BIOCLASTIC SEDIMENT LOBES ON A SUPPLY DOMINATED UPPER CRETACEOUS CARBONATE PLATFORM MARGIN, MONTAGNA DELLA MAIELLA, ITALY

A thick bioclastic sediment wedge was deposited on the slope of the Ma iella carbonate platform margin in the Late Campanian to Late Maastric htian. The wedge consists of lobate depositional units (laterally and vertically convex structures). The complex internal geometries of the lobes combine characteristics of unidirectional sandwaves and the alte rnating point-sources of deltas. Excellent outcrop permits a detailed documentation and discussion of the depositional processes. The sedime nt wedge constitutes a supersequence, which prograded along the platfo rm margin as a result of high sediment supply and forced regression. W ithin the supersequence, a hierarchy of higher-order stratigraphic uni ts (sequence sets and sequences) are developed. The individual bioclas tic sediment lobes are interpreted as systems tracts and parasequences of the sequences within the sequence sets.