oa Slope Tectonics - Comparisons and Contrasts of Structural Styles of Salt and Shale Tectonics of the Northern Gulf of Mexico with Shale Tectonics of Niger Delta

The northern Gulf of Mexico and the Niger Delta are both dominated by large deltaic depocenters situated on passive continental margins. Both areas are characterized by widespread growth faulting, a substratum of over-pressured shale and deep-water contractional folded belts. The main difference is that the Gulf of Mexico is additionally characterized by extensive and complex salt tectonics. Figure I summarizes the structural styles of both the northern Gulf of Mexico and the Gulf of Guinea.