Terrestrial Gastropoda from the Pleistocene of Beni Saf, NW Algeria
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Annales de Paléontologie 104 (2018) 291–300 Disponible en ligne sur ScienceDirect www.sciencedirect.com Original article Terrestrial Gastropoda from the Pleistocene of Beni Saf, NW Algeria Gastropodes terrestres du Pléistocène de Beni Saf, Nord Ouest de l’Algérie a,∗ b c Rodrigo B. Salvador , Mohammed Adaci , Madani Benyoucef a Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington, New Zealand b Earth and Universe Sciences, Research Laboratory no. 25, Abou-Bekr Belkaid University, Tlemcen, Algeria c Faculty of Natural and Life Sciences, Mustapha Stambouli-Mascara University, Mascara, Algeria a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t Article history: A study of the terrestrial gastropods of the Pliocene-Quaternary succession of the Beni Saf sea cliff, NW Received 2 May 2018 Algeria, at the Playa Port locality, is presented herein. The sedimentary succession is subdivided into four Accepted 31 July 2018 lithostratigraphic units, on the basis of their lithologic and biogenic contents: the three first units (A, B and Available online 22 November 2018 C) are of marine origin; the last unit (D) is of continental origin and includes three beds yielding terrestrial gastropod fossils, which form laterally traceable horizons. Herein, we describe the section’s lithology, Keywords: present stratigraphical considerations regarding its age and thoroughly described its terrestrial gastropod Caenogastropoda fossil fauna. In total, 13 species are reported here from Beni Saf: 2 caenogastropods (family Pomatiidae) Pliocene-Quaternary and 11 stylommatophorans (family Achatinidae and superfamily Helicoidea). The sedimentological data Stylommatophora indicate that the depositional setting at Beni Saf was a dune system flanked by wadi floodplains deposits Tafna Basin Villafranchian (snail levels); the ecological preferences of the gastropods largely agrees with this scenario. © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved. r é s u m é Mots clés : Le présent travail montre l’étude des gastéropodes terrestres de l’affleurement plio-quaternaire du Port Caenogastropoda Playa situé sur la falaise maritime de Beni Saf, NW Algérie. La série sédimentaire est subdivisée en quatre Stylommatophora unités lithostratigraphiques informelles, dont chacune est dotée de ses propres caractères lithologiques Plio-Quaternaire et paléontologiques. Les trois premières unités (A, B et C) sont d’origine marine ; la dernière unité (D) Bassin de la Tafna est d’origine continentale, formée de trois bancs, en bonne continuité latérale, à fossiles de gastéropodes Villafranchien terrestres. Ici, nous présentons la lithologie, l’attribution stratigraphique et la description minutieuse des gastéropodes terrestres de chaque banc. Au total, 13 espèces sont signalées à Beni Saf : 2 céno- gastéropodes (famille des Pomatiidae) et 11 stylommatophores (superfamille des Helicoidea et famille des Achatinidae). Les données sédimentologiques indiquent que le milieu de dépôt, à Beni Saf, était un système de dunes encadré par des dépôts de plaine d’inondation alluviale (niveaux à escargots). Les préférences écologiques des gastéropodes s’accordent largement avec ce scénario. © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. Tous droits reserv´ es.´ 1. Introduction 1999; Höltke et al., submitted) and may also act as paleoenviron- mental proxies (e.g., Goodfriend, 1992; Moine et al., 2002), studying Cenozoic fossil outcrops are widely distributed and well this fossil fauna can prove worthwhile. exposed at several localities in Algeria. They have been known for The fossil outcrops in the region of Beni Saf in northwest- a long time (e.g., Crosse, 1861, 1862; Bourguignat, 1862), but most ern Algeria are one of such understudied occurrences, as only a remain understudied to this day, especially regarding their gastro- short report on its terrestrial gastropods (Pallary, 1901: 96–97) pod fauna. Since gastropods may be useful index fossils (e.g., Esu, and an unpublished geological study (Guardia, 1975) exist. Pallary (1901) briefly mentioned four distinct sedimentary beds bearing gastropods, assigning them to the Quaternary. He listed 10 gastro- ∗ pod species, including “Helix” spp. and Rumina decollata (Linnaeus, Corresponding author. E-mail address: [email protected] (R.B. Salvador). 1758). Guardia (1975) offered a more in-depth analysis of the https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annpal.2018.07.002 0753-3969/© 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved. 292 R.B. Salvador et al. / Annales de Paléontologie 104 (2018) 291–300 Fig. 1. Location map showing the position of the study area. Carte de localisation montrant la position de la zone d’étude. geodynamics of the northwestern Orania region, only briefly men- diameter) in a brownish sandstone matrix, showing an erosional tioning the presence of terrestrial gastropods (“Hélix”). base. It is overlain by brownish, moderately- to poorly-sorted, New excavations were conducted in the fossil outcrop of Beni Saf medium-grained sandstone rich in bivalve fragments. The upper (Fig. 1) during two field expeditions (2016–2017), bringing to light portion of this unit is interbedded with thin micro-conglomerate a fauna of terrestrial gastropods. Here we describe the lithology channels alternating with sandstone levels rich in echinoid fossils and stratigraphy of this fossil outcrop, focusing especially on the (Clypeaster spp.). • gastropod-bearing levels, and propose a Pleistocene age for them. Unit B (∼5 m): This unit begins with a thin channeled conglom- Furthermore, we present an inventory of the fossil land snail fauna erate bed (10–30 cm), being mainly composed of angular clasts of Beni Saf, alongside a brief paleoenvironmental interpretation. (usually centimetric in diameter and variable in lithology and age: Paleozoic schist and quartzite, Messinian reef limestone) embed- ded in a brownish sandstone matrix. The conglomerate lithofacies 2. Geological setting grades upwards into a 4 meter thick section of yellowish fine- to coarse-grained bioclastic sandstones, showing horizontal and 2.1. General overview of study area low-angle cross-stratification on its uppermost portion. • Unit C (∼32 m): This unit is well developed along the mar- The study area is part of the Tafna Basin, which was defined itime coastline of Beni Saf. It is composed mainly of yellowish during the period when the early Miocene sea occupied the whole fine-gained sandstone in the form of tabular beds. These beds, western Orania region. Its paleogeographic history reveals sev- higher on, show erosional bases (sometimes very sharp) and eral distinct cycles during the Neogene and Quaternary dominated a wide variety of sedimentary structures, such as: wave-ripple by transgressive-regressive events (Gentil, 1903; Dalloni, 1915; cross-stratification, hummocky cross-stratification, mud-drape, Perrodon, 1957). The Tafna Basin encompasses the hills and plains and planar and herringbone cross-stratification. They are overlain crossed by Oued Tafna (Tafna River) and its tributaries. It is delim- by a centimeter-thick conglomerate bed consisting of rounded ited by the Tlemcen range to the south, the Trara mountain range clasts embedded in a fine sandstone matrix. and the Mediterranean Sea to the north, and to the east by the Sebaa • Unit D (∼35 m): This unit is the subject of the present study. It Chioukh Mountains and the westernmost extension of the Tessala is composed of three distinct subunits: D1: this basal subunit range (Fig. 1). consists mostly of soft hematite-rich sandstone (red bed), con- We studied the outcropping sections of the Playa Port on the taining root structures (pedotubules), and paleosol. Terrestrial right bank of the Oued Sidi Boucif. It is morphologically shaped as snails are commonly found in one level of the D1 subunit, which a cliff (Fig. 2A), circa 100 m high, on the north coast of Beni Saf ◦ ◦ is here addressed as “Gastropod Level 1”. D2: the second subunit (coordinates 35 18 29 N 01 22 42 W). shows a sharp lower contact with subunit D1. It is 2.5 meter thick, mainly composed of yellowish mega-rippled fine-grained sand- 2.2. Description of the section stones. No gastropods were found in this subunit. D3: the third subunit consists mostly of a grey massive stratum, showing a very The Pliocene-Quaternary outcrops along the Beni Saf sea cliff homogeneous appearance with irregular stratification surfaces. It were deposited over an angular unconformity with the Paleozoic contains gastropod fossils (molds) at the base (Gastropod Level basement. They consist of siliciclastic rocks that can be divided 2) and towards the top of the Unit (Gastropod Level 3). Unit D is into four informal units (Figs. 2B, C) based on lithology and fossil overlain by a thin irregular calcrete bed. content. From bottom to top, the units are: • This profile is distinct from the four layers described by Pallary Unit A (∼24 m): The exposed sections of this unit consist of a thin (1901), but the base of the present Unit D correlates to the “Helix”- basal conglomerate, containing reworked dark Paleozoic peb- bearing layer of Guardia (1975: “sables fins rubéfiés à Hélix”). bles (schist, quartzite, sandstone and limestone; of 3–10 cm in R.B. Salvador et al. / Annales de Paléontologie 104 (2018) 291–300 293 Fig. 2. A. Panoramic view of the Beni Saf maritime cliff. B. Lithostratigraphic log of the Plio-Quaternary Playa Port outcrop. C. Closer view of Unit D showing the positions of the three gastropod-bearing levels. A. Vue panoramique de la falaise maritime de Beni Saf. B. Colonne lithostratigraphique de l’affleurement plio-quaternaire du Port Playa. C. Vue rapprochée montrant la position des trois niveaux à gastéropodes. 2.3. Stratigraphy and age Unit D is overlain by basaltic flows. The volcanic activity of the Tafna area generated several volcanic flows, with ages ranging from Both the marine (Units A to C) and continental deposits (Unit Pliocene to Quaternary (Megartsi, 1985). The flow overlying Unit D) of the sea cliffs overhanging Beni Saf have always been prob- D in Beni Saf was assigned to the upper part of the Lower Pleis- lematic from a stratigraphic standpoint due to the scarcity of index tocene (Guardia, 1975); the age of the most recent flows is 1.45 Ma fossils.