Indo-Pacific Province Research Articles

An overview of the specific diversity in the genus Cystiscus Stimpson, 1865 and the description of 27 new Cystiscus species (Muricoidea: Cystiscidae) from the Walters Shoal, southwestern Indian Ocean

The Cystiscus fauna collected on the Walters Shoal by the 2017 MNHN/IRD Expedition is revised on the ground of shell morphology. Twenty-nine different species are recognized, 27 of them being formally described as Cystiscus subcylindricus, sp. nov., C. triplicatus sp. nov., C. herberti sp. nov., C. inflatus sp. nov., C. stimpsoni sp. nov., C. pyriformis sp. nov., C. harpaeformis sp. nov., C. laurae sp. nov., C. robustus sp. nov., C. minimus sp. nov., C. ovoides sp. nov., C. mamillatus sp. nov., C. angustus sp. nov., C. profundus sp. nov., C. granum sp. nov., C. dentiferus sp. nov., C. alatus sp. nov., C. apertus sp. nov., C. contortus sp. nov., C. sinuosus sp. nov., C. pupoides sp. nov., C. lussii sp. nov., C. smithi sp. nov., C. serratus sp. nov., C. lachrymaformis sp. nov., and C. quinqueplicatus sp. nov. Among the 27 described species, 25 of them are only known from their holotype, one paratype from the type station is reported for C. subcylindricus, and two conspecific specimens collected from a non-type station are reported for C. lussii. Eight morphs represented by one or two shells are tentatively ascribed to some of the 27 recognized species. Among the 29 recognized species, 28 of them are found at bathyal levels, and only one of them (C. quinqueplicatus) was collected at a reef level, so the Cystiscus fauna of the Walters Shoal is characterized as bathyal fauna. From the fact that any other Cystiscus assemblage was ever studied from the bathyal of the Indo-Pacific Province, no direct comparison is made with external items, and the Cystiscus species of the Walters Shoal are only compared to each other.

Poriferans rift apart: molecular demosponge biodiversity in Central and French Polynesia and comparison with adjacent marine provinces of the Central Indo-Pacific

The distribution of marine sponges in the tropical Southwest Pacific Ocean is largely unexplored despite the vital ecological role of sponges in coral reefs and their value as sources of metabolites for drug design. Several collection campaigns to the French Polynesian archipelagos (Society, Marquesas, Tuamotu, Gambier, and Austral) were conducted to assess the bio- and chemodiversity of the island groups. In the course of these scientific expeditions, more than 200 identified sponge specimens were acquired, for which we were able to assign 102 Molecular Operational Taxonomic Units (MOTUs). Based on these MOTUs, we assessed, in the largest analysis of its kind for this area to date, the sponge composition and faunistic overlaps of the marine province Southeast Polynesia with Marquesas and Central Polynesia. We also compared the sponge fauna of these Eastern Indo-Pacific provinces with marine provinces of the adjacent Central Indo-Pacific realm. Our findings corroborate that sponge faunal similarity within marine realms is higher than among realms, and follows the marine barriers to gene flow observed for other taxa. We detected high levels of provincial endemism for marine sponges, consistent with findings from other Indo-Pacific regions. At the level of province, geographical distance and ocean surface currents influence faunal similarity, and constitute the primary factors for the connectivity of sponge faunas between the disjunct and remote island groups in the tropical Southwest Pacific Ocean.

Quaternary coral, coralline algal and vermetid assemblages as sea-level indicators: a review

Corals, coralline algae and vermetid gastropods are indirect (marine limiting) relative sea-level (RSL) indicators. The precision in sea-level reconstruction based on fossils of those organisms depends on the probable palaeodepth in which they grew. Constraining such palaeodepth depends, in turn, on the available information about the habitats of their living counterparts. Diverse genera, species and species assemblages of corals, coralline algae and vermetid gastropods have historically been proposed as reliable indicators of narrow, shallow depth ranges. However, the increased information on depth distribution of marine benthos in the last two decades has challenged some early assumptions about depth ranges of taxa considered diagnostic of precise palaeodepths. Here, the authors test the reliability of coral, coralline algal and vermetid assemblages that have been extensively used in RSL reconstructions in the light of data from Ocean Biogeographical Information System (OBIS) and other recently published data. In the Indo-Pacific province, these data support the use of the robust-branching and the shallow, high-energy encrusting coral assemblages with a 0 to 10 m uncertainty. In both cases many component species have unimodal distributions and both median and average water depths are shallower than 10 m. The reliability of these coral assemblages as indicative of shallow water depths is strengthened when corals are encrusted by thick plants of the coralline alga Porolithon gr. onkodes. According to OBIS data, coralline algae of this species group in the Indo-Pacific are restricted to very shallow waters (95% probability of occurrence shallower than 0.2 m and in 99.6% of records shallower than 6 m). However, such a narrow depth range and the overall scarce data on coralline algal species in the OBIS database are questionable due to difficulties of coralline algal species identification with the naked eye. A comprehensive survey of the modern distribution of coralline algae at One Tree Reef (southern Great Barrier Reef) indicates that P. gr. onkodes has a log-normal distribution with median depth of less than 5 m and 95% of occurrence probability of thick crusts (> 0.2 mm) shallower than 8.8 m. Data on modern distribution of vermetids are scarce. In the OBIS database, vermetid species are reported from relatively wide depth ranges. However, relatively high densities (> 10 individuals per m2) on coral and coralline algal surfaces only occur from above mean low tide to some 6 m depth. In the Western Atlantic-Caribbean province Acropora palmata is the most precise RSL marker and no additional components of fossil assemblages improve its palaeodepth information. The confident use of coralgal and vermetid assemblages as RSL indicators relies on the identification of fossil corals and coralline algae at the species or species-group level. The scarcity of available data highlights the need for further studies on distribution of coralline algal species and vermetid in modern coral reefs from a variety of oceans and reef settings.

Early Miocene stalked crinoids (Echinodermata) from the southern Rhodanian basin (southeastern France). Paleoenvironments and taxonomy.

Using recent samplings and specimens from ancient collections, 14 sites and five species of stalked crinoids have been listed in the Miocene of the southern Rhodanian basin (southeastern France). Three species and two genera are new for science: Papacrinus avignonensis n. gen., n sp. (Balanocrininae), Paraconocrinus rhodanicus n. sp. (Rhizocrinidae) and Gastecrinus vinealis n. gen., n. sp. (Incertae sedis). The identification among the Mediterranean Miocene fauna of the genus Metacrinus, now confined to the Indo-Pacific province, was confirmed by the discovery of brachial ossicles attributed to Metacrinus berthei. The richest and most diversified site was exposed during temporal excavations at the Place du Palais des Papes in Avignon. Four out of the five stalked crinoid species were found in this fossil assemblage in which M. berthei predominates. ?Endoxocrinus gastaldii is associated with M. berthei in several sites. Using dissociated ossicles, differences in quantitative and qualitative characters between these two species are deeply analyzed with their taphonomical, taxonomical and paleoecological consequences. Paleoreliefs and valleys, which had been incised during the Burdigalian, channeled currents. They favored stalked crinoid settlement on various substrates during the late BurdigalianLower Langhian transgression. Comparison with the extant fauna allows us to estimate the depth range of the biotopes with stalked crinoids from 100 to 250 m. These estimates are in agreement with those deduced from other paleontological studies.

HIGH CORAL DIVERSITY IS COUPLED WITH REEF-BUILDING CAPACITY DURING THE LATE OLIGOCENE WARMING EVENT (CASTRO LIMESTONE, SALENTO PENINSULA, S ITALY)

The Oligocene, well known as the apex of Cenozoic reef growth, is a crucial period of time to investigate the mutual relationship between coral reef construction and coral diversity and their link with palaeoclimate and palaeoenvironmental changes. Here we provide a complete characterization of the Upper Oligocene reef complex of the Castro Limestone (Salento Peninsula, S Italy), which is one of the best-preserved Oligocene coral reefs of the Mediterranean region. By combining facies analysis with the first detailed characterization of its coral fauna, we show that the Castro Limestone has both a rich scleractinian coral fauna (25 genera and 41 species) and a large reef volume, and it represents a luxuriant fringing reef formed within the euphotic zone in clear water conditions facing the open sea. The coral fauna differs both in its composition and in its proportions among reef palaeoenvironments, ranging from the shallow back reef to the fore reef slope, and its stratigraphic and palaeogeographic distribution testifies to the persistence of a cosmopolitan Tethyan fauna in Oligocene time, with the Mediterranean and Indo-Pacific provinces being more closely connected than the Mediterranean and the Caribbean. The age of the Castro Limestone is here reassigned to the middle-late Chattian, which coincides with the Late Oligocene Warming Event (LOWE) when atmospheric CO2 values declined. We suggest that the strong reef-building capacity of the Castro Limestone, coupled with high coral diversity, was not hampered by warming conditions but most probably promoted by the reduced pCO2 and a suitable local/regional physiographic setting.

The geographic, environmental and phylogenetic evolution of the Alveolinoidea from the Cretaceous to the present day.

The superfamily Alveolinoidea is a member of the Order Miliolida, and comprises three main families, the Alveolinidae, the Fabulariidae and the Rhapydioninidae. They are examples of Larger benthic foraminifera (LBF), which are single-celled organisms with specific characteristic endoskeletons. Alveolinoids are found globally from the Cretaceous to the present day, and are important biostratigraphic index fossils in shallow-marine carbonates. They are often associated with hydrocarbon reservoirs, and exhibit provincialism with characteristic genera often confined to one of the American, Tethyan or Indo-Pacific provinces. Previously, the systematic study of the global interrelationship between the various alveolinoid lineages has not been possible because of the absence of biostratigraphic correlation between the geographically scattered assemblages, and the scarcity of described material from the Indo-Pacific province. Here we use the literature and new material from the Americas, the French Alps, Iran, Tibet, India and South East Asia, coupled with the use of the planktonic foraminiferal zonal (PZ) correlation scheme to propose a comprehensive, global, systematic analysis of the biostratigraphic, phylogenetic and paleogeographic evolution of the alveolinoids. The alveolinoids originated in the Cretaceous in the Tethyan province. During a global sea-level low stand, a westward migration of some alveolinoids species to the Americas occurred, a behaviour previously reported in contemporaneous orbitolinid LBF. After the Cretaceous/Palaeogene (K-P) event, which saw the extinction of all Cretaceous alveolinoids, rare new forms of alveolinoids evolved again, first in the Americas and later independently in Tethys. As was found in previous studies of rotalid LBF, sea-level low stands in the Paleocene also allowed some alveolinoid forms to migrate, but this time in an eastward direction from the Americas to Tethys, and from Tethys on to the Indo-Pacific province. Alveolinoids still exist today (Borelis and Alveolinella), the former of which is cosmopolitan, while the latter is restricted to the Indo-Pacific province. Throughout their phylogenetic history, alveolinoids characteristically exhibit convergent evolution, with the repeated re-occurrence of certain morphological features. Understanding this propensity to homoplasy is essential in understanding and constructing the phylogenetic relationships within the alveolinoid superfamily.

LATE CHATTIAN LARGER FORAMINIFERA FROM THE PREBETIC DOMAIN (SE SPAIN): NEW DATA ON SHALLOW BENTHIC ZONE 23

This study focuses on an Oligocene succession dominated by larger foraminifera and coralline algae in the Benitatxell Range (Prebetic Domain, southeastern Iberian Peninsula). The foraminiferal assemblage, studied in thin sections, and interpreted as Shallow Benthic Zone 23, late Chattian, includes: Austrotrillina asmariensis , Nephrolepidina spp., Eulepidina dilatata , E. elephantina , E. raulini , Amphistegina bohdanowiczi , A. mammilla , Operculina complanata , Nummulites cf. vascus , N. aff . kecskemetii , Heterostegina assilinoides , Spiroclypeus blanckenhorni , Cycloclypeus mediterraneus , Miogypsinoides formosensis , Postmiogypsinella aff. intermedia , Neorotalia viennoti , Risananeiza pustulosa , and Victoriella conoidea. The Rebaldi section, a succession of late Oligocene limestones 3 km north of the Benitatxell section, shows a similar association with Peneroplis thomasi , A. asmariensis , M. complanatus , Neorotalia viennoti , N. lithothamnica , Heterostegina aff. assilinoides , Spiroclypeus blanckenhorni , Cycloclypeus mediterraneus , A. bohdanowiczi , and Risananeiza pustulosa ; it is interpreted as the early part of SBZ 23. This section also contains Praebullalveolina aff. oligocenica , described from the early Rupelian of Turkey, and Schlumbergerina alveoliniformis , previously interpreted as Burdigalian-Recent. Prior to this work, Cycloclypeus mediterraneus was considered to go extinct and be replaced by C. eidae at the SBZ 22B-23 boundary. However, its presence in the Benitatxell and Rebaldi sections extends its range to the late Chattian in the Eastern Betics and indicates an asynchronous extinction in the Tethys. The presence of Amphistegina mammilla Fichtel and Moll 1798 in late Chattian deposits from the western Tethys contradicts the currently accepted hypothesis that places its origin in the Indo-Pacific province in the early Miocene, from where it would have migrated into the Parathethys during the middle Miocene. In addition, the biogeographic range of P. thomasi , A. asmariensis , and P. oligocenica is extended to the westernmost part of the Tethys.

Biogéographie des mollusques marins de Polynésie française

Biogeography of French Polynesia marine molluscs. The distribution of marine molluscs in each of the five archipelagos composing French Polynesia is presented with reference to 2053 species perfectly identified to the specific rank. The progress of knowledge on the distribution of molluscs and the limits of the inventory presented are discussed in relation to the reality of biodiversity. The species richness by archipelago is established and shows a degree of impoverishment along a longitudinal axis, from the Society to the Tuamotu and the Gambier, and along a latitudinal axis from north to south, from the Marquesas to the Society and the Austral. The distribution of species of marine molluscs allows to establish the species specific to each archipelago and those that are common to two or more archipelagos, which together determine the affinities between the archipelagos. The Marquesas and the Austral are very original in comparison with the Society, while the Tuamotu and even the Gambier are only impoverished faunas of the Society. The endemism in French Polynesia is 11.8 % (243 endemics out of 2053 species identified). Beyond this regional rate we can precise by archipelago two levels of endemism : that which is strict for the species whose distribution is limited to this archipelago and that which includes all the endemics, the strict ones and those present in at least one other archipelago : Marquesas (9.3 and 13.6 %) - Austral (6.8 and 12 %) - Society (2 and 6.5 %) - Tuamotu (2.3 and 7.9 %) - Gambier , 7 and 4.8 %). The richness of the marine mollusc fauna of French Polynesia is compared with that of Hawaii and the islands and archipelagos of the Eastern Pacific (Clipperton, Galapagos, Easter Island) and their high levels of endemism ; respectively : 11, 8 -20 -4 -17 and 42 %. The origin of the Polynesian marine mollusc fauna is evoked in relation to the Indonesian-Australian zone of maximum species richness with the confirmation that it operates since the Miocene as a center of dispersion creating at the margin of the Indo-Pacific province high places of speciation and endemism.

A revised geological range (Late Pliocene) for foraminifer taxon Bolliella adamsi Banner et Blow, 1959

The foraminifer taxon Bolliella adamsi Banner et Blow, 1959 is found to co-occur with index planktic foraminifer taxa of the Late Pliocene (Zone N21) in a core of 2.60 m at 1300 m water depth off Tuticorin, Bay of Bengal. This taxon has been previously known as a Holocene taxon of the Indo-Pacific province. This study significantly revises the known stratigraphic range of B. adamsi from the Late Pliocene (uppermost part of Zone N21) to the Holocene in the Bay of Bengal area.

Annotated catalogue of the types of Triphoridae (Mollusca, Gastropoda) in the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin, with lectotype designations

Triphoridae is a family of marine caenogastropods with worldwide distribution. Its maximum diversity is in the Indo-Pacific province, where it is among the five most species-rich families. Taxonomic knowledge is scant and complicated by the high diversity and intra-specific variability. Knowledge of type specimens of described taxa is the fundamental first step for a taxonomic revision of the family. The Museum für Naturkunde hosts one of the most significant triphorid collections, which includes material described by W. Dunker, L. Pfeiffer, J. Thiele and E. von Martens. Type material of 29 species is described and illustrated; where appropriate, lectotypes have been designated to stabilize nomenclature. The specimens of one species, Triforis delicatula Thiele, do not fully match the original description and we refrain from selecting a lectotype, although we profusely illustrate them. Although not type material, specimens of Triforis tricincta Dunker have been included in this work to contribute to the knowledge on Dunker’s species. For all species, the original descriptions in German or Latin are reported, with a full translation into English, and remarks have been added where appropriate.

Biodiversity and distribution of the southern African sea cucumbers (Echinodermata: Holothuroidea).

The history of the southern African holothuroid fauna south of the tropic of Capricorn, is updated and the biodiversity and distribution of the fauna discussed. All five currently recognized orders are represented, distributed over 24 families, 74 genera and 163 species. As many as 117 species are shelf forms comprising the following faunistic components : 36% Indo-Pacific, 12% West Indian Ocean, 1% Atlantic and 51% endemic. Four faunistic provinces are recognized : tropical Indo-Pacific Province on the east coast, extending to St Lucia in northern KwaZulu-Natal; the Subtropical (Natal) province, from this point to Port St. Johns in the Eastern Cape Province; the Warm Temperate (Agulhas) Province from this point to Cape Point in the Western Cape Province; and the Cold Temperate (Namaqua) from Cape Point to Walvis Bay in Namibia. Vertical distribution of the approximately 90 species collected from more than one locality is also given. The origin of the holothuroid fauna is briefly discussed and reiterated that the Indo-Pacific component moved in from the north mostly by way of the Mozambique-Agulhas Current. The origin of the endemic component is obscure but surmised that it is perhaps also of Indo-Pacific origin with negligible contribution from the Atlantic.

COMPOSITIONAL FIDELITY OF DEATH ASSEMBLAGES FROM A CORAL REEF-ASSOCIATED TIDAL-FLAT AND SHALLOW SUBTIDAL LAGOON IN THE NORTHERN RED SEA

This study focuses on quantitative analysis of the species composition and distribution of living and dead mollusks to assess fidelity of death assemblages in a protected tidal flat and a shallow subtidal lagoon behind a fringing reef from the Indo-Pacific province. We evaluate how well the death assemblage (DA) reflects the original living community and whether there was a recent ecological shift in species composition. Quantitative analysis of 18 samples from unvegetated sandy substrata shows that dead individuals dominate in the shallow subtidal lagoon, but living and dead individuals were roughly equally abundant on the tidal flat. This difference points to rapid degradation or export of dead shells from tidal flats, leading to smaller potential for time averaging. Rarefied species richness and diversity of DAs is higher than that of the living assemblages (LAs) at the scale of habitats and at the scale of the study area, and this difference in richness is stronger and live-dead (LD) agreement in composition is smaller in the subtidal than in the intertidal habitats. Distinct assemblages characterized intertidal and subtidal habitats both in LAs and DAs, and the rank-abundance distributions of DAs generally corresponded to that of LAs. We suggest that anthropogenic impact in the area did not result in a major environmental change in the subtidal environment during the past few decades because existing small differences between LAs and DAs can be explained by some degree of time averaging and small-scale redistribution of shells. On the tidal flat, however, the lower time-averaging of the DA and the generalistic life habits of prominent members in the LA do not exclude a major shift.

The phylogenetic and palaeogeographic evolution of the miogypsinid larger benthic foraminifera

Access to new material from South Africa, Corsica, Cyprus, Syria and Sumatra has allowed a systematic biostratigraphic comparison and correlation of the miogypsinids from the Mediterranean–West Africa and the Indo-Pacific provinces, and for the first time from South Africa. Twelve new species have been identified: Neorotalia tethyana, Miogypsinella bornea, Miogypsina subiensis, M. niasiensis, M. regularia, M. samuelia, Miolepidocyclina banneri, Miogypsinella cyprea, Miogypsina mcmillania, M. africana, M. ianmacmilliana and M. southernia . The palaeogeographical evolution of the miogypsinids started with a trans-Atlantic migration of Neorotalia from the Americas, where miogypsinids had originated. The eastward migration followed two paths: one to the south towards South Africa, where a distinct phylogenetic lineage, but similar to that found in America, developed but went extinct in the Burdigalian; the other to the north, through the Mediterranean corridor. During the Chattian and Aquitanian significant miogypsinid forms evolved in the Mediterranean from the morphologically distinct Mediterranean Neorotalia and migrated, within a few million years of their first appearance, into the Indo-Pacific, where they diversified further. The tectonically driven closure of the seaway between the Mediterranean and the Indo-Pacific in the Burdigalian triggered the extinction of Mediterranean miogypsinids in the Langhian. Miogypsinids survived in the Indo-Pacific into the Serravallian.

Phylogeny and an integrated biogeography of Acanthotetilla Burton, 1959 (Demospongiae: Spirophorida: Tetillidae): two-way traffic on the peri-African track

The recent description of Indonesian and Brazilian species of Acanthotetilla motivated the onset of a phylogenic andbiogeographic revision of this taxon, to figure whether it had an Atlantic or an Indo-Pacific origin, and whether a Tethyanor southern African route might have been followed. A datamatrix with 27 morphological characters and 63 characterstates was tabulated and run on PAUP*4.0 using a parsimony algorithm. The resulting phylogenetic hypothesis wasconverted in a Taxon Area Cladogram (TAC) and used as a basis for a comparative analysis of the evolutionary history ofthe comprised biogeographic provinces, which in turn was contrasted to additional poriferan phylogenies. TheAcanthotetilla TAC was further used in a dispersal-vicariance analysis with the software DIVA 1.1, and in a manualpanbiogeographic analysis. The resulting preferred tree has a high Bootstrap support, as a consequence of the largest everratio of morphological character states employed per OTU among published poriferan phylogenies. The result showsCentral Indo-Pacific provinces basal to the whole clade, then Western Indo-Pacific provinces basal to the Tropical WesternAtlantic ones, thus unequivocally suggesting colonization of the latter from the former, and likely following a southernAfrican route. It is suggested here that this might have been accomplished through rafting on rings of the Agulhas Current.The dispersal – vicariance analysis undertaken postulated a recent dispersal event with recolonization of the Seychellesfrom the western Atlantic. The panbiogeographic map for Acanthotetilla also points to Western Indo-Pacific origin ofTropical Western Atlantic species. A comparison with 10 additional sponge phylogenies did not recover any prevailingtrends for the relationships of the major areas utilized in the present analyses, but identified two taxa with likely CentralIndo-Pacific origins (Thrinacophora, Placospongia), and one with a Western Indo-Pacific origin of Tropical WesternAtlantic clades (Petromica). The integrated biogeographic approach to the analysis of Acanthotetilla data permitted distinct interpretations, which might have been overlooked in case a single method was chosen a priori.

On the identity and origin of Anadara demiri (Bivalvia: Arcidae)

Anadara demiri (Piani, 1981) is an alien species in the Mediterranean Sea extending its range from Turkey westernly to the Adriatic Sea, where it is locally abundant. The species was first identified as Arca amygdalum Philippi, 1847 in the 1970s. The locus typicus of A. amygdalum is China. This first identification has never been discussed and the species has been thought to be of Indo-Pacific origin to date. However, in the Indo-Pacific province no Anadara shows any similarity with A. demiri. Morphological and molecular data suggest A. demiri is closely related to Anadara transversa (Say, 1822), a common species of the eastern coasts of North America. Anadara demiri is hence considered a junior synonym of A. transversa and the origin of this immigration has to be searched in the southern range of this species, maybe the Gulf of Mexico coasts of Florida.

New celleporid (Bryozoa, Cheilostomata) species from Tertiary deposits of western Kachchh, Gujarat, India

Five new bryozoan species (Buffonellaria cornuta, Lagenipora chedopadiensis, Turbicellepora canui, T. naniberensis andT. rostrata) belonging to the family CelleporidaeHINCKS, 1884 are described and illustrated from the Tertiary sequences of western Kachchh, Gujarat, India. The zoaria of these species comprise about 17 percent of total cheilostome bryozoan colonies from Kachchh in the present collection, and those ofTurbicellepora rostrata n. sp. account for over 64 percent of the celleporid specimens. These records of celleporids enrich our knowledge of the fossil occurrence of this group during the Early Miocene in the Indo-Pacific province.

Miocene Central Paratethys stratigraphy – current status and future directions

The complex geodynamic history of the Paratethys periodically fostered the evolution of a highly endemic biota with only limited exchange between the neighboring Mediterranean and Indo-Pacific provinces. The resulting very peculiar fossil assemblages forced the introduction of a regional chronostratigraphic subdivision for the Western/Central and Eastern Paratethys respectively. For the Central Paratethys we present a summarized and updated database for the individual stages, and we review the current status for correlation with the Mediterranean stratigraphic framework. The Miocene Central Paratethys stages were defined on exclusively paleontological criteria in type sections (holostratotypes and faciostratotypes). They are all bounded by either sedimentary hiatuses or distinct facies changes, inferred to mark lowstands in sea level, and not a single boundary stratotype has been defined. Some correlating tie-points to the Mediterranean succession are based on calcareous nannoplankton and planktonic foraminifers; magnetostratigraphic correlation is very limited. All stages can be assigned to the putatively third-order sea level cycles, with the Eggenburgian, Badenian and Pannonian Stages each spanning three cycles and the Ottnangian, Karpatian, and Sarmatian one each. The Karpatian/Badenian boundary correlates with the Burdigalian/Langhian (Early/Middle Miocene) boundary, and the Sarmatian/Pannonian boundary correlates with the Serravallian/Tortonian (Middle/Late Miocene) boundary. The correlation to third-order cycles and the detection of astronomical signals suggest that not only a regional but also a strong global signal is present in the rock record of the Central Paratethys. Since the current definition of a stage includes its global spread, formally defined regional stages are redundant and therefore also not necessary for the Central Paratethys. However, if stages are essentially regional, then a regional scale as for Central Paratethys would be much more appropriate.

On the stratigraphical and palaeobiogeographical significance of <i>Borelis melo melo</i> (Fichtel & Moll, 1798) and <i>B. melo curdica</i> (Reichel, 1937) (Foraminifera, Miliolida, Alveolinidae)

Abstract. The stratigraphical and palaeobiogeographical significance of Borelis melo melo (Fichtel & Moll, 1798) and B. melo curdica (Reichel, 1937) is re-assessed in the light of a taxonomic review. Borelis melo melo ranges at least throughout the Miocene, whereas B. melo curdica is restricted to the late Early to Middle Miocene. Both sub-species occur only in the Indo-Pacific Province in the late Early Miocene (‘early’ Burdigalian), but in both the Indo-Pacific and Mediterranean provinces in the latest Early–early Middle Miocene (‘middle’ Burdigalian–Langhian), implying a marine (re-)connection between the two regions at this time.

History of Indo-Pacific coral reef systems since the last glaciation: Development patterns and controlling factors

History of Indo-Pacific coral reef systems since the last glaciation: Development patterns and controlling factors

Earliest Pellatispira Boussac from the middle Eocene of India: morphological speciality of the ancestral stock

Pellatispira Boussac, known to be restricted to Upper Eocene shallow marine sediments of the Tethyan and Indo-Pacific provinces, has been recovered together with Assilina papillata Nuttall, Assilina cancellata Nuttall, Nummulites atacicus Leymerie and Orbulinoides beckmanni (Saito) in a thin marl bed in the Amravati River section near Bharuch, Western India. The assemblage occurs in the Globigerapsis beckmanni Zone of Middle Eocene age. Represented by Pellatispira crassicolumnata Umbgrove, P. orbitoidea (Provale), P. aff. madaraszi (Hantken) and P. boussaci sp. nov., the genus of the Middle Eocene is distinct with its primitive state of some characters, including the presence of discontinuous longitudinal canals in the outer whorl wall, irregular growth of radial canals in the marginal crest and low trochospiral coiling. Externally it possesses heavy ornamentation like its Late Eocene descendants. The wall structure and the general structure of the tests of this primitive Pellatispira permit its inclusion within the Pellatispiridae.