First report of Kylonisa triangularis Keij, 1972 (Bryozoa) from the middle Eocene (Bartonian)

A large number of specimens of Kylonisa triangularis Keij, 1972 is reported here from the middle Eocene (Bartonian) Nummulites perforatus banks located within the north-western part of the Transylvanian Basin, Romania. This is the first record of this bryozoan species from the Eocene of the north-eastern Neotethyan margin. The new material does not show rootlet pores and central openings with single pores on distal chambers, probably due to their less-favourable preservation. K. triangularis is elsewhere occurring in southwestern France only and we conclude that the species migrated from the Transylvanian Basin westwards to France during the Eocene/Oligocene along the northern margin of the closing Neotethys Ocean. The occurrence of these bryozoans in the Nummulites perforatus banks underlines the interpretation of this species as inhabiting high-energy shallow marine environments and further constrains the paleoecology and paleogeography of this taxon.