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Late Holocene sedimentary environments of south San Francisco Bay, California, illustrated in gravity cores

Open-File Report 2014-1198
By: , , , and 
https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20141198

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Abstract

Data are reported here from 51 gravity cores collected from the southern part of San Francisco Bay by the U.S. Geological Survey in 1990. The sedimentary record in the cores demonstrates a stable geographic distribution of facies and spans a few thousand years. Carbon-14 dating of the sediments suggests that sedimentation rates average about 1 mm/yr. The geometry of the bay floor and the character of the sediment deposited have remained about the same in the time spanned by the cores. However, the sedimentary record over periods of centuries or decades is likely to be much more variable. Sediments containing a few bivalve shells and bivalve or oyster coquinas are most often found west of the main channel and near the San Mateo Bridge. Elsewhere in the south bay, shells are rare except in the southernmost reaches where scattered gastropod shells are found.

Suggested Citation

Woodrow, D., Fregoso, T., Wong, F.L., Jaffe, B.E., 2014, Late Holocene sedimentary environments of south San Francisco Bay, California, illustrated in gravity cores: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2014-1198, Report: iv, 91 p.; Spatial Data; Metadata, https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20141198.

ISSN: 2331-1258 (online)

Study Area

Publication type Report
Publication Subtype USGS Numbered Series
Title Late Holocene sedimentary environments of south San Francisco Bay, California, illustrated in gravity cores
Series title Open-File Report
Series number 2014-1198
DOI 10.3133/ofr20141198
Year Published 2014
Language English
Publisher U.S. Geological Survey
Publisher location Reston, VA
Contributing office(s) Pacific Coastal and Marine Science Center
Description Report: iv, 91 p.; Spatial Data; Metadata
Country United States
State California
Other Geospatial San Francisco Bay
Online Only (Y/N) Y
Additional publication details