Abstract The break-up of Gondwana in the latest Jurassic and earliest Cretaceous and the subsequent opening and evolution of the South Atlantic Ocean as a new widening seaway linking northern and southern high latitudes, was the single most significant palaeoceanographic event during the Cretaceous with global consequences for the climate and the biotic evolution, both on land and at sea. Its main evolutionary stages are now becoming well known but, despite that, their global impact has been widely underestimated. Aiming to shed light on some of these unanswered questions, this work presents an overview of research carried out during the past decades in the Sergipe Basin in northeastern Brazil, integrating foraminiferal and ammonite biostratigraphic data, coupled with an assessment of their biogeographic patterns. Three main topics are discussed, and the key findings presented and set against their possible global impact: the opening of the Equatorial Atlantic Gateway in the late early to mid Aptian ( c. 118–119 Ma); the mid-Cretaceous dysoxic–anoxic events recorded in the northern South Atlantic (maxima in the late Aptian–earliest Albian, early Cenomanian and at the Cenomanian–Turonian boundary); and the timing of the North Atlantic–South Atlantic oceanic connection in the late Coniacian to early Santonian ( c. 85–87 Ma).

The influence of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) in the emerging South Atlantic region during the late Aptian (Early Cretaceous) is reflected in the spatio-temporal distribution of plant communities recorded in eight Brazilian sedimentary basins. The distribution of the bioclimatic groups of hygrophytes, hydrophytes, tropical lowland flora, upland flora, and xerophytes was quantified using pollen and spores. A predominance of xerophytes from the tropical xerophytic shrubland biome characterized the pre-evaporitic, evaporitic, and post-evaporitic paleoclimatic phases, in particular the evaporitic phase. The region experienced humidity events in the pre-evaporitic and post- evaporitic phases, especially near the paleoequator, where the tropical rainforest biome with two phytophysiognomies (lowland and montane rainforests) prevailed. Increasing humidity had a positive effect on plant diversity.

New, accurately located and well‐preserved agnostid trilobite material has been collected from the type locality of the Drumian (middle Cambrian, Miaolingian) Manuels River Formation, Newfoundland, Canada. The well‐exposed grey to black shales containing the fauna were deposited on the former microcontinent Avalonia. Four interval zones for the succession are proposed, namely, the Tomagnostus fissus , Hypagnostus parvifrons , Ptychagnostus atavus and Ptychagnostus punctuosus zones. The Tomagnostus fissus and Ptychagnostus atavus zones are distinct from each other, which leads to a significantly shorter and stratigraphically higher Ptychagnostus atavus Zone compared with other sections (Scandinavia, South China, Utah and Nevada, Greenland). Specimens of Ptychagnostus atavus , however, occur abundantly, with 107 specimens identified in a short interval of the succession. The Ptychagnostus punctuosus Zone can be correlated globally. The faunal assemblage is comparable to that of Scandinavia, Greenland and England. Ptychagnostus affinis is recorded for the first time from Avalonia. The 1408 collected specimens were assigned to the suborders Agnostina and Eodiscina and to the families Peronopsidae and Ptychagnostidae, and Condylopygidae and Eodiscidae, respectively, with the following species: Peronopsis fallax (Linnarsson), Peronopsis scutalis (Hicks), Hypagnostus parvifrons (Linnarsson), Ptychagnostus punctuosus (Angelin), Ptychagnostus affinis (Brøgger), Ptychagnostus atavus (Tullberg), Tomagnostus fissus (Lundgren), Tomagnostus perrugatus (Grönwall), Pleuroctenium granulatum (Barrande) and Eodiscus punctatus (Salter).

Although an early Cambrian origin of cephalopods has been suggested by molecular studies, no unequivocal fossil evidence has yet been presented. Septate shells collected from shallow-marine limestone of the lower Cambrian (upper Terreneuvian, c. 522 Ma) Bonavista Formation of southeastern Newfoundland, Canada, are here interpreted as straight, elongate conical cephalopod phragmocones. The material documented here may push the origin of cephalopods back in time by about 30 Ma to an unexpected early stage of the Cambrian biotic radiation of metazoans, i.e. before the first occurrence of euarthropods.

The Cretaceous is generally conceived as one of the warmest geological periods in Earth history. The link between climate and plant distribution is here highlighted on the basis of palynological analyses. An upper Aptian well section from the Sergipe Basin in northeastern Brazil documents four cycles of dry–wet oscillations, based on palynological evidence. The cycles show a general trend of acceleration of the hydrological cycle. Dry periods are recorded mainly at the base of the section, with changes to more humid periods upwards. The dry periods are characterized by high to very high abundance of Classopollis classoides pollen grains. Already in the wet periods a conspicuous change in vegetation is recorded, with an increase in fern spores and upland flora, in particular Araucariacites australis pollen grains. The replacement of Classopollis by Araucariacites and ferns reflects a change from dry to wet conditions. The first dry–wet cycle (DWC-1) is recorded in the dominantly non-marine phase. At the base of this first cycle, intensive growth of anhydrite nodules is recorded. However, in beds overlying the evaporites, there is a conspicuous increase in flora associated with humid conditions (ferns and upland flora). DWC-2 starts with a pronounced peak of dinoflagellate cysts, which decrease abruptly accompanied by an increase in xerophytic flora (e.g., Classopollis classoides, Equisetosporites spp.). The abundance of xerophytic flora decreases upwards to give room for high abundances of fern spores, upland flora (e.g., Araucariacites australis, Cicatricosisporites spp.) and, in particular, dinoflagellate cysts. DWC-3 starts with a short interval containing a moderate abundance of xerophytes and a conspicuous wet flora and marine elements. With rising humidity, fern spore diversity also increased, suggesting that humidity was an important factor for the increase in diversity of this group. DWC-4 records minor peaks of xerophytic flora and a dominance of fern spores and upland flora. The progressive change in flora may be the result of displacement of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and a relative sea-level rise.

This key note is given in honor of the Austrian geologist Eduard Suess, born in London, August 20, 1831 and died in Vienna in April 26, 1914. It aims to illustrate, using some key selected stratigraphic intervals from the Tunisian geological archive, how Edward Suess’s concepts are still relevant and is also planned to briefly introduce the most important features of the Geology of Tunisia for the guests of the CAJG Conference, November 2018) This key note is given in honor of the Austrian geologist Eduard Suess, born in London, August 20, 1831 and died in Vienna in April 26, 1914. It aims to illustrate, using some key selected stratigraphic intervals from the Tunisian geological archive, how Edward Suess’s concepts are still relevant and is also planned to briefly introduce the most important features of the Geology of Tunisia for the guests of the CAJG Conference, November 2018). Some of these features are in relation with the Gondwanan super continent development and fragmentation while other are connected to the Tethyan Ocean developed between the Gondwana to the south and Eurasia to the north during the Mesozoic before the onset of its closure during the Cenozoic. Indeed, it will be shown progressively during the presentation that the major events that accompanied the history of the Geology of Tunisia fit perfectly the line of thoughts that Eduard Suess had at the end of the nineteenth century especially about the role played by sea level fluctuations in the build of the stratigraphic archive. This conference also brings additional arguments to his theory which continues to impact our kind of reasoning, even if this conveys new modern terms created to explain more the process controlling the global Earth’s dynamics especially the global plate tectonics and the eustatic movement theories. Among the concepts and ideas, proposed for the first time by this imminent “geoscientist”, based on his exploration and geological investigations of distant regions of the world, some are retained for the purpose of our conference: (1) The hypothesis of the existence, 500 million years ago, of an ancient supercontinent named Gondwana or Gondwanaland (Eduard Suess 1885). This “megacontinent” eventually split into several continents which are Africa, South America, Australia, Antarctica, the Indian subcontinent and the Arabian Peninsula. (2) The hypothesis of the existence of an inland sea designated the “Tethys” (with reference to the Greek Goddess of the Sea) situated between Gondwana to the South and Laurasia to the North (Eduard Suess 1893). (3) the creation of the term Eustasy, (Edward Suess, in 1988, translated and published in English in 1906) to describe the rises and falls of sea level (eustatic movements) as a major factors controlling the development of transgressive and regressive events correlatable worldwide. The above three concepts among other important ideas, mainly related to tectonics (genesis of the Alps and the introduction of the concept of the east African rift fracture in 1881, etc....) have been detailed in his famous and monumental, three volume treaty entitled “The Face of the Earth” (1885–1909) just before Wegener’s Continental drift theory presented in 1912 and also the establishment of the theory of plate tectonic in the 1960s which greatly changed the line of thinking of geologists about the dynamic evolution of the Planet. M. Soussi (&) Sedimentary Basins and Petroleum Geology Laboratory (LR18ES07), Faculty of Sciences, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunis, Tunisia e-mail: Mohamed.Soussi@fst.utm.tn © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 M. Boughdiri et al. (eds.), Paleobiodiversity and Tectono-Sedimentary Records in the Mediterranean Tethys and Related Eastern Areas, Advances in Science, Technology & Innovation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01452-0_1 3 1 Why Tunisia Can Be Considered as Good Example Supporting Eduard Suess’s Concepts? 1. Tunisia is situated in a remarkable situation between Africa and Europe. Indeed, with its Atlassic and Tellian domains, situated to the north and displaying intensive deformation typical of the Alpine Orogenic system stretching from Morocco to the West into the Himalayan ranges from China to the East and its relatively stable Saharan platform domain, belonging to a cratonic domain situated in the south, Tunisia can be considered as useful relay or bridge between South America, Africa and Europe that can serve for any attempt of geological reconstruction between theses continents through geological time. 2. Its Phanerozoic stratigraphic record can be split into two Megacycles. The first one, which extends between 590 and 251 Ma (Paleozoic), is encountered in the Ghadames Basin (southern Tunisia) currently buried under the desert (Oriental Erg) while the second Megacycle, comprising the Mesozoic and the Cenozoic (=251 Ma) is well exposed in the Saharan platform domain to the south and in the Atlassic foreland belt system (Central and North of Tunisia) to the north. These two major megacycles, labeled “Gondwanian” and “Tethyan” respectively are separated by a major unconformity resulting of the Hercynian deformation and Pangea supercontinent formation that occurred in the late Carboniferous (299 Ma). Their composition is dominantly (99%) represented by sedimentary rocks accumulated in superimposed basins developed during the Paleozoic and the Mesozoic. The sediments of the Gondwanian cycle are Paleozoic in age and are recognized and well characterized thanks to the numerous boreholes targeting the prolific petroleum systems of North Africa (Algeria, Tunisia and Libya). They are mainly composed of siliciclastic deposits (sandstones and shales), deposited either in fluvio-deltaïc to coastal shallow marine settings, and constituting fair to good hydrocarbon reservoirs and intra seal formation or deposited in offshore settings, during major maximum transgressive events (Middle Ordovician, Silurian and Devonian organic-rich facies), and constituting the primary source of the prolific petroleum systems of the Sahara of North Africa. However, the sediments of the Tethyan super-cycle which unconformably rest above the deformed Paleozoic series in the Ghadames basin, are formed at the base by dominantly fluvial sandstones and shales (“Trias Argilo-Gréseux” = TAGI) constituting the main productive hydrocarbon reservoir in southern Tunisia. The latter is in turn overlain by the Upper TriassicLower Jurassic evaporitic (limestones, dolomites, salts and gypsum) acting as efficient seal at regional scale. These rocks are well exposed along the Saharan platform domain (Dahar). The geological investigations conducted on this Phanerozoic archive, which 4 M. Soussi

The alternating marine and nonmarine coal-bearing Lower Cretaceous successions are well developed in eastern Heilongjiang, northeastern China, including the Jixi Group in the west and the Longzhaogou Group in the east.The correlation of these two lithostratigraphic groups with the nonmarine Jehol Group is important for dating the exceptionally well-preserved Jehol Biota.The Early Cretaceous marine fossils recovered from eastern Heilongjiang include ammonites, bivalves, radiolarians, foraminifers and dinocysts.During the early Aptian transgression the ammonite fauna entered the Hulin and Mishan areas and the bivalve Aucellina fauna in the Jixi area.This enables correlation of the marine lower part of the Chengzihe Formation of the Jixi Group with the Qihulin Formation of the Longzhaogou Group.

Richard Reyment was born in Australia in 1926 in a family with roots in England, Ireland, Sweden and Spain. At the age of 22 he emigrated to Sweden, where he married Eva Regina, with whom he had two daughters (and two stepchildren). His career as a geologist started with 6 years at the Geological Survey of Nigeria (1950-1956), followed by a Ph.D. and seven years as senior lecturer at Stockholm University (1956-1962), two years as professor at the University of Ibadan in Nigeria (1963-1965), and a further two years as associate professor at Stockholm University (1965-1967). In 1967 he was appointed to the Uppsala University, a position he held until his retirement at the end of 1991. As professor emeritus he continued his research, based at the Swedish Museum of Natural History in Stockholm, and enjoyed several visiting professorships at various universities around the world, notably in Japan. Richard is well known for his work on Cretaceous ammonites, ostracods and the history of the South Atlantic Ocean, but these research topics represent only a part of his wide scope of research, as shown by his 450 publications, including twelve books. His major field of research was mathematical geology, particularly quantitative and statistical methods and multivariate morphometrics, which he applied to a variety of material and topics in the Earth Sciences but also to biology, genetics, linguistics, Romanis and Spanish Moors. His interest in mathematical geology arose from early contacts with the Finnish palaeontologist Bjorn Kurten and the Soviet mathematical geologist Andrei B. Vistelius. Richard was undoubtedly one of the pioneers in using multivariate techniques in palaeontology. He was the prime mover for the International Association for Mathematical Geology, founded in 1968, and co-founder of the journal Computers & Geosciences, in 1990. In 1974 Richard initiated the successful IGCP Project 'Mid-Cretaceous Events' (MCE), which counted around 350 participants during its eleven years of activity. As an outcome of the MCE project, in 1980 he founded the journal Cretaceous Research. Richard was elected a fellow of several learned societies, such as the Royal Statistical Society (London), the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, and the Brazilian Academy of Sciences. His numerous awards included the Swedish Order of the Polar Star, the Assar Hadding Prize of the Royal Physiographic Society of Lund, the Krumbein Medal and a Special Commendation of the International Association for Mathematical Geology, the State Medal in Silver of Israel, and the Bjorken Prize of Uppsala University. Besides research, Richard also found time for his many hobbies, such as music, languages and genealogy. All in all, Richard's career, spanning nearly seven decades, can only be described as one of outstanding scope and productivity. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A low-diversity ammonite fauna is described from the Qihulin Formation of the dominantly non-marine Longzhaogou Group exposed in Mishan and Hulin counties in eastern Heilongjiang, northeastern China. The fauna consists predominantly of Pseudohaploceras? cf. nipponicum Shimizu, 1931, and Pseudohaploceras? peideense (Liang, 1982), with subordinate Eogaudryceras (Eogaudryceras) cf. yunshanense (Liang, 1982). The occurrence of Pseudohaploceras? and previously reported bivalves suggest an early Aptian age for the Qihulin Formation. The early Aptian transgression advanced from the east across the Hulin and Mishan area into the Jixi Basin and resulted in the deposition of the marine beds of the Qihulin and lower Chengzihe formations. The Qihulin Formation can be correlated with the lower part of the Chengzihe Formation.

The ammonite Codazziceras ospinae (Karsten, 1858) is described from sections in the Upper Magdalena Valley and San Francisco, south and north-west of Bogota, Colombia. Its co-occurrence with species of Hoplitoides von Koenen, 1898, and Coilopoceras Hyatt, 1903, places it stratigraphically in the lower to middle Turonian, in contrast to previous assignments to the upper Turonian to lower Coniacian. Three specimens come from the lower part of the Loma Gorda Formation (Turonian-Coniacian) and one specimen from the middle part of the La Frontera Formation (lower-middle Turonian). The type species of the genus Codazziceras Etayo-Serna, 1979, is Lyelliceras scheibei Riede1,1938, which is a junior synonym of Ammonites Ospinae Karsten, 1858. If a new type species is to be selected, Codazziceras ospinae will be the obvious choice. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Prionocyclus germari Zone is recognized for the first time in the Vocontian Basin. The upper part of the "calcaires blancs a silex" of the western Dieulefit syncline is characterized by the zonal index and a diverse ammonite fauna, as well as inoceramids of the Mytiloides scupini Zone. The co-occurring heteromorph ammonites Hyphantoceras (Hyphantoceras) flexuosum (Schluter, 1872) and H. (H.) ernsti Wiese, 2000 suggest a correlation with the Heteromorph Beds and the flexuosum Sequence of northern Germany. The co-occurrence of Prionocyclus germari (Reuss, 1845) and the bivalve Didymotis sp. in the overlying "gres jaunes" suggests a correlation with the Didymotis Sequence of northern Germany. The presence of the nannofossil Broinsonia parca expansa Wise & Watkins, 1983 and absence of younger marker species indicate the upper Turonian to lower Coniacian nannofossil zone UC9c. The boundary between the "calcaires blancs a silex" and the "gres jaunes" is interpreted as a sequence boundary linked to a eustatic rise of sea level. The event is correlated with the flexuosum Didymotis sequence boundary of northern Germany and can be traced in northern Spain and the Czech Republic. Vocontiiceras vocontiense nov. gen. et sp. of the Family Collignoniceratidae shows a distinct ontogeny: an involute juvenile stage with Reesidites-like ornamentation and a single row of ventrolateral tubercles, and a smooth adult stage with a persistent keel and a short rostrum. The new species probably represents an evolutionary link between the subfamilies Collignoniceratinae and Barroisiceratinae. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A sample of 682 suture lines belonging to 204 Cretaceous planispiral ammonoid genera shows a positive, significant relationship between suture complexity (measured as fractal dimension [Df]) and generic longevity. However, during the Cretaceous there was no increase in the mean fractal dimension. This paradox is due to the evolutionary dynamic during this time span comprising mainly the appearance, disappearance (or anagenetic transformation) of those genera with simpler sutures and, consequently, the maximal values of fractal dimension were more stable in time. These results contrast with (i) the hypothesis that simple morphologies are linked to low ecological specialization and (ii) the idea that the role of natural selection can be unambiguously deduced from stratigraphic ranges.

Spinose ammonoids occur in Earth history from the origin to the extinction of the subclass. In many cases, entire groups were concerned. The growth of spines in Kimmeridgian (Jurassic) aspidoceratids are described, discussed, and their construction and possible functions are compared with those of euomphaloceratine ammonites from the lower Turonian (Cretaceous) of Mexico, Venezuela and Brazil, and with those of collignoniceratid ammonites from the lower Coniacian of Venezuela. The basic construction of spines is similar in all taxa, irrespective of their position, length or the geological age of the taxon. It is suggested that shell secretion for spine formation may have been rapid compared with that of the rest of the shell. Spines do not appear to have been suitable for protection against predators or for a demersal or epibenthic mode of life. Instead, a sensory function is probable, but only for the outermost one to three pairs of spines near the aperture. An increased weight of the body chamber and increased friction during rocking motions and thus a stabilization of the shell in the open-water column are additional plausible explanations for the function of spines sealed by a basal septum.

Twenty-two species of the bivalve order Pholadomyida, belonging to six genera and seven subgenera of the families Pholadomyidae, Pleuromyidae and Poromyidae are described from the Cenomanian-Coniacian Cotinguiba Formation of the Sergipe Basin, north-eastern Brazil. Eleven species, Pholadomya (Ph.) cf. agrioensis Weaver, Ph. (Ph.) kasimiri Pusch, Ph. (Ph.) nodulifera Munster, Ph. (Ph.) occidentalis Morton, Ph. (Procardia) vignesi Lartet, Pleuromya ligeriensis (d'Orbigny), Pl. servesensis Choffat, Liopistha (L.) aequivalvis (Goldfuss), L. (Psilomya) elongata Stanton, L. (P.) globulosa (Forbes) and L. (Sergipemya) gigantea (S. Sowerby) are recorded from the Sergipe Basin for the first time. The new subgenus Sergipemya of the genus Liopistha, family Poromyidae, is erected on the basis of morphological characters such as numerous commarginal ribs, large and highly inflated valves, a well-developed rounded umbonal anterior ridge bordering a deep depression on the anterior part, and the presence of two unequal cardinal teeth with a cardinal tear-shaped socket in the left valve. The pholadomyid fauna of Sergipe closely resembles that of other Tethyan regions in western and southern Europe, northern and western Africa and the Middle East. The distribution patterns of the taxa were probably influenced by east west-directed currents. Southern Tethyan pholadomyids reached western Africa and north-eastern South America via the Trans-Saharan Seaway.