Eastern Mediterranean foraminiferal palaeoecological response to Mid-Late Pliocene climatic regime: A preliminary note

The main objective of this work is to investigate the climatic influence on the sedimentation during mid to late Pliocene in Cyprus island. For this reason, a section located in Pissouri sub-basin, southern Cyprus, was chosen to be studied. The section comprises a nearly uninterrupted succession of marine sediments, dominated by grey marls, which are cyclically alternating with yellowish silty marls. The identification of age diagnostic planktonic foraminifera suggests a mid to upper Pliocene age. The calculated faunal parameters document cyclic fluctuations consistent with shifts in such climate belts. A good age resolution of the cycles and an indication of sedimentation rate would be required in order to connect cyclicity to orbital perturbations.