Geologic units in Benton county, Oregon

Tyee Formation (Middle Eocene) at surface, covers 33 % of this area

Very thick sequence of rhymically bedded, medium- to fine-grained micaceous, feldspathic, lithic, or arkosic marine sandstone and micaceous carbonaceous siltstone; contains minor interbeds of dacite tuff in upper part. Foraminiferal fauna are referred to the Ulatisian Stage (Snavely and others, 1964). Groove and flute casts indicate deposition by north-flowing turbidity currents (Snavely and others, 1964), but probable provenance of unit is southwest Idaho (Heller and others, 1985)

Siletz River Volcanics and related rocks (Paleocene to Middle Eocene) at surface, covers 26 % of this area

Aphanitic to porphyritic, vesicular pillow flows, tuff-breccias, massive lava flows and sills of tholeiitic and alkalic basalt. Upper part of sequence contains numerous interbeds of basaltic siltstone and sandstone, basaltic tuff, and locally derived basalt conglomerate. Rocks of unit pervasively zeolitized and veined with calcite. Most of these rocks are of marine origin and have been interpreted as oceanic crust and seamounts (Snavely and others, 1968). Foraminiferal assemblages referred to the Ulatisian and Penutian Stages (Snavely and others, 1969); K-Ar ages range from 50.7 ñ 3.1 to 58.1 ñ 1.5 Ma (Duncan, 1982); includes the lower part of the Roseburg Formation of Baldwin (1974), which has yielded K-Ar ages as old as 62 Ma

Lacustrine and fluvial sedimentary rocks (Pleistocene) at surface, covers 15 % of this area

Unconsolidated to semiconsolidated lacustrine clay, silt, sand, and gravel; in places includes mudflow and fluvial deposits and discontinuous layers of peat. Includes older alluvium and related deposits of Piper (1942), Willamette Silt (Allison, 1953; Wells and Peck, 1961), alluvial silt, sand, and gravel that form terrace deposits of Wells and others (1983), and Gresham and Estacada Formations of Trimble (1963). Includes deltaic gravel and sand and gravel bars, in pluvial lake basins in southeastern part of map area. In Rome Basin, includes discontinuous layers of poorly consolidated conglomerate characterized by well-rounded, commonly polished pebbles of chert and pebbles and cobbles of quartzite. In places contains mollusks or vertebrate fossils indicating Pleistocene age; mostly deposits of late Pleistocene age, but locally includes some deposits of early Holocene age. Includes Touchet Beds of Flint (1938), deposits of valley terraces of Newcomb (1965), and, in southeast Oregon, basin-filling deposits that incorporate Mazama ash deposits (Qma, Qmp) in the youngest layers

Alluvial deposits (Holocene) at surface, covers 13 % of this area

Sand, gravel, and silt forming flood plains and filling channels of present streams. In places includes talus and slope wash. Locally includes soils containing abundant organic material, and thin peat beds

Tuffaceous siltstone and sandstone (Middle Eocene to Late Eocene) at surface, covers 7 % of this area

Thick- to thin-bedded marine tuffaceous mudstone, siltstone, and sandstone; fine to coarse grained. Contains calcareous concretions and, in places, is carbonaceous and micaceous. Includes the Nestucca Formation, which contains a foraminiferal assemblage assigned to the upper Narizian and lowermost Refugian Stages (Snavely and others, 1969; McKeel, 1980); the Spencer Formation, which contains Narizian Stage foraminifers; the Keasey Formation, which contains upper Narizian and lower Refugian Stage foraminifers (McDougall, 1975, 1980); the Coaledo and Bateman Formations of Baldwin (1974); upper Eocene sandstone of Bela (1981); and the Sager Creek formation (informal name) of Niem and Niem (1985)

Mafic intrusions (Oligocene) at surface, covers 4 % of this area

Sheets, sills, and dikes of massive granophyric ferrogabbro; some bodies strongly differentiated and include pegmatitic gabbro, ferrogranophyre, and granophyre (MacLeod, 1981). Plagioclase and amphibole from unit have yielded K-Ar ages of about 30 Ma (Snavely and others, 1976a)

Terrace, pediment, and lag gravels (Pleistocene to Holocene) at surface, covers 1 % of this area

Unconsolidated deposits of gravel, cobbles, and boulders intermixed and locally interlayered with clay, silt, and sand. Mostly on terraces and pediments above present flood plains. Includes older alluvium of Smith and others (1982) in the Klamath Mountains and both high- and low-level terraces along Oregon coast. Includes dissected alluvial fan deposits northeast of Lebanon, and Linn and Leffler Gravels of Allison and Felts (1956)

Landslide and debris-flow deposits (Pleistocene to Holocene) at surface, covers 0.2 % of this area

Unstratified mixtures of fragments of adjacent bedrock. Locally includes slope wash and colluvium. Largest slides and debris flows occur where thick sections of basalt and andesite flows overlie clayey tuffaceous rocks. May include some deposits of late Pliocene age