ARABIAN JOURNAL OF GEOSCIENCES, cilt.11, sa.18, 2018 (SCI-Expanded)
In the northwestern part of the Arabian Platform, the Adyaman district (SE Turkey) displays some Lower-Middle Cenomanian deep-marine sediments of the Derdere Formation. These sediments are yielding abundant echinodermal remains, among which some thecal and brachial plates are assignable to roveacrinids. Routine microfacies analysis of the Lower-Middle Cenomanian part of the Derdere Formation revealed unexpected early Cenomanian assemblages of roveacrinoidal ossicles, comparable with those formerly reported further south in the Cenomanian-Turonian of the Arabian Platform. For the first time, genuine and undisputable Roveacrinidae are illustrated for SE Turkey. Seven borehole sections were scrutinized in search of microcrinoidal sections, most especially within carbonate microfacies. Within the scope of better constraining the position of the Lower-Middle Cenomanian, we had been compiling the successive occurrence of respective identified roveacrinid remains. These roveacrinidal assemblages are consisting in: Roveacrinus communis Douglas (1908) (= R. derdereensis Farinacci & Manni); Roveacrinus cf. alatus Douglas (1908); Roveacrinus spinosus Peck (1943); Roveacrinus sp.; Roveacrinidae indet.; Applinocrinus sp.; and Saccocomidae indet. These specimens provide significant clues to constrain the palaeogeographic reconstruction of Tethyan seaways, and represent potential fossil index candidates for the Lower Cenomanian stratigraphy of the Adyaman district.