Lehmann, J., Friedrich, O., von Bargen, D. and Hemker, T. 2012. Early Aptian bay deposits at the southern margin of the lower Saxony Basin: Integrated stratigraphy, palaeoenvironment and OAE 1a. Acta Geologica Polonica, 62 (1), 35-62. Warszawa. The present study establishes a lithostratigraphic subdivision, a bio- and chemostratigraphy and describes the sedimentology of the Alstatte Bay at the southern margin of the Lower Saxony Basin in northern Germany. The socalled Fischschiefer is developed in the lower part of the section, a 2.1 m thick laminated interval that shows TOC values of up to 2 % and is interpreted as local expression of the global Oceanic Anoxic Event 1a (OAE 1a). The basal part of the Fischschiefer is fairly continuously laminated, whereas its upper part is characterized by an alternation of laminated and non-laminated beds. Stable carbon isotopes (δ13 C carb ) show a characteristic pattern for the Fischschiefer interval that can be correlated with sections from the Tethyan Realm. Immediately above the Fischschiefer, however, the studied section might reveal a diagenetic overprint as indicated by very negative carbon stable isotope values. The remaining part of the section is characterized by a rather monotonous claystone succession, terminated by a greenish layer rich in glauconite overlain by glacial till of Pleistocene age. The fauna is typically Boreal in the lower part of the section, but changes around 2 m above the Fischschiefer towards an assemblage indicating a distinct Tethyan influx. The faunal shift is considered to be due to the maximum flooding of the continuous, long-term sea level rise of the Early Aptian which led also to a supposed shift from a restricted to open bay environment.

Changes in ammonite morphology during the earliest Early Aptian (Cretaceous) of an epicontinental sea in northern Germany were investigated based on new and rich material of Deshayesites (Deshayesitidae). This is a globally distributed genus and one of the most important ammonites of the Cretaceous with respect to biostratigraphy and abundance. The purpose of our study was to describe changes in morphology over few hundred thousand years and to discuss their relationships to major palaeoenvironmental perturbations. Our material is derived from four different horizons, and the studied stratigraphical interval includes a sea‐level change, a period of warming and an oxygen depletion event. We observe variable patterns in the occurrence of different morphological groups through time, probably indicating that morphotypes were individually impacted by environmental change. These morphological groups, unequivocally attributed to Deshayesites, cannot be fit into the existing species classification system. The greatest morphological disparity in Deshayesites is multi‐causal. It may be the result of: (1) an invasion of two morphogroups new to the habitat, which thus immediately face considerably greater competition in an environment just recovered from low‐oxygen conditions in parts of the water column during an early interval within Oceanic Anoxic Event 1a (OAE 1a); or, (2) it may be due to a rise in sea level with a simultaneous invasion of competitors of Tethyan origin. This sheds new light on the current concept for high morphological variability within ammonite species and poses challenges to our current ideas about ammonite diversity and the use of well‐established index‐species in supraregional correlations.

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