Pisco Basin
Pisco Basin (Spanish: Cuenca de Pisco) is a sedimentary basin extending over 300 kilometres (190 mi) in southwestern Peru. The basin has a 2 kilometres (6,600 ft) thick sedimentary fill, which is about half the thickness of more northern foreland basins in Peru.
| Pisco Basin | |
|---|---|
| Cuenca de Pisco | |
| Coordinates | 14°15′S 76°0′W |
| Etymology | City of Pisco, Peru |
| Location | Western South America |
| Country | Peru |
| State(s) | Ica Region |
| Cities | Pisco |
| Characteristics | |
| On/Offshore | Both |
| Part of | Circum-Pacific forearc basins |
| Area | 300 km (190 mi) |
| Hydrology | |
| Sea(s) | Eastern Pacific Ocean |
| River(s) | Pisco River |
| Geology | |
| Basin type | Forearc basin |
| Orogeny | Andean |
| Age | Eocene–Pliocene |
| Stratigraphy | Stratigraphy |
The oldest known sediments are the Eocene sandstones of the Caballas Formation, while the youngest deposits, the fossiliferous Pisco Formation, date to the Early Pleistocene. In relation to present-day, topography the fill of Pisco Basin makes the upper part of the Coastal Cordillera of southern Peru, the coastal plains, the Ica-Nazca Depression and the Andean foothills.
The basin is renowned for hosting various highly fossiliferous stratigraphic units; the Pisco Formation has provided a wealth of marine mammals (including sloths), birds, fish and other groups, as have the Chilcatay, Otuma and Paracas Formations.