Middle Eocene Alveolina-dominated benthic foraminiferal assemblages of the western flank of the Isparta Angle (SW Trkiye): Taxonomy, biostratigraphy, microfacies analysis, and paleoenvironmental implications

Middle Eocene formations of the western part of the Isparta Angle contain abundant larger benthic foraminifera (LBF). Twelve species belonging to the genus Alveolina , including A. callosa , A. fragilis , A. aff. fusiformis, A. gigantea , A. cf. gigantea , A. hottingeri , A. kieli , A. levantina , A. nuttalli , A. cf. obtusa , A. stipes , and A. tenuis have been identified throughout the two measured sections from Dinar and cardak (SW Turkiye). The investigated assemblages, consisting also of nummulitids, orthophragminids, textulariids, rotaliids, and miliolids, allow us to assign the Sucikan section to shallow benthic zone 13 (SBZ13) and the Karabayir section to SBZ17. Based on the biogenic associations and carbonate textures, four major facies types (MFTs), as Alveolina-soritid packstone-rudstone, Alveolina-nummulitid packstone-rudstone, nummulitid packstone-rudstone, and nummulitid-orthophragminid packstone-rudstone have been distinguished. Facies characteristics of these MFTs and the transitions between them point to a shallow-marine depositional environment ranging from inner to middle-ramp settings.