Dinoflagellate cyst stratigraphy of the Popiele Member and Menilite Formation in the Boryslav-Pokuttya Nappe (Aksmanice, SE Poland)

In the Paratethys Sea, isolation, the development of anoxia and stratification of the water column resulted in deposition of organic-rich sediments. In the Western Carpathians (Central Paratethys) these sediments now lie within the Menilite Formation. Whereas the Eocene–Oligocene transition has been studied in the Western Carpathians and is documented by dinoflagellate cyst assemblages, the dinoflagellate cyst stratigraphy of the Menilite Formation members has been uncertain. The Popiele Member and the Menilite Formation exposed at Aksmanice (Boryslav–Pokuttya Nappe, Western Outer Carpathians) reflect palaeogeographic changes at the beginning of the Oligocene. These previously studied deposits have been assigned to lithostratigraphic units, though without biostratigraphic documentation. The age of the Menilite Fm. in the Carpathian sedimentary succession is particularly interesting due to the diachronous character of the facies development. In this study we provide biostratigraphic data based on well-preserved organic-walled dinoflagellate cyst assemblages. The marker taxa recovered indicate a Rupelian age (Early Oligocene) for the Menilite Fm. A different assemblage occurs in the Popiele Member underlying the Menilite Fm. Here, the dinoflagellate cysts are more diverse and abundant, and represented by typical Eocene taxa attributed to Areosphaeridium spp. and Charlesdowniea spp. The Popiele Member may be assigned to the Priabonian (Late Eocene).