The planktonic foraminifera turnover across the Danian-Selandian boundary (early to late Paleocene, ~60 Ma) has been studied in the Kamestan anticline section. The studied interval span planktonic foraminifera zones P2-P3. In this section Danian-Selandian boundary is located in Pabedeh &#x2013; Gurpi Formations transition. Here, the boundary of Pabeh and Gurpi Formations is a transitional one and identified by with color change of from grey shale to purple shale of Gurpi Formation to Pabdeh Formation .&#xd;&#xa;&#xd;&#xa

Abbas Sadeghi

Nasrin Hadavandkhani

English

Nature Precedings

�Biostratigraphy of the Danian/Selandian transition: A case 
study from Kamestan anticline section, northwest of Izeh city in 
Khuzestan province, Southern Iran 
Hadavandkhani*, N., Sadeghi, A. 
Department of Geology, Faculty of Earth Science, University of Shahid beheshti, Tehran, Iran 
*n.hadavand @yahoo.com 
Abstract 
The planktonic foraminifera turnover across the Danian-Selandian boundary (early to late 
Paleocene, ~60 Ma) has been studied in the Kamestan anticline section. The studied 
interval span planktonic foraminifera zones P2-P3. In this section Danian-Selandian 
boundary is located in Pabedeh – Gurpi Formations transition. Here, the boundary of Pabeh 
and Gurpi Formations is a transitional one and identified by with color change of from grey 
shale to purple shale of Gurpi Formation to Pabdeh Formation . 
 
Keywords: Pabeh Formation, Gurpi Formation, Danian, Selandian, Izeh, Kamestan 
anticline, Biostratigraphy.
Introduction 
The Danian, the lower stage of the Paleocene, was introduced by Desor (1847), who named 
it after its type area in Denmark. It consists of chalks and a limestone overlying the 
Maastrichtian chalks (Sprong et al, 2009). The Selandian, introduced by Rosenkrantz 
(1924) and emended by Perch-Nielsen and Hansen (1981), the type area which is near 
Copenhagen-Denmark, lies immediately above the Danian and is the middle stage of the 
Paleocene (Perch-Nielsen and Hansen, 1981; Berggren et al., 1985 and 1995). The 
Paleogene stages were accepted by the International Subcomission on Paleogene 
Stratigraphy at the 28th International Geological Congress in Washington, July, 1989. In 
this Congress, the Selandian was placed between the Danian and Thanetian Stages of the 
Paleocene (Jenkins and Luterbacher, 1992; Odin and Luterbacher, 1992). In the Geological 
Time Scale (1999) it is accepted as the basal stage of the Upper Paleocene. 
The Selandian, the second Paleocene stage, also defined in Denmark, named after the island 
of Sjælland. In the type region, this stage is composed of greensands, marls and clays 
unconformably overlying the Danian limestones (Rosenkrantz, 1924; Thomsen and 
Heilmann-Clausen, 1985). Because correlation of the D/S boundary with standard 
biostratigraphic schemes such as Berggren (1994) and Berggren et al. (1995, 2000) 
proposed to correlate the D/S boundary with the P2/P3 zonal boundary (~60.9 Ma).  
The Global Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) of the base of the Selandian Stage has 
been recently defined in Zumaia in coincidence with a prominent lithological change 
between the Aitzgorri Limestone Formation and the overlaying Itzurun Formation (northern 
Spain).  
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�Geology and Lithostratigraphy 
The studied section is located in northwest of Izeh city in Khuzestan province, southern 
Iran (Fig. 1). In the study area, the Danian Stage is represented by the upper part of Gurpi 
formation and the Selandian Stage is represented by the lower part of Pabdeh formatin (Fig 
2) .Here, the Gurpi Formation has 341m thickness , that is composed of Shale and Marl, 
and deposited through Campanian-Danian (Mahdavian,A. 2009). The Pabdeh Formation 
has a thickness of 548m in the Kamestan Anticline and it can be divided into 4 lithological 
units, including Shale(133m), Limy marl(113m), Limestone(106m) and Marly 
limestone(196m). Based on stratigraphic record of the planktonic and benthonic 
foraminifera biozones, Pabdeh Formation is Late Paleocene (Selandian) – Middle Eocene 
in age. 
 
Fig 1: The location map of studied section, N-W of Izeh, Khuzestan province,Iran 
 
Methods 
For research about Danian-Selandian ,Pabdeh Formation was sampled in studied area, then 
the samples were soaked in water and washed through 70-120Gm sieves. All samples were 
studied for foraminifer taxa by using transmit light microscope and scanning electron 
microscope. 
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�Fig 2: Boundary of Pabdeh-Gurpi formations in studied section that it was correlated with 
Danian-Selandian boundary. 
 
Discussion and Biostratigraphy 
 
Zone P2 and P3 are identified by the FAD their respective zonal marker. In the latest of Danian 
was accompanied with extinction of species of Praemurica i.e. and on the basis of 
appearance of representive markers of late Danian i.e. Morozovella angulata that it was a 
marker for P2 zone, also in the P2 zone the Morozovella praeangulata (the first species with 
muricate wall) was appeared and then in the Selandian and Thanetian was developed species of 
Morozovella genus (M.angulata, M.apanthesma, M.conicotruncata,…). In the early late 
Paleocene (Selandian), species of Igorina was appeared, such as Igorina albeari, Igorina pussila 
that I.albeari is a marker for P3 zone. In the most of world points such as Global Stratotype Section 
and Point (GSSP) of Danian- Selandian boundary in Denmark, Southern Tethys countries, the base 
of the Selandian is an unconformable, but in the Kamestan anticline section; this boundary is 
continuous and transitional.  
Based on Premoli Silva et al (2003), in this study the Danian- Selandian boundary is located in P2-
P3 biozones (fig.3). 
Gurpi Formation 
Pabdeh Formation 
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�P2- Praemurica uncinata Interval Zone  
Definition:Biostratigraphic interval between the FAD of Praemurica uncinata and 
the FAD of Morozovella angulata.
This biozone is equivalent to, Praemurica uncinata Lowest-occurrence Zone of Berggren & 
Pearson (2005) and Morozovella uncinata Inteval Zone (Bolli, 1966). 
This biozone in the studied section is beginning to uppermost of Gurpi formation and is continued 
to boundary with Pabdeh formation.  
The associated planktonic foraminifera in this biozone in the studied section: 
Chiloguembelina sp., Subbotina triloculinoides, Subbotina triangularis , Eoglobigerina edita,
Praemurica inconstans, Eoglobigerina spiralis, Praemurica pseudoinconstans, Parasubbotina 
pseudobulloides, Globanomalina compressa, Globanomalina imitata, Morozovella praeangulata,
Globanomalina planocompressa, Parasubbotina variant 
Age: late early Paleocene (late Danian). 
 
P3- Morozovella angulata-Igorina pussila Interval Zone 
Definition: Biostratigraphic interval between the FAD of Morozovella angulata and the 
FAD of Globanomalina pseudomenardii. 
This biozone is equivalent to, Morozovella angulata Lowest-occurrence Zone of Berggren 
& Pearson (2005), Morozovella angulata-Globanomalina pseudomenardii of Berggren et al 
(1995) and Morozovella angulata Zone of (Bolli, 1966). 
This biozone in the studied section has 12 m thickness and it starts lowermost Pabdeh 
Formation and is continued to 12m of this formation. 
The associated planktonic foraminifera in this biozone in the studied section: 
 Globanomalina compressa, Praemurica pseudoinconstans, Morozovella praeangulata,
Morozovella angulata, Igorina albeari, Igorina pussila, Globanomalina chapmani 
Age: early late Paleocene (Selanian) 
 
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�Fig 3: Distribution and planktonic foraminiferal zonation of the Danian- Selandian boundary in the Kamestan 
anticline section. 
 
Result 
Biozones P2 and P3 were identified according to Premoli Silva et al (2003) and on the basis 
of extinction of representive markers of late Danian i.e. Praemurica uncinata and 
appearance of representive markers of early Selandian i.e. Igorina albeari . Unlike of many 
sections in world wide such as Global Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) of Danian- Selandian 
boundary in Denmark and Southern Tethys countries e.i. Egypt and Tunisia that Danian- Selandian 
boundary is unconformable , here this boundary is continuous and comformable. 
 
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�Plate 1:  1a –1c: Parasubbotina psudobulloides Plummer, 1926 2a –2c: Subbotina triloculinoides 
Plummer, 1926 3a –3c: Eoglobigerina spiralis Bolli, 1957 4a-4c: Globanomalina chapmani Parr, 1938 5a-
5c: Morozovella angulata White, 1928, Scale bar represent 1009m. 
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�Plate 2: 1a-1c: Globanomalina compressa Plummer, 1926 2a-2c: Morozovella praeangulata Blow, 1979 
3a –3c: Igorina albeari Cushman and Bermudez, 1949 4a-4c: Igorina pusilla Bolli, 1957 5a-5c: 
Praemurica uncinata Bolli, 1957, Scale bar represent 1009m. 
 
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�Plate 3: 1a-1c:  Praemurica inconstans Subbotina, 1953 2a-2c: Globanomalina compressa Plummer, 
1926 3a –3c: Globanomalina chapmani Parr, 1938 4a-4c: Subbotina triloculinoides Plummer, 1926 5a-
5c: Morozovella angulata White, 1928 6a-6c: Morozovella apanthesma Loeblich and Tappan, 1957, Scale 
bar represent 1009m. 
 
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�Reference 
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A revised Tropical to Subtropical Paleogene Planktonic Foraminiferal Zonation.,

and Biostratigraphy of Gurpi formation in Kamestan anticline (N-W of Izeh) and comparison with Type section, M.Sc thesis, Shahid beheshti university,

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Biostratigraphy of the Danian / Selandian transition in the southern Tethys . Special reference to the lowest occurrence of planktonic foraminifera Tgorina albeari.Geologica Acta,

De københavnske Grønsandslag og deres Placering i den danske Lagrække. Meddelelser fra Dansk Geologisk Forening,

Foraminifera Genera and their classification,van nostrand Reinhold,

J.B.&Prech-Nielsen,K.P.(1978) Plankton Stratigraphy ,

Manual of Planktonic Foraminifera, 24op. N a t u r e P r e c e d i n g s : h d l :

Paleocene – lower Eocene planktonic foraminiferal biostratigraphy of the Dababiya section, Upper Nile Valley (Egypt) ,Micropaleontology,

Upper Paleocene lower Eocene planktonic foraminiferal biostratigraphy of the Wadi Abu Ghurra section, Upper Nile Valley (Egypt).

Biostratigraphy of the Danian/Selandian transition: A case study from Kamestan anticline section, northwest of Izeh city in Khuzestan province, Southern Iran

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Biostratigraphy of the Danian/Selandian transition: A case study from Kamestan anticline section, northwest of Izeh city in Khuzestan province, Southern Iran

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