Proposal to establishing paleontological sites in the Emilia-Romagna region (N.Italy)

Region Emilia-Romagna in Northern Italy hosts a variety of valuable paleontological sites of late Tertiary age that merit protection and management for public interest. Such an impressive marine invertebrate legacy is known since over three centuries and has been functional to a number of taxonomic, stratigraphic and paleoenvironmental studies. In addition, there are also many remarkable plant and vertebrate sites in need of protection and visibility. As a first step in this direction, we have selected four sites of relevant paleontological significance. They are from NW to SE: (1) Stirone River, (2) Monticino, (3) Montepetra, and (4) Mondaino, all easily accessible from local roads.(1) The Stirone River (Parma Province) cuts through a Miocene-Pleistocene sedimentary succession useful to correlate major geological and paleoclimatic events at regional and global scales. Its outstanding paleontological content has been already recognized long ago leading to the establishment of the Regional Fluvial Park in 1988. Highlights of this paleontological site exceedingly rich in marine molluscs, brachiopods, corals, calcareous algae, echinoids, bryozoans, foraminifera, etc., are a Pliocene-age chemoherm containing various lucinid clams and the Early Pleistocene “Cascatelle” Calcarenite. This paleo-site also provided important vertebrates, namely two Pliocene whales and a Pleistocene rhinoceros.(2) The Monticino Geopark, established near Brisighella (Ravenna Province), comprehends a large area along the left side of the Lamone River characterized by a spectacular Neogene succession. The dismissed Li Monti quarry that exposes upper Tortonian-lower Pliocene deposits, including a complete Messinian succession, represents the core of this Geopark. The highly remarkable paleontological content of this site refers to Tortonian-lower Messinian marine deep-water faunas, well-preserved fossil fishes within intra-evaporitic anoxic layers, late Turolian-age vertebrate remains encased in karst-infilling continental sediment dikes, brackish Lago-mare molluscs of the Colombacci Formation and early Pliocene deep-sea invertebrates of the Argille Azzurre Formation.(3) The village of Montepetra (Forlì-Cesena Province) is partially built over an impressive methanogenetic chemoherm with associated chaotic levels belonging to the Miocene-age “Lucina Limestone” informal stratigraphic unit. The main limestone body is enclosed in slope hemipelagites of the Miocene Marnoso-Arenacea foredeep succession and considered Tortonian in age. The “Lucina Limestone” of Montepetra gained international reputation as a remarkable example of deep-sea hydrocarbon seepage. Its paleontological content includes a diverse chemosynthetic macrofauna (solemyid, bathymodiolinid and lucinid bivalves; tubeworms) as well as gastropods, corals and other marine invertebrates.(4) The Miocene fossil fish fauna of Mondaino (Rimini province) was cited already in 1832 (“mummified bodies”) and later described by Luis Agassiz. This rich pre-evaporitic ichtyofauna is sourced from diatomaceous sediments (tripoli), at present clearly visible on the northern side of the Il Monte hill, near La Celletta as a consequence of the 1983 landslide. The fossil legacy contains a diverse benthic and epipelagic fauna with fish assemblages dominated by Myctophidae. Terrestrial fossils include rare insects and birds and abundant flora. This potential paleontological site is already served by a dedicated museum that preserves an important collection from the local tripoli.