This study focuses on four Lower Carboniferous bearing tectonostratigraphic units of Turkey: the Istanbul-Zonguldak Zone (10 sections near Zonguldak and Bartin), the Anatolides (2 sections in the Bolkardag Unit), the Taurides (5 sections in the Aladag Unit) and the Peri-Arabian domain (1 section in the Hakkari area in Southernmost Turkey).The taxonomic analyze conducted on Lower Carboniferous rugose corals from Turkey revealed the occurrence of 87 species - including 74 recorded for the first time in these areas, 10 being newly described - belonging to 46 genera - including one new. The Istanbul-Zonguldak Zone yielded 53 species (31 genera) whereas only 15 species (10 genera) were recognized in the Anatolides, 17 species (12 genera) from the Taurides and 7 species (6 genera) from the Hakkari area.ISTANBUL-ZONGULDAK ZONEIstanbul-Zonguldak Zone is a fragment of the southern margin of Laurussia, detached when the Black Sea openned during the Late Cretaceous and drifted southward. The eastern part of the Zone (Zonguldak and Bartin area) were part of the carbonate platform fringing the margin of Laurussia in Carboniferous times. Tournaisian and Viséan deposits show a more proximal facies in Bartin than in Zonguldak and the gap capping the Viséan sequence is larger than in the later area where the upper part of the Warnantian is preserved. A deepening from east (Bartin) to west (Zonguldak) is obvious.In Zonguldak and Bartin, the Strunian coral fauna is dominated by Campophyllum, together with Bounophyllum, Pseudoendophyllum, Amplexocarinia and stromatoporoids. The Tournaisian strata are poor in corals for facies reasons. Uralinia simplex and Caninophyllum charli sp. nov. are known in the Hastarian sub-stage. Corphalia fourmarieri, Corphalia sp., Amygdalophyllum ? sp., Uralinia cf. multiplex, Caninia sp. B, "Lophophyllum" konincki, Cyathaxonia cornu and Cyathoclisia uralensis are present in the Ivorian sub-stage. The Moliniacian deposits are richer in corals, including colonies of Siphonodendron ondulosum and Dorlodotia briarti forming with Palaeosmilia murchisoni an association similar to those described in time-equivalent facies of Western Europe. This first assemblage defines the Dorlodotia Zone, correlated with the Poty (1983, Poty et al., 2006)'s RC5. The uppermost Moliniacian yielded a very diversified assemblage composed of Siphonodendron martini, Dorlodotia euxinensis, Ceriodotia bartinensis, C. petalaxoides, Lithostrotion potii sp. nov., Palaeosmilia murchisoni, Clisiophyllum multiseptatum and Gen. nov. B. columnariformis. They characterize the Ceriodotia Zone that covers the falling-stage system tract of sequence 6 and/or the lower-stand system tract of sequence 7 (Hance et al., 2001) corresponding, in Western Europe, to a gap or to non or poorly fossiliferous limestones. Associated with the two species of our new genus Ceriodotia, this assemblage contains the oldest-known species of Lithostrotion: L. potii that most probably evolved from a wide-corallite sub-cerioid Siphonodendron ondulosum. The genus Ceriodotia was created (Denayer, 2011) for cerioid colonies of Dorlodotia. The type species C. bartinensis being probably arisen from Dorlodotia euxinensis. Ceriodotia Denayer 2011, Dorlodotia Salée 1920, Corphalia Poty 1975 and Kwangsiphyllum Grabau 1931 are included in a newly erected family Dorlodotidae. The Late Viséan is represented, in Zonguldak and Bartin areas, by two coral zones. The first one, the Siphonodendron asiaticum Zone correlates with the RC7 zone of Poty (1985), in the lower Warnantian. Included species are Siphonodendron asiaticum, S. martini, S. irregulare, S. pauciradiale, S. rallii sp. nov., S. scaleberense, S. kleffense and S. cf. kleffense, Lithostrotion sp., Koninckophyllum interruptum, Clisiophyllum cf. keyserlingi and Siphonophyllia sibly. The upper Warnantian Palastrea konincki Zone comprises also Lithostrotion decipiens, Pseudozaphrentoides cf. judii and Palastrea konincki and correlates with the RC8 Zone. These two zones cover the transgressive and highstand system tracts of sequence 9. The higshtand is recorded in Zonguldak but seems to be lacking or extremely reduced in Bartin. Comparative description of coral fauna from Zonguldak and Bartin show the clear their affinity with those from Donets Basin, both belonging to the East European faunal Province.ANATOLIDESNorthern part of Chios Island (Greece), Karaburun Peninsula and Teke Dere Unit of the Lycian Nappes expose the Anatolides basement composed of flysch deposits with olistolites. Some of these olistolites are made of Viséan limestones. The olistolites are interpretted as resulting from the breaking of a carbonate platform destroyed by accretion when the Rheic Ocean subducted under the southern margin of Laurussia. Similar situations are observed in Balkans, South France and South Spain that belonged, during Carboniferous times, to the Hunnic Terranes boarding the southern margin of Laurussia. In Central Anatolides, the Bolkardag Unit exposes some olistolites with reefal facies. One of them, described (Denayer & Aretz, 2012) in Kongul Yayla is a microbial-sponge-bryozoans and corals bioherm. The corals are numerous and diversified: Siphonodendron irregulare, S. pauciradiale, S. cf. intermedium, Espielia tauridensis, Lithostrotion maccoyanum, L. vorticale, L. araneum, Palaeosmilia murchisoni, P. multiseptata, Axophyllum pseudokirsopianum, Clisiophyllum sp., Amygdalophyllum sp., Gen. nov. A aff. Soshkineophyllum sp., Rotiphyllum cf. densum et Amplexocarinia aff. cravenense. The age of the bioherm is Early Warnantian (RC7ß zone) and the coral assemblage show strong affinities with the Mediterranean sub-province of the Western Europe province.TAURIDESUntil Permian times, the Taurides formed the northern edge of Gondwana. Together with Iranian and Afghan blocks, the Taurides formed the Cimmerian Terrane that were drifted northward when the Palaeotethys was closed. The Cimmerian Terrane collided with the Anatolides and the southern margin of Laurussia in Late Triassic when the Palaeotethys was completely consumed by subduction. Several tectonostratigraphic units composed the Taurides. At least three of them contain Lower Carboniferous deposits. Among them, the Aladag Unit where the Upper Tournaisian is shaly and the Lower Viséan composed of limestone and dolostone. The coral fauna is abundant but poorly diversified and dominated by solitary taxa: Proheterelasma omaliusi, Zaphrentites delanouei, Uralinia sp., Uralinia multiplex, Siphonophyllia sp. A, Siphonophyllia? sp., Caninia cornucopiae, Calmiussiphyllum sp., Caninophyllum sp. and Keyserlingophyllum obliquum were collected in the shaly facies and the alterning shale-limestone sequences. Lower Viséan limestone yielded Kueichouphyllum alborense, K. cf. yabei, K. sp., Keyserlingophyllum cf. obliquum, Amygdalophyllum kalawchense, and Eokoninckocarinia gemmina sp. nov. The association correlates with the Chinese Kueichouphyllum Zone and represents the Middle-East sub-province of the Asian province.PERI-ARABIAN DOMAINDuring Carboniferous times, the Peri-Arabian Domain (northernmost part of the Arabian Plate) was part of the northern margin of Gondwana. The Upper Tournaisan and/or Lower Viséan is recorded in the Hakkari area. Two horizons situated in mixed silicoclastic and carbonate yielded some small solitary non-dissepimented rugose corals: Rotiphyllum cf. simulatum, Zaphrentites parallela, Amplexizaphrentites zapense sp. nov., A. sp., Ufimia sp., together with Caninia aff. cornucopiae and cf. Gorizdronia sp. The coral fauna is not usable for biostratigraphy nor palaeobiogeography. Nevertheless, the simple fauna could indicates the Middle-East sub-province. |
