The Cretaceous fossil record of the Sverdrup Basin

The sedimentary record of the Sverdrup Basin in the Canadian Arctic encompasses all stages of the Cretaceous. Owing to a brief history of research (from 1952) and a limited number of publications (<100) it is manageable to database the entire Cretaceous fossil record of the basin. We completed this task for macrofossils, and have made major progress regarding microfossils and palynomorphs. At present, the database contains more than 3700 entries of two types: 1) approximately 1900 entries pertain to specimens collected by CASP, with each specimen receiving its own entry; 2) approximately 1800 entries document literature data, with each entry corresponding to one species at one locality. All entries are georeferenced and dated to stage level, and can be displayed and interrogated in GIS. Sample coverage of Cretaceous outcrop area is governed by accessibility, both with regard to exposure and logistics, but is reasonably dense, given the often challenging fieldwork conditions. The relevance of the dataset extends beyond the Sverdrup Basin limits given that marine connections via Baffin Bay, North Greenland and the Western Interior existed at times during the Cretaceous, and many species are common to other parts of the Boreal realm. Notable macrofossil records of regional significance include the Berriasian and Valanginian ammonite and bivalve faunas of the Deer Bay Formation, sporadic Albian to Santonian ammonite occurrences, and a Sphenoceramus community from the Santonian–Coniacian boundary interval. Microfossils and palynomorphs are recorded from all stages, and were mostly employed for biostratigraphy, but also hold great palaeoecological potential.