Lakes, Loess, and Paleosols In the Permian Wellington Formation of Oklahoma, U.S.A.: Implications For Paleoclimate and Paleogeography of the Midcontinent

Lower to mid-Permian deposits of the Midcontinent (U.S.A.) record a significant and long recognized aridification because they archive the shift from more humid facies (e.g., coal, organic shale) of the Pennsylvanian to widespread redbeds, semiarid to seasonal paleosols (Calcisols, Vertisols), and evaporites by the mid-Permian. The provenance, transport and depositional processes of the voluminous Permian redbeds of the Midcontinent, however,...