The Castilletes Formation ( es, Formación Castilletes, N1c) is a fossiliferous

geological formation A geological formation, or simply formation, is a body of rock having a consistent set of physical characteristics (lithology) that distinguishes it from adjacent bodies of rock, and which occupies a particular position in the layers of rock expo ...

of the

Cocinetas Basin The Cocinetas Basin ( es, Cuenca Cocinetas) is a small sedimentary basin of approximately in northeasternmost Colombia. The onshore pull-apart basin is located in the department of La Guajira at the border with Zulia, Venezuela. The basin is boun ...

in the northernmost department of

La Guajira La Guajira () is a department of Colombia. It occupies most of the Guajira Peninsula in the northeast region of the country, on the Caribbean Sea and bordering Venezuela, at the northernmost tip of South America. The capital city of the depar ...

, Colombia. The formation consists of fossiliferous mudstones,

siltstone Siltstone, also known as aleurolite, is a clastic sedimentary rock that is composed mostly of silt. It is a form of mudrock with a low clay mineral content, which can be distinguished from shale by its lack of fissility.Blatt ''et al.'' 1980, ...

s and medium-grained to conglomeratic fossiliferous lithic to

quartzitic Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock which was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to ...

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...

s. The Castilletes Formation dates to the

Neogene The Neogene ( ), informally Upper Tertiary or Late Tertiary, is a geologic period and system that spans 20.45 million years from the end of the Paleogene Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the present Quaternary Period Mya. ...

period;

Burdigalian The Burdigalian is, in the geologic timescale, an age or stage in the early Miocene. It spans the time between 20.43 ± 0.05 Ma and 15.97 ± 0.05 Ma (million years ago). Preceded by the Aquitanian, the Burdigalian was the first and longest war ...

Langhian The Langhian is, in the ICS geologic timescale, an age or stage in the middle Miocene Epoch/ Series. It spans the time between 15.97 ± 0.05 Ma and 13.65 ± 0.05 Ma (million years ago) during the Middle Miocene.GeoWhen (2007) The Langhian was ...

stages,

Colloncuran The Colloncuran ( es, Colloncurense) age is a period of geologic time (15.5–13.8 Ma) within the Middle Miocene epoch of the Neogene, used more specifically within the SALMA classification in South America. It follows the Friasian and precedes ...

and

Friasian The Friasian age is a period of geologic time (16.3–15.5 Ma) within the Early Miocene epoch of the Neogene, used more specifically within the SALMA classification of South America. It follows the Santacrucian and precedes the Colloncuran age. ...

in the SALMA classification, and has a maximum thickness of .

Etymology

The formation was defined by Rollins in 1965 and named after the village of Castilletes.Moreno et al., 2015, p.27

Description

Lithologies

The Castilletes Formation consists of fossiliferous mudstones,

s and medium-grained to conglomeratic fossiliferous lithic to

s.Moreno et al., 2015, pp.27-32

Stratigraphy and depositional environment

The Castilletes Formation overlies the

Jimol Formation The Jimol Formation ( es, Formación Jimol, N1j) is a fossiliferous geological formation of the Cocinetas Basin in the northernmost department of La Guajira. The formation consists of calcareous lithic and fossiliferous sandstones, siltstones ...

and is overlain by the Ware Formation. The age has been estimated to be Middle Miocene (16.7 to 14.2 Ma),

and

in the SALMA classification. The invertebrate fauna of the Castilletes Formation is highly similar not only to that of the underlying Jimol Formation, but also to the Cantaure Formation of Venezuela.Moreno et al., 2015, p.31 The Castilletes Formation was deposited in a shallow marine (estuarine, lagoonal, and shallow subtidal) to fluvio-deltaic environment with strong fluvial influence.Rodríguez & Londoño, 2002, p.138 The Castilletes Formation correlates with the upper Cerro Pelado and Querales Formations of the Venezuelan Falcón Basin. This unit is also correlative with the Cantaure Formation of the Paraguaná Peninsula in Venezuela.Moreno et al., 2015, p.32

Fossil content

References

Bibliography

Local geology

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Paleontology

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Maps

* * * * {{Paleontology in Colombia, state=collapsed Geologic formations of Colombia Neogene Colombia Burdigalian Langhian Miocene Series of South America Colloncuran Friasian Mudstone formations Siltstone formations Sandstone formations Deltaic deposits Fluvial deposits Shallow marine deposits Fossiliferous stratigraphic units of South America Paleontology in Colombia Geography of La Guajira Department