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During the early stages of the Middle Miocene transgression marine biota invaded the newly formed Paratethys Sea. Reefs and reef-like structures particularly flourished with life, supported by the favourable climate conditions. Miocene biogene buildups show a variety of fossil assemblages and lithologic features. The main reef-builders were bryozoans, coralline algae, corals, oysters, vermetids, sponges and serpulids. Water turbidity and depth were major ecological factors controlling the reef biota. Lithofacies types at the studied localities in Northern Croatia show significant similarity with the Upper Langhian (Middle Badenian) of the Leitha Mountains in Austria, but can also be well compared with Miocene to recent reef structures in the Mediterranean. The Miocene reef-like buildups exhibit different porosity rates and other lithological characteristics.

This paper provides the first palynological data from four Upper Cretaceous localities from the Islands of Hvar and Šćedro (southern Croatia), in the central part of the Adriatic Carbonate Platform. Studied material represents palynomorphs produced by coastal vegetation and transported to the shallow marine platform areas. Determined vegetation includes diverse hygrophilous, understory vegetation, range of evergreen needle trees attributable to Pinaceae and Podocarpaceae, as well as Araucarian conifers; ginkgo, cycads and/or bennettites. Flowering plants were likely represented by herbaceous forms. The palynoflora is generally indicative of a temperate, warm and humid climate. The occurrence of the Normapolles group with the presence of Plicapollis sp. and Pseudoculopollis sp. point to Turonian or probable Turonian-Coniacian age, and represent the southernmost record of occurrence within the Normapolles palynological province.Dominance of angiosperms and low abundance of ferns suggests an early-Late Cretaceous age. These findings are supported by the micropaleontological analyses and previously determined age of the sauropod dinosaur footprints described on the Island of Hvar. Based on the paleobotanical and palynological data, the dinosaur's diet probably included araucarian conifers, ginkgo and angiosperms, and ferns to a lesser extent.

Fossiliferous Middle Miocene deposits from the surroundings of Marija Bistrica (north-east of Zagreb) transgressively overly older pre-Cenozoic bedrocks. Fossils from shallow marine environments are in most cases preserved as bioclasts, while deep marine calcareous oozes characterize the pelagic marls. The age of the transgressive sequence is estimated on the basis of planktic biota from marls (foraminifera, nannoplankton and pteropods) as the Badenian NN5 Nannozone. The following palaeoenvironments can be distinguished or presumed on the basis of biota and sedimentary features: (1) beach characterized by polymictic conglomerates with rhodolith-rich carbonate matrix; (2) oyster banks, recognized from secondarily found oyster clusters; (3) lagoons marked with compact bioclastic deposits and rhodolith-halimeda assemblage; (4) patch-reefs recognized from the surrounding bioclastic deposits; (5) shallow subtidal mäerl beds preserved as loose bioclastic deposits and (6) distal slope argillaceous marls with pelagic biota. Palaeoenvironmental analyses indicate rapid drowning, most probably corresponding to the transgression during the Middle Badenian TB 2.4 3rd order transgressive-regressive sequence.