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Calcareous nannofossil biostratigraphy from Kotaphi Hill section allowed not only the biostratigraphic zonation of the Miocene units but also provided evidence for a distinct warm phase known as the Middle Miocene Climate Optimum (MMCO). Kotaphi Hill section is located in Agrokipia village (Nicosia region, Cyprus) and consists of cyclic marine deposits of the Pakhna Formation. High resolution sampling has been conducted and 84 samples were collected. Preliminary results indicated that several important calcareous nannofossil events can be consistently recognized along the studied section. High abundances of Discoaster druggii and Highest occurrence (HO) of Sphenolithus procerus suggest the presence of NN2 biozone while, LO of Sphenolithus belemnos has been used to recognize the base of biozone NN3. Upwards, Lowest Common Occurrence (LCO) of Sphenolithus heteromorphus marked the NN3-4 boundary-level. Biozone NN4 in Kotaphi Hill section is featured by high abundance of S. heteromorphus whereas total absence of the species together with the LO of Helicosphaera walbedorfensis mark the Paracme Beginning (PB) of S. heteromorphus interval. High abundance of warm indicators such as Discoasterids, S. heteromorphus, S. moriformis and Helicosphaera carteri observed in our material may partly reflect the warm phase of MMCO. Key words: Agrokipia village, Pakhna Formation, Cyprus, Sphenolithus heteromorphus, Middle Miocene Climate Optimum.

Coastal landscapes are sensitive to changes due to the interplay between surface and submarine geological processes, climate variability, and relative sea level fluctuations. The sedimentary archives of such marginal areas record in detail the complex evolution of the paleoenvironment and the diachronic biota response. The Elefsis Bay is nowadays a landlocked shallow marine basin with restricted communication to the open Saronikos Gulf. A multi-proxy investigation of a high-resolution sediment core recovered from the deepest part of the basin offered a unique opportunity to record the paleoenvironmental and aquatic ecosystem response to climate and glacioeustatic sea level changes since the Late Glacial marine transgression. The retrieved sedimentary deposits, subjected to thorough palynological (pollen, non-pollen palynomorphs, dinoflagellates), micropaleontological (benthic foraminifera, calcareous nannoplankton, ostracods), and mollusc analyses, indicates isolation of the Elefsis Bay from the Saronikos Gulf and the occurrence of a shallow freshwater paleolake since at least 13,500 cal BP, while after 11,3500 cal BP the transition towards lagoon conditions is evidenced. The marine transgression in the Elefsis Bay is dated at 7500 cal BP, marking the establishment of the modern marine realm.

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Abstract. The last few decades have seen dramatic changes in the hydrography and biogeochemistry of the Mediterranean Sea. The complex bathymetry and highly variable spatial and temporal scales of atmospheric forcing, convective and ventilation processes contribute to generate complex and unsteady circulation patterns and significant variability in biogeochemical systems. Part of the variability of this system can be influenced by anthropogenic contributions. Consequently, it is necessary to document details and to understand trends in place to better relate the observed processes and to possibly predict the consequences of these changes. In this context we report data from an oceanographic cruise in the Mediterranean Sea on the German research vessel Maria S. Merian (MSM72) in March 2018. The main objective of the cruise was to contribute to the understanding of long-term changes and trends in physical and biogeochemical parameters, such as the anthropogenic carbon uptake and to further assess the hydrographical situation after the major climatological shifts in the eastern and western part of the basin, known as the Eastern and Western Mediterranean Transients. During the cruise, multidisciplinary measurements were conducted on a predominantly zonal section throughout the Mediterranean Sea, contributing to the Med-SHIP and GO-SHIP long-term repeat cruise section that is conducted at regular intervals in the Mediterranean Sea to observe changes and impacts on physical and biogeochemical variables. The data can be accessed at https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.905902 (Hainbucher et al., 2019), https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.913512 (Hainbucher, 2020a) https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.913608, (Hainbucher, 2020b) https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.913505, (Hainbucher, 2020c) https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.905887 (Tanhua et al., 2019) and https://doi.org/10.25921/z7en-hn85 (Tanhua et al, 2020).