PALYNOLOGICAL ZONATION OF MID-PALAEOZOIC, NW SPAIN 



133 



I - 

 ■^ ■« ^ ^ 



? 5 ■" ;: 



__ (^ 



.2 i 



fe -a 

 §1 



a = 5 .i 



1 I Red Sandstones 

 ^ Dolomites 



2 Limestones 

 Ivl Quartzites 

 ■i-'Phosphatic nodules / clasts 



p] Sandstone 



■ Shale 



Q Sandstone & Shale 



■ Sandstone / Oolites 

 H Ferrous Oolites 



5 15 ^ 15 S S S 



-a: 



t £ 5 



■§ ■?=■«"§ 3 -g ^ 



O'o'-^^C'o-^O 



00 5 



5 5; 5; Q- S tc 2 



• • • - 



• • • - 



T 



I 





- 



• 



• • 



- 



- 



- 



• • • • 



- 



- 



- 



- 



• • • 



• 



- 





Chitinozoan 



Spore 





Zonation 



Zonation 





9 



9 



LP20 







Lochkov. 





LP19 









(a) 



LP 18 





ele 





EC 



LP17 











LP16 











LP15 











LP14 



Pridoli 









LP13 









H 



LP12 





■'ko 



Pridoli 



LPII 











LP 10 











LP9 











LPS 



-?-?. 



?ba 





RS 



LP7 





•^ph 



-9_9_ 





LP6 





■'(■1 



* 





LP5 



Ludlow 





Ludford. 



— — 



LP4 





■'ly 



Gorst. 



BV 



LP3 



9 9 



■.'pa 







LP2 









V 



LPl 











Wenlock/ 

 Lland. 



Fig. 13 Selected chitinozoan distribution at La PeraL Chitinozoan zonation after Verniers et al (1995): ele: elegans, ko: kosovensis. ba: barrandei. ph: 

 philipi, el: elongata, ly: lycoperdoides, pa: pachycephala. 



Verniers et al. (1995). Not until LP16, 149.5 metres above base of 

 section, is a Pfi'doli chitinozoan assemblage containing U. urna. M. 

 elegans and P. carmenchui, recovered. Fimgochitina kosovensis 

 Paris & Kriz (1984), is found in LP 19, 169 meters above the base of 

 the section (PL 12, fig. 7) but is more commonly described from the 

 Lower- mid-Pfidoli (Paris & Kriz, 1984, Verniers et al., 1995). The 

 uppermost sample LP 20 at La Peral contains Urnachitina urna (PI. 



11, fig. 10) associated with Pseudoclathrochitina cannenchiii (PI. 



12, fig. 2). As with La Vid, chitinozoan evidence for a Pfidoli age 

 contradicts the interpretation based on spore data, which places the 

 base of the Lochkovian between LP 18 and 19 from the presence of 

 Aneurospora in LP 19. 



Stage and Series boundaries 



It is not possible to suggest a base for the Devonian on the basis of 

 the chitinozoans recovered from this section. The base of the 

 Pfidoli is tentatively placed somewhere below LP 16 (although it 

 must be noted that A. echinata, present in LP 8, can also be 

 recovered from the Pfidoli). As with La Vid, additional sampling 

 should increase the resolution of chitinozoan biostratigraphy in 

 this section. 



COMPARISON OF THE CHITINOZOANS 

 FROM THE CANTABRIAN MOUNTAINS WITH 

 COEVAL SECTIONS AND THE GLOBAL 

 BIOZONATION SCHEME 



Direct statistical comparisons are not made here as samples were not 

 prepared specifically for Chitinozoa and the rarest forms may have 

 been overlooked or destroyed. However, it is possible to make 

 general comparisons with coeval sections. 



Palencia Province, northern Spain 



Palencia is located in the Cantabrian Mountains to the east of our 

 sections in Northern Spain and demonstrates many similarities in 

 chitinozoan assemblages. Schweineberg (1987) noted the pres- 

 ence of Cyattiochirina spp. in the Las Arroyacas Formation 

 (possibly equivalent to the Formigoso and the lower part of the 

 San Pedro Formations) in Palencia, which he regarded on the 

 basis of graptolites as Wenlock (hindgreni Biozone). In our 

 material we find C. elenitae in the lower part of the San Pedro 

 Formation. Firstly in the V Biozone (Homerian to Lower Gorstian, 



