Priabonian non-geniculate coralline algae from the Central Carpathian Paleogene Basin

Abstract

Encrusting coralline algae are important rock-building organisms of the lower Priabonian limestones from the Central Carpathian Paleogene Basin. Despite the effort of early palaeontologists, former classifications lacked many diagnostic characteristics and modern taxonomic concepts, which hinders their use for modern palaeontological interpretations. The situation is further complicated as recent DNA analyses of extant coralline algae highlight the limits of the morpho-anatomical classification and identify many coralline algal genera which can also be recognized in the fossil record. Because palaeontology deals exclusively with the morpho-anatomical characteristics, a synthesis of the new discoveries in molecular phylogenetic analyses with morphology-based palaeontological classifications is necessary. Our palaeontological study based on published investigations on coralline molecular genetics enabled: 1) the identification of seventeen coralline algal morphological species grouped in six genera: Sporolithon lugeonii, Sporolithon nummuliticum, Sporolithon sp. 1, Sporolithon sp. 2, Lithothamnion camarasae, Lithothamnion cf. corallioides, Lithothamnion prascoi, Lithothamnion cf. ramosissimum, Lithothamnion roveretoi, Lithothamnion sp., Phymatolithon sp., Mesophyllum fructiferum, Mesophyllum cf. engelhartii, Mesophyllum sp., Chamberlainium lemoinei, Lithoporella melobesioides, and Lithoporella cf. minus ; 2) the description of Chamberlainium lemoinei (Miranda) comb. nov. known from the Bartonian, and 3) the identification of a unique encrusting coralline alga tentatively assigned to the genus Lithothamnion.