ORBITOLINIDS AND OTHER LARGER BENTHIC FORAMINIFERA FROM THE APTIAN-ALBIAN OF TIBET: CRITICAL DISCUSSION OF SOME RECENTLY PUBLISHED DATA

Orbitolinidae together with other larger benthic foraminifera are particularly important in Lower Cretaceous shallow-water biostratigraphy provided that they are correctly identified. Especially in the case of the Orbitolininae (with complex embryo), their biostratigraphic range with overlapping ranges corresponds to different lineages displaying ancestor-descendant relationship (e.g., Praeorbitolina-Mesorbitolina). In the last fifty years well established and repeatedly confirmed taxon ranges have been largely extended thereby diluting or negating any biostratigraphic value to individual species. Some biostratigraphic data provided by BouDagher-Fadel et al. (2017) from the Aptian-Albian of Tibet that are contradicting previous results are reviewed herein. This publication mostly refers to the stratigraphic ranges of Praeorbitolina cormyi Schroeder and Pseudochoffatella cuvillieri Deloffre towards the top of the Albian, and that of Palorbitolina lenticularis (Blumenbach) into the late Aptian, as well as some misidentifications.