Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Distribution of peridiniacean dinoflagellate cysts from cores of organic rich shales of the Duwi and Dakhla formations of Egypt

2020; Elsevier BV; Volume: 170; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2020.103892

1879-1956

Sameh S. Tahoun, Omar Mohamed,

Marine and coastal ecosystems

The Campanian-Maastrictian black shales in Egypt comprise a significant part of the worldwide belt of organic-rich shales. These dark-colored shales stretch from the Dakhla in the Western Desert to Safaga area in the east along the Red Sea and are well known in the Middle East and North Africa. A palynological study of these shales hosted mostly in the Duwi and Dakhla formations yields a Campanian to Maastrichtian age. The extracted palynomorph assemblage from the Abu Tartur and Quseir boreholes, which is dominated by dinoflagellate cysts (dinocysts) representing a well-preserved peridinioid association (>90% of the total dinocysts), is indicative of marine origin and very high paleoproductivity. The common dinocysts are Andalusiella mauthei, Andalusiella gabonensis, Cerodinium diebelii, Senegalinium bicavatum, Senegalinium laevigatum, Palaeocystodinium golzowense and Palaeocystodinium australinum. This assemblage is comparable with the dinoflagellate cyst records of the Campanian-Maastrichtian low latitude strata in northwest Africa (Morocco and Tunisia) and southern Europe. The dinocyst distribution in the Abu Tartur and Quseir borehole sections suggests an isochronous signature during the early Maastrichtian age.