The palaeogeographic distribution of stromatolites in the Parnassus zone, Central Greece, during the early to middle Paleocene

Abstract

The stromatolites recorded in the Parnassus Zone, central Greece, were developed in shallow waters (tidal flat conditions) that prevailed in the central areas of the zone during the early to middle Paleocene. In the margins, deeper water prevailed during this interval which enabled the deposition of pelagic limestones. The wide geographic distribution of the stromatolites in the zone probably depended on the lack of organisms feeding on them, climatic factors, salinity of coastal waters and sediment supply. They further acted as post massextinction disaster forms inhabiting the shallow water areas after the extinction of the rudists at the end of the Cretaceous