Late Cenozoic ostracoda of Cyprus and their palaeoenviromental interpretation

This work deals with the study of the ostracod faunas of six important sections in the Neogene succession of Cyprus. The studied sections cover the western and southern parts of the island. The study was carried out using samples collected by the M.Sc. students of the Micropalaeontology Unit, University College, in the course of their field-work during the years 1985-1990. It adds to earlier studies of foraminifera and nannoplankton and is the first of ostracods. 110 samples were collected in total and 410 species/morphotypes of ostracods were recovered belonging to 105 genera. This is the first time that the geological evolution of the island has been approached from the point-of-view of ostracods. Although ostracods may have been neglected in the past as biostratigraphical indicators, for the sections of this study they gave more precise results than foraminifera or nannoplankton in the recognition of useful biostratigraphical groups: group 9: Late Pleistocene - upper N22 (Late Calabrian), 4 species/subspecies group 8: Early Pleistocene - N22 (Calabrian), 30 species/subspecies group 7: Late Pliocene - N20 (Piacenzian), 51 species/subspecies group 6: Early Pliocene - N19 (Mid Zanclean), 10 species/subspecies group 5; Earliest Pliocene - N18 (Early Zanclean = Late Pontian), 43 species/subspecies group 4; Latest Miocene - late N17 (Pontian = Latest Messinian), 15 species/ subspecies group 3; Late Miocene - mid N17 (Messinian), 5 species/subspecies group 2: Late Miocene - mid N15 (Tortonian), 29 species/subspecies group 1: Mid Miocene - N12 (Serravalian) or older, 40 species/subspecies As ostracods are well-known for their usefulness in reconstructing palaeoenvironments, the conclusions from this study are significant for the changing bathymetry of the Eastern Mediterranean Basin from Mid Miocene through Pliocene to Pleistocene. In most of the areas studied here, there were marine conditions during the Late Cenozoic, except for the Messinian where the changes are represented in the sections either by the absence of ostracod assemblages (Steni, Pissouri, Mari) or, if there are any ostracods, they are of limnic, brackish (Polemi, Amargeti) or brackish- influenced (Dhrymou) character. The scope for future work on biostratigraphy and palaeoecology have been determined including the methodology of assessing life/death assemblages of ostracods