Palynoflora from deccan volcano-sedimentary sequence (Cretaceous-Palaeogene transition) of central India: implications for spatio-temporal correlation

The sedimentary beds associated with Deccan Continental Flood Basalt (DCFB) sequences exposed in the volcanic subprovinces of Jabalpur-Mandla-Chhindwara (JMC) regions of Madhya Pradesh and Nand-Dongargaon (N-D) basin and the adjoining areas to the west in Yeotmal-Nanded in Maharashtra were studied for their palynofloral analysis. The sediments were characterized palynologically and changes in the palynoflora are observed at different stratigraphic levels in a number of sections including several new intertrappean localities recorded in recent years. For the purpose of effective correlation of different subprovinces, palynofloras of some of the previously studied intertrappeans are also reviewed. Our studies suggest that before the start of the Deccan volcanic activity, the palynoflora found in the Lameta sediments, was dominated by gymnosperms-angiosperm association. The plant canopy consisted mainly of gymnosperms (Conifers and Podocarpaceae) whereas, the understory members were mostly of palms and herbs (Poaceae and Asteraceae). The eruption of Deccan volcanic flows severely affected the existing floral association and proved fatal for the well established plant community. The immediately overlying sediments associated with the earliest volcanic flows are dominated by pteridophytes and angiosperm taxa (Azolla cretacea, Aquilapollenites bengalensis, Ariadnaesporites sp., Gabonisporis vigourouxii and Triporoletes reticulatus). Higher up in the stratigraphic sequence, similar forms continued with simultaneous appearance of new taxa including Scabrastephanocolpites spp. At still higher stratigraphic levels, abundance of fungi especially the mycorrhizal fungi, concurrent with sharp decline in pollen/spore recovery was observed. In the culminating phase (i.e. Palaeocene) of Deccan volcanic history a new palynofloral assemblage of typical Palaeocene taxa (Dandotiaspora dilata, D. pseudoauriculata, D. plicata, Spinizonocolpites echinatus, Matanomadhiasulcites sp., and Lakiapollis ovatus) was encountered.     

Palaeobiogeographic significance of the Deccan infra‐ and intertrappean biota from peninsular India

Extensive work done in the last decade on the sedimentary beds intercalated with the Deccan volcanic flows (infra‐ and intertrappean) has demonstrated the vast potential of these rocks for vertebrate, invertebrate and plant fossils. The infra‐ and intertrappean beds, especially those exposed on the eastern margin of the Deccan Traps, produced a large number of fossils which made it possible to establish the age and duration of Deccan volcanism (late Cretaceous—early Palaeocene) with some degree of confidence. Affinities of the late Cretaceous infratrappean vertebrates, such as pelomedusid turtles and sauropod dinosaurs, lie with those of Gondwanan landmasses. It seems more likely that these taxa are relicts of the Gondwanan stock that boarded the Indian plate well before its separation from Madagascar 70–80 Ma ago. Remnants of the former Gondwanaland fauna, such as pelomedusid turtles, leptodactylid frogs and titanosaurid dinosaurs did persist in relatively younger (latest Cretaceous) intertrappean beds. In addition to these Gondwanan elements, the intertrappean beds register many North American, European and Central Asiatic taxa (pelobatid and discoglossid frogs, anguid lizards, alligatorid crocodiles, palaeoryctid mammals, ostracodes and charophytes) suggesting that a contact between India and southern Asia was already established by the end of Cretaceous. An early India/Asia collision, long before the widely accepted early to middle Eocene date, is favoured to explain the presence of Laurasian elements in the late Cretaceous of India.     

Paleobiota from the Deccan volcano-sedimentary sequences of India: paleoenvironments,age and paleobiogeographic implications

Paleobiotic assemblages from the Deccan infra- and intertrappean beds are reviewed in great detail. Three distinct paleoenvironments (fluvio-lacustrine/terrestrial, brackish water and marine) have been identified within the infra- and intertrappean biotic assemblages of peninsular India. Recently, marine incursions have been recorded in a few of the Deccan intertrappean beds exposed in central and south-eastern India. The intertrappean beds have yielded marine planktic foraminiferans and freshwater/brackish water ostracods. The affinities of the paleobiotas are commonly considered to show a mixed pattern resulting from the addition of Gondwanan and Laurasian elements to endemic Indian taxa. During the last four decades, various biogeographic models (southern and northern connections) have been proposed to explain the presence of anomalous biogeographic biota in the Late Cretaceous of India. Based on the recovered fauna and flora assemblages, the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary has been marked and a Late Cretaceous to Early Paleocene age has been assigned to these Deccan volcano-sedimentary sequences.     

Deccan volcanism,the KT mass extinction and dinosaurs

Recent advances in Deccan volcanic studies indicate three volcanic phases with the phase-1 at 67.5 Ma followed by a 2 m.y. period of quiescence. Phase-2 marks the main Deccan volcanic eruptions in Chron 29r near the end of the Maastrichtian and accounts for ∼80% of the entire 3500 m thick Deccan lava pile. At least four of the world’s longest lava flows spanning 1000 km across India and out into the Gulf of Bengal mark phase-2. The final phase-3 was smaller, coincided with the early Danian Chron 29n and also witnessed several of the longest lava flows. The KT boundary and mass extinction was first discovered based on planktic foraminifera from shallow marine intertrappean sediments exposed in Rajahmundry quarries between the longest lava flows of the main volcanic phase-2 and smaller phase-3. At this locality early Danian (zone P1a) planktic foraminiferal assemblages directly overlie the top of phase-2 eruptions and indicate that the masse extinction coincided with the end of this volcanic phase. Planktic foraminiferal assemblages also mark the KT boundary in intertrappean sediments at Jhilmili, Chhindwara, where freshwater to estuarine conditions prevailed during the early Danian and indicate the presence of a marine seaway across India at KT time.     

STEPHEN HISLOP AND HIS 1860 CRETACEOUS CONTINENTAL MOLLUSCAN NEW SPECIES DESCRIPTIONS IN LATIN FROM THE DECCAN PLATEAU,INDIA

Abstract: In 1860, Stephen Hislop published a data‐rich document on the infra‐ and intertrappean strata of the Deccan Plateau of central India, along with numerous new taxa of continental and marine molluscs. His scholarship interestingly blended antiquated, contemporary, and ahead‐of‐his‐time palaeontological methods. Although his work established a completely adequate foundation upon which to build future end‐Cretaceous Deccan molluscan studies, effectively no substantive work ensued, with only incidental subsequent reference to his effort.     

Early Eocene macroflora and associated palynofossils from the Cambay Shale Formation,western India: Phytogeographic and palaeoclimatic implications

A diverse assemblage of plant macrofossils and the associated representative palynofloral elements are documented from the early Eocene subsurface beds of the Cambay Shale Formation exposed in an open cast lignite mine at Vastan Village in the Surat District, western India. The Vastan mine succession is cyclic, each cycle representing a transgressive burial event terminating in the low energy lagoonal conditions. The higher energy cycle begins with sandy lenses having rich biotic remains, followed by mudstones and molluscan shell beds and ends with lignite seams. The dominantly muddy facies and the associated biota demonstrate predominantly low energy near shore or coastal plain depositional setting with conditions varying from dominantly marine (shallow) through brackish to fresh water. The Vastan mine is a well dated fossil locality with a rich and diverse biota of mammals, birds, snakes, lizards, fish, insects, molluscs, foraminifers, dinoflagellates, and plants. The plants comprise leaf and fruit impressions, seeds, fruits, wood fragments, mangrove rooting structures, fungal thalli and spores, pteridophytic spores, and angiosperm pollen grains. Thirteen macrofossil species, including several morphotaxa, are represented by the families Calophyllaceae, Rutaceae, Anacardiaceae, Rubiaceae, Combretaceae, Lythraceae, Sapindaceae, Malvaceae, and Ebenaceae. The palynological assemblage representing fourteen taxa includes the new species, Notothyrites undulatus, Callimothallus semicircularis, and Carallioipollenites integerrimoides. Habitat and distribution of modern taxa comparable with the fossil assemblage from Vastan suggest a terrestrial lowland environment. The macrofossil taxa are indicative of mesophytic, mixed forest growing under tropical to subtropical climate with sufficient humidity. The occurrence of dipterocarp elements along with taxa such as Swintonia, Pterospermum and Diospyros, etc. seems to suggest the presence of a tropical rain forest in the vicinity of Vastan.     

First mammal evidence from the Late Cretaceous of India for biotic dispersal between India and Africa at the KT transition

The Late Cretaceous record of mammals from India assumes great significance in view of the fact that it is the only Gondwanan landmass that has yielded definitive eutherian mammals. These mammals have variously been assigned to palaeoryctids, archontans or Eutheria incertae sedis. Well preserved lower molars recovered from a new mammal-yielding Deccan intertrappean site near Kisalpuri village, Dindori District, Madhya Pradesh (state), India, are described here under a new species Deccanolestes narmadensis sp. nov. The new fossil material indicates close phylogenetic relationship between Deccanolestes from India and Afrodon (Adapisoriculidae) from the Late Palaeocene of Africa and Europe. In view of older age and more primitive state of Deccanolestes teeth, it is inferred that Deccanolestes represents an ancestral morphotype from which the African/European adapisoriculid Afrodon may have been derived. This is the first compelling terrestrial fossil evidence for an early dispersal between India and Africa. Such a dispersal possibly involved an East African contact with India at the KT transition.     

Smithian (Early Triassic) ammonoids from Tulong, South Tibet

Intensive sampling of the Tulong Formation in South Tibet has facilitated the construction of a highly-resolved middle and late Smithian ammonoid succession. The new biostratigraphical sequence comprises the middle Smithian Brayardites compressus beds, Nammalites pilatoides beds, and the Nyalamites angustecostatus beds followed by the late Smithian Wasatchites distractus beds and Glyptophiceras sinuatum beds. This faunal succession correlates very well with that of other Tethyan sequences such as the Salt Range (Pakistan), Spiti (India), Oman and South China. The Smithian faunal sequence from Tulong contains several taxa with broad geographic distribution (e.g., Owenites, Paranannites spathi, Shigetaceras, Wasatchites), thus enabling correlation with faunal successions from areas outside the Tethys (e.g., USA, British Columbia, Arctic Canada, South Primorye, Siberia). Early Smithian ammonoid faunas are almost absent in Tulong because of a preservation bias (absence of carbonate rocks). Five new ammonoid genera (Brayardites, Nammalites, Nyalamites, Shigetaceras, Tulongites) and six new species (Brayardites crassus, Brayardites compressus, Prionites involutus, ?Subflemingites compressus, Tulongites xiaoqiaoi, Urdyceras tulongensis) are described.     

Permian, Jurassic and Early Cretaceous palynofloral assemblages from subsurface sedimentary rocks in Chuperbhita Coalfield, Rajmahal Basin, India

The results of a palynological analysis of the sedimentary sequence of Borehole RCH-151, Chuperbhita Coalfield, Rajmahal Basin, Bihar are presented here. The borehole penetrated the Rajmahal Formation (comprising two traps sandwiching an intertrappean bed), the thinly represented Dubrajpur Formation and in its lower part, the Coal Measures. The coal-bearing interval is associated with Scheuringipollenites barakarensis, Faunipollenites varius, Densipollenites indicus, Gondisporites raniganjensis and Densipollenites magnicorpus Assemblage Zones. The presence of these biostratigraphic units indicates correlation with the Barakar Formation (Early Permian) and the Barren Measures and Raniganj Formations (both Late Permian). This is the first record, in the Chuperbhita Coalfield, of Late Permian strata, which appear to represent a condensed sequence. Prior to the present study, the Permian succession was thought to have been associated entirely with the Barakar Formation. The overlying Dubrajpur Formation yielded a distinct spore-pollen assemblage (in association with the first report of dinoflagellate, Phallocysta), which is assigned to the newly identified Callialasporites turbatus palynozone of latest Early to early Middle Jurassic age. The diverse spore-pollen flora of the intertrappean bed (Rajmahal Formation) incorporates several age marker taxa, viz. Undulatisporites, Leptolepidites, Klukisporites, Ruffordiaspora, and Coptospora. The assemblages from intertrappean beds are correlated with the Ruffordiaspora australiensis palynozone of Australia. Thus the palynodating indicates Permian, latest Early to early Mid-Jurassic and Early Cretaceous age for the strata studied. This is the first record of definite Jurassic microfossils from the non-marine sequence of Rajmahal Basin, India.     

Coryphoid Palm Leaf Fossils from the Maastrichtian–Danian of Central India with Remarks on Phytogeography of the Coryphoideae (Arecaceae)

Premise of research

A large number of fossil coryphoid palm wood and fruits have been reported from the Deccan Intertrappean beds of India. We document the oldest well-preserved and very rare costapalmate palm leaves and inflorescence like structures from the same horizon.

Methodology

A number of specimens were collected from Maastrichtian–Danian sediments of the Deccan Intertrappean beds, Ghughua, near Umaria, Dindori District, Madhya Pradesh, India. The specimens are compared with modern and fossil taxa of the family Arecaceae.

Pivotal results

Sabalites dindoriensis sp. nov. is described based on fossil leaf specimens including basal to apical parts. These are the oldest coryphoid fossil palm leaves from India as well as, at the time of deposition, from the Gondwana- derived continents.

Conclusions

The fossil record of coryphoid palm leaves presented here and reported from the Eurasian localities suggests that this is the oldest record of coryphoid palm leaves from India and also from the Gondwana- derived continents suggesting that the coryphoid palms were well established and wide spread on both northern and southern hemispheres by the Maastrichtian–Danian. The coryphoid palms probably dispersed into India from Europe via Africa during the latest Cretaceous long before the Indian Plate collided with the Eurasian Plate.     

Cricetid rodents from the Lower Siwalik Subgroup of Jammu,India: Biochronological significance

We describe the cricetid rodents represented by Megacricetodon daamsi, Megacricetodon sivalensis, and Myocricetodon sivalensis, recovered from two localities, Dehari and Jhajjar Kotli, lying in the upper part of the Lower Siwalik Subgroup of Jammu Province. The cricetid fauna is similar to that reported from the Pakistan Siwaliks. Based on the species identifications and the stratigraphic range of the cricetid taxa in the Siwalik succession of Pakistan, the age of the Dehari locality is correlated to between 13.8 and 13.2 Ma, whereas an age of 13.8–12.5 Ma would be assigned to the Jhajjar Kotli rodent yielding level. The occurrence of similar rodent taxa at the two investigated sites points to the homotaxial nature of the fossiliferous beds.     

Molecular Characterization of Prokaryotic Communities Associated with Lonar Crater Basalts

The Lonar crater is an unusually well-preserved meteorite impact structure that is located in one of the largest volcanic provinces on Earth (i.e., the Deccan Traps in India). The diversity of endoliths in Lonar crater basalts or Deccan flood basalts is not known. Here, the phylogenetic diversity of endolithic Bacteria and Archaea inhabiting basalts retrieved from four discrete sampling sites on the Lonar crater walls and the lake-bed was assessed using culture-independent molecular methods. Taxonomic classification of 16S rRNA gene sequences from all four basalt samples revealed similarities as well as dissimilarities in the presence or absence of several prokaryotic taxa. Cluster analysis of Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis fingerprints and UniFrac analysis of clone library sequences suggested substantial variations in bacterial and archaeal diversity between crater-wall and lake-bed sites. Although sequences affiliated to the bacterial phyla Actinobacteria, Acidobacteria and Chloroflexi were relatively more abundant in crater-wall basalts than in lake-bed basalts; the reverse was observed for sequences related to Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Cyanobacteria and Bacteroidetes. Archaea in crater-wall and lake-bed basalt libraries were almost completely represented by Thaumarchaeota and Euryarchaeota, respectively. Diversity indices and richness estimates suggested the diversity of endolithic Bacteria to be higher than that of Archaea in the Lonar crater basalts. A substantial number of clone library sequences did not affiliate with extant Bacteria and Archaea. The detection of several putative lineages associated with C, N and S cycling suggests that the Lonar crater basalts are colonized by metabolically diverse prokaryotic communities involved in biogeochemical cycling of major elements.     

Freshwater fish otoliths from the Deccan Trap associated sedimentary (Cretaceous-Tertiary transition) beds of Rangapur,Hyderabad, District,Andhra Pradesh,India

The present paper describes 12 species of fish otoliths recovered by washing and screening processes from the Deccan Trap associated sedimentary (Intertrappean) beds exposed near Rangapur, Hyderabad District, Andhra Pradesh, India. The present collection of otoliths contains four major groups: Clupeomorpha (“Clupeidarum” sp.), Osteoglossomorpha (“Osteoglossidarum” deccanensis sp. nov., “O”. intertrappus sp. nov. and “Notopteridarum” nolfi sp. nov.), Protacanthopterygii (“Salmoniformorum” rectangulus sp. nov.), and Percomorpha (Dapalis sp., “Apigonidarum” ovatus sp. nov., “Serranidarum” sp., “Percoideorum” ellipticus sp. nov., “P.” rangapurensis sp. nov., “Percoideorum” sp. 1 and “Percoideorum” sp. 2). This collection of otoliths represents freshwater lacustrine deposition of the sediments. The age of the Intertrappean beds is considered Uppermost Cretaceous to Palaeoncene on the basis of freshwater ostracode (Paracypretta jonesi, Mongolianella hislopi and Candoniella sp.) and charophyte (Platychara perlata and Nemegtichara sp.) assemblages.     

Early Jurassic flora from South Primorye,Far East,Russia

A unique Early Jurassic flora from the Schitukhe Formation of South Primorye, Russia is further studied, with newly collected materials. The flora is composed of over 50 taxa. It is dominated by ferns (Dipteridaceae, Marattiaceae, etc.), cycads (Pterophyllum, Nilssonia, Ctenis, Taeniopteris, etc.), conifers (Cycadocarpidium, Podozamites, etc.), and other seasonally deciduous gymnosperms (Czekanowskiales, Ginkgoales, etc.), showing a special flora living in an ecotone zone between the Palaeofloristic realms of Siberian Flora and Euro-Sinian Flora in the East Asia during the early Early Jurassic. The flora is compared with its coeval floras from China and Japan. A new species Cycadocarpidium pacificum n. sp. is reported. The age of the Schitukhe flora is constrained by the marine mollusca fossils yielded in the sandwich marine beds of the Schitukhe Formation, as the Hettangian–Sinemurian.     

A new Miocene vertebrate assemblage from the Río Yuca Formation (Venezuela) and the northernmost record of typical Miocene mammals of high latitude (Patagonian) affinities in South America

Geological explorations of the basal beds of the Río Yuca Formation (Tucupido region, Portuguesa State, western Venezuela) resulted in the recognition of a new vertebrate assemblage that includes eight taxa: the toxodont cf. Adinotherium, a Peltephilidae armadillo, the freshwaters fishes Platysilurus and Phractocephalus, the caiman Purussaurus, an indeterminate dolphin, turtles, and the previously recognized sloth Pseudoprepotherium venezuelanum. When compared with the higher latitudes faunas of Argentina and Chile, the presence of cf. Adinotherium and peltephilids in the Rio Yuca Formation is consistent, but not conclusive, with a Santacrucian to Frisian SALMA age. The associated fauna, as well recent apatite fission track analysis, indicates that the Río Yuca assemblage is more likely younger in age, specifically Middle to Late Miocene. So far, the Miocene localities of the northern part of South America have provided a less prolific fossil record compared to the southern part of the continent (e.g., Santacrucian and Friasian faunas of Patagonia), but the present work documents the surprising occurrence of two taxa (Peltephilidae and Nesodontinae) common in southern high latitude faunas of South America, implying the persistence of the Santacrucian-Friasian genus Adinotherium in younger strata from northern South America, and that peltephilids were much more widespread during the Miocene than previously recognized. The presence of these common Patagonian taxa (Peltephilidae and Nesodontinae) in Río Yuca also supports the hypothesis of prior researchers for the existence of biogeographical connections between the northern and southern portions of South America during the Late Oligocene or Early Miocene, which facilitated faunal interchange between the two regions. Finally, the biogeographical affinities of the freshwater fishes and the giant caiman (Purussaurus) indicate close relationships of the Tucupido region with the ancestral distribution of the Orinocoan–Amazonian drainage system.     

Life in an unstable house: community dynamics in changing mussel beds

Mussels are ecosystem engineers, and fluctuations in their abundance and population structure could be important to the associated community. There is, however, little understanding of this connection. In the present study, based on quantitative monitoring (1997–2011) of three mussel beds in a fjord-like White Sea bay, two hypotheses were tested: (1) mussel assemblages are temporally unstable and local population fluctuates cyclically as a result of negative adult–juvenile interactions; and (2) oscillations in mussel size-structure are correlated with changes in the associated community structure. A negative correlation found between the abundance of small (length < 21 mm) and large (length > 20 mm) mussels suggests that adult mussels indeed suppress recruitment. Such interaction implies an auto-oscillatory pattern of population dynamics, with Large- and Small-dominated stages temporally replacing each other. This cyclic pattern was clearly revealed for one mussel bed only, but long-term replacement of the Large-dominated stage by the Small-dominated stage was revealed for the other two assemblages also. In general, temporal variations of mussel populations were significantly correlated with the dynamics of the associated community, although several abundant taxa (Tubificoides benedii, Littorina saxatilis, Macoma balthica, and Gammaridae) were insensitive to mussel changes. In contrast, filamentous algae and mud snails Hydrobia ulvae tended to be more abundant during the Large-dominated stage, whereas polychaetes Dipolydora quadrilobata were most abundant during the Small-dominated stage. Several other abundant “sensitive” taxa were obviously dependent on algal bloom. Thus, mussel beds are unstable systems, whose dynamics are shaped not only by the ecosystem engineer but also by the associated community.     

First mammal of Gondwanan lineage in the early Eocene of India

Based on well-preserved lower dentition, a new adapisoriculid from the Cambay Shale Formation (basal Eocene, ～54.5 Ma) in the open cast lignite mine of Vastan, Gujarat State, western India, is described. Indolestes kalamensis gen. et sp. nov adds significantly to the diversity of basal eutherians from Vastan as it represents a family hitherto not known from the Eocene of the Indian Subcontinent. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that Indolestes is derived relative to Deccanolestes and Afrodon, but primitive relative to the European adapisoriculids Bustylus and Adapisoriculus. The new data from the early Eocene provide evidence for continued survival of a Gondwanan mammal lineage following the Deccan volcanic activity (Cretaceous–Paleogene transition) in the Indian Subcontinent.     

Maturation of Oral Microbiota in Children with or without Dental Caries

Background

The aim of this longitudinal study was to evaluate the oral microbiota in children from age 3 months to 3 years, and to determine the association of the presence of caries at 3 years of age.

Methods and findings

Oral biofilms and saliva were sampled from children at 3 months (n = 207) and 3 years (n = 155) of age, and dental caries was scored at 3 years of age. Oral microbiota was assessed by culturing of total lactobacilli and mutans streptococci, PCR detection of Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus, 454 pyrosequencing and HOMIM (Human Oral Microbe Identification Microarray) microarray detection of more then 300 species/ phylotypes. Species richness and taxa diversity significantly increased from 3 months to 3 years. Three bacterial genera, present in all the 3-month-old infants, persisted at 3 years of age, whereas three other genera had disappeared by this age. A large number of new taxa were also observed in the 3-year-olds. The microbiota at 3 months of age, except for lactobacilli, was unrelated to caries development at a later age. In contrast, several taxa in the oral biofilms of the 3-year-olds were linked with the presence or absence of caries. The main species/phylotypes associated with caries in 3-year-olds belonged to the Actinobaculum, Atopobium, Aggregatibacter, and Streptococcus genera, whereas those influencing the absence of caries belonged to the Actinomyces, Bergeyella, Campylobacter, Granulicatella, Kingella, Leptotrichia, and Streptococcus genera.

Conclusions

Thus, during the first years of life, species richness and taxa diversity in the mouth increase significantly. Besides the more prevalent colonization of lactobacilli, the composition of the overall microbiota at 3 months of age was unrelated to caries development at a later age. Several taxa within the oral biofilms of the 3-year-olds could be linked to the presence or absence of caries.     

First report of airborne pollen in Santa Rosa,La Pampa,Argentina: a 2-year survey

The aim of this study was to determine the qualitative and quantitative composition of the airborne pollen of Santa Rosa city, La Pampa (Argentina), and to analyse the seasonal behaviour of the pollen types that have the highest representation in the atmosphere. The city, with temperate climate, is located in a cultivated area that corresponds phytogeographically to a xerophytic forest limiting with grasslands. The pollen sampling was performed using a Hirst-type volumetric spore trap located in the urban centre of the city, 15 m above ground level, from July 2007–June 2009. The annual pollen index was 51,647 pollen grains. The airborne pollen consisted of 73 pollen types, 42 of woody origin represented 66 % of the total and with winter-spring seasonality and 31 were of herbaceous origin, which represented 30 % of the total and with spring-summer seasonality. The composition of the woody airborne pollen reflected the formation of urban vegetation, consisting mainly of exotic taxa from tree species used in urban tree alignment. The most abundant types were as follows: Cupressaceae, Fraxinus, Ulmus, Olea europaea, Styphnolobium japonicum, Myrtaceae, Pinaceae, Platanus, Celtis- Morus and Populus. Native components such as Condalia microphylla were also found, indicating the ‘Espinal’ phytogeographical province that was typical of the area. The most abundant herbaceous airborne pollen types, in descending order, were as follows: Poaceae, Amaranthus-Chenopodiaceae, Urticaceae, Brassicaceae and Asteraceae. The emission sources of these pollen types were weeds that grew spontaneously in parks, waste grounds and flower beds of the city.     

Biostratigraphy and Paleobiogeographic implications of the Cenomanian–Early Turonian Ostracods of Egypt

The present study deals with the Cenomanian–early Turonian ostracods in the southern Sinai, Egypt. The investigated sequence includes the Raha and Abu Qada formations. The Raha Formation consists of distinctive Cenomanian taxa such as Cytherella aegyptiensis, Veeniacythereis maghrebensis, V. jezzineensis, V. streblolophata streblolophata, Monoceratina trituberculata, and Glenocythere reticulata. Based on the ostracod species, four local biozones are recognized, including Veeniacythereis jezzineensis – Metacythereopteron berbericum, Cytherella eosulcata – Xestoleberis derorimensis, Amphicytherura ziregensis and Perissocytheridea istriana – Cythereis fahrioni. The paleobiogeography of the considered ostracods suggests that there are two bioprovinces, the first of which is the North African province and includes Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria. The second bioprovince represents the Middle East province and includes Lebanon, Oman and Iran. The strong resemblance between the two bioprovince indicates a relatively good communication along the margin of Southern Tethys during the Cenomanian and improved marine ostracod exchange.