ABSTRACT

The environmental complexes of the longshore islands and cheniers of South Louisiana were examined in the Spring of 1965 as an aid to the interpretation of their subsurface counterparts.

Three major observations were noted in these studies: 1) the extreme local and regional variation of environmental conditions existing over a wide area of the same age; 2) the sparsity of recent sand deposition in offshore and lagoonal areas adjacent to the present Mississippi Delta; and 3) the rapidity of the westward migration of existing sands due to longshore currents.

Published data on recent depositional environments have been applied in identification of similar complexes in the subsurface. However, actual observation of existing environments is by far a greater aid in reconstructing the depositional history of South Louisiana.

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