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Stratigraphy and palynology of Mesozoic sediments from the Great Australian Bight area, southern Australia

Created 20/01/2026

Updated 20/01/2026

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The offshore Mesozoic Bight and Duntroon Basins formed through rifting and separation of the Australian and Antarctic plates. Palynological investigation of samples dredged from the continental slope and submarine canyon walls in these basins during BMR Rig Seismic Cruise 66 showed that the bulk of the palynofloras correlate with the Maastrichtian to possibly earliest Paleocene Forcipites (al. Tricolpites) longus spore/pollen Zone and the Manumiella druggii microplankton Zone. The zones are characteristic of the upper Potoroo Formation, thus this part of the Formation is widespread in the Bight and Duntroon Basins. Environments of deposition ranged from paralic to marine. Two samples from each of the Bight and western Duntroon Basins contain palynofloras ranging in age from Santonian to Maastrichtian, indicating a lower Potoroo/Wigunda Formation source, and one sample from the Duntroon Basin with an Early Cretaceous palynoflora points to a Ceduna Formation source. Recycled Permian, Neocomian-Aptian and Albian-Cenomanian palynomorphs are common in the Potoroo and Wigunda Formations. These imply the provenance of the Maastrichtian sequences was via streams flowing from the east and north into the Great Australian Bight area. Palynological evidence indicates that lowland temperate rainforests were widespread on the Australian side of the rift at least during the Campanian-Maastrichtian.

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Title Stratigraphy and palynology of Mesozoic sediments from the Great Australian Bight area, southern Australia
Language eng
Licence Not Specified
Landing Page https://data.gov.au/data/dataset/c6656833-443d-4a15-baf3-d6b5a3d4b171
Contact Point
Geoscience Australia Data
clientservices@ga.gov.au
Reference Period 20/04/2018
Geospatial Coverage
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
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Data Portal Data.gov.au