Marta Zunino

Tectono-sedimentary evolution of the Pliocene to Lower Pleistocene succession of the Apricena-Lesina-Poggio Imperiale quarrying district (western Gargano, southern Italy)

The post-Miocene marine succession of the «Apricena horst» is described with the purpose to verify the chronostratigraphic constraints for the type-locality of the Pirro Nord Faunal Unit. The stratigraphic succession has been subdivided in four units bounded by ubiquitous unconformities with evidence of subaerial exposure. The two basal units (dated late Zanclean to at most early Piacenzian) are formally grouped in the Lago di Varano Fm. that on the whole consists of sediments ranging from lagoonal to circalittoral environments. Within the lowermost unit, a megabreccia is interpreted as the product of a tsunami event. The third unit, Gelasian in age, is informally cited as Calcari a Briozoi Fm. The last unit, the Lower Pleistocene Serracapriola Fm., consists of siliciclastic deltaic sediments and represents the closure of the marine cycle. Conspicuous lateral facies and thickness changes, and the frequency of unconformities are the consequence of an intense synsedimentary tectonic activity developed in the frame of the southern Apulia foredeep closure. In the study area, such activity is documented by two E-W trending normal faults which, during Zanclean and at least the earliest Gelasian, controlled the Pliocene horst-graben system of the Apricena-Poggio Imperiale area.

Taphonomic Analysis of the Lower Pleistocene Pirro Nord Fossil Locality (Pirro 10 Site, Puglia, Southern Italy): A Depositional Model for Vertebrate Assemblages in a Karstic Environment

ABSTRACT Taphonomic analyses have been conducted on the macromammal remains found in Sedimentary Unit 7 of the lower Pleistocene Pirro 10 site of the Pirro Nord locality in Italy. Recent field research has concentrated on investigating the fossil content of this site and the genesis of the karst network and its related deposits. In the present study, we distinguish between preburial and synsedimentary (during burial) processes in order to group the vertebrate remains into different taphonomic categories according to their various states of preservation, thus introducing the concept of taphorecord—borrowed from invertebrate taphonomy—into macrovertebrate taphonomy for the first time. Element quantification, evaluation of transport effects, and state of preservation of the skeletal elements were studied and all elements separated into four taphorecords according to their relative chronology. The use of taphorecords also improves the accuracy of the data obtained from the various methods of element quantification. The analysis of bone sorting and orientation indicates that the fossiliferous deposits originated by water flows carrying both fossils and sediments, alternating with phases of carcass accumulation and reelaboration of bones from previously deposited layers. The study presented here serves as a proof of concept for the use of taphorecords in analyses of fossiliferous deposits in caves.

Two Examples of the Geoheritage Potential of Piedmont (NW Italy): Verrua Savoia for the Present, Valle Ceppi for the Future

The aim of this article is to describe two “model” geosites of Torino province (Piedmont, NW Italy) in order to explain the state of the art of paleontological and stratigraphical geosite inventory and management in Piedmont. Collaboration between Torino University, local administrations, and industry resulted in the inauguration of the first geosite in Torino province, located in Verrua Savoia quarry, in October 2010. This site documents the geological record of the birth, life and death of a submerged mud volcano. Based on the success of this project, we propose the creation of another equipped area in Valle Ceppi, which constitutes an international point of reference for the study of Miocene molluscs. Piedmont is a region characterized by a heterogeneous patchwork of geological peculiarities that need to become public knowledge. Mismanagement of these areas may lead to their destruction, resulting in irreparable scientific and cultural damage. It should also be noted that the creation of equipped geosites plays an important role in the development of environmental awareness among the general public and local administrative entities and also increases the economic resources of the surrounding areas.

LOWER TO MIDDLE MIOCENE MOLLUSC ASSEMBLAGES FROM THE TORINO HILLS (NW ITALY): SYNTHESIS OF NEW DATA AND CHRONOSTRATIGRAPHICAL ARRANGEMENT

The goal of this study is to correlate in chronostratigraphic order the fossil assemblages of selected, historical Lower and Middle Miocene localities of the Torino Hills. More than 18,000 specimens have been classified and assigned to 798 taxa (cf. Tab. I). The compositional analyses mainly concern the 672 listed gastropods, most of which were already described in classical monographies. The critical evaluation of the morphological and architectural shell parameters let to a significant reduction of the species that could be realistically maintained in comparison to those cited in literature from the Torino Hills Miocene. Six localities have been analyzed: Valle Ceppi (VC) and Val Sanfra (VS) referred to the middle part of the Burdigalian stage (N7a Biozone), Villa Bertini at the topmost Burdigalian, Villa Allason (VA) and Villa Forzano (VF) at the early Langhian (N8 Biozone) and Monte dei Cappuccini (MC) at the late Langhian (N9 Biozone). On the whole, the fossil assemblages show a taxonomic variation of both biochronologic and palaeobiogeographic meaning. Actually, the similarity in specific biodiversity of VC, VS, VB, VA and VS reflects homogeneity among late Burdigalian to early Langhian palaeocommunities. As to MC, its deep difference on VC is correlatable with the eastern closing between the Mediterranean areas and the Tethyan Realm, at the boundary Burdigalian-Langhian, that brought to disjoint evolutions of the Mediterranean and Indo-Pacific palaeocommunities, the former being influenced by oceanic current changes and related climatic variations.

POLYPLACOPHORA FROM THE MIOCENE OF NORTH ITALY. PART 2: CALLOCHITONIDAE, CHITONIDAE, LEPIDOCHITONIDAE, ACANTHOCHITONIDAE AND CRYPTOPLACIDAE

This study completes the description of the chiton fauna (Mollusca, Polyplacophora) from deposits of the Miocene marine sequence of North Italy, located in Piedmont and Emilia Romagna regions. This second and final part describes chitons belonging to five families: Callochitonidae, Chitonidae, Lepidochitonidae, Acanthochitonidae and Cryptoplacidae. Nineteen species were identified, of which two are described as new ( Chiton sulcomarginatus sp. n. and Craspedochiton brunettii sp. n.), and 17 were already known. Craspedochiton mutinocrassus is the new name attributed to the species previously known as Acanthochiton costatus or A. costatus var. mutinocrassa ; Chiton sulcomarginatus sp. n., Lepidochitona monterosatoi , L. pliocinerea , and Acanthochitona oblonga , previously known only up to Pliocene, are reported for the first time from the Miocene of Italy. The stratigraphic distribution of numerous species thought to first appear in the Late Miocene ( Callochiton doriae , Chiton olivaceus , C. corallinus , Acanthochitona fascicularis , A. crinita , and Craspedochiton altavillensis ) is here extended to the Early Miocene. The distribution of Cryptoplax weinlandi is extended to the Middle Miocene (Serravallian). In total 35 chiton species (with 3.003 valves) were identified in the Italian Miocene (including both parts of this series). Ten species became extinct at the end of the Miocene, six in the Pliocene, two in the Pleistocene, and 17 are extant. Of the extant species nine occur both in the Atlantic and Mediterranean, two exclusively in the Atlantic and six only in the Mediterranean. The number of species reported from the Torino Hill assemblages (Burdigalian?) is increased from three listed by Sacco (1897) to nine. Thirty-four of the 35 species (excluding only Lepidopleurus benoisti ) occur in the Tortonian-Messinian Po Basin. Thirteen (37%) of the species are also found in the Miocene Paratethys (Austria, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania and Ukraine), which can be explained by connections between the Proto-Mediterranean and Paratethys during the Miocene.

POLYPLACOPHORA FROM THE MIOCENE OF NORTH ITALY. PART 1: LEPTOCHITONIDAE, HANLEYIDAE, ISCHNOCHITONIDAE AND CALLISTOPLACIDAE

This study describes the chiton fauna (Mollusca, Polyplacophora) from deposits of the Miocene marine sequence of North Italy, located in Piedmont and Emilia Romagna regions. This first part of the work describes the chitons pertaining to four families: Leptochitonidae, Hanleyidae, Ischnochitonidae and Callistoplacidae. The studied fossils consist of 377 valves from 13 sites (Sciolze, Valle Ceppi, Rocco di Passerano, Albugnano, Monchio di Sarzano Casina, Villa Monti, Rio di Bocca d’Asino, Sant’Agata Fossili, Vargo, Vigoleno, Montegibbio, Borelli, and Moncucco Torinese) ranging from the Early Miocene (Burdigalian) to the Late Miocene (Messinian). We identified 16 species, 12 of which were already known, two are identified only at generic level ( Stenosemus sp. A & sp. B), and two are described as new: Parachiton statianus sp. n., and Callistochiton borellianus sp. n. Some species found are particularly noteworthy; Lepidopleurus benoisti is the new name attributed to the species previously known as Middendorffia subcajetana or Gymnoplax orbignyi , based on the study of the type material; Leptochiton salicensis , previously known only from the Early Pleistocene of Salice (Messina, Sicily); Hanleya mediterranea is reported for the first time from the Miocene of Italy; Ischnochiton ligusticus , previously known only from the Early Pliocene of Western Liguria; the distribution of Stenoplax paviai , recently described from the Late Miocene (Rio di Bocca d’Asino), is extended to the Early Miocene (Langhian). A complete discussion on the chiton fauna from the North Italian Miocene, consisting of all the species treated in both parts, will be given in the second part of this work.