Two Cretaceous forebulge successions in the Oman Mountains, triggered by the obducted Semail Ophiolite, identified by the facies analysis of limestones, ferruginous crusts and ferruginous oolites

The Tethys-derived Semail Ophiolite had formed during the Cenomanien-Turonian. Along with deep-sea sediments, it was obducted onto the Arabian Plate as it was still young, hot and buoyant. Thrusting and loading triggered the formation of the Aruma Foreland system consisting of a foredeep, a forebulge and a backbulge basin.

The studied succession represents the uppermost part of the Permo-Mesozoic shallow marine shelf sequence of the Arabian Platform, which is blanketed at an angular unconformity by shales of the Late Cretaceous Muti Formation of the Aruma (foreland) Group. The structural position of the succession is on the forebulge which is characterized by eroded Cretaceous and Jurassic shelf formations of the Arabian Platform (Wasia-Aruma Break).    

We identified two forebulge successions. Both display repetitive lithofacies, beginning with (1) shallow subtidal massive/poorly bedded bioclastic wackestones to floatstones, followed by (2) peloidal grainstones, (3) ferruginous crusts and (4) shallow marine ferruginous oolites. From base to top, both successions record an overall shallowing-up trend. At the same time, the relative sedimentation rate decreases in the same direction. The coarse-grained massive facies may have been deposited on a regular slope which was well-supplied with bioclasts. The finer grained grainstone facies and their peloids indicate a lower sedimentation rate, reflecting the transition form a regular slope to a forebulge on which in the next step sediment condensation occurred (crusts) and chemical precipitation of ferruginous material (crusts and oolites). Each forebulge succession is capped by clayey material.

The similar facies development of the two successions suggests repetitively similar depositional and tectonic conditions. As both sequences occur at the same site, two vertical forebulge developments are concluded.

The ferruginous crusts formed under at least slightly reducing conditions, associated with minor water-deepening events. Both oolites contain chlorite, hematite, quartz, calcite and apatite. The nuclei of the ooids are often chlorite or hematite fragments, having most-likely derived from preexisting ferruginous crusts. Iron oxyhydroxides and clinochlore of the oolites reflect bathymetric changes to more oxidizing aqueous conditions, associated minor water-shallowing events.

Fe-rich anoxic to sub-oxic sea water of the marine foredeep was the Fe source for the crusts and oolites, coinciding with (1) a high rate of global Cretaceous oceanic crust production, (2) related hydrothermalism and (3) the regional proximity of an active spreading axis. Fe was likely stabilized in ocean water as Fe colloids and organic Fe complexes.