Ammonite fauna from uppermost Bajocian (Middle Jurassic) calcitic concretions from the Polish Jura—biogeographical and taphonomical implicationsLa faune d'ammonites des concrétions calcitiques du Bajocien terminal (Jurassique moyen) du Jura Polonais—implications biogéographiques et taphonomiques
Introduction
Middle Jurassic deposits in South-Central Poland are well known for their content of carbonate concretions, which yield a well-preserved macrofauna, especially ammonites. Although there are many outcrops, exposing mainly Bathonian strata, there is just one—“Sowa” brick-pit at Kawodrza Górna (Fig. 1)—which contains numerous calcitic concretions of Late Bajocian in age with an abundant, well-preserved ammonite fauna. This type of concretions does not occur elsewhere in the Polish Jura. Recently, amongst abundant parkinsoniids, a few phylloceratids and several lytoceratids as well as representatives of Haplocerataceae have been collected by Majewski (1997) during his M.Sc. fieldwork, and by one of us (M.Z.).
From the Polish Middle Jurassic epicratonic deposits, phylloceratids, as well as some representatives of Haploceratacea have been described and illustrated only by Kopik (1976) from the condensed Lower and Upper Callovian. Three years later Kopik (1979) found uncertain ?Tragophylloceras bathonicum Westermann in the Upper Bathonian deposits of Central Poland (Bełchatów Region). Earlier, Rehbinder (1913) only mentioned the occurrence of Lytoceras sp. from Upper Bajocian, and Phylloceras heterophylloides Oppel from the Upper Bajocian and Bathonian, but they have been neither described nor illustrated. Additionally, phylloceratids and lytoceratids are generally considered to have been inhabitants of open-oceanic environments and, together with representatives of Haplocerataceae, are largely restricted to the Tethyan Realm, being adapted to deep-water environments (Donovan et al., 1981; Page, 1996; Sandoval et al., 2001).
The whole assemblage from the Częstochowa area, compared with other Polish Bajocian and Bathonian concretions, is best preserved and the ammonite fauna is most abundant and diverse. The main purpose of the present paper is to describe the ammonite fauna from these carbonate concretions, to discuss the causes of such a sporadic immigration event of these taxa into the Polish epicontinental sea, to reconstruct the taphonomical processes responsible for faunal accumulations and to present the diagenetic environment using geochemical analysis as well.
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Geological setting
In the Jurassic, the Polish Basin was the easternmost part of the Mid-European Epicontinental Basin (Dadlez, 1989). It was bordered by the Baltic Shield to the north, the Belorussian High and Ukrainian Shield to the east and the Bohemian Massif to the south-west. To the south, the Basin was separated by less specified barriers from epicontinental basins bordering the Western Tethys, as well as from Tethyan oceanic basins (Fig. 1A). During Middle Jurassic time, the deposits of the epicontinental
Material and methods
Several concretions were broken up (Fig. 2) and the ammonite fauna was separated as carefully as possible. All ammonites retrieved (complete and large fragments) were counted and percentage values calculated. The specimens are housed in the Faculty of Earth Sciences of University of Silesia, Sosnowiec (abbreviated GIUS). Specimens from the Institute of Geology, University of Warsaw (abbreviated IGPUW) were also borrowed for temporary study. Before being photographed all specimens were powdered
Fossils
Calcitic concretions from between levels A and B are oval or spherical in shape, small to medium sized (ca. 10–16 cm in diameter). They are divided into two zones: the outer-2 cm thick, grey in colour and impoverished in fossils; and the inner one dark-grey in colour which is the main source of fossils. They consist of abundant, well-preserved but small-sized (mostly juvenile) ammonite fauna. There are numerous parkinsoniids [Parkinsonia (Parkinsonia) aff. dorni Arkell], lytoceratids [(
Systematic palaeontology
Abbreviations used: D – shell diameter; U – umbilicus diameter; Wb – whorl breadth; Wh – whorl height; Pr – number of primary ribs per half whorl; Wb/D – whorl breadth to shell diameter ratio; Wh/D – whorl height to shell diameter ratio; U/D – umbilicus diameter to shell diameter ratio. Whorl expansion rate (WER) following Klug, 2001, Klug, 2002). The suture nomenclature follows that recently proposed by Korn et al. (2003). All measurements are given in millimeters.
Order AMMONOIDEA Zittel, 1884.
Ammonite immigration into the Polish Basin
In the uppermost Bajocian epicratonic deposits of South-Central Poland phylloceratids and lytoceratids do not represent the demic populations (see Callomon, 1985; Fernández-López and Meléndez, 1996 for further explanation). Their greatest diversity and abundance are confined to the Mediterranean Province (Galácz, 1980). Therefore, they seem to be immigrants which came from the deeper southern province into the shallower (see Hallam, 1994) Submediterranean one. It is well illustrated by
Taphonomy
All fossils, and ammonites in particular, in the concretions are well-preserved, occurring as calcareous shells with sculptural structures finely preserved. Some specimens, or parts of them are pyritised. The ammonites are neither crushed nor deformed, although they often lack parts of the body chamber. Only some specimens from the outer part of the concretions have crushed phragmocones. This is in strong contrast to other Polish ammonites, especially Bathonian in age, which often possess
Source of organic matter and remarks on diagenetic environment
Values of CPI(25–31) higher than 1 in concretions and clays, together with perylene, fichtelite, cadalene, dehydroabietane, simonellite and retene occurrence suggests predominance of terrestrial organic matter in both concretions and surrounding clays. Marine input to the organic matter is indicated by occurrence of C30-Δ13(17)diasterenes (20R i 20S epimers).
Organic matter (OM) in the host sediments and carbonate concretions of the Middle Jurassic of the Częstochowa region is thermally
Conclusions
The ammonites from the uppermost Bajocian (Bomfordi Subzone) carbonate concretions from Kawodrza Górna are unique in Middle Jurassic Epicontinental Polish Basin in their state of preservation, density and taxonomic composition.
The ammonite fauna is dominated by parkinsoniids, emphasising a northern habitat but a minority of phylloceratids, strigoceratids and leptosphinctids, of Mediterranean habitat origin suggests immigration from the Tethys during episodes of sea-level rise.
Acknowledgments
Professor dr hab. Ryszard Marcinowski (University of Warsaw) is greatly acknowledged for loaning the part of the ammonite fauna. Dr. John W.M. Jagt (Natural History Museum, Maastricht) kindly read the previous draft of the manuscript and improved the English language. We thank Professor M.O. Jędrysek (University of Wrocław) for isotopic analyses and Cezary Grelowski (Petrogeo, Piła) for TOC analyses. Special acknowledgments are due to Dr. Marc Philippe (University of Lyon) and Dr. Loïc Villier
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