The high Cretaceous ammonite fauna from Tercis, Landes, France

The very high Cretaceous ammonite fauna from the area close to Tercis-les-Bains, south-west of Dax, Landes, France, has been revised. Even the lower (but not lowest) part of the Grande Carrière is already near the top of the Campanian, belonging to the Zone of Nostoceras hyatti. This assemblage- zone has yielded Hauericeras fayoli (DE GROSSOUVRE, 1894), Pseudokossmaticeras brandti (REDTENBACHER, 1873), P. tercense (SEUNES, 1892), Pachydiscus (Pachydiscus) perfidus (DE GROSSOUVRE, 1894), P. (P.) subrobustus (SEUNES, 1892), P. (P.) cf. colligatus (BINKHORST, 1861), Nostoceras (Nostoceras) hyatti STEPHENSON, 1941, N. (N.) helicinum (SHUMARD, 1861) and Baculites leopoliensis NOWAK, 1908. This assemblage is comparable to that found in the Zone of Pseudokossmaticeras tercense in the region of the Bay of Biscay, and to that found in the Zone of Nostoceras pozaryskii (here re-named the Zone of Nostoceras hyatti) of the Vistula Valley in Poland. The lowest occurrence of the overlying Zone of Pachydiscus epiplectus, and the lowest Maastrichtian recognisable in ammonite terms, is marked by the incoming of Hoploscaphites constrictus (J. SOWERBY, 1817). Other ammonite species from this zone are: Pachydiscus (Pachydiscus) epiplectus (REDTENBACHER, 1873) and Pachydiscus (P.) neubergicus (VON HAUER, 1858). A higher ammonite Zone of Menuites [Anapachydiscus] fresviltensis has been detected only from museum specimens from La Pointe to the north of the Grande Carrière. The ammonites known from this zone are: Pachydiscus jacquoti jacquoti (SEUNES, 1890a), Pachydiscus (Pachydiscus) armenicus ATABEKIAN & AKOPIAN, 1969, Desmophyllites larteti (SEUNES, 1892), Diplomoceras cylindraceum (DEFRANCE, 1816), Glyptoxoceras rugatum (FORBES, 1846). The highest Maastrichtian ammonite zone in the Biscay region is that of Menuites [Anapachydiscus] terminus. This has not been detected near Tercis