Geology of the Cayman Islands

Abstract

Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman are located on the Cayman Ridge which forms the southern margin of the North American Plate (Fig. 2.1). Their position near the Oriente Transform Fault and the Mid-Cayman Rise means that they are located in a tectonically active area (Fig. 2.1). Carbonate rocks exposed on these islands record successive deposition — erosion cycles that have occurred over the last 30 million years. Sea level was the critical factor that controlled deposition because highstands led to deposition whereas lowstands led to exposure and weathering of the previously deposited carbonates.