Al Haniyah Formation

Al Haniyah Fm

Period:

Quaternary

Age Interval:

late Pleistocene

Province:
Cyrenaica Basin

Type Locality and Naming

Al Haniyah Fm is located along the coastal margins of the Cyrenaica Basin in northeast Libya. It represents part of the youngest carbonate sedimentation phase in the region before Holocene alluvial and sand dune deposition

Synonym: “On a regional scale, the Al Haniyah calcarenites are frequently mapped as a coastal equivalent or sub-member of the broader, highly continuous Gargaresh Formation spanning northern Libya.” (Google Gemini overview)

References: Shaltami, O.R., et al. (2020), and Google Gemina (Aug’26)

Lithology and Thickness

Primarily composed of calcarenites (carbonate-rich sandstones) and bioclast-rich grainstones/packstones. Exhibits a reddish-brown to light-tan hue, frequently showcasing heavy bioturbation (fossilized tracks/burrows). It is characterized by prominent rhizo-concretions (fossilized plant root systems) and land snail shells, which point to periods of subaerial exposure. Portions of the calcarenites are interpreted as aeolian (wind-blown) coastal dunes that capped the marine facies during periods of regression. (Google Gemini overview, citing El Ebaidi et al (2020). Petrographical and paleontological characterizations of the Quaternary calcarenites along the coastline of NE-Libya. The Scientific Journal of University of Benghazi)

Lithology Pattern:

Sandy limestone

Relationships and Distribution

Lower contact

Unconformable onto the Al Hammah Fm (Shaltami, O.R., et al. (2020),), although It is genetically and stratigraphically associated with the underlying Al Hamamah Fm. However, locally it sits unconformably over a heavily pitted, eroded paleosurface of older Eocene marine limestones (such as the Dernah Fm or Apollonia Fm.

Upper contact

Holocene coastal, alluvial and eolian sediments

Regional extent

coastal margins of the Cyrenaica Basin [but, lacking a map, then GeoJSON applied to entire basin]

GeoJSON

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Fossils

Age

Shaltami, O.R., et al. (2020) indicate that it spans the middle and upper “Tarantian” (Late Pleistocene). [For graphic purposes, the extent of the upper and lower unconformities, which are equivalent to nearly the same time span of the known preserved deposits, have been omitted here.]

Age Span:

Beginning stage:

Chibanian

Fraction up in beginning stage:

1.0

Beginning date (Ma):

0.13

Ending stage:

Holocene

Fraction up in the ending stage:

0.0

Ending date (Ma):

0.01

Depositional setting

“The formation records a highly dynamic, transitional setting impacted by severe Quaternary sea-level fluctuations: The highly diverse marine bioclasts—including pelecypods, gastropods, bryozoans, echinoids, and benthic foraminifera—demonstrate that the sediment originally accumulated in an in-situ shallow marine carbonate shelf. Then was reworkekd into coastal deposits” (Google Gemini overview)

Depositional pattern:

Additional Information

Compiler:

Shaltami, O.R., et al. (2020). Petroleum system of the Cyrenaica Basin – A review. In: 1^st International Symposium on Geosciences (ISG2020), 21th March 2020, Proceeding Book: published by BR Petrobras. P. 64-71.

Tawadros, E.E. (2011). Geology of North Africa. CRC Press (Taylor & Francis Group), 931 pp.

Google Gemini (Aug 2026) – assembled synthesis of Cyrenaica Basin units from various web-accessible publications.

El Oshebi, F.M., Fares, F.F. (2026). Stratigraphy, facies, and depositional environments of the Eocene sequence in the Ras Al Hilal area, Cyrenaica, Libya. Arabian Jour. Geosciences, 19:79. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-026-12488-2.

El-Hawat, A.S., Abdulsamad, E.O. (2004) Geology and Archeology of Cyrenaica, Northeastern Libya. Field trip guide B01, 32^nd International Geological Congress. 36 pp.