Foraminiferal Biostratigraphy, Paleoecology and Sequence Stratigraphy of the Upper Campanian –Lower Eocene (Ypresian) Succession at Gabal Qabeliat Section, Southwestern Sinai area, Egypt

The exposed Upper Campanian- Lower Eocene (Ypresian) Succession at Gabal Qabeliat section is measured and detailed examined for its foraminiferal content. 234 foraminiferal species have been identified, of them 94 planktonic and 140 benthonic species. The planktonic assemblage is used, to classify the studied interval into eighteen planktonic foraminiferal biozones: two of Late Campanian; four of Early Maastrichtian; four of Late Maastrichtian; two of Early Paleocene (Danian); one of early Late Paleocene (Selandian); one of Latest Paleocene (Latest Thanetian); two of Earliest Eocene (Earliest Ypresian) and two of Early Eocene (Ypresian). Also, this interval is classified into seven benthonic foraminiferal biozones; one of Late Campanian; one of Early Maastrichtian; one of Late Maastrichtian; one of Early Paleocene (Middle – Late Danian); one of late Early Paleocene (Latest Danian) to early Late Paleocene (Selandian); one of Latest Paleocene (Latest Thanetian) and one of Early Eocene (Ypresian). The total number of foraminiferal species, the species diversity, the P/B ratio, the Aggl./Calc. ratio; and their abundance patterns are used, to reach to a detailed paleoecologic interpretations and sea level changes prevailed during the deposition of the studied succession. The integration between the lithologic characters, detailed field examination for the stratigraphic surfaces and the foraminiferal biostratigraphic studies led to classify this interval into four 3rd depositional sequences bounded by four type- one sequence boundaries. These are one in the Upper Campanian-Maastrichtian; two in the Paleocene; and one in the Lower Eocene. The correlations between the recorded sequence boundaries in the studied section with those of the previous studies inside /outside Egypt were done.