Maria Helena Henriques

The Lias/Dogger boundary in Iberia; Betic and Iberian cordilleras and Lusitanian Basin

In this paper we present a synthesis on the Toarcian/Aalenian (Lias/Dogger) boundary in the Iberian Peninsula. We have selected in each domain the most representative areas and sections in which this boundary is represented: Fuentelsaz and Moyuela sections in the Iberian Cordillera, Sierra de Ricote and Cerro Mendez in the Betic Cordillera, and Sao Giao in the Lusitanian Basin. In these areas the succession across the Toarcian/Aalenian boundary is represented mainly by pelagic grey marl-marly limestone rhythmites, which contain abundant and characteristic ammonites. The standard ammonite zones of Aalensis (Mactra, Aalensis and Buckmani Subzones) for the uppermost Upper Toarcian, and Opalinum (Opalinum and Comptum Subzones) in the Lower Aalenian are recognised and characterised. Although the ammonite assemblages of the Betic Cordillera are typical of the Mediterranean province, and the Iberian and Lusitanian basins constitute a Sub-Mediterranean one, the ammonite assemblages are similar in the three basins, with the only significant difference being that phylloceratids and lytoceratids are abundant in the Betic domain and are scarcer in the other basins.

Ammonite succession at the Bajocian/Bathonian boundary in the Cabo Mondego region (Portugal)

The Cabo Mondego outcrops exposed along the cliffs, on the western margin of the Iberian Plate, show an expanded stratigraphic section of Lower Bathonian deposits containing abundant ammonoids. Upper Bajocian deposits correspond to similar facies, of muddy limestones alternating with marlstones, although ammonoids are scarce. A detailed succession of ammonites across the Bajocian/Bathonian boundary has been recognized at Cabo Mondego, which can form a useful bio- and chronostratigraphic standard for the Lusitanian Basin. The revision of previous collections from the classical section and new field samplings of two other separate sections allow the recognition through up to twenty metres of thickness, the highest zone of Bajocian (Parkinsoni Zone) and the lowest zone of Bathonian (Zigzag Zone). The Parkinsoni and the Zigzag zones established for NW European areas and belonging to the Northwest European Province, can be identified in the Lusitanian Basin, although the ammonite fossil assemblages are composed of Submediterranean taxa. However, a subdivision of the Parkinsoni Zone is not possible, due to the scarcity of well preserved ammonoids. The Zigzag Zone can be recognized and characterized as composed of two subunits (Parvum and Macrescens subzones) as represented in diverse European basins of the Submediterranean Province. Ammonite fossil assemblages of the Parvum Subzone may be grouped into two successive horizons, which are biochronostratigraphically equivalent to the subdivisions of the Convergens Subzone distinguished in the Digne-Barreme area (SE France). New biochronostratigraphic data on the Bigotitinae, youngest members of Leptosphinctinae and oldest members of Zigzagiceratinae are relevant in understanding the evolution and faunal turnover of the West Tethyan Perisphinctidae during earliest Bathonian. The ammonite succession at the Bajocian/Bathonian boundary in the Cabo Mondego region (Portugal) represents one of the most complete biostratigraphic records so far recognized on the Iberian Plate.

NEW EARLY BATHONIAN BIGOTITINAE AND ZIGZAGICERATINAE (AMMONOIDEA, MIDDLE JURASSIC)

Several tens of Lower Bathonian Bigotites from Digne-Castellane region (SE France) and Cabo Mondego area (Portugal) have been reviewed. Three species have been distinguished in the lowermost subzone of the Zigzag Zone (Parvum Subzone) just above the boundary Bajocian to Bathonian: B. diniensis Sturani [M+m], B. sturanii sp. nov. [M+m] and B. mondegoensis sp. nov. [M+m]. In the Bas Auran area, a chronocline from evolute, strongly ribbed and constricted forms (including B. sturanii and B. diniensis ) to involute forms with blunt, moderately prominent ribbing and weak constrictions (including B. mondegoensis ) can be recognized. The shared taxa B. mondegoensis sp. nov. and possibly B. diniensis Sturani permit detailed subdivision and correlation to be established between ammonite fossil assemblages of Parvum Subzone in the Lusitanian and Alpine basins. A separate genus of Zigzagiceratinae, Protozigzagiceras g. nov., is proposed to encompass P. torrensi (Sturani) as type species. These new palaeontological data about the youngest members of Bigotitinae and the oldest members of Zigzagiceratinae are of biochronostratigraphic importance for the subdivision and correlation of the basal Bathonian Zigzag Zone. Three successive biohorizons can be identified at the Parvum Subzone in Bas Auran (French Alpine Basin) and Cabo Mondego (Lusitanian Basin): Diniensis, Mondegoensis and Protozigzagiceras biohorizons.

JURASSIC HERITAGE OF PORTUGAL: STATE OF THE ART AND OPEN PROBLEMS

The aim of this work is to present a general view on the situation of Jurassic sites outcropping in Portugal, in particular those located in the Lusitanian Basin, which represent geosites with heritage value. The legal instruments on geoconservation are generically presented, and they happen to be designed for Natural Heritage deeply confused with the Biological Heritage. No specific law for geological values exist in Portugal, but the general law on Natural Conservation has allowed the protection of five geosites of national relevance as Natural Monuments. They correspond to a small area when compared to the whole national area of Protected Sites, and they all correspond to dinosaur tracksites of Jurassic and Cretaceous age. Geosites of regional relevance have been also protected using municipal laws and they show important public use, sometimes giving rise to reference museums and to continuous pedagogical actions. On the other hand, geosites of international relevance for its stratigraphic value (the Bajocian GSSP at Cabo Mondego section, the candidate to the Toarcian GSSP at Peniche section) have no formal protection and classification according to the Portuguese laws. They remain safe because they are located on the coast, which is protected due to other environmental laws. Their integration in a supra-national framework supported by UNESCO is obviously recommended and it would be of great impact among the national institutions with formal responsibilities on the Natural Heritage.

The Paleontological Heritage of the Acre (Amazonia, Brazil): Contribution Towards a National Paleontological Database

Acre State is located in the southwest of Amazonia (Brazil) and is internationally known for its fossiliferous sites which have yielded well-preserved fossils of major relevance to the understanding of the Cenozoic paleofauna of South America, mainly during the Miocene. In order to preserve this paleontological heritage and to study the material from the formations outcropping across south western Amazonia, the Paleontological Research Laboratory was created in the 1980s at the Federal University of Acre (acronym UFAC in Portuguese) and houses a collection including over 4500 catalogued specimens (mainly invertebrates, fish, reptiles, birds and mammals) and a small Museum open to the scientific community and to a wider society. This paper aims to identify the geoheritage value of the fossil record of Acre, which is represented by material collected from the Solimões Formation (Miocene to Pliocene) over the last three decades and stored at the UFAC. The qualitative evaluation system used, which integrates both its scientific and social uses, can also be applied to other Brazilian collections, in order to create a National Paleontological Database, similar to that already developed for Geological and Paleobiological Sites.

Catalogue of the Krantz Brachiopod Collection at the Science Museum of the University of Coimbra (Portugal).

The specimens of the Krantz Brachiopod Collection of the Science Museum of the University of Coimbra (Portugal) are revised according to modern taxonomy and presented in systematic order according to inventory number, type species, figured representative and, as far as possible, detailed information regarding stratigraphy and collecting localities. The collection itself contains 170 lots yielding 474 specimens and representing 15 of the 27 brachiopod orders. The material comes from Europe, Russia, and the United States and represents all Palaeozoic and Mesozoic periods; the majority of the brachiopods are from the Devonian of Germany, mostly collected in classical outcrops from the Rhenish Slate Mountains, many of which are no longer accessible.

Geoheritage and advanced training for the oil industry: The Lusitanian Basin case-study (Portugal)

The Lusitanian Basin (central Portugal) is a recurring subject of study within different disciplines of earth sciences, mainly because of the excellent stratigraphical and paleontological records, as well as the world-class quality of outcropping elements of petroleum systems and salt tectonics geometries. In fact, in the Lusitanian Basin, three global stratigraphic references were defined for the Jurassic System—the Toarcian Global Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP), the Bajocian GSSP, and the Bathonian Auxiliary Stratigraphic Section and Point—but the sedimentary record of the Lusitanian Basin includes a set of geosites that provide favorable conditions for educational activities, in the frame of the Portuguese educational system, which are increasingly being sought for the development of advanced training activities in the context of the hydrocarbon exploration models. This paper presents the main reasons that attract this particular public, which includes geospecialists and geoexperts, to the Lusitanian Basin outcrops, as well as the geosites that are currently visited for advanced training purposes by different oil companies. As such, the geological heritage of the Lusitanian Basin represents a paradigmatic example of the relevance of enlarging the traditional vision that confines technical applications of geoconservation to scientific research, education, and geotourism, the last of which is considered in the sense of an activity intended exclusively for geoamateurs and/or people who are either unaware of or interested in learning about geological issues.

Paleoecological quantitative analysis based on benthic foraminifera of the Aalenian–Bajocian boundary (upper Bradfordensis–lower Discites) in the Barranco de Agua Larga section (Betic Cordillera, Southern Spain)

PurposeTo report, for the first time, the benthic foraminiferal assemblages recorded across the upper Bradfordensis–lower Discites ammonite zones (Aalenian–Bajocian boundary, Middle Jurassic) in the Barranco de Agua Larga section (Betic Cordillera, Southern Spain),in order to infer the paleecological conditions that affected their development.MethodsA total of 17 samples were collected in this reference section, and the composition of the foraminiferal assemblages recorded throughout the studied stratigraphical was analyzed using quantitative data obtained through the estimation of relative abundances and the calculation of several diversity indexes.ResultsThe assemblages are abundant (a total of 3, 139 well-preserved specimens) and diverse(82 species). Their composition displays close similarities to those already described for the Jurassic carbonate platforms of the Boreal Realm (Type-A), Boreal Atlantic subdivision.ConclusionsThe studied assemblages were developed in distal marine environmental conditions, at a depth situated above the level of the calcite compensation, well oxygenated and with normal salinity, although for certain times (Aalenian–Bajocian boundary) unfavorable environmental conditions could have developed. The sharp decrease in the abundance and diversity that was recorded during the Aalenian–Bajocian transition has also been recognized in other coeval basins of the Iberian Plate paleomargin, thus representing a bioevent of regional rank.ResumenObjetivoDescribir, por primera vez, las asociaciones de foraminíferos bentónicos registradas en materiales del intervalo comprendido entre la parte superior de la Zona Bradfordensis y la Zona Discites (límite Aaleniense–Bajociense, Jurásico Medio) en la sección de Barranco de Agua Larga (Cordillera Bética, sur de España), con el fin de inferir las condiciones paleoecológicas que condicionaron su desarrollo.MetodologíaSe analizó la composición de las asociaciones de foraminíferos registrados en 17 muestras recogidas en esta sección de referencia a lo largo del intervalo estratigráfico estudiado utilizando datos cuantitativos obtenidos a través de la estimación de abundancias relativas y del cálculo de varios índices de diversidad.ResultadosLas asociaciones son abundantes (se han obtenido un total de 3139 ejemplares bien conservados) y diversas (82 especies). Su composición muestra similitudes con asociaciones ya descritas en las plataformas carbonatadas jurásicas del Dominio Boreal (tipo A), Subdivisión Boreal Atlántica.ConclusionesLas asociaciones estudiadas se desarrollaron en condiciones ambientales marinas distales, a una profundidad situada por encima del nivel de compensación de la calcita, bien oxigenada y con salinidad normal, aunque en ciertos momentos pudieran haberse desarrollado condiciones ambientales desfavorables. Así, en el tránsito Aaleniense-Bajociense se registra una notable disminución en la abundancia y en la diversidad de las asociaciones registradas. Este evento, previamente reconocido en otras cuencas mesozoicas de la Placa Ibérica, tendría carácter regional.

Response of benthic foraminiferal assemblages to contrasting environments during the Aalenian–Bajocian in the Iberia: a case study from the Talveila section (Iberian Range) and Murtinheira section (Lusitanian Basin)

This paper analyses the composition of the foraminiferal assemblages recorded in two different depositional contexts located in Iberia for the lower Aalenian–lower Bajocian stratigraphical interval: the Talveila section, corresponding to proximal facies within the Iberian Basin (NE Spain), and the Murtinheira section representing distal facies within the Lusitanian Basin (Western Portugal). The obtained specimens (10,736 in total) correspond to 6 suborders, 10 superfamilies, 16 families and 30 genera in Talveila, and 6 suborders, 9 superfamilies, 14 families and 26 genera in Murtinheira. Several biostratigraphic units based on the foraminiferal record and accurately calibrated with the ammonite record were recognized in both sections. Moreover, bioevents based on the first or last appearances of a taxon, significant changes in the abundance of one or several taxa or noticeable changes in diversity of the assemblages were also identified. The palaeoecological analysis shows that the foraminiferal assemblages from both sections were developed in a well-oxygenated and normal salinity shelf environment. The application of diversity indexes indicates that the paleoenvironmental conditions did not remain constant throughout the studied stratigraphic interval; changes recognized in both sections are similar, coeval and correspond to three intervals representing paleoenvironmental conditions more or less favourable for the development of the foraminiferal assemblages. As so, despite the different paleogeographical locations, the development of the assemblages in both sections during the Early Aalenian–Early Bajocian seem to have been conditioned by environmental changes of regional scale, which affected at the same time both the Iberian and the Lusitanian basins.ResumenEn este trabajo se analiza la composición de las asociaciones de foraminíferos registradas en dos contextos deposicionales diferentes, localizados en Iberia, para el intervalo estratigráfico Aaleniense inferior- Bajociense inferior. La sección de Talveila corresponde a facies proximales de la Cuenca Ibérica (NE España), y la sección de Murtinheira representa facies distales de la Cuenca Lusitánica (O de Portugal). Los ejemplares obtenidos (10736 en total) corresponden a 6 subórdenes, 10 superfamilias, 16 familias y 30 géneros en Talveila y 6 subórdenes, 9 superfamilias, 14 familias y 26 géneros en Murtinheira. Se han reconocido en ambas secciones algunas unidades bioestratigráficas basadas en el registro foraminíferos, y calibradas con precisión con el registro de ammonoideos. Además, se han identificado bioeventos basados en la primera o la última aparición de un taxón, cambios significativos en la abundancia de uno o varios taxones o cambios significativos en la diversidad de las asociaciones. El análisis paleoecológico realizado pone de manifiesto que en ambas secciones las asociaciones de foraminíferos se desarrollaron en un ambiente de plataforma bien oxigenada y con salinidad normal. Los resultados obtenidos tras la aplicación de varios índices de diversidad indican que las condiciones paleoambientales no fueron constantes durante todo el intervalo estratigráfico analizado; los cambios reconocidos en ambas secciones son similares y se corresponden con tres intervalos que representan condiciones paleoambientales más o menos favorables para el desarrollo de las asociaciones de foraminíferos. Por lo tanto, a pesar de las diferentes ubicaciones paleogeográficas de las secciones estudiadas, el desarrollo de las asociaciones en ambas durante el Aaleniense inferior - Bajociense inferior parece haber estado condicionado por cambios ambientales de escala regional, que afectaron tanto a la Cuenca Ibérica como a la Cuenca Lusitánica.

Accessible Geoparks in Iberia: a Challenge to Promote Geotourism and Education for Sustainable Development

This work aims at providing an overview regarding accessibility conditions for people with functional diversity among the 15 UNESCO Global Geoparks (UGGs) located in the Iberian Peninsula—4 in Portugal and 11 in Spain—from the point of view of a disabled user wishing to visit a geopark. Website information and a questionnaire composed of closed and multiple choice questions directly administrated to the geopark managers were used aiming at inquiring about facilities provided to people requiring adapted access conditions, including mobility, vision, hearing and cognitive dimensions of access both under the aim of geotourism activities or in the frame of educational programmes. Results show that Iberian UGGs display several facilities for the development of geotourism and education that meet the needs of people with functional diversity. Accessibility facilities to receive people with physical impairments are common, but sensory and communication access facilities are scarce. Geoparks’ websites generally lack information concerning facilities for special groups, and the web design does not meet the needs of people that have difficulties with written word and speech. The constraints on implementation of programmes aimed at disabled visitors can be partially overcome if geoparks’ leaders seek to integrate partners that currently develop activities for persons with disabilities. Geodivulgar (an innovation project from the Complutense University) and Science without Barriers (an association; Ciencia sin Barreras in Spanish) are pioneer initiatives for the outreach of geology among people with functional diversity in Spain, which currently develops activities and resources that can be of great help to enlarge the geoparks’ offer about geotouristic tours and/or educational programmes for disabled visitors. The acquired experience at the Basque Coast UGG can be of great help for other partners of the UGG Network to fully fulfil their roles as agents of sustainable development through geotourism and education for all.