Scholarly record
BIODIVERSITY OF THE WESTPHALIAN A MARINE MARKER HORIZON OF THE NORTHWEST EUROPEAN CARBONIFEROUS BASIN: IMPLICATIONS FOR THE PALEOECOLOGICAL STUDIES
Abstract
Westphalian A marine horizon Dunbarella is especially important for correlation of Carboniferous in the Lublin Coal Basin (LCB), and in the other basins of the Northwest European Carboniferous Basin (NWECB). Within the horizon Dunbarella an abundant fauna, mainly Mollusca (predominantly bivalves, goniatites, gastropods) and Brachiopoda, were identified. The distribution of fauna in the analysed horizon within the investigated boreholes, fluctuates in terms of both abundance and taxonomy, and cyclic sedimentation typical of marine Westphalian horizons was observed. Palaeontological study of this horizon showed the presence of macrofauna representing different paleoecological conditions, from fully marine, brackish (non-marine) to freshwater conditions. The paper presents changing in biodiversity within the Dunbarella horizon, analyzed using some statistical tools (e.g. species richness S, Margalef Index R1, Simpson's Index D, Shannon index H). The statistical analysis have shown that the trends, recognized in the faunistic diversity, appear to be closely related to the changes in environmental conditions, marine ingressions, and periodic freshening, connected with palaeoclimatic, and palaeogeographic evolution of the Northwest European Carboniferous Basin.
Publication Impact Profile
Publication details
References12
Kombrink, H., The Carboniferous of the Netherlands and surrounding areas; a basin analysis. Geologica Ultraiectina, 294, pp184, 2008;
Krzeszowska, E., New data on the development of the Dunbarella marine marker horizon in the Lublin Coal Basin (Poland), International. Journal of Coal Geology, 150–151, pp 170–180, 2015;
Lande R., DeVries P. J., Walla T. R., When species accumulation curves intersect: Implications for ranking diversity using small samples. Oikos, 89, pp 601–605, 2000;
Leeder M.R., Recent developments in Carboniferous geology; a critical review with implications for the British Isles and N.W. Europe, Proceedings of the Geologists’ Association, 99, pp 73-100, 1988;
Ludwig A.O., Cyclic sedimentation and climatically caused sea-level changes in the Late Palaeozoic of Central Europe, Geologische Rundschau, 83: 7, pp99-810,1994;
Magurran A., E., Ecological Diversity and Its Measurement, Princeton: Princeton University, 1988, pp 1-192, 1988;
Magurran A., E., Measuring biological diversity, Oxford, Blackwell Publishing, pp 1-261, 2004;
Margalef R., Temporal succession and spatial heterogeneity in phytoplankton. In: Perspectives in Marine biology, Buzzati-Traverso (ed.), Univ. Calif. Press, Berkeley, pp. 323-347,1958;
Musiał Ł., Tabor M., Żakowa, H., Makrofauna in The Carboniferous system in Poland, Prace PIG, 168, pp 523–44,1995;
Porzycki J., Zdanowski A., Southeastern Poland. (Lublin Carboniferous Basin) in The Carboniferous system in Poland. Prace PIG, 168, pp 102–109, 1995.
Suess M.P., Drozdzewski G., Schaefer A., Sedimentary environment dynamics and the formation of coal in the Pennsylvanian Variscan foreland in the Ruhr Basin (Germany, Western Europe), International Journal of Coal Geology, 69, pp 267–287. 2007;
Ziegler P.A., Evolution of Laurussia – a study in Late Palaeozoic plate tectonics. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, Boston, London, pp 1-102, 1989.
View or Download full articleAccess options
SWS access login
Login as SWS Scientific CommitteeLogin as SWS Scientific PartnerLogin as SWS AuthorAuthors and approved SWS contributors will read and export their own linked papers after identity matching by SWS profile, email and SGEM GlobalID.
For librarian assistance: [email protected]
Purchase Instant Access
- Article can be downloaded after successful payment.
- Article may be used according to SWS library access terms.
- Article cannot be redistributed.
