Conodonts from the Sesong Slate and Hwajeol Formation (Guzhangian to Furongian) in the Taebaeksan Basin, Korea

Abundant conodont elements have been recovered from the Hwajeol Formation, to allow five zones to be erected: Proconodontus, Eoconodontus notchpeakensis, Cambrooistodus minutus, Cordylodus proavus, and Fryxellodontus inornatus-Monocostodus sevierensis-Semiacontiodus lavadamensis zones, in ascending order. More confident biozones are recognized in the Sesong Slate and lower Hwajeol Formation in the Makgol section, a part of the southern limb of the Baekunsan syncline, Taebaeksan Basin, Korea, especially focusing on the conodont biostratigraphic boundary of two units, and the subdivision potential of the previous "Proconodontus Zone", lowermost biozone of the Hwajeol Formation. Similarly, only a few conodont elements recovered from upper 14.5 m interval, namely the Furongian portion of the Sesong Slate, in the Makgol section did not allow erection of a biozone. Nevertheless, this part of the unit plus the basal 2.5 m interval of the Hwajeol Formation is characterized by the occurrence of Prooneotodus rotundatus(Druce and Jones), Teridontus nakamurai(Nogami), Phakelodus elongatus(An) and Phakelodus tenuis Müller. This interval marks the early Furongian "Prooneotodus rotundatus Zone". The rest of the measured section yielded relatively abundant conodonts, so three conodont biozones are proposed, based on the successive appearance of key species: Proconodontus tenuiserratus, Proconodontus posterocostatus, and Proconodontus muelleri zones, in ascending order, and thus allowing subdivision of the previous "Proconodontus Zone". The four conodont biozones are correlated with the relevant biozones of North and South China, and North America.     

华北地区冶里-亮甲山期层序地层及其岩相古地理

华北地区的冶里-亮甲山期地层由两个层序组成,“冶里”层序包括冶里组和亮甲山组底部的地层,相当于牙形石Utahconus beimadaoensis-Monocostodus sevierensis带至Scalpellodus tersus带,“亮甲山”层序包括其余的亮甲山组地层,相当于Serratognathus bilobatus带至Paraserratognathus paltodiformis带。由于海水由东北向南侵入,北部地区以海侵体系域及高位体系域发育为特征,主要属开阔海沉积,而南部及西部地区基本为高位体系域,主要属潮坪及局限海沉积,介于两者之间的曲阳-五台一带常以滩相为特征。这种体系域展布格局与生物地层相吻合。在晋南及豫北地区,常缺失海侵体系域的化石带,此外,由于每个层序结束时海退由南向北,因而南部地区又往往缺失高位期晚期或最晚期的地层。华北最北部,如河北平泉、秦皇岛一带,亮甲山组顶部见有一段在华北大部地区缺失的地层(Jumudontus gananda-Scolopodus sunanensis带),它代表了下一层序低位期间的沉积。随着海水再次由北向南侵入,结果形成了下马家沟组底部由北向南的超覆,也就是说,南部的贾汪组可能相当于北部下马家沟组的中下部,而不是底部。     

芙蓉统和排碧阶底界全球层型剖面的牙形刺生物地层

寒武系芙蓉统和排碧阶全球层型剖面——湖南花垣排碧剖面底界界线层的牙形刺生物地层,由下至上划分为Westergaardodina tetragonia带、Westergaardodina matsushitai带和Westergaardodina bicuspidate 3个牙形刺带,可与该界线层的三叶虫带进行很好对比;同时讨论了芙蓉统和排碧阶底界划在牙形刺Westergaardodina mat-sushitai带和Westergaardodina bicuspidata带之间的合理性;此外,还将该牙形刺分带与华北和东北地区寒武系牙形刺带进行了对比。     

Conodont biostratigraphy across the Permian–Triassic boundary at the Dawen section, Great Bank of Guizhou, Guizhou Province, South China: Implications for the Late Permian extinction and correlation with Meishan

Several continuous Permian–Triassic boundary (PTB) sections are well exposed in the interior of the Great Bank of Guizhou (GBG) on the east limb of the Bianyang syncline, Luodian County, Guizhou Province, South China. Fourteen conodont taxa are identified, including Clarkina kazi, Clarkina lehrmanni n. sp., Clarkina taylorae, Clarkina zhejiangensis, Hindeodus eurypyge, Hindeodus inflatus, Hindeodus sxlatidentatus, Hindeodus parvus erectus, Hindeodus parvus parvus, Hindeodus postparvus, Hindeodus praeparvus, Hindeodus typicalis, Isarcicella staeschei, and Merrillina ultima based on a detailed study of the Permian-Triassic interval at the Dawen section. The first occurrence (FO) of H. parvus parvus in the lower Daye Formation, at about 7.45 m above the contact surface between the Upper Permian skeletal packstone and a calcimicrobial framestone unit, is correlated with the Permian–Triassic boundary; the occurrence of H. eurypyge, H. praeparvus and M. ultima immediately below and H. postparvus above the interval supports this interpretation. A morphometric analysis of 31 Hindeodus specimens helped distinguish H. parvus erectus from H. parvus parvus and H. postparvus. Correlation with the Meishan section (PTB GSSP) using both conodont biostratigraphy and carbon isotopes, indicates that the major extinction at the two localities is simultaneous and coincides with the top of the skeletal packstone at Dawen. The contact between the skeletal packstone and the calcimicrobialite is very irregular and has previously been interpreted as a dissolution surface and correlated with a surface in the lower part of bed 27 at Meishan. Our results confirm this interpretation and reveal that the dissolution event postdated the extinction.     

Carbon isotope composition of Upper Cambrian to Lower Ordovician carbonate in Korea,and its bearing on the Cambrian–Ordovician boundary and Lower Ordovician paleoceanography

This study presents an example of locating Cambrian–Ordovician boundary in the lower Paleozoic carbonate succession in Korea using carbon isotope stratigraphy. The Yeongweol Unit of the lower Paleozoic Joseon Supergroup comprises the Upper Cambrian Wagok Formation and the Lower Ordovician Mungok Formation in the Cambrian–Ordovician transition interval. Conventionally, the boundary was placed at the lithostratigraphic boundary between the two formations. This study reveals that the boundary is positioned in the basal part of the Mungok Formation based on the carbon isotope stratigraphy coupled with biostratigraphic information of conodont and trilobite faunas. The δ¹³C curve of the Lower Ordovician Mungok Formation shows a similar trend to that of the coeval stratigraphic interval of Argentine Precordillera (Buggisch et al., 2003), suggesting that the δ¹³C curve of the Mungok Formation reflects the Early Ordovician global carbon cycle.     

Conodont Biostratigraphy of the Middle Cambrian through Lowermost Ordovician in Hunan, South China

Since 1985, samples with a total weight of more than 14,000 kg, mainly from three key sections in western and northwestern Hunan, South China, have been processed for conodonts. In strata older than the late Late Cambrian paraconodonts have proved useful for stratigraphic subdivision and correlation. Thirteen conodont zones are proposed in the Middle Cambrian through lowermost Ordovician. The correlation between these zones and those of North China, western U. S.A., western Newfoundland, Canada, and Iran is discussed. In ascending order, these 13 zones are as follows: The Gapparodus bisulcatus-Westergaardodina brevidens Zone, Shandongodus priscus-Hunanognathus tricuspidatus Zone, Westergaardodina quadrata Zone, Westergaardodina matsushitai-W. grandidens Zone, Westergaardodina lui-W. am Zone, Westergaardodina cf. calix-Prooneotodus rotundatus Zone, Proconodontus tenuiserratus Zone, Proconodontus Zone, Eoconodontus Zone, Cordylodus proavus Zone, Cordylodus intermedius Zone, Cordylodus lindstromi Zone, and     

Atrypid Brachiopods from the Upper Devonian Wangchengpo Formation (Frasnian) of southern Guizhou, China — Extinction Patterns in the Frasnian of South China

The Wangchengpo Frasnian section of Dushan County contains two atrypid brachiopod assemblages. The lower is characterized by the Atryparia （Costatrypa） dushanensis fauna that appears at the base of the Hejiazhai Member approximately in the falsiovalis to transitans conodont zones： the upper is characterized by the Radiatrypa yangi fauna, which appears in the Lujiazhai Member approximately correspondent with the hassi to Upper rhenana conodont zones. Atrypid brachiopods, together with other brachiopods from the Dushan section show that the Hejiazhai Member is of Frasnian age. Preliminary analyses of Frasnian atrypid brachiopods from sections of South China indicate that there are nine genera and subgenera including Atryparia （Costatrypa）, Kyrtatrypa, Spinatrypa, lsospinatrypa, Spinatrypina, lowatrypa, Desquamatia （Desquamatia）. Desquamatia （Seratrypa）, and Radiatr）pa. Atrypid species diversity did not change much through the Frasnian. On a regional scale in South China, most atrypid species went extinct prior to the Frasnian/Famennian boundary. At any specific locality or section, these atrypids became extinct about 20-40 m below the Frasnian/Famennian （F/F） boundary, within the linguiformis conodont Zone, marking this as the major extinction level. Three new atrypid species are described： Atryparia （Costatrypa） dushanensis, lowatrypa pseudobodini, and Radiatrypa yangi.     

Upper carboniferous conodont zones of Russia and their global correlation

The last decade has been marked by significant progress in the study of the stratigraphic ranges of the conodonts characteristic of the Kasimovian and Gzhelian stages in shallow-water sediments of the type sections in the Moscow Basin and the deeper facies of the South Urals. This paper discusses the history of studies of the Upper Carboniferous conodont zonation in Russia and abroad, and proposes a refined zonal conodont scale for the Kasimovian and Gzhelian stages, which may be included, as a standard, into the general Carboniferous scale of Russia. In this scale, the Kasimovian and Gzhelian stages correspond respectively to six (subexcelsus, makhlinae, sagittalis, cancellosus, toretzianus, firmus) and five (simulator, vitali, virgilicus, bellus, wabaunsensis) zones. The proposed scale works for the entire East European Platform and the Urals from the Novaya Zemlya Archipelago in the north to the Mugodzhary Mountains in the south. These regions of Russia are occupied by Upper Carboniferous marine facies. At several levels (especially in the Gzhelian Stage), the scale reliably correlates with zones of the Missourian and Virgilian stages in North America and also Dalaun and Mapingian stages in China.     

The geological evolution of the Gangpur Schist Belt,eastern India: Constraints on the formation of the Greater Indian Landmass in the Proterozoic

The Central Indian Tectonic Zone (CITZ) is a Proterozoic suture along which the Northern and Southern Indian Blocks are inferred to have amalgamated forming the Greater Indian Landmass. In this study, we use the metamorphic and geochronological evolution of the Gangpur Schist Belt (GSB) and neighbouring crustal units to constrain crustal accretion processes associated with the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern Indian Blocks. The GSB sandwiched between the Bonai Granite pluton of the Singhbhum craton and granite gneisses of the Chhotanagpur Gneiss Complex (CGC) links the CITZ and the North Singhbhum Mobile Belt. New zircon age data constrain the emplacement of the Bonai Granite at 3,370 ± 10 Ma, while the magmatic protoliths of the Chhotanagpur gneisses were emplaced at c. 1.65 Ga. The sediments in the southern part of the Gangpur basin were derived from the Singhbhum craton, whereas those in the northern part were derived dominantly from the CGC. Sedimentation is estimated to have taken place between c. 1.65 and c. 1.45 Ga. The Upper Bonai/Darjing Group rocks of the basin underwent major metamorphic episodes at c. 1.56 and c. 1.45 Ga, while the Gangpur Group of rocks were metamorphosed at c. 1.45 and c. 0.97 Ga. Based on thermobarometric studies and zircon–monazite geochronology, we infer that the geological history of the GSB is similar to that of the North Singhbhum Mobile Belt with the Upper Bonai/Darjing and the Gangpur Groups being the westward extensions of the southern and northern domains of the North Singhbhum Mobile Belt respectively. We propose a three‐stage model of crustal accretion across the Singhbhum craton—GSB/North Singhbhum Mobile Belt—CGC contact. The magmatic protoliths of the Chhotanagpur Gneisses were emplaced at c. 1.65 Ga in an arc setting. The earliest accretion event at c. 1.56 Ga involved northward subduction and amalgamation of the Upper Bonai Group with the Singhbhum craton followed by accretion of the Gangpur Group with the Singhbhum craton–Upper Bonai Group composite at c. 1.45 Ga. Finally, continent–continent collision at c. 0.96 Ga led to the accretion of the CGC with the Singhbhum craton–Upper Bonai Group–Gangpur Group crustal units, synchronous with emplacement of pegmatitic granites. The geological events recorded in the GSB and other units of the CITZ only partially overlap with those in the Trans North China Orogen and the Capricorn Orogen of Western Australia, indicating that these suture zones are not correlatable.     

湘西中、晚寒武世牙形刺研究现状及存在问题

湘西中、上寒武统剖面在寒武系全球层型的竞争中具有明显优势 ,其中三叶虫生物地层研究已取得重大进展 ,但一些重要层段的牙形刺详细研究尚未进行 ,而牙形刺在全球界线层型研究中发挥着愈益重要的作用。文内详细介绍了湘西中、晚寒武世牙形刺的研究现状及存在问题 ,并结合《国际地层指南》(第二版 )对全球层型的要求以及国际地层委员会寒武系分会的最新工作进展 ,提出了今后几年湘西中、晚寒武世牙形刺的研究方向及主要任务是建立该地区中、上寒武统候选层型剖面的标准牙形刺序列 ,为我国摘取寒武系内部的“金钉子”并力争用中国的阶填补《国际地层表》中寒武系的空白提供重要依据     

Fossiliferous Cambrian limestone from within the mt read volcanics,mt lyell mine area,Tasmania

In the Mt Lyell area limestone conformably underlying unmineralized Mt Read Volcanics and unconformably overlying mineralized Mt Read Volcanics contains fossils of late Middle Cambrian or early Upper Cambrian age. This suggests an upper limit of late Middle Cambrian or early Upper Cambrian for the mineralization in the Mt Lyell area. The view of Gee et al. (1970) that the Mt Read Volcanics and the fossiliferous Cambrian sequences of western Tasmania are at least partly contemporaneous is confirmed.     

中国南方奥陶纪构造古地理及年代与生物地层的划分与对比

岩相、生物区系和构造组合特征的重新研究表明,在我国南方奥陶纪可以识别出三种不同类型的构造古地理区,即扬子浅海碳酸盐岩台地相区、江南和南秦岭陆棚斜坡过渡相区和华夏陆缘岛弧和边缘盆地相区。前二者应归属于扬子地块;而沉积、生物组合特征以及槽模所指示NW320°的水流方向说明,后者似应归属于华夏地块,而不是华南地块。海南岛作为一个漂移地体,奥陶系可能属于印支地块台缘陆棚相区。年代和生物地层划分和对比研究表明,我国吉林白山大阳岔小阳桥寒武系与奥陶系界线剖面发育了完整的、具有广泛对比意义的牙形石和笔石序列,建议以牙形石Cordylodus intermedius的首现取代在分类上有争议且罕见的Iapetognathus fluctivagus,作为全球寒武系奥陶系界线划分的生物标志。湖南益阳南坝泥江口剖面保存了完整特马豆克期晚期至弗洛期早期笔石序列,建议用益阳阶取代“道保湾阶”作为我国奥陶系区域年代地层单位,易于与瑞典弗洛阶金钉子剖面对比。对宜昌附近黄花场、分乡、陈家河和普溪河等以及湖南慈利茅草铺大湾组至宝塔组含牙形石碳酸盐岩地层的系统采集和研究表明,大湾组自下而上可以分为上Oepikodus communis、Oepikodus evae (s.s.)、Periodon flabellum、Microzarkodina russica、Baltoniodus triangularis、Baltoniodus navis、B.norrlandicus和Lenodus antivariabilis等8个牙形石生物带,并讨论了它们与相关笔石带的对应关系。随着牙形石Protopederodus liripipus在黄花场和普溪河剖面宝塔组底界之上2~3 m出现以及相应碳同位素偏移,说明在扬子碳酸盐岩台地上奥陶统凯迪阶下界应置于宝塔组下部,与Hamarodus? europaeus牙形石带近底部大致相当或接近。据高分辨率离子探针(SHRIMP-II)锆石U-Pb年龄测定,宜昌岩屋咀晚奥陶世五峰组底部Dicellograptus complexus笔石带之下20 cm所发现斑脱岩夹层的年龄为(448.6±4.8) Ma;而田家场Paraorthograptus pacificus笔石带顶部斑脱岩夹层的年龄为(446.5±2.1) Ma,暗示宜昌地区五峰组大约经历了5.4 Ma的沉积时间。     

Discovery of the Jiawengmen Stromatolite Assemblage in the Southern Belt of Eastern Kunlun, NW China and Its Significance

1 Introduction The stromatolites of the Jiawengmen area in the southern belt of the Eastern Kunlun orogen were initially interpreted as vortex structures by the Regional Geological Survey Team, Qinghai Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources in 1973; these samples were then identified as algal fossils of Sinian age by the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Paleontology (Qinghai Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, 1973). In 1994, Chen and Luo (1998) discovered some stromatolites, i…     

Reefs in the Early Paleozoic Taebaek Group, Korea: A Review

Various early Paleozoic (Cambrian Series 3–Middle Ordovician) reefs are found in the Taebaek Group, eastern Korea, located in the eastern margin of the Sino-Korean Block. They occur in every carbonate-dominant lithostratigraphic unit of the group, but their morphology and composition differ markedly. The Daegi Formation (middle Cambrian: Cambrian Series 3) contains siliceous sponge-Epiphyton reefs formed in a shallow subtidal environment, which is one of the earliest metazoan-bearing microbial reefs after the archaeocyath extinction. The Hwajeol Formation (upper Cambrian: Furongian) encloses sporadic dendrolites consisting of Angulocellularia, which developed in a relatively deep subtidal environment, representing a rare deeper water example. The onset of the Ordovician radiation resulted in the formation of microbialite–Archaeoscyphia–calathiid patch reefs in shallow subtidal deposits of the Lower Ordovician Dumugol Formation. Subsequent late Early Ordovician relative sea-level fall established extensive peritidal environments, forming microbial mats and stromatolites of the Lower–Middle Ordovician Makgol Formation. Ensuing Ordovician radiation resulted in one of the earliest metazoan skeletal reefs of the Middle Ordovician Duwibong Formation, constructed by stromatoporoid Cystostroma and bryozoan Nicholsonella, and developed around shallow shoals. These reefs reflect ongoing evolution and sea-level change during the early Paleozoic, and exemplify a rare glimpse of peri-Gondwanan records of reef evolution, which warrant detailed investigations and comparison with their counterparts in other regions.     

Early Cambrian Ichnofossils from the Mussoorie Syncline and revision of Trace Fossil Biozonation of the Lesser Himalaya,India

A new locality bearing ichnofossils of the Cruziana Assemblage Zone-Ⅲ from the Mussoorie syncline,Lesser Himalaya,is located in rocks of Member-B of the Dhaulagiri Formation,Tal Group,exposed along the Maldewta-Chhimoli fresh road cut section.The site yielded ichnofossils Bergaueria perata,Cochlichnus anguineus,？Diplocraterion isp.,Dimorphichnus obliquus,diplichnitiform Cruziana bonariensis,Diplichnites gouldi,Glockeria isp.,Helminthopsis isp.,Monomorphichnus lineatus,Phycodes palmatum,Palaeophycus striatus,Planolites beverleyensis,Planolites montanus,Treptichnus cf.T.pedum,scratch marks and an undetermined worm impression.An Early Cambrian age （Cambrian Series 2） is assigned to the ichnofossil-bearing strata based on the stratigraphic position between the Drepanuroides and Palaeoolenus trilobite zones.A revised Cambrian ichnofossil zonation is presented for the Tal Group of the Mussoorie syncline.Together with their occurrence on rippled surfaces,and the lateral displacement of some trackways （due to current action）,a sub-aqueous shallow-marine depositional setting is proposed for the rocks of Member-B.     

A Middle–Upper Devonian Boundary Section in the Open Platform,Platform Margin Facies of Guilin, South China

Abstract: The Caiziyan Middle and Upper Devonian boundary section is located approximately 30 km northeast of Guilin. It hosts relatively abundant benthic and common–rare pelagic fossils, including brachiopods, corals, tentaculites, and conodonts, which may serve as a better suitable section for pelagic and neritic stratigraphic correlation. In this section, 10 “standard” conodont zones are recognized across the Givetian–Frasnian boundary, including, in descending order, the Lower hassi Zone, punctata Zone, transitans Zone, the Upper falsiovalis Zone, the Lower falsiovalis Zone, disparilis Zone, the Upper hermanni–cristatus Zone, the Lower hermanni–cristatus Zone, the Upper varcus Zone, and the Middle varcus Zone, all of which are defined by the first occurrence of their defining conodont species. The Middle–Upper Devonian (Givetian–Frasnian) boundary is defined by the first occurrence of Ancyrodella pristina in accordance with the Global Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP), which is assigned at 6.2m above the base of bed 19 in the Caiziyan section.     

甘肃的寒武系

寒武系主要分布于北山、祁连山、河西走廊及陕甘宁盆地。根据沉积岩相及动物地理区系分为三大沉积区和７个沉积分区：北山沉积区分为下统双鹰山组、中统大豁落井组、上统西双鹰山组；祁连山沉积区未见下统，中统月牙山群、黑茨沟群和格尔莫沟群，上统香毛山群；华北沉积区下统未分，中统毛庄组、徐庄组和张夏组，上统仅见崮山组。三大沉积区的动物群分别为东南型（除早寒武世外）、过渡型和华北型。寒武系下界相当于滇东的沧浪铺阶之底界，并与震旦系冰碛层呈平行不整合接触。寒武纪岩相古地理轮廓受当时的地壳变动和气候条件所控制。早寒武世中晚期开始海侵，在北山沉积区之西部呈海湾，在陕甘宁盆地西缘呈浅海陆棚，省内其余地区（除西秦岭外）呈古陆状态。中寒武世广泛海侵，在祁连山形成海槽，且地壳运动加剧，火山喷发活动频繁。晚寒武世大规模海退，仅在北山局部地区、祁连山西段和陕甘宁盆地有沉积，其余均为古陆状态。     

Ordovician conodonts of the Tarim Region, Xinjiang, China: Occurrence and use as paleoenvironment indicators

A review of the distribution of different Ordovician conodont faunas in eight areas of the Tarim Region shows that these conodont faunas can be classified into the North China and South China types. The North China type is characterized by Aurilobodus leptosomatus, A. aurilobodus, A. simplex, Tangshanodus tanshanensis, Loxodus dissectus, Parasseratognathus paltodiformis, Microcoelodus symmetricus, Belodina compressa, B. confluens, Pseudobelodina dispansa, Yaoxianognathus yaoxianensis, and Taoqupognathus blandus. These were adapted to shallow, warm-water environments. The South China type is represented by the genera Amorphognathus, Baltoniodus, Cahabagnathus, Eoplacognathus, Lenodus, Microzarkodina, Oepikodus, Paroistodus, Paracordylodus, Periodon, Polonodus, and Pygodus, which were adapted to outer shelf, deeper, and colder water environments. Using the general pattern of conodont distribution, it is possible to interpret the various depositional environments and to reconstruct broad changes in palaeogeography of the Tarim Region during Ordovician time. In general, during Tremadocian to early Middle Ordovician time, most of the Tarim Region was a shallow semi-restricted platform that became deeper towards the north and east, with an open platform in Kalping and in the northern part of Taklimakan Desert. A slope and deep basin existed in the current Tianshan Mountains region. The Tarim sea was shallow during the Early Ordovician and became deeper during “Caradocian” (Sandbian and Early Katian) time, to become shallow again during “Ashgillian” (Late Katian) time, with the exception of part of central Taklimakan, which was a land area during “Caradocian” (Sandbian and Early Katian) time.     

A Potential Candidate For the Middle-Upper Cambrian Boundary Stratotype——An Introduction to the Paibi Section in Huayuan,Hunan

The Middle-Upper Cambrian boundary is one of the current stratigraphical problems which remain openin the geological world, since there have been no universally acknowledged delimiting standard and stratotype.Acting on the instruction of Profs. Lu Yanhao and An Taixiang the author studied in details the Paibi Section,which is well exposed as a continuous sequence at an easily accessible locality. The Middle-Upper Cambrianboundary strata are composed of biocalcimicrosparite, indicating the sedimentary environment of anunderwater upheaval on the gentle slope along the frontal margin of the Yangtze carbonate platform. For the upper Middle and lower Upper Cambrian agnostid trilobite zones and conodont zones are erected,and a more accurate correlation between the trilobite and conodont sequences is established. Based on these,the Middle-Upper Cambrian boundary is drawn more reasonably and precisely than what was done before. Inshort, the section studied is superior to other known sections of Middle-Upper Cambrian. and it will probablybe an ideal candidate for the Middle-Upper Cambrian boundary stratotype.     

Upper Famennian and Lower Tournaisian sections of the Moravian Karst (Moravo‐Silesian Zone,Czech Republic): a proposed key area for correlation of the conodont and foraminiferal zonations

Foraminiferal and conodont faunas at the Devonian–Carboniferous (D–C) boundary in the southern part of the Moravian Karst (Czech Republic) were studied in different facies of the basin slope. The joint presence of foraminifers and conodonts in calciturbidites along with a positive δ¹³C excursion of the Hangenberg anoxic event enabled the high‐resolution calibration of the late Famennian–early Tournaisian interval (Upper expansa–crenulata conodont zones). The conodont stratigraphic and biofacies succession reveals a strong correlation with other European areas. The Siphonodella sulcata morphotype (close to Group 1 sensu Kaiser and Corradini and “nov. gen. nov. sp. 1” sensu Tragelehn) enters prior to the Hangenberg Event, which resembles Upper and Uppermost Famennian conodont successions from Franconia, Bavaria and Morocco. The diversification of the early siphonodellids takes place after the Hangenberg Event and after the protognathodid radiation. In terms of foraminiferal biostratigraphy, the D–C boundary interval is characterized by the first appearance datum (FAD) of Tournayellina pseudobeata close below the D–C boundary followed by a sequence of Tournaisian bioevents, where apart from the last appearance datums (LADs) of quasiendothyrs, the FADs of the Neoseptaglomospiranella species and chernyshinellids play an important role in a similar manner as in Eastern Europe. The correlation of these bioevents elsewhere is often hindered by glacioeustatically‐driven unconformities and widespread occurrences of unfavourable facies for plurilocular foraminifers (Malevka beds and Bisphaera beds). Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.