A compendium of updated Shallow Benthic Zones for the Paleogene and the Miocene

This work provides a complete update for both Shallow Benthic Zones (SBZ) and Orthophragminid zones (OZ) based on Cenozoic larger foraminifera, including the recently proposed SBP for the Paleocene. The proposed zonation considers the time span from Danian to Tortonian, thus including the entire Paleogene and part of the Neogene. According to the most recent literature, here we propose a correlation of shallow-water biozones with the established planktonic biozones, geomagnetic chronozones, and standard chronostratigraphy using the most recent Geological Time Scale (GTS), available from 2020. This study illustrates and describes all data used to tie each single SBZ and SBP to enable the correlation to the chronostratigraphic chart. The OZ boundaries have been moved accordingly, as they are defined based on their relationship with SBZ. This study considers all those bioevents retrieved along stratigraphic succession within the Tethyan realm and does not consider yet the Letter Zonation for the Indo-Pacific bioprovinces. A comprehensive biostratigraphic correlation between Letter Stages and SBZ would indeed be beneficial for biostratigraphic studies in the region, but a mandatory step would be the definition of middle-to far-east SBZ boundaries, which, differing from those in the Tethyan region, are not yet well defined in the available literature.