Forced regressions in a large wave- and storm-dominated anoxic lake, Rhaetian-Sinemurian Kap Stewart Formation, East Greenland

During Rhaetian-Sinemurian time a large wave- and storm-dominated lake was situated in the Jameson Land basin, East Greenland. Lake deposits consist of alternating black unfossiliferous mudstones and sheet sandstones. Anoxic conditions dominated at the lake bottom during deposition of the muds, and the water column was probably stratified. The sandstones were deposited by progradation of wave- and storm-dominated deltas in a water depth of less than 15 m. Sequence-stratigraphic interpretation suggests that the mudstones were deposited in periods of rising and very high stands of lake level, whereas progradation of the deltaic sheet sandstones took place during forced regressions caused by significant falls. The lake thus underwent a large number of fairly high amplitude changes in level, probably caused by climatic fluctuations. The high-order cycles can be grouped into several long-period cycles that show the same number of major fluctuations as published eustatic sea-level curves. This similarity suggests a causal link between eustasy and long-period variations in the lake. The Kap Stewart Formation represents one of the few ancient examples of a large wave- and storm-dominated lake, and it is probably the first documented case of abundant well-developed lacustrine forced regressions.