Page 253 - Carbonate Facies in Geologic History

240 Permo-Triassic Buildups and Late Triassic Ecologic Reefs

codium) range up to 3-4 cm across and are stated by Leonardi to be common at
the tops of the banks and in the overlying Raibler beds. The Sciliar and Cattanac-
cio traverses show these coated particles at the crests of the bank-interiors and
preserved outer slopes. Some of these particles are essentially identical to the
vadose pisolites of the Permian Reef Complex.
Several of the great banks of the Western Dolomites (Latimar and Sella)
contain interior thin-bedded tidal flat and lagoonal strata showing that the or-
ganic rims of the banks surrounded large lagoons and have atoll or faro forms.
Abundant mollusk shells and diplopore dasycladacean algae are present there.
These strata preserve well-defined cycles of the typical fill-in carbonate-evaporite
type and indicate successive periods of subaerial exposure. Tepee structures occur
in such beds along with pisoids and other structures resembling the backreef of
the Permian Reef Complex (see Chapter X and Bosellini and Rossi, 1974).

Organic Composition of Ladinian Wetter stein Limestone
in the Northern Limestone Alps

Much important information on faunal composition of Middle Triassic banks is
available from studies in Bavaria and Austria and this knowledge can be most
helpful in understanding the biological character of the Dolomite masses.

011 1966

I 2 Hm
, J
Reol
l!l:~~~t Sph;nc'oloo. Tub;phy ... , (oral, no ,'alk.d olga ..
reu. lopor . llo h.tcul.o . neot r •• f lagoon
leu.lopor.llo ,",odolo . near r •• f
o O'ploporo annulato . reutlopor.llo peniculif.
~ POll .--../ Ridge cre, h Fa, , •• f lagoon
Fig.VIII-16. Biofacies subdivision of the Wetterstein limestone in the Karwendel Range.
Lechtal and Inntal sheets are nappes, the great carbonate bank of the Inntal now overlying
the Lechtal nappe. The facies are based principally on the distribution of dasycladacean algae
which outline an asymmetrical bank with a wider "near back reef' facies on the south side.
From Ott (1967, Fig. 7)