International Research Journal of Biological Sciences ___________________________________ ISSN 2278-3202Vol. 4(1), 34-40, January (2015) Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. International Science Congress Association 34 Microfossils based Palaeoecology and Palaeocommunity Structure of Upper Siwalik Deposits of Jammu, JandK, IndiaKundal Som Nath P.G. Department of Geology, University of Jammu, Jammu-180006, INDIA Available online at: www.isca.in, www.isca.me Received 2nd September 2014, revised 18th November 2014, accepted 9th December 2014Abstract In this paper, the author built up the palaeo community structure of the study area by carried out palaeoecological analysis of collected microfauna and floras from the Late Pliocene Siwalik deposits of Jammu province. The collected microfauna and flora specimen comprises of microfossils (ostracods), micro vertebrates (rodents, fishes, frogs, lizards, snakes), invertebrates (gastropods and bivalves) and plants charophyte. The palaeoecological evidence indicates that during Late Pliocene times there were two dominant important communities’ i.e. aquatic community (fresh water) and terrestrial community. Keywords: Microfossils, Palaeoecology, Palaeocommunity Structure, Upper Siwalik deposits, Jammu and Kashmir, India.Introduction The fresh water molasses sediments (Middle Miocene to Middle Pleistocene) in the extra-peninsular India lying between Line of Actual Control in the west and Ravi River in the east (India) are known as the Siwalik deposits of Jammu. All the seven units (Kamlial, Chinji, Nagri, Dhokpathan, Tatrot, Pinjore and Boulder conglomerate) of Siwalik Group of rocks designated by Pilgrim which are more or less used till date are well exposed as outcrops in the Jammu region. These outcrops are rich in fossil wealth. In the last fifty years, a number of workers have carried out works on the Upper Siwalik Subgroup of Jammu for microfossils/micro vertebrate’s angles. The prominent workers may be made of Suneja and Kumar, Suneja et al, Rage et al, Gupta and Prasad, Bhatia et al, Prasad et al, Bhandri and Kundal, Kundal and Prasad, Kundal10 and Kundal11. All these workers carried out work on taxonomy, age, biochronology and depositional environment of the Upper Siwalik deposits of Jammu. Suneja and Kumar initiated the study of microfossil, micro vertebrates in the Upper Siwalik Subgroup of Jammu and discovered some teeth of crocodilian, teeth of fishes, spines, vertebrae from localities very near to Jammu. Suneja and his co-workers recovered some species of charophyte and ostracodes in association with fragmentary shells of molluscs from the site near the village Khanpur. The charophyte species includes chara rantzieni, chara rantizeni sivalensis and ostracodes includes Hemicypris. Rage et al first time recovered micro vertebrates assemblages of snakes, lizards and frogs from the two Siwalik sites viz 1. Ramnagar Member (Upper Miocene) includes Acrochordus dehmi (snakes), Varanus sp. (lizards) and ranidae and non –ranidae (frogs). 2. Labli Member (Upper Pliocene) includes anurans and colubroid snakes. The fauna comprises Abudhabia cf. A. kabulenseDilatomys piligrimi,Golunda kelleri, Golunda sp., Millardia sp. indet., cf. Mus flynni, cf. Parapelomys robertsi,Rhizomyides sivalensis (rodents)and an insectivore-Soricidae gen. et. sp. indet. were reported from Labli Member of Upper Siwalik deposits of Jammu (Gupta and Prasad). Following this, the microflora (charophyte) includes Lychnothamnus barbatus, Hornichara maslovi and Boraginocarpus lakhanpalii (angiospermae seed) and microfauna (ostracodes) includes Hemicyprismegalops, H. pyxidata, Candona lacteal, Sclerocypris ? sp.indet., Cypridopsis sp. indet were recovered from the two fossiliferrous yielding mudstone sites very near to village Barakhetar and Uttarbehani by Bhatia et al. Prasad et al reported first time a complete left mandibular bearing M1-M3 along with roots specimen of Golunda Golunda kelleri) from the mudstones immediately below the volcanic ash beds exposed near Barakhetar village. After a gap of 3 years, Bhandari and Kundal collectedsixteen species of ostracodes includes Zonocypris barakhetarensis sp. nov., Darwinula jammuensis sp. nov., Ilyocypris bradyi, Ilyocypris sp., Darwinula sp., Sclerocypris ? sp. and Potamocypris sp., Cypris subglobosa, Cypris cf. C. decaryi, Cypridopsis sp.A,?Cypridopsis sp., Candona sp.A, Candona sp.B, Hemicypris pyxidata, Stenocypris major,Stenocypris sp.Eucypris sp.A, Eucypris sp.B, from the same fossils yielding sites (Barakhetar and Uttarbehani). Kundal12 have been also recovered six species of green algae charophytes from the Nagrota Formation includes Hornichara maslovi, Chara contraria, Chara rantzieni, Chara globularisglobularis,Lychnothamnous breviovatus, Lamprothamnium populosum, cf. Lamprothamnium and one taxaon of angiospermae seed Boraginocarpus lakhanpalii. Kundal and Prasad9 recovered some specimens of fish teeth, rodent’s molar, fragmentary jaws of lizards, mammalian phalanges and claws, and indet. fragmentary bones from the Nagrota Formation of Jammu Siwalik. Recently, Kundal10 gave details of the micro biotic International Research Journal of Biological Sciences _____________________________________________ISSN 2278-3202Vol. 4(1), 34-40, January (2015) Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. International Science Congress Association 35 composition of Nagrota Formation of the Upper Siwalik subgroup of Jammu. Very recently, Kundal11 also described some Late Pliocene mollusks fauna recovered from the Nagrota Formation. The present study has been carried to builds up palaeocommunity structure and palaeoecology of the Upper Siwalik deposits of Jammu based on the microfossil collected from time to time by various workers and the author itself from the study area. The area under study is shown in figure-1. Material and Methods More or less, the following methodologies were used by the various workers in the past and the author itself to collect the microfossils/ micro vertebrates from Siwalik of Jammu: Samples of fossil ferrous mudstone (25 kg, 50kg, so on, depending upon the richness of microfossils) were collected from identified microfossils/micro vertebrates yielding sites., The collected sample from the field than transported to the maceration laboratory. In laboratory, the soft samples were screen-washed in running water with different sets of sieves (most preferred, 60 mesh ASTM) after immersing in water for an hour or so. On the other hand, relatively hard mudstone samples were treated with kerosene/ different chemicals for disintegration. The screen-washed residue so obtained by both methods of sample disintegration were then dried in the sunlight and sorted under the microscope for microfossils and micro vertebrates. The microfossils so obtained were cleaned by ultra – thin needle for photomicrography, identification, systematic study and interpretation. Results and Discussion Following microfossils/ micro vertebrates were collected by using aforesaid technique from from Late Pliocene Upper Siwalik deposits of Jammu by author which includesCyprnid fishes-Gen. sp. indet., (Fishes); anurans (Frogs); Crocodilia, Varanus sp. (varanide), Lacertilia indet. (Lizards); Acrochordus dehmi (crochordidade) (Snakes); cf. Mus flynni, cf. Parapelomys robertsi, Golunda kelleri, Golunda sp., Dilatomys piligrimi, Millardia sp. indet., Abudhabia cf. A. kabulense, Rhizomyides sivalensis,cf. Rattus, Mus sp., cf. Mus jacobsi, Dilatomys sp., ?Tatera pinjoricus, Cremnomys blanfordi(Rodents); Hemicypris, Hemicypris megalops,H. pyxidata, Candona lacteal, Sclerocypris ? sp. indet., Cypridopsis sp. indet, Cypris subglobosa, Cypris cf. C. decaryi, Cypridopsis sp.A,? Cypridopsis sp. B, Candona sp.A, Candona sp.B, Eucypris sp.A, Eucypris sp.B, Stenocypris major,Stenocypris sp., Zonocypris barakhetarensis sp. nov., Ilyocypris bradyi,Ilyocypris sp., Darwinula sp., Darwinula jammuensis sp. nov., Potamocypris sp., (Ostracods); Gastrocopta sp., Gyraulus sp., Viviparus sp., Viviparus bengalinsis, Bellamya celispirals(Gastropods); Lamellidens lewisi, Oxynaia sp. indet. (Bivalves); Hornichara maslovi, Chara contraria, Chara rantzieni, Chara rantzieni sivalensis, Chara globularis globularis, Lychnothamnous breviovatus, Lamprothamnium populosum, cf. Lamprothamnium, Lychnothamnus barbatus, (Charophytes) andBoraginocarpus lakhanpalii (Aangiospermae seed). Figure-1 Range of Siwalik Hills (green) and area under study (pink) International Research Journal of Biological Sciences _____________________________________________ISSN 2278-3202Vol. 4(1), 34-40, January (2015) Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. International Science Congress Association 36 Palaeoecology and Palaeocommunity structure analysis: Most of the species collected by author itself and other authors from time to time from the Late Pliocene deposits of Jammu Siwalik have closely related forms in the living taxas. Reconstruction of Palaeoecology of any area can be made by using the well known principle “Present is key to the past” (Huttonian Priniciple). Since the ecological distribution of taxon are controlled by biological, chemical and physical parameters which might have changed over time, so it is necessary to use all the taxon members of an assemblage or assemblage of different fossil to interpret the palaeoecology of the study area. In the present collection, three important fossil sources from which the palaeoecological inferences are derived are micro vertebrates (fishes, rodents) invertebrates (ostracodes, gastropods and bivalves) and plants (charophyte and angiosperm). Micro vertebrate Evidence: The micro vertebrate faunal assemblages are generally confined to thin pockets of restricted lateral and vertical extent and represent localized environments. In other words, they depict either autochthonous or par autochthonous assemblages. In contrast, most of large vertebrate remains have been transported for a long distance before their burial. Thus the small vertebrate remains have proven to be highly useful in the reconstruction of past environments. The micro vertebrate fauna of the studied area is represented by micro mammals and fishes. Palaeoecological reconstruction based on micro mammals assemblages are quite reliable as they are found confined to beds of small lateral extent and deposited in a short period of time, and hence are quite useful in reconstructing palaeoenvironmental conditions. Rodents are used as indicators of climate due to their small sizes, sensitivity, usually have small homes and fast evolutinory history. As the most of taxa of rodents resembles with extant forms, the principle of actualism is used for palaeoecological inferences. The most successful living group among rodents is rats and mice which shows marked species diversity and are adopted themselves to many environmental conditions. After the death of rodents, the skeleton part preserved near to site of their small homes and used for reconstruction of palaeoclimate. In the present collection, the following taxa are reported by author from the study area includes ? Ceremony blanfordi, ?Tatera pinjoricus Millardia sp, Dilatomys sp., cf. Musjacobsi, Mus sp., Golunda sp., ?Golunda kelleri, Mus flynni, and cf. Rattus. The name of taxa and their habitats is given as under: Taxa Name-Habitat, RattusRattus meltada (extant species) living in rich vegetative plains, bush lands and thickets, field, Crops.-The various species of rattus occupied all terrestrial habitats from houses and rice fields to marshy rain forest to edges of grasslands. Golunda-Golunda ellioti (extant species) also living in field crops, densely vegetative plains, bushlands and predominantly grazers. Cremnomys-prefers thickets, wooded grasslands and non grazers. MillardiaMillardia meltada, the extant species prefers cultivated fields, shrubs, rocks and predominantly, Grazers. MusMus musculus andMus booduga (extant species) are non grazers, adapted ruderal environments. Tatera-T. indica, the extant species prefers to living on sandy plains and interdunal regions13In Africa, Tatera prefers to live along the edges of alluvial flats, dry steppe and in thickets. Dilatomys-preferred grassy diet, etc. Reptiles, Lacertilian-lacertilian remains in the present collections points towards sandy tracts distal to aquatic bodies. Fishes, The fishes in the present collection belong to Cyprinid and represented by three teeth i.e. Morphotype I, Morphotype II and Morphotye III. Cyprinid-The extant members of Cyprinid fishes living in ponds, pools, standing water bodiesy and muddy, water, but some prefers sandy substrate with clean water bodies. In hilly terrain, the streams and rivulets (Himalayas) are the home of extant members of cyprinid family. Invertebrate Evidence, Ostracodes-Ostracodes have capacity to adapt every aquatic environment (marine, fresh, brakish water). They change themselves according to aquatic environmental conditions and are very useful for reconstruction of palaeoenvironment. The following ostracode fauna collected from the study includes Potamocypris sp., Sclerocypris ? sp., Darwinula jammuensis sp. nov., Darwinula sp., Ilyocypris sp., Ilyocypris bradyi Sars,Zonocypris barakhetarensis sp. nov., Stenocypris sp., Stenocypris major (Baird), Hemicypris pyxidata (Moniez),Eucypris sp.B, Eucypris sp.A, Candona sp.B, Candona sp.A,? Cypridopsis sp., Cypridopsis sp.A, Cypris cf. C. decaryi and Cypris subglobosa Sowerby. Taxa-Habitats, Potamocypris sp.-Shallow water lakes, streams with moderate vegetation, sometimes in association with a few candonids27. Hemicypris pyxidata-Dominant species in the present collection and prefers freshwater environment15. Earlier collected from Chilka lake (dried mudstone), ponds(fresh water) of Kutch16,17, pond (alkaline) of Punjab18, rice fields of Sri Lanka19 and rock pools of Madurai20. Hemicypris prefers depth ranging from 1 to 3m and 25 C average temperatures and recovered from the ponds and lakes (freshwater) of Karnataka and Dharward. This species has capacity to tolerate fresh to brakish water permanent to semi-permanent water bodies. Darwinula -Represented by Darwinula sp. and Darwinula jammuensis sp. nov. in the present collection. The species of Darwinula prefers freshwater conditions, but occasionally Mesohaline-Oligohalinelakes15. Darwinula sp. reported as D. stevensoni from the Chandigarh (Upper Siwalik beds) and Riwasa, Tehsil Bhiwani (limestone beds) by Bhatia and Khosla21,22. Stenocypris-Important sp. in the present collection, Occurred in shallow warm water lakes and ponds23 and an active swimmer over muddy bottoms of standing water pools24. In association with Ilyocypris bradyi Sars, Stenocypris is found to occur infrequently in the rice fields of Kashmir valley25 Stenocypris major (Baird) occurred in rice fields, ponds and shallow water lakes. Ilyocypris-Represented in the present collection by Ilyocyprissp. and Ilyocypris bradyi Sars. Ilyocypris sp. in habitat rice fields and small shallow water ponds, whereas Ilyocypris bradyi International Research Journal of Biological Sciences _____________________________________________ISSN 2278-3202Vol. 4(1), 34-40, January (2015) Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. International Science Congress Association 37 abundantly prefers rice field environments. The presence of Ilyocypris indicates temporary or permanent running water or at least some current action in the water bodies26,27. It also indicates water turblence, in the marginal areas of water bodies by wind action29. The palaeoecological data pertaining to I. bradyi also indicates temporary and permanent running water conditions with rich vegetation26,30,31. Cypris subglobosa-found from rice fields32, in habitat shallow water lakes and fresh water ponds, collected from Pleistocene deposits (Upper Karewa) of Kashmir and also threw light on its provenance and ontogeny31. Cypridopsis vidua-An active swimmer that prefers muddy bottoms. This species is prefers marginal shallow areas of permanent still freshwaters such as lakes, ponds, and ditches and running water with abundant vegetation27,23. From Kashmir Valley, Various taxa of ostracode of Quaternary age and their ecological conditions were discussed23. Cypridopsis vidua is also known to occur in fresh, slightly alkaline lakes rich in aquatic vegetation33,23. Candona sp.-Represented in the present collection by Candona sp. A and Candona sp. B. Candona sp. occurs in shallow water lakes (upto 6.20 meters depth) with rich vegetation. The depth of the Candona sp. is also extended upto 5.23 meters depth PH (7.10 to 900) and TDS (100 to 180 ppm) values36. Cold water stenothermic species represented by Candona lacteal and collected from terrace silts and lacustrine clays and silts28. The xtant species have also been collected frequently from rivers of England, Holland, and France34. This species was also collected from polyhaline waters35 Candona lactea not only occurs in Pleistocene freshwater, lacustrine sediments, but also in fresh, clear alkaline lakes of Kashmir valley33,23. Eucypris -Represented in the present collection by Eucypris sp. A and Eucypris sp. B. and known to occur in ponds, lakes, pools and swamps with abundant vegetation37,38,39. Zonocypris-Zonocypris barakhetarensis sp. nov. is the new species reported from the Upper Siwalik subgroup of Jammu reflects fresh shallow water lacustrine conditions. Sclerocypris? sp.Found to occur in fined to coarse grained sediments (ferruginous) with little vegetation. fragile shells and tuberculate surface with marginal spines of Sclerocypris dharwadensis sp. reported from the freshwater lakes of Dharward, Karnataka which indicate sandy nature of substrate. Similar observations have also been made by Puri40. Mollscans: The living species of mollscans are known from aquatic (marine, freshwater, brackish water) and terrestrial environments. They found in dark gray to black mudstone and silty sandstones and are vagrant and bottom dwellers. Majority of the aquatic mollscans are preserved in situ whereas terrestrial mollscans preserved far from their habitat. Therefore aquatic moll scan should be better indicators of aquatic ecological conditions prevailing at any time. Two type of mollscans fauna reported in present collection i.e. Bivalves and Gastropods. Bivalves Represented by Lamellidens lewisi and Oxynaia sp. indet. and have wide geographical and geological distribution. The extant forms are mostly marine and freshwater having range of adaptability up to6000meters. Gastropods Represented by Gastrocopta sp., Gyraulus sp., Viviparus sp., Viviparus bengalinsis, and Bellamya celispirals in the present collection. Majority of taxas prefers low energy environment ranging from ponds, lakes to margin of slow flowing river, but generally avoid fast flowing waters. Floral Evidence: Charaphytes:A considerable amount of information is available on the ecology of extant charophytes41. In contrast, little has been published on the palaeoecology of fossil forms with the exception of a few recent studies42,43,45. The ecology of extant and fossil forms is similar, so reference is made to extant ecology while interpreting the ecology of recovered fossil taxa. Charophytes form dense submerged vegetation in various kinds of continental waters. Their calcified reproductive organs (gyrogonites) represent autochthonous microfossils. Soulie-Marsche43 demonstrated that depending upon the species charophytes can be used to identify deep and cold freshwater lakes, shallow freshwater lakes or marginal zones of deep lakes-tuffaceous deposits orignating in springs, temporary ponds with either fresh or brakish water, saline inland waters and also tropical lakes. In situ presence of charophyte flora has been shown to indicate supratidal-environment or emerged land. Charophytes cannot grow in acid or neutral environments and are not found in non-calcareous sediments. Generally they occur in alkaline water bodies, such as lakes and ponds with pH varying between 7.5to 8.0. They are superfically fixed on a substratum which may be mud, sand or silt-covered peat and sand46. The climate, hardness and salinity of water are the most obvious factors affecting their distribution47. In a number of freshwater environments, the sediment to a large extent is composed of charophyte remains and gastropod shells. This is a very common feature in the Deccan inter-trappean beds. Therefore, the presence of charophytes is taken as evidence for alkaline water bodies with little current action. The present collection of charaphyte flora is represented as Hornichara maslovi, Chara contraria, Chara rantzieni, Chara globularisglobularis,Lychnothamnous breviovatus,Lamprothamnium populosum, cf. Lamprothamnium. Besides one taxaon of angiospermae seed Boraginocarpus lakhanpalii, is also reported. All the species of charophytes of present collection indicate freshwater, shallow lacustrine / pond environment except the species Lamprothamnium populosum and cf. Lamprothamnium which indicate saline conditions. Lamprothamnium is generally found in shallow waters up to a depth of 1-1.5m. L. papulosumand cf. Lamprothamnium are active and fructify in between 20-40% of salinity. Short period of low salinity down to 10% for International Research Journal of Biological Sciences _____________________________________________ISSN 2278-3202Vol. 4(1), 34-40, January (2015) Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. International Science Congress Association 38 germination is also tolerated (Dubois48). This genus occurs neither in permanent freshwater nor in permanently high saline environments. This characterstic makes it particularly valuable as a marker for seasonal rainfall. But its occurrence in the freshwater fluvial / lacustrine sediments poses ecological questions. Soulie-Marsche49 has demonstrated that abundance of gyrogonites suggests no transport or reworking during deposition. As transport during deposition would result in homogenous distribution, different distribution patterns or frequencies at different levels would indicate lack of reworking. In the present study, it is noticed that the distribution of charophyte taxa is not homogenous at different sites thus giving little credence to reworking. From the palaeoecological analysis of recovered fauna and flora, it is apparent that there were two important palaeo communities- i. aquatic community, ii. terrestrial community. The aquatic community is mainly represented by lacustrine / paludal fauna and flora, whereas the land community is known by wooded grassland and bushland taxa. The palaeo community structure of the Late Pliocene Siwalik deposits is given in table Table-1 Late Pliocene Palaeocommunity structure of the Upper Siwalik deposits of Jammu, JandK, India Aquatic Community Terrestrial Community Lake/pound and lake / bank community Wooded grassland community Bush land community Flora: Charophytes Hornichara masloviChara contraria Chara rantzieni Chara rantzienisivalensisChara globularisglobularis, Lychnothamnous breviovatus, Lamprothamnium populosum cf. Lamprothamnium Lychnothamnus barbatus Aangiospermae Boraginocarpus lakhanpaliiFauna: Ostracods HemicyprisHemicyprismegalops sars H. pyxidata Candona lactea Baird Sclerocypris ? sp. indet. Cypridopsis sp. Indet Cypris subglobosa Sowerby Cypris cf. C. decaryi Cypridopsis sp.A Cypridopsis sp. Candona sp.A Candona sp.B Eucypris sp.A Eucypris sp.B Stenocypris major (Baird) Stenocypris sp. Zonocypris barakhetarensis sp. nov. Ilyocypris bradyi Sars Ilyocypris sp. Darwinula sp. Darwinula jammuensis sp. nov. Potamocypris sp Gastropods Gastrocopta sp. Gyraulus sp. Viviparus sp. Viviparus bengalinsis Bellamya celispiralsBivalves Lamellidens lewisi Oxynaia sp. indet Fishes Cyprnide fishes-Gen. sp. Indet. Fauna: Mammals Dilatomys sp. Cremnomys blanfordiFauna: Lizards Varanus sp. (varanide) Lacertilia indet. Snakes Acrochordus dehmi(Acrochordidade) Rodents cf. Mus flynnicf. Parapelomys robertsi Golunda kelleri Golunda sp. Dilatomys piligrimi Millardia sp. indet. Abudhabia cf. A. kabulense Rhizomyides sivalensiscf. Rattus Mus sp. cf. Musjacobsi Tatera pinjoricus blanfordi International Research Journal of Biological Sciences _____________________________________________ISSN 2278-3202Vol. 4(1), 34-40, January (2015) Int. Res. J. Biological Sci. International Science Congress Association 39 Conclusion The collected fauna and flora from Late Pliocene deposits of Jammu Siwalik belongs to two important dominated palaeocommunities i.e. terrestrial palaeocommunity and aquatic palaeocommunity and these palaeocommunities favor a shallow water lacustrine / paludal environment. The presence of terrestrial elements (rodents, lizards, etc.) in a predominantly lacustrine assemblage is not unusual, as animals living on the water edge can easily be brought into the basin by run off after their death there is hardly any evidence to show that the remains of terrestrial animals were transported over a long distance before their incorporation into the lacustrine assemblage. The rodent teeth and bones show no rounding of edges and breakage of cusps on the teeth. In fact, the teeth have very sharp cusps. It is thus concluded that permanent, shallow water lacustrine /paludal basins existed in the investigated area during the Late Pliocene times. AcknowledgementThe author is also thankful to DST-SERB, New Delhi for financial support under a DST Project. 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