Whitemud Formation
| Whitemud Formation | |
|---|---|
| Stratigraphic range: | |
| Type | Geological formation |
| Unit of | Edmonton Group |
| Underlies | Frenchman Formation and Battle Formation |
| Overlies | Eastend Formation, Horseshoe Canyon Formation and St. Mary River Formation |
| Thickness | Up to 23 metres (75 ft) |
| Lithology | |
| Primary | Sandstone, siltstone, clay |
| Other | shale, lignite |
| Location | |
| Region | Saskatchewan, Alberta |
| Country | Canada |
| Type section | |
| Named by | N.B. Davis, 1918 |
The Whitemud Formation is a geologic formation of Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) age in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. it is present through the plains of southern Saskatchewan, southeastern Alberta and south-central Alberta. Named by N.B. Davis in 1918, the formation is characterized by white kaolinitic clay and is a source of high-quality refractory clay. The type locality has been designated as Dempster's clay pit northwest of Eastend, Saskatchewan.
Although fossils are generally lacking in the Whitemud Formation, in southern Saskatchewan the Whitemud contains coprolites (fossilized feces) and fossilized intestines of fish.