the asmari formation at nil anticline area has been studied in order to determine faunal assemblages, the age and the paleoecology. paleontological and biostratigraphical studies led to the identification of 5 faunal assemblages. as a result, the age of the asmari formation in this section, with 291m thickness, is rupelian/chattian-burdigalian. extension of the large benthic foraminifera sugges...

Abstract The present study deals with microfacies analysis, paleoecology and sequence stratigraphy of the Lower–Middle Eocene rocks in central Nile Valley west-central Sinai. Four rock units were marked (Minia, Darat, Samalut Maghagha formations). Eight facies belts interpreted including lagoon, back bank, main fore bank open marine outer deposited on a gently dipping platform ramp. This ramp m...

The recent discovery of the oldest and most primitive stem turtle, Odontochelys semitestacea (Li et al. 2009), from the lower Upper Triassic of China reopens the debate regarding the origin of the turtle shell, the paleoecology of basal turtles (terrestrial or aquatic), and the placement of turtles among amniotes. The debate surrounding the origin of the shell dates back to Cuvier (1800–1805) w...

Plant macrofossils and pollen play complementary roles in paleoecology. Each has its own advantages and shortcomings. Used separately, they provide valuable information about past vegetation. Used together, the two types of data can corroborate or, occasionally, challenge each other, and they can provide more detailed and refined understanding of past vegetation at multiple spatial scales. In t...

The latitudinal diversity gradient is one of the most important problems in ecology and biogeography, but there is little consensus on its causes. Broad-scale species richness gradients are usually correlated with contemporary climate, with the highest number of species in warm, wet areas (Wright et al., 1993; Hawkins et al., 2003a). Even so, such associations do not Department of Ecology and E...