TAXONOMIC CONSIDERATION OF THE YPRESIAN BENTHIC FORAMINIFERAL SPECIES OF IRAN AND ITS PALEOGEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION IN THE TETHYS

Abstract

An Ypresian Iranian twenty-five smaller benthic foraminiferal species belonging to twenty genera, were identified by which represent good example of the Southern Tethyan benthic foraminiferal assemblage. The present study deals with the modern taxonomical consideration of this assemblage. These taxa are: Ammodiscus glabrata Cushman & Jarvis, Spiroplectinella knebeli, Pseudogaudryinella iranica Anan, Verneuilina aegyptiaca Said & Kenawy, Verneuilina luxorensis Nakkady, Dorothia bulletta (Carsey), Textularia nilotica (Schwager), Textularia punjabensis Haque, Textularia salahii Anan, Vulvulina advena Cushman, Lenticulina turbinata (Plummer), Percultazonaria fragaria (Gümbel), Orthokarstenia applinae (Plummer), Bulimina alazanensis Cushman, Bulimina midwayensis Cushman & Parker, Globobulimina pyrula (d’Orbigny), Uvigerina mediterranea (Hofker), Aragonia aragonensis (Nuttall), Nonionella auris (D’Orbigny), Anomalinoides acutus (Plummer), Cibicidoides proprius Brotzen, Cibicidoides vulgaris Plummer, Oridorsalis umbonatus (Reuss), Gyroidinoides girardanus (Reuss), Hanzawaia cubensis. The Southern Tethyan assemblage of Iran indicates an open marine environment, which represents outer neritic environment, and shows an affinity with Midway-Type Fauna (MTF). These wide paleogeographic distribution indicate that the ancestral Tethys is connected with the ancestral Atlantic and Indian Oceans via Mediterranean Sea, as well as Arctic sea in that time.