The Development of Facies Patterns of Middle Eocene to Lower Oligocene Circum-Alpine, Shallow-Water Carbonate Environments

A new concept, termed ‘Facies Dynamics’ (defined as changes of specific carbonate facies types in time and space, which are controlled by phylogenetic, ecological and geological parameters), is introduced. This concept aims to define and interpret spatial and temporal changes of carbonate facies patterns. It is based on Middle Eocene to Early Oligocene shallow-water carbonate facies types from the circumalpine area (north-eastern Italy, northern Slovenia, Austria and southern Bavaria), which are compared with respect to dominating biogenic components and their distributions along a shelf gradient. The benthic biotic changes are controlled by regional changes in ecological parameters, but also by global events, especially extinction patterns at the Middle/Late Eocene boundary and at the Eocene/Oligocene boundary.