Univ., Diss., 2009--Würzburg.

The Upper Bajocian-Bathonian Kashafrud Formation is a thick package of siliciclastic sediments that crops out in NE Iran from the southeast, near the Afghanistan border, to north- northwestern areas around the city of Mashhad. The thickness ranges from less than 300 m in a deltaic succession (Kuh-e-Radar) to more than 2500 m in the Maiamay area, but the normal thickness in Ghal-e-Sangi, Kol-e-Malekabad, and Fraizi areas is about 1200-1300 m. It is the fill of an elongated basin, which extended for more than 200 km in NW-SE direction and a width of at least 50 km along the southern margin of the Koppeh Dagh. Prior to this study, little information existed about the sedimentary environments and other characters, especially the geometry of the basin. Exact biostratigraphic data from the top of the Kashafrud Formation were rare. Based on the macrofauna from the lower part of the overlying Chamanbid Formation the upper boundary of the Kashafrud Formation had been attributed to the Late Bathonian and/or Early Callovian, but now the upper limit of the Kashafrud Formation is defined as Late Bathonian in age, based on ammonite biostratigraphy. Except for chapter one, which deals with the introduction and related sub-titles, in the following chapters, step by step, field observations and data were surveyed according to the questions to solve. In order to reconstruct the facies architecture and the geometry of the basin, a number of sections have been logged in detail (see chapter 3, “The sections”). The exact biostratigraphic setting is discussed in chapter 4 (“Biostratigraphy”). Sedimentary environments range from non-marine alluvial fans and braided rivers in the basal part of the succession to deltas, storm-dominated shelf, slope and deep-marine basin. The latter comprises the largest part of the basin fill, consisting of monotonous mudstones, siltstones and proximal to distal turbidities. The only continuous carbonate unit (~30 m) locally formed at Tappenader. Other localities in which thin fossil-bearing carbonate strata occur are Torbat-e-Jam (benthic fauna) and, to a lesser extent, Ghal-e-Sangi. These rare shallow-water carbonates, which also contain corals, represent only short intervals (see chapter 5,” Facies association and sedimentary environments”). Relative changes in sea level were reconstructed on the basis of deepening- and shallowing-upward trends. Sequence boundaries and parasequences have been distinguished and analyzed in chapter 6 (“Sequence stratigraphy”). In most areas, the basin rapidly evolved from a shallow marine, transgressive succession to a deep-marine, basinal succession. The only area where shallow conditions persisted from the Late Bajocian to the Late Bathonian, and even into the Early Callovian is the Kuh-e-Radar area which corresponds to a fan-delta setting. A trace fossil analysis has been carried out to obtain additional evidence on the bathymetry of the basin (see chapter 7, “Ichnology”). Altogether 29 ichnospecies belonging to 15 ichnogenera have been identified, as well as 10 ichnogenera, which were determined only at genus level. They can be grouped in the well-known “Seilacherian ichnofacies”. Very high subsidence rates and strong lateral thickness variations suggest that the Kashafrud Formation is a rift related basin that formed as the eastern extension of the South Caspian Basin. The basin evolution is reviewed, the eastern and western continuations of the basin were checked in the field and also in the literature (see chapter 8, “Basin evolution”). In all, the present study provided new insights into the development of the Kashafrud Formation, e.g. more biostratigraphic data from the base and the top of the succession, a relatively complete picture of the trace fossil associations, a better recognition and reconstruction of the sedimentary environments in different parts of the basin. Finally this research project will be a good basis for further investigations, especially towards the west, as parts of the Kashafrud Formation are source rocks of a hydrocarbon reservoir in NE Iran.

The Middle and Upper Jurassic sedimentary successions of Alborz in northern Iran and Koppeh Dagh in northeastern Iran comprise four formations; Dalichai, Lar (Alborz) and Chaman Bid, Mozduran (Koppeh Dagh). In this thesis, the biostratigraphy, lithostratigraphy, microfacies, depositional environments and palaeobiogeography of these rocks are discussed with special emphasis on the abundant ammonite fauna. They constitute a more or less continuous sequence, being confined by two tectonic events, one at the base, in the uppermost part of the Shemshak Formation (Bajocian), the so-called Mid-Cimmerian Event, the other one at the top (early Cretaceous), the so-called Late-Cimmerian Event. The lowermost unit constitutes the uppermost member of a siliciclastic and partly continental depositional sequence known as Shemshak Formation. It contains a fairly abundant ammonite fauna ranging in age from Aalenian to early Bajocian. The following unit (Dalichai Formation) begins everywhere with a significant marine transgression of late Bajocian age. The following four sections were measured: The Dalichai section (97 m) with three members; the Golbini-Jorbat composite section (449 m) with three members of the Dalichai Formation (414 m) and two members of the Lar Formation (414 m); the Chaman Bid section (1556 m) with seven members, and the Tooy-Takhtehbashgheh composite section (567 m) with three members of the Chaman Bid Formation (567 m) and four members of the Mozduran Formation (1092 m). Altogether, 80 species of ammonites from the Dalichai and Chaman Bid formations belonging to 30 genera and 16 families are described. Among the taxa Phylloceratidae are most abundant, followed by Ataxioceratidae, Perisphinctidae, and Cardioceratidae. Pachyceratidae are the least common family. The ammonite fauna is of low diversity and is concentrated in several levels. Some of the ammonite genera and species are recorded from Iran for the first time. These include Pachyceras lalandei, Cardioceras praecordatum, Microbajocisphinctes sp., Geyssantia geyssanti, Larcheria schilli, Passendorferia sp., Sequeirosia sp., Phanerostephanus subsenex, Nothostephanus sp., Nannostephanus cf. subcomutus, Parawedekindia callomoni, Physodoceras sp., Extrenodites sp.. Biostratigraphically, thirty ammonite zones have been recognized for the Middle and Upper Jurassic successions at the four studied sections. Based on ammonites, the Dalichai Formation ranges from the Upper Bajocian to Callovian (Dalichai section) and from the Upper Bajocian to Lower Tithonian (Golbini-Jorbat section), the Chaman Bid Formation ranges from the ?Bathonian to Lower Tithonian (Chaman Bid section) and from the Upper Bajocian to Middle Kimmeridgian (Tooy-Takhtehbashgheh section), the Lar Formation ranges from the Middle to Upper Tithonian (Golbini-Jorbat section), and the Mozduran Formation from the Upper Kimmeridgian to ?Tithonian. Forty-four Microfacies types are briefly described. They were grouped into 16 facies associations, which then were interpreted in terms of their palaeoenvironments. They are part of a carbonate system consisting of a platform and adjacent slope to basin. Five major environments are represented: Tidal flat, shelf lagoon, and platform margin barrier as parts of the carbonate platform, and slope to basin representing open marine conditions. The sediments of the Dalichai and Chaman Bid formations are the slope and basinal sediments of the diachronous Lar and Mozduran formations, which formed an extensive carbonate platform in the Middle and Upper Jurassic. / In der sedimentären Abfolge des Mittel- und Oberjura im Alborz (nördlicher Iran) und im Koppeh Dagh (nordöstlicher Iran) werden vier Formationen ausgeschieden: Dalichai- und Lar-Formation im Alborz und Chaman Bid- und Mozduran-Formation im Koppeh Dagh. Die Biostratigraphie, Lithostratigraphie, Mikrofazies, Ablagerungsbedingungen und Paläobiogeographie der Abfolgen werden diskutiert, unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der reichen Ammonitenfauna. Die Abfolgen stellen eine mehr oder wenig kontinuierliche sedimentäre Sequenz dar, die an der Basis und am Top von bedeutenden überregionalen tektonischen Unconfomities begrenzt wird, verursacht durch die Mittel-Cimmerischen Bewegungen im Bajoc und die Spät-Cimmerischen Bewegungen in der frühen Kreide. Die folgenden vier Profile wurden bearbeitet: das Dalichai-Typprofil (97 m) mit drei Membern; das zusammengesetzte Golbini-Jorbat-Profil (449 m) mit drei Membern der Dalichai-Formation (414 m) und zwei Membern der Lar-Formation (414 m); das Chaman Bid-Typprofil (1556 m) mit sieben Membern, und das zusammengesetzte Tooy-Takhtehbashgheh-Profil (567 m) mit drei Membern der Chaman Bid-Formation (567 m) und vier Membern der Mozduran-Formation (1092 m). Insgesamt werden 80 Ammonitenarten aus der Dalichai- und der Chaman Bid-Formation beschrieben, die zu 30 Gattungen und 16 Familien gehören. Die Phylloceratidae zeigen die höchste Abundanz, gefolgt von den Ataxioceratidae, Perisphinctidae und Cardioceratidae. Die Pachyceratidae sind die am wenigsten häufige Familie. Die Ammonitenfauna ist gering divers und an bestimmte Horizonte gebunden. Die folgenden Ammoniten-Gattungen und -Arten werden zum ersten mal aus dem Iran beschrieben: Pachyceras lalandei, Cardioceras praecordatum, Microbajocisphinctes sp., Geyssantia geyssanti, Larcheria schilli, Passendorferia sp., Sequeirosia sp., Phanerostephanus subsenex, Nothostephanus sp., Nannostephanus cf. subcomutus, Parawedekindia callomoni, Physodoceras sp., Extrenodites sp.. 30 Ammoniten-Biozonen konnten in der Mittel- bis Oberjura-Abfolge erkannt werden. Basierend auf der Ammoniten-Biostratigraphie kann die stratigraphische Reichweite der Formationen präzisiert werden: die Dalichai-Formation reicht vom Oberbajoc bis zum Callov (Dalichai-Profil) und vom Oberbajoc bis zum Untertithon (Golbini-Jorbat-Profil); die Chaman Bid-Formation reicht vom ?Bathon bis ins Untertithonian (Chaman Bid-Profil) und vom Oberbajoc bis Mittelkimmeridge (Tooy-Takhtehbashgheh-Profil); die Lar-Formation reicht vom Mittel- bis ins Obertithon (Golbini-Jorbat-Profil); die Mozduran-Formation reicht vom Oberkimmeridge bis zum ?Tithon. 44 Mikrofaziestypen, gruppiert in 16 Fazies-Assoziationen, werden kurz beschrieben und im Hinblick auf ihre Bildungsbedingungen interpretiert. Sie dokumentieren ein Karbonatsystem bestehend aus einer Plattform, einem Hang und einem Becken. Fünf Hauptablagerungsbereiche können ausgeschieden werden: Karbonatwatten, Schelflagune und Plattformrand als Teile der ehemaligen Karbopnatplattform sowie Hang und Becken des offenmarinen Bereiches. Die Sedimente der Dalichai- und Chaman Bid-Formationen repräsentieren Hang- und Becken-Sedimente einer sich diachron in Mittel- und Oberjura bildenden Karbonatplattform, die durch die Lar- und Mozduran-Formationen dokumentiert wird.