Sequence Stratigraphy in the Upper Cretaceous Series of the Anglo-Paris Basin<subtitle>Exemplified by the Cenomanian Stage</subtitle>

The Aptian-Albian deposits of the Anglo-Paris Basin consist of terrigenous sediments formed in shallow continental and coastal environments within an extensional intracratonic basin. The Aptian-Albian interval is rarely exposed, except in the Wessex Basin, where subsiding sub-basins developed during the Early Cretaceous and were later exposed due to tectonic inversion (Chadwick, 1993). Outcrops in southern England, Cap de la Hève (Normandy), and Burgundy quarries complement subsurface data from Paris Basin drill cores. Stratigraphic correlations from wireline logs and outcrops at the basin's margins have highlighted nine transgressive/regressive cycles constrained by biostratigraphy, showing subsidence variations between the Paris and Wessex Basins.The Lower Aptian deposits are affected by the sub-Aptian discordance. In the Paris Basin, many ammonite-bearing zones are absent due to significant erosion, and the Lower Aptian deposits consist of marine shales. This interpretation is supported by signs of reworking, attributed to localized tidal influences, ruling out offshore deposition. In contrast, the Lower Aptian in the Wessex Basin is unaffected by the sub-Aptian unconformity and records thick sand layers resulting from deltaic progradation eastward, with significant subsidence located in the Isle of Wight (Channel Basin).During the Upper Aptian, southern England and the English Channel are marked by lower subsidence and are characterized by estuarine deposits of the Sandrock Formation. In the Paris Basin, Late Aptian subsidence was also significant and accompanied by major hiatuses in ammonite’s zones, with the Sables Verts deposited in estuarine and tidal-dominated environments overlying an unconformity. The Wessex and Paris basins were separated by the "Hampshire-Dieppe” structural High (Jollivet-Castelot 2018), forming the northern boundary of the Paris Basin.The onset of the Albian marks a shift in dynamics between the Paris and Wessex Basins. In the Wessex, reduced subsidence led to continental sedimentation (Monk’s Bay Sandstone Formation) over an erosion surface. Meanwhile, increased subsidence in the Paris Basin resulted in the deposition of the Sables des Drillons, indicating a shift from transgressive tidal-dominatedsands to regressive shoreface deposits. Structural highs in the northern basin continued to limit communication between the basins.The Middle Albian is characterized by diachronous subsidence between the Paris and Wessex Basins. In Wessex, the Gault Clay Formation was deposited due to significant subsidence, while in the Paris Basin, this period corresponds to the deposition of the Sables de Frécambault, indicating littoral sands progradation followed by offshore clay deposits with Gault facies at the top of the Middle Albian. This marks the first communication between sub-basins, forming the Anglo-Paris Basin. The  top of the Middle Albian is marked by a significant regression, with incised valleys filled with fluvio-estuarine deposits, preceding the major Late Albian transgression marked by shale sedimentation with Gault facies, heralding the major Cenomanian transgression.The Upper Albian is marked by homogeneous subsidence in both basins, strengthening communication with marine domains such as the North Atlantic and North Sea (Amédro and Matrion, 2014). In the Wessex, tidal-dominated shallow marine deposits (Upper Greensand Formation) transition eastward into outer platform deposits (Rawson, 2006), while in the Paris Basin, the Late Albian corresponds to outer platform deposits (Gault Formation).

To report the incidence of dermatophytes on the hair coat of asymptomatic cats in the southeast of England. Asymptomatic cats are often blamed for transmission of dermatophytes between animals and humans. This study may help to clarify whether cats are responsible for the increase in fungal infections among the human population. A total of 169 clinically healthy cats without any dermatological signs were sampled using the Mackenzie brush technique and cultured for dermatophytes. Thirty cats were from a closed colony and 139 were feral or from domestic households in the southeast of England. The incidence of Microsporum canis and Trichophyton mentagrophytes in household and feral cats was 2.16 per cent for each dermatophyte. This survey shows little difference in the isolation rates of M. canis between the southeast and southwest of England, which was reported on in 1994. Given the low number of dermatophytes isolated, asymptomatic cats are unlikely to be responsible for the increasing incidence of human infection. Asymptomatic carriers with T. mentagrophytes in the hair coat have not been previously reported and may need to be considered when treating humans with trichophytosis.

00/03053 Unconventional approach to determination of the formation temperature of coals

Coal petrology and genesis of Jurassic coal in the Ordos Basin, China

The French OZCAR critical zone network offers the opportunity to conduct multi-site studies and to explore the critical zone functioning under contrasted climate, geology, vegetation and land use. In this study, an integrated modeling of the water cycle is performed with the ecohydrological model EcH2O-iso in three long-term observatories: (1) the Naizin watershed characterized by an oceanic climate, a metamorphic bedrock and an intensive agriculture (north-west of France, AgrHyS observatory); (2) the Aurade watershed, a watershed with a warmer semi-continental oceanic climate, a sedimentary geological substratum and a crop cover with a wheat-sunflower rotation (south-west of France, Aurade observatory) and; (3) the Strengbach watershed characterized by a mountain climate, a granitic bedrock, and a beech-spruce forest cover (north-east of France, OHGE observatory).Modeling robustness is evaluated by taking advantage of the large database for critical zone sciences including stream flow, water level in piezometers, and evapotranspiration fluxes measured from climatological stations and flux-towers located in the watersheds. Our comparative study brings these general outcomes: (1) the long term CZ evolution controlling the regolith thickness strongly impacts the total water storage in watersheds; (2) the Quaternary geomorphological evolution influences the current hydrological partitioning and the separation of hydrologically active and inactive water storage; (3) Both internal watershed characteristics and external forcings, such as current atmospheric forcing and recent land use need to be considered to infer stream persistence and to understand hydrological diversity; and (4) the observed hydrological diversity cannot be fully understood without considering a continuum of time scales in CZ evolution. Overall, this work illustrates the strength of critical zone networks, allowing a new level of multi-site and comparative studies that are crossing several observatories and encompassing a wide diversity of geology and climate. 

This paper outlines the hydrological aspects of the 2013/2014 winter flooding in the UK, as well as the impacts. The episode is considered in a long-term historical context and wider issues raised by the flood events are discussed briefly.

Connectivity is an important component of metapopulation dynamics in marine systems and can influence population persistence, migration rates and conservation decisions associated with Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). In this study, we compared the genetic diversity, gene flow and population structure of two octocoral species, Eunicella verrucosa and Alcyonium digitatum, in the northeast Atlantic (ranging from the northwest of Ireland and the southern North Sea, to southern Portugal), using two panels of 13 and 8 microsatellite loci, respectively. Our results identified regional genetic structure in E. verrucosa partitioned between populations from southern Portugal, northwest Ireland and Britain/France; subsequent hierarchical analysis of population structure also indicated reduced gene flow between southwest Britain and northwest France. However, over a similar geographical area, A. digitatum showed little evidence of population structure, suggesting high gene flow and/or a large effective population size; indeed, the only significant genetic differentiation detected in A. digitatum occurred between North Sea samples and those from the English Channel/northeast Atlantic. In both species the vast majority of gene flow originated from sample sites within regions, with populations in southwest Britain being the predominant source of contemporary exogenous genetic variants for the populations studied. Overall, historical patterns of gene flow appeared more complex, though again southwest Britain appeared to be an important source of genetic variation for both species. Our findings have major conservation implications, particularly for E. verrucosa, a protected species in UK waters and listed by the IUCN as ‘Vulnerable’, and for the designation and management of European MPAs.

Ilbery B., Kirwan J. and Maye D. Explaining regional and local differences in organic farming in England and Wales: a comparison of South West Wales and South East England, Regional Studies, Few studies explain the concentration of organic farming in specific regions of England and Wales. This paper compares the development of organic farming in South West Wales and South East England. While the focus in the former is on the use of mainly national marketing channels and the movement of organic produce more than 60 min from the farm, in the latter greater use is made of local and direct marketing channels to distribute organic food within 30 min of the farm. The overriding importance of demand appears to provide a key explanation for regional differentiation in organic farming.

The Cenomanian Stage

The UK milk industry has been in a state of rapid evolution following the dissolution in 1994 of the milk marketing boards. The paper examines dairy processing companies, milk collection co‐operatives and milk groups in the south west of England to assemble reasons for success and failures and compare them with north west France, with similar traditional dairying. The findings suggest the following opportunities as the best development potential for the dairy industry in south west England: mature cheddar, speciality cheeses, suitable territorial cheese varieties and other fresh cheeses; dairy desserts; and yoghurts, fromage frais and crème fraiche. A second tier of opportunities could take place through new on‐farm processing; expansion of the product range of existing companies; expansion of the Davidstow Creamery as a producer of mature cheddar; and new “green field” site developments by new entrants.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has had substantial impacts on cancer services. National Cancer Waiting Times (CWT) targets in England stipulate that individuals referred from primary care for suspected cancer must receive treatment for any confirmed cancer within 62 days of referral. This analysis aimed to broadly quantify the association between COVID-19 hospitalizations by England region, and the proportion of confirmed cancer patients breaching the 62-day target in that region a month later, during the first wave of COVID-19 in England. Methods: CWT data were retrospectively obtained from all 135 clinical subregions of the National Health Service (NHS) in England, for the 6-month period from April to September 2020 inclusive. Subregion data were then grouped by each of the seven regions of England: London; South East England; South West England; East of England; the Midlands; North West England; and North East England & Yorkshire. The mean number of monthly cases of confirmed cancer that waited more than 62 days from referral for their treatment (CWT breaches) was calculated amongst subregions within each region, inclusive of all cancer types. These 62-day primary care referrals represent around 73% of all treated cancers. These data were entered into linear regression models for each region, alongside daily UK Government data on numbers of patients in hospital with suspected COVID-19 within each region, with a 30-day lag applied (e.g. CWT breaches that occurred in June were plotted against COVID-19 hospitalization data from May). Results: The regression models showed that regional COVID-19 hospitalizations were significantly positively associated with 62-day CWT breaches the following month, for all regions except for London (all significant at the p<0.01 level). The association also approached significance for the London region (p=0.053). Adjustments for the size of each region produced standardised estimates of the average number of COVID-19 hospitalizations per subregion associated with a 1% absolute decrease in the proportion of 62-day referrals meeting the target: 15 in South East England, 20 in South West England, 17 in the East of England, 17 in the Midlands, 17 in the North West of England, 19 in the North East of England & Yorkshire, and 35 in London. Regional findings for London should be interpreted with caution, due to its characteristics as both the epicenter of the first wave, and as an area with high density of hospitals and cancer centers. Conclusion: Higher rates of regional hospitalizations for suspected COVID-19 during England's initial wave of SARS-CoV-2 were associated with increased delays to cancer treatments across most England regions. It should be noted that CWT breaches do not necessarily translate directly into clinical harm, due to clinical risk prioritization strategies that were deployed during the initial wave of COVID-19. Citation Format: Louis Fox, Ajay Aggarwal, Richard Sullivan, Kate Haire, Arnie Purushotham, James Spicer, Sophie Papa, Anne Rigg, Saoirse Dolly, Mieke Van Hemelrijck. Association between regional COVID-19 hospitalizations and treatment delays amongst confirmed cancer patients in England, UK [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2021; 2021 Apr 10-15 and May 17-21. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2021;81(13_Suppl):Abstract nr LB076.

During the 2007 ‘Kor en Bot’ collecting trip across the Oosterschelde (province of Zeeland, southwest Netherlands), on board trawler cutter ZZ10, a stem fragment of a fossil isocrinid was recognised amongst the contents of the nets pulled on deck. This specimen is here interpreted to be of Early Jurassic age and assignable to the genus Isocrinus. However, because only internodals are preserved in this pluricolumnal, specific identification cannot be but approximate (Isocrinus (Chladocrinus) cf. tuberculatus). In the absence of any outcrop of Jurassic deposits in Zeeland and adjacent Dutch and Belgian territory, the most likely explanation is that this crinoid represents erratic material transported by precursors of the present-day River Maas (Meuse). Between the Langres Plateau and Sedan (northeast France), this river cuts through several occurrences of Lower Jurassic strata from which the present isocrinid might have originated. A less likely explanation is that it stems from boulders used for coastal reinforcement or from a Roman limestone votive altarpiece put up at the temple complex for the goddess Nehalennia, formerly present at Colijnsplaat, near Domburg (Noord-Beveland, Zeeland). Transportation from either northwest France or the southern or eastern United Kingdom, where there are coastal exposures of Jurassic strata, via the North Sea, is another option which, however, is also considered less feasible in view of the good state of preservation of the crinoid.

AT 11.58 a.m. (G.M.T.) on June 11, an earthquake of unusual severity was felt all over Belgium and Holland, in the south-west of Germany, the north-east of France and the south-east of England. From the early accounts, the intensity of the shock seems to have been greatest in the west of Belgium, where buildings were slightly damaged, several persons were injured and one was killed. In France, it was most severe in the district around Lille, where many chimneys were thrown down, and at Roubaix, close to the Belgian frontier, where about twenty persons were injured. It was felt also at Boulogne and Paris and, it is said, at Strasbourg. It was observed all over Holland, though but slightly in the north and east of that country. In the south-east of England, especially in Kent, the earthquake was felt rather strongly and also at places so far from the origin as London, Ipswich and Brighton. The disturbed area must therefore have been at least 380 miles long from east to west and 330 miles wide, and have contained not less than 100,000 square miles. It is difficult at present to assign the position of the epicentre. It may have been under the North Sea near the coast of Belgium, or on land in the west of that country. The earthquake was clearly of less intensity than that of April 6, 1580, but, though many of the places disturbed by both shocks are the same, its epicentre must have lain some distance to the east of that of the earlier earthquake, which, as Mr. E. R. Ockenden has shown (NATURE, 138, 472 ; 1936) was probably submarine and near the east coast of Kent.

AN article on “Seasonal Sunshine in Great Britain” by Mr. Charles Harding appeared in NATURE of March 20. The results were based on the 35-years' mean, 1881–1915. Comparing south-east England with south-west England and south Wales, Mr. Harding says that “the average sunshine for the year in south-east England is 4.49 hours a day, and in south-west England and south Wales, including the so-called Cornish Riviera, it is 4.28 hours. In the winter, south-east England has an average daily sunshine of 1.92 hours, and in south-west England and south Wales the value is 1.91 hours a day; in spring the hours of sunshine for the two districts are respectively 5.50 and 5.36; in summer 6.88 and 6.41, and in autumn 3.46 and 3.31 hours”.

Discontinuity surfaces develop in carbonate successions in response to a range of environmental changes and represent an integral part of the stratigraphic record. In Palaeozoic shallow epeiric basins that are typified by extremely slow subsidence and intermittent sedimentation, discontinuity surfaces may represent the majority of the time‐rock record. A depositional and sequence‐stratigraphic model was developed through microfacies analysis and discontinuity surface characterization using three cores in a proximal to distal transect across the Middle to Upper Devonian Iowa Basin. Twelve microfacies are recognized, spanning supratidal to deep subtidal facies tracts. A total of 105 discontinuity surfaces were documented and classified as either submarine omission surfaces, subaerial exposure surfaces or submarine erosional surfaces. Omission surfaces increase in frequency basinward, indicating increased sediment starvation in the offshore direction. Exposure surfaces increase in frequency shoreward, indicating more frequent subaerial exposure in a shallower setting. Erosional surfaces are dominant in the inner and middle ramp and interpreted as the base of storm beds (tempestites); these surfaces are rare in the outer ramp due to its generally deeper setting below storm wave base. Moreover, discontinuity surfaces exhibit systematic groupings stratigraphically (vertically) across the three localities spanning the Devonian carbonate ramp. Zones of either exposure‐dominated, erosion‐dominated or omission‐dominated surfaces were recognized and correlated with their landward or basinward equivalents (along with shifts in major facies belts) and interpreted in a sequence‐stratigraphic context. This study highlights the importance of including a detailed characterization of both depositional facies and non‐depositional discontinuity surfaces in order to better understand the stratigraphic history of a basin. The framework of analysis provided here is particularly useful for marine carbonate strata deposited in epeiric basins, which are especially common in the Palaeozoic and where non‐deposition and erosion occur frequently, but can also be applied to other geological time periods and settings.