Outcrops of the Upper Devonian Moberly Member (Waterways Formation) on the Athabasca River West of Fort McMurray, Alberta (NTS 74D)

Joint fieldwork completed by Alberta Geological Survey geologists and University of Alberta paleontologists over the summers of 2010-2012 resulted in the description and correlation of Moberly Member (Waterways Formation, Devonian) outcrops along the Athabasca River. This report contains the first published descriptions of five outcrops of the Moberly Member along the Athabasca River west of Fort McMurray, which were examined in the summer of 2011. Outcrops include those between Mountain Rapids and Cascade Rapids, and capture the lower portion of the Moberly Member.

The lower units of the exposed section tend to be fossiliferous, argillaceous, and generally bioturbated. The upper units were Thalassinoides-burrowed and less fossiliferous, although mostly remain argillaceous.