabkha, tidal, restricted-marine, and 

marine-shelf environments.

Interbedding of lithofacies on a scale of 1 to 8 m 

indicates at least twelve depositional cycles within the Yeso 

Formation. The cycles are dominantly regressive and suggest eolian progradation from the north. Cyclic deposition 

was probably the consequence of eustatic changes in sea 

level resulting from fluctuations in southern hemisphere ice 

sheets.

Strata in the Meseta Blanca Member formed in eolian 

dunes and sand sheets that graded southward into sanddominated sabkha and tidal flat deposits. Strata in the 

Torres, Los Vallos, and Canas Members represent a 

northward transgression of sabkha, lagoonal, and marineshelf environments associated with Permian seas to the 

south and southeast. Strata in the upper part of the San 

Ysidro Member and in the Joyita Member indicate a return 

to eolian dune, sand-sheet, and sand-dominated sabkha 

conditions. The Joyita Member and the upper part of the San 

Ysidro Member grade upward into similar strata of the 

overlying Glorieta Sandstone.

The eolian deposits of the Yeso Formation were 

probably southward extensions of the De Chelly erg in the 

Defiance Plateau of northeastern Arizona.

REFERENCES CITED

Ahlbrandt, T.S., and Fryberger, S.G., 1982, Eolian deposits, in 

Scholle, P.A. and Spearing, Darwin, eds., Sandstone 

Depositional Environments: American Association of 

Petroleum Geologists Memoir 31, p. 11-48.

Baars, D.L., 1961, Permian strata of central New Mexico: New 

Mexico Geological Society Guidebook, 12th Field Conference, p. 80-84.

Baars, D.L, 1962, Permian system of the Colorado Plateau: 

American Association of Petroleum Geologists Bulletin, 

v. 46, p. 194-195.

Baars, D.L., 1977, Permian rocks of the San Juan Basin: New 

Mexico Geological Society Guidebook, 28th Field Conference, San Juan Basin III, p. 133-138.

Baldwin, E.J., 1973, The Moenkopi Formation of north-central 

Arizona: an interpretation of ancient environments based 

upon sedimentary structures and stratification types: Journal 

of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 43, p. 92-106.

Blakey, R.C., 1979, Pennsylvanian and Early Permian paleogeography, southern Colorado Plateau and vicinity, in 

Fouch, T.D., and Magathan, R., eds., Paleozoic Paleogeography of West-Central United States: Society of 

Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists, Denver, 

Colorado, p. 239-257.

Blakey, R.C., and Middleton, L.T., 1983, Permian shoreline eolian 

complex in central Arizona: dune changes in response to 

cyclic sea level changes, in Brookfield, M.E., and Ahlbrandt, T.S., eds., Eolian Sediments and Processes: Elsevier, 

p. 551-581.

Blakey, R.C., Peterson, F., and Kocurek, G., 1988, Synthesis of 

late Paleozoic and Mesozoic eolian deposits of the Western 

Interior of the United States, in Kocurek, G., ed., Late 

Paleozoic and Mesozoic Deposits of the Western Interior of 

the United States: Sedimentary Geology, v. 56, p. 3-126.

Broadhead, R.F., Kottlowski, F.E., and Macmillan, J.R., 1983, 

Road log-first day-Socorro to Scholle, Priest Canyon, Cerros de Amado area, and Mesa del Yeso area in Guidebook 

for field trip to the Abo red beds (Permian), central and 

south-central New Mexico: Roswell Geological Society and 

New Mexico Bureau of Mines and Mineral Resources, p. 7.

Chan, M.A., and Kocurek, G., 1988, Complexities in eolian and 

marine interactions: processes and eustatic controls on erg 

development, in Kocurek, G., ed., Late Paleozoic and 

Mesozoic Deposits of the Western Interior of the United 

States: Sedimentary Geology, v. 56, p. 283-300.

Colpitts, R.M., Jr., 1989, Permian reference section for 

southeastern Zuni Mountains, Cibola County, New Mexico: 

New Mexico Geological Society Guidebook, 40th Field 

Conference, p. 177-180.

Fryberger, S.G., Ahlbrandt, T.S., and Andrews, Sarah, 1979, 

Origin, sedimentary features, and significance of low-angle 

eolian "sand sheet" deposits, Great Sand Dunes National 

Monument and vicinity, Colorado: Journal of Sedimentary 

Petrology, v. 49, p. 733-746.

Fryberger, S.G., Al-Sari, A.M., and Clisham, T.J., 1983, Eolian 

dune, interdune, sand sheet and siliciclastic sabkha 

sediments of an offshore prograding sand sea, Dharhan area, 

Saudi Arabia: American Association of Petroleum 

Geologists Bulletin, v. 67, p. 280-312.

Lower Permian Yeso Formation, Northwestern New Mexico M11
Handford, C.R., 1981, Coastal sabkha and salt pan deposition of

the lower Clear Fork Formation (Permian), Texas: Journal

of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 51, p. 761-778. 

Hunter, J.C., and Ingersoll, R.V., 1981, Cafias gypsum member of

Yeso Formation (Permian) in New Mexico: New Mexico

Geology, v. 3, no. 4, p. 49-53. 

Hunter, R.E., 1977, Basic types of stratification in small eolian

dunes: Sedimentology, v. 24, p. 362-387. 

Johnson, S.Y., 1989, Significance of loessites in the Maroon

Formation (Middle Pennsylvanian to Lower Permian),

Eagle Basin, northwest Colorado: Journal of Sedimentary

Petrology, v. 59, p. 782-791. 

Kelley, V.C., and Wood, G.H., 1946, Lucero uplift, Valencia,

Socorro and Bernalillo Counties, New Mexico: U.S.

Geological Survey Oil and Gas Investigations Preliminary

Map 47. 

Kendall, A.C., 1984, Evaporites, in Walker, R.G., ed., Facies

Models, 2nd edition: Geoscience Canada Reprint, Series 1,

p. 259-296. 

Klein, G. deV., 1977, Clastic Tidal Facies: Continuing Education

Publication Company, Champaign, Illinois, p. 31-71. 

Kocurek, G., and Dott, R.H., Jr., 1981, Distinctions and uses of

stratification types in the interpretation of eolian sand:

Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 51, p. 579-595. 

Kottlowski, F.E., Flower, R.H., Thompson, M.L., and Foster,

R.W., 1956, Stratigraphic studies of the San Andres

Mountains, New Mexico: New Mexico Bureau of Mines

and Mineral Resources Memoir 1, p. 52-59. 

Lee, W.T., and Girty, G.H., 1909, The Manzano Group of the

Rio Grande valley, New Mexico: U.S. Geological Survey

Bulletin 389, 141 p. 

Mack, G.H., and James, W.C., 1986, Cyclic sedimentation in the

mixed siliciclastic-carbonate Abo-Hueco transitional zone

(Lower Permian), southwestern New Mexico: Journal of

Sedimentary Petrology, v. 56, p. 635-647. 

Needham, C.E., and Bates, R.L., 1943, Permian type sections in

central New Mexico: Geological Society of America

Bulletin, v. 54, p. 1,653-1,667. 

Peirce, H.W., 1966, Permian stratigraphy of the Defiance Plateau,

Arizona: New Mexico Geological Society, 18th Field

Conference Guidebook, p. 57-62. 

Peterson, F., 1988, Pennsylvanian to Jurassic transportation

systems in the western United States, in Kocurek, G., ed.,

Late Paleozoic and Mesozoic Deposits of the Western

Interior of the United States: Sedimentary Geology, v. 56,

p. 207-260. 

Read, C.B., and Wanek, A.A., 1961, Stratigraphy of outcropping

Permian rocks in parts of northeastern Arizona and adjacent

areas: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 374-H,

p. H1-H10. 

Shinn, E.A., 1983, Tidal flat environment, in Scholle, P.A.,

Bebout, D.G., and Moore, C.H., eds., Carbonate Depositional Environments: American Association of Petroleum

Geologists, Memoir 33, p. 171-210. 

Skinner, J.W., 1946, Correlation of Permian of west Texas and

southeast New Mexico: American Association of Petroleum

Geologists Bulletin, v. 30, p. 1,857-1,874. 

Stanesco, J.D., in press. Sedimentology and cyclicity in the Lower

Permian De Chelly Sandstone on the Defiance Plateau,

eastern Arizona: Mountain Geologist. 

Wood, G.H., and Northrop, S.A., 1946, Geology of the Nacimiento

Mountains, San Pedro Mountain, and adjacent plateaus in

parts of Sandoval and Rio Arriba Counties, New Mexico:

U. S. Geological Survey Oil and Gas Investigations Map

OM-57.

M12 Evolution of Sedimentary Basins San Juan Basin *U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1992-673-049/46019
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Geological Survey" should write to the U.S. Geological Survey,'582 National Center, Reston, VA 22092.

Note.-Prices of Government publications listed in older catalogs, 

announcements, and publications may be incorrect Therefore, the prices 

charged may differ from the prices in catalogs, announcements, and publications.