Timing of Langhian bioevents in the Carpathian Foredeep and northern Pannonian Basin in relation to oceanographic, tectonic and climatic processes

The succession of bioevents in planktonic foraminifer and calcareous nannoplankton communities is reviewed and summarized for the Carpathian Foredeep and northern Pannonian Basin in the time interval between ~16 and 13.5 Ma. This succession can be subdivided into three principal intervals: (1) an interval with rare Praeorbulina sicana and P. glomerosa. It was characterized by a limited immigration of index taxa linked to the lack of a warm surface water layer in the Central Paratethys. This interval can be correlated with the first Badenian transgression near the Burdigalian/Langhian boundary. The rare occurrence of biostratigraphical markers does not allow its precise dating and interregional correlation; (2) a brief interval of the first occurrences of Praeorbulina circularis, Orbulina suturalis and Helicosphaera waltrans. This can be related to the formation of a warm surface water layer suitable for the survival of orbulinas and praeorbulinas and a change from estuarine to anti-estuarine circulation. This interval can be correlated with the second Badenian transgression, which, however, was not isochronous over the area as inferred from different successions of these first occurrences; (3) a limited appearance of new index taxa in the Central Paratethys prior to the Wielician Salinity Crisis. This time interval was characterized by increased seasonality and salinity oscillations followed by climate cooling. A “reverse” migration of the stress-tolerant species Helicosphaera walbersdorfensis from the Central Paratethys to the Mediterranean is suggested. Several local bioevents with limited stratigraphic correlation potential have been recognized in this interval

Timing of Langhian bioevents in the Carpathian Foredeep and northern Pannonian Basin in relation to oceanographic, tectonic and climatic processes

The succession of bioevents in planktonic foraminifer and calcareous nannoplankton communities is reviewed and summarized for the Carpathian Foredeep and northern Pannonian Basin in the time interval between ~16 and 13.5 Ma. This succession can be subdivided into three principal intervals: (1) an interval with rare Praeorbulina sicana and P. glomerosa. It was characterized by a limited immigration of index taxa linked to the lack of a warm surface water layer in the Central Paratethys. This interval can be correlated with the first Badenian transgression near the Burdigalian/Langhian boundary. The rare occurrence of biostratigraphical markers does not allow its precise dating and interregional correlation; (2) a brief interval of the first occurrences of Praeorbulina circularis, Orbulina suturalis and Helicosphaera waltrans. This can be related to the formation of a warm surface water layer suitable for the survival of orbulinas and praeorbulinas and a change from estuarine to anti-estuarine circulation. This interval can be correlated with the second Badenian transgression, which, however, was not isochronous over the area as inferred from different successions of these first occurrences; (3) a limited appearance of new index taxa in the Central Paratethys prior to the Wielician Salinity Crisis. This time interval was characterized by increased seasonality and salinity oscillations followed by climate cooling. A “reverse” migration of the stress-tolerant species Helicosphaera walbersdorfensis from the Central Paratethys to the Mediterranean is suggested. Several local bioevents with limited stratigraphic correlation potential have been recognized in this interval

Local catastrophe caused by tephra input near Přemyslovice (Moravia, Czech Republic) during the Middle Miocene

Colonization by marine organisms such as foraminifers, molluscs, bryozoans, brachiopods and red algae during the Middle Miocene (Early Badenian) transgression near Přemyslovice (Carpathian Foredeep) was initially affected by a cool water current of unclear origin. However, shortly afterwards, fallout of volcanic material caused a total termination of the biota. After this catastrophe, the biota started recolonize the area. The succeeding association, adopted to warm-water input, is characteristic of the climatic optimum during the Early Badenian and is comparable with those of other sections referred to this interval in the Carpathian Foredeep (such as Kralice nad Oslavou, Podbřežice, and Hluchov)

Dagmar Cave (Czech Republic, Moravian Karst), a unique palaeontological site of the Cromerian Interglacial

Dagmar Cave, Czech Republic, is the first locality in the Moravian Karst where sediments of Cromerian age have been discovered and it is the first locality with such a large number of species of molluscs of this age. It was originally a swallow hole initiated in the Neogene, which has since accumulated sediments. Basal sediments are palaeontologically-sterile stream boulders, originating from weathered Lower Carboniferous rock. After this, fossiliferous, loamy sediments were carried in from the entrance by streams and/or gravity. Molluscan and vertebrate assemblages, along with palynological remains, are indicative of interglacial conditions. Faunal analysis determined that this could only consist of one interglacial, either Cromerian III or IV. This is the first record of Middle Pleistocene molluscan fauna in the Moravian Karst. Palynology demonstrated a humid and thermophilic vegetation typical of a Cromerian interglacial, with forest, and probably water, a

Cave deposits as a sedimentary trap for the Marine Isotope Stage 3 environmental record: The case study of Pod Hradem, Czech Republic

Pod Hradem Cave, located in the Moravian Karst, Czech Republic, offers an excellent opportunity for environmental reconstructions of Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS 3) in Central Europe due to its detailed sedimentary record dated 50,000 to 28,000 cal BP. Identifying the natural environments of the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic (MUP) transition is necessary to understand the settlement strategies and related behaviour of both Neanderthals and Anatomically Modern Humans, both of whom may have occupied the region at the same time. A multidisciplinary excavation was carried out between 2011 and 2016. Detailed analyses of the sediments, vertebrate microfauna, pollen and charcoal revealed minor but observable fluctuations in climate, with little change in the surrounding vegetation. The Pod Hradem palaeoenvironmental dataset is complex, but generally reflects a predominantly glacial climate with a range of vegetation types and habitats during the Late Pleistocene, followed by the warmer and more humid Holocene. The MUP transition as recorded in Pod Hradem Cave was a glacial environment interrupted by two relatively warmer periods. Central Europe experienced extreme climate fluctuations during MIS3, as recorded from different sedimentary archives, but it seems that the Pod Hradem Cave environment may have acted as a buffer zone, ameliorating those extremes, and providing a suitable refuge for both bears seeking winter hibernation dens and occasionally visiting humans.This project was funded from the SoMoPro programme. Research leading to these results has received a financial contribution from the European Community within the Seventh Framework Programme (FP/ 2007–2013) under Grant Agreement No. 229603. The research was also co-financed by the South Moravian Region and the Department of Anthropology & Department of Geological Sciences (departmental funding - Masaryk University) and the internal programme of the Institute of Geology CAS in Prague No. RVO 67985831