Provenance of the Oadby Till at Buddon Wood Quarry, Mountsorrel, Leicestershire

A sample of the Oadby Till from Buddon Wood Quarry, Mountsorrel, Leicestershire was examined for its microfossil and palynomorph content, in order to determine the age and provenance of this deposit. Early Jurassic (Hettangian) Foraminiferida and Ostracoda were found, together with Late Cretaceous (late Coniacian-Santonian) Foraminiferida. The Early Jurassic microfauna was probably relatively locally derived from the east or northeast, but the late Cretaceous taxa must have been derived from the Chalk outcrop again to the east or northeast. The palynoflora indicates input from the Carboniferous, Late Triassic (Rhaetian), Jurassic (late Sinemurian, late Callovian-Oxfordian and Kimmeridgian) and Late Cretaceous. The dominant species, Classopollis classoides, is likely to be largely from the Triassic, so the dominant reworked element in this till is Rhaetian. The occurrence of Jurassic and Cretaceous palynomorphs from the east/northeast suggests that the relatively minor Carboniferous reworking is probably from the underlying Thrussington Till. This is as opposed to locally from the Swadlincote coalfield to the northwest, or from further away such as the northeast of England. The Rhaetian reworking is assumed to have been sourced locally, again from an easterly or northeasterly direction. The Blue Anchor Formation is typically organic-poor, hence the source of these palynomorphs is considered to be from the Westbury and/or Lilstock formations. The Jurassic input is assumed to be from the north or northeast. The principal Jurassic outcrop belt in the UK could have potentially sourced all the late Sinemurian, late Callovian-Oxfordian and Kimmeridgian input. The Chalk Group dinoflagellate cysts are also interpreted as having being sourced from the east or the northeast. Integration of the calcareous microfaunal and palynological evidence indicates that the Oadby Till from this locality contains stratal units of Carboniferous, Triassic, Jurassic and Late Cretaceous age. Because of the presence of Jurassic and Late Cretaceous elements, the ice apparently travelled to Mountsorrel from the east or northeast.