Heteromorph ammonites and dinoflagellate cysts from the Upper Cretaceous Northumberland Formation on Hornby Island, British Columbia, Canada are examined. The collection and preparation of new material has enabled the recognition of eleven species of which only three have been reported from the locality. Of these taxa represented from three heteromorph ammonite families in the study area, five are new occurrences and three are new to science. This expansion of the Hornby Island ammonite fauna is presented alongside a pioneering taxonomic survey of dinoflagellate cysts from the same rocks. Together, these macro- and microfossils reinforce a late Campanian age for the Northumberland Formation with the upper extent of the section approaching the Campanian-Maastrichtian boundary (CMB) interval. The palaeoecology and evolutionary relationships of these heteromorph ammonoids are considered with new insights into their ontogenetic development and neritic palaeoenvironmental circumstances. The dinoflagellate cysts and associated terrestrial palynomorphs have also allowed for enhanced palaeoenvironmental reconstruction and depositional setting inference. The scope of the studied material, and the presence of key index taxa, enables refined biostratigraphy and a stronger basis for correlation of the Hornby Island succession with neighboring coeval biotic provinces. / Graduate / 2018-08-10

The hallmark of oceanic anoxic event 1a (OAE1a) (early Aptian ~125 Ma) corresponds to worldwide deposition of black shales with total organic carbon (TOC) content > 2% and a d13C positive excursion up to ~5‰. OAE1a has been related to large igneous province volcanism and dissociation of methane hydrates during the Lower Cretaceous. However, the occurrence of atypical, coeval and diachronous organic-rich deposits associated with OAE1a, which are also characterized by positive spikes of the d13C in epicontinental to restricted marine environments of the Tethys Ocean, indicates localized responses decoupled from complex global forcing factors. The present research is a high-resolution, multiproxy approach to assess the paleoenvironmental conditions that led to enhanced carbon sequestration from the late Barremian to the middle Aptian in a restricted, Tethyan marginal basin prior to and during OAE1a. I studied the lower 240 m of the El Pui section, Organyà Basin, Spanish Pyrenees. The basin developed as the result of extensional tectonism linked to the opening of the Atlantic Ocean. At the field scale the section consists of a sequence of alternating beds of cm – m-scale, medium-gray to grayish-black limestones and marlstones with TOC up to ~4%. The results indicate that the lowest 85 m of the section, from latest Barremian –earliest Aptian, characterize a deepening phase of the basin concomitant with sustained riverine flux and intensified primary productivity. These changes induced a shift in the sedimentation pattern and decreased the oxygen levels in the water column through organic matter respiration and limited ventilation of the basin. The upper 155 m comprising the earliest – late-early Aptian document the occurrence of OAE1a and its associated geochemical signatures (TOC up to 3% and a positive shift in d13C of ~5‰). However, a low enrichment of redox-sensitive trace elements indicates that the basin did not achieve anoxic conditions. The results also suggest that a shallower-phase of the basin, coeval with platform progradation, may have increased ventilation of the basin at the same time that heightened sedimentation rates and additional input of organic matter from terrestrial sources increased the burial and preservation rate of TOC in the sediment.

Le Crétacé est décrit comme la période la plus chaude des derniers 300 millions d’années. La circulation océanique et l’origine des eaux profondes alimentant les bassins restent mal connues pour le Crétacé, alors qu’elles sont capitales dans la compréhension du rôle de l’océan dans l’évolution du climat à cette époque. Les isotopes du néodyme (Nd) permettent de tracer la circulation océanique et les échanges entre les masses d’eau, et ont été utilisés pour explorer la circulation océanique globale des océans actuels et dans le passé. La composition isotopique en Nd (εNd) des océans dérive de celle des continents qui les entourent. Les courants océaniques exportent cette signature, et les eaux profondes de chaque bassin océanique ont une composition en Nd qui leur est propre. L’interprétation du signal du Nd des eaux océaniques au Crétacé est rendue difficiles du fait de l'insuffisance de la couverture spatiale et temporelle des données existantes. L’objectif de cette thèse est l’acquisition la signature en Nd sur les marges continentales et dans les régions dépourvues de données pour le Crétacé, en se focalisant prioritairement sur les zones potentielles de production d’eau profonde. L’εNd est analysé à partir d’échantillons de dents de poissons, d’oxydes encroûtant les tests de foraminifères et de fraction détritique extraits des sédiments. Les résultats sont comparés aux données de la littérature afin d’identifier les sources des eaux profondes et leur évolution au cours du Crétacé. Les liens entre les changements océanographiques, paléogéographiques et climatiques sont explorés avec un modèle climatique couplé océan-atmosphère. / The Cretaceous is depicted as the warmest period of the last 300 Ma. The oceanic circulation and location of the source zones of deep-waters are essential to understand the role of oceans in the evolution of the climate during the Cretaceous, yet they remain unclear for this period. The neodymium (Nd) isotopes are used to track oceanic circulation and exchanges between water masses, in both past and modern oceans. The Nd isotope composition (εNd) in the ocean is related to the nature of the surrounding continental landmasses. The oceanic currents transport this isotopic signature, thus every oceanic basin acquires a singular εNd. Unequivocal interpretations of the Cretaceous seawater εNd values stem from the insufficient spatial and temporal cover of available data. This PhD thesis intents to collect the Nd signature of continental margins and in regions without data for the Cretaceous, with special attention given to the potential source zones of deep-water production. Fossil fish teeth, coatings on foraminifera tests and detrital fraction from Cretaceous sediments are analyzed for their εNd. The results are compared to published data sets, in order to identify deep-waters source zones and their evolution throughout the Cretaceous. The links connecting oceanographic, palaeogeographic and climatic changes are investigated with a coupled ocean-atmosphere circulation model.

The biostratigraphy and isotope stratigraphy of the upper Aptian to lower Cenomanian interval including oceanic anoxic events OAE1b, 1c and 1d are investigated in ODP Site 763, drilled on the Exmouth Plateau offshore northwest Australia. Benthic foraminifera suggest that Site 763 was situated in outer neritic to upper bathyal water depths (~150-600 m). OAEs of the Atlantic basin and Tethys are typically associated with organic carbon-rich black shales and δ13C excursions. However, OAEs at this high latitude site correlate with ocean acidification and/or pyrite formation under anoxic conditions rather than black shales. Ocean acidification maybe responsible for sporadic low abundances of planktic foraminifera compared to radiolarians and benthic foraminifera associated with increased volcanogenic CO2 production during the formation of the Southern and Central Kerguelen Plateaus. Sea surface temperature may have cooled to 11°C in the late Aptian but increased gradually during the Albian. The Aptian/Albian boundary is placed at a negative carbon isotope excursion associated with the lowest occurrence of Microhedbergella renilaevis, typically found within the Niveau Kilian black shale of OAE1b. Third-order sea level cycles, particularly in the middle Albian, produced cyclic changes in the abundance of inoceramid prisms that increased during inferred times of falling sea level. The late Albian OAE1c and OAE1d coincide with horizons of intense pyritization and the absence of all biocomponents suggesting the development of euxinia. Warm Tethyan waters reached the Exmouth Plateau during the latest Albian based on the presence of thermocline dwelling keeled planktic foraminifera including Planomalina buxtorfi.

The central objective of this study is to understand phytoplankton community response following the global mass extinction event at the Cretaceous–Paleogene (K/Pg) boundary. The objective is approached through analysis of dinoflagellate cyst assemblages across the boundary interval in the North Pacific. Dinoflagellate cysts are powerful tools for deep time paleoenvironmental reconstructions and this group of microfossils has been vastly underutilized in this region of the world. On this premise, comprehensive marine palynological surveys were undertaken for the Oyster Bay Formation of eastern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada and Shatsky Rise in the northwest Pacific. The Oyster Bay Formation work resulted in the discovery of the first K/Pg boundary succession west of the Rocky Mountains based on biostratigraphic controls and refined taxonomy for the genus Cannosphaeropsis found within these strata. Three new taxa are described: Cannosphaeropsis franciscana subsp. vacuoseptata subsp. nov., Cannosphaeropsis franciscana subsp. vesiculata subsp. nov. and Phelodinium fensomei sp. nov. The cyst assemblages reveal endemic associations and signals of transition between offshore coastal to estuarine settings in keeping with global eustatic trends. Oyster Bay Formation results and interpretations are compared to analyses of core samples from Deep Sea Drilling Project Site 577 at Shatsky Rise. Contrast is seen between a diverse, highly productive coastal to estuarine environment in the Oyster Bay Formation as represented by organic-walled taxa and an oligotrophic bathyal environment at Shatsky Rise during the same interval as represented by a small number of calcareous taxa. These two regions form the basis for comparison between differing assemblages in order to ascertain the extent to which phytoplankton communities were affected by changes in sea-surface and water mass conditions in conjunction with the K/Pg event. The findings reveal measurable impacts of climate and paleoenvironmental change reflected by shifts in assemblage composition and cyst morphology. A lack of extinction among many forms is consistent with studies from around the globe as presented in an exhaustive review of the literature. The dinoflagellates were marginally impacted with the most specialized taxa presenting a record of sea-surface temperature fluctuation, nutrient supply and opportunistic niche exploitation. / Graduate / 2022-08-20

Sandstone bodies of the Lower and Middle Turonian well exposed in the northwestern part of the Bohemian Cretaceous Basin represent deposits of the coarse-grained deltas. Aim of this paper is to interpret the architectures, stratigraphy and depositional regime of these bodies. The main architectural elements are clinoforms which show intermediate dip 4ř to 5ř of the delta slope and the direction of the progradation of the delta to the west-southwest. Correlation of the lithological profiles with the well - log data provided the stratigraphic classification of the outcrops in the studied area mostly to the genetic sequence TUR2. Correlations in one of the two stratigraphic cross - sections revealed the existence of the second delta body prograding into the basin from Most - Teplice Palaeohigh during TUR1. Detailed study of the sedimentary structures in the outcrops show high degree of reworking of foresets by tidal generated current. Two main directions of the paleocurrents results from the analysis - dominant current to the NW and subordinate current to the SE - SSE.

This diploma thesis presents a synthesis of fieldwork and well-log data of the Upper- Turonian sandstone bodies in the northwestern part of the Bohemian Cretaceous Basin. There was no previous research based on method of the sequence stratigraphy and correlation well-logs. I made 13 measured sedimentological cross-sections that were correlated to stratigraphical cross section along depositional dip and strike. Structures of the Upper Turonian sandstones (genetic sequences TUR 5 - 7) are dominated by trough cross bedding that migrate on a slightly inclined delta slope (1 - 5ř). The main direction of paleocurrents is towards SE or E. The analysis of thicknesses of parasequences (for TUR 4 - TUR 7) gives trend of thinning parasequences through time. Increasing content of the potassium is evident within sequences TUR 4 to TUR 7. It is independent on the grain-size, but indicates rapid transport from the source area.

Upper Turonian and Lower Coniacian calcareous nannoplankton stratigraphy in the borehole V 800 Střeleč, Bohemian Cretaceous Basin Number of biostratigraphic studies has been performed within the Upper Cretaceous platform sediments of the NW Europe, however, the problem of Turonian-Coniacan boundary has not yet been satisfactorily resolved using available methods in the field of micropaleontology. The proposed thesis has described the species composition of calcareous nannoplankton assemblages in the Bohemian Cretaceous Basin, across the Upper Turonian- Lower Coniacian interval, focusing on the stratigraphically and paleoecologically important species. Seventy-three taxa of calcareous nannofossils in the studied material have been determined and signifiant species have been discussed (Marthasterites furcatus, Kamptnerius magnificus, Lucianorhabdus sp., Braarudosphaera sp., Nannoconus sp., Watznaueria barnesae, Uniplanarius gothicus, Quadrum gartneri, Thoracosphaera operculata). For purposes of this thesis, a suitable material from the V 800 Střeleč borehole, one of the key cretaceous profil in the Český ráj area, was obtained.

The Bohemian Cretaceous Basin was a sediment accumulation, which was deposited as an integral part of the central European epicontinental sea during the Late Cretaceous sea level highstand. It acted as a marine strait and was suited for preserving both nearshore coarse- clastic successions and hemipelagic deposits, allowing for the study of interplay between tectonics, eustatic sea level and paleoceanographic conditions. While the north-western part of the basin was extensively studied in the recent years, little information has yet been collected about the coeval along-shore environments. This thesis is aimed at bringing a new insight into these fine-grained deposits through a detailed lithological, multiproxy and time-series analysis investigation of the Late Turonian record in the Bch-1 drill core, Běchary, Czech Republic. The secular onset of carbonate-rich hemipelagic sedimentation coeval to the base of Teplice Formation is characterised by increased micrite content and changes in geochemical proxies, which are interpreted as changes in the pathway of clay distribution and silt source proximity, combined with elevated bioproductivity. Three orders of statistically significant variability were identified by time-series analysis of selected geophysical properties, two of which are carrying the...

This thesis deals with the belemnite fauna from the Outer Western Carpathians Klippen, its systematic classification, stratigraphical and palaeogeographical evaluation. The palaeontological/palaeobiological approach, together with isotope analyses, including of carbon and oxygen stable isotopes and of strontium isotopes, enabled an integrated investigation of the palaeoecological conditions during the Jurassic/Cretaceous (J/K) boundary interval and the Early Cretaceous age. The Tethyan belemnites are not intensively studied in detail in the J/K interval, as they occur rather rarely in the sections, and/or sedimentary conditions were not suitable for their preservation. Therefore, belemnites are described only from a few sites in the Mediterranean Province. On the basis of recent research, the stratigraphic range of several species previously considered to be from the Tithonian age was extended to the earliest Cretaceous. By contrast, the Lower Cretaceous belemnites (since the late Berriasian) are more abundant. In the classical areas of the Tethyan Realm, it is possible to study the Lower Cretaceous belemnites in great detail and, according to their higher abundance, to determine an individual assemblage corresponding to stratigraphical intervals. Their occurrence is also an important basement for...