Maastrichtian-Paleocene Ostracoda from Teneida section, Dakhla Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt: Systematics, biostratigraphy, paleobathymetry and paleobiogeography

Abstract

The detailed examination of the ostracod faunal content in the Maastrichtian-Paleocene succession of Teneida section, Dakhla Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt, yielded 36 ostracod species and subspecies assigned to 25 genera. Most of the species are recovered from the Maastrichtian-Danian interval. Four groups of taxa are differentiated, Maastrichtian taxa, taxa crossing the K/Pg boundary, early Paleocene taxa and early to late Paleocene taxa. Comparison of the species record in the present section with previous records in and outside Egypt implies a remarkable faunal turnover across the K/Pg boundary where taxa characterizing the Maastrichtian and Paleocene are respectively revealed. Whereas the ostracod assemblages found in the Maastrichtian indicate inner to middle neritic settings, the assemblages recorded in the Paleocene reflect deposition in middle to outer neritic settings. The South Tethyan identity of the present fauna during the Maastrichtian-Paleocene is reflected in the wide geographic distribution of many of the recorded species in different areas of North Africa and the Middle East. The less ostracod faunal similarity between the southern Tethys and the West African basins during the Maastrichtian-Selandian compared with the Thanetian is emphasized by the presence only few of the recorded taxa in common with West Africa.