New Middle Permian (Capitanian) fusulinid genera from the Karakaya Complex, central Anatolia, Turkey: Taxonomic remarks Cengiz Okuyucu 1* and UÈur KaÈan Tekin 2 1 Konya Technical University, Department of Geological Engineering, 42250, Konya, Turkey 2 Hacettepe University, Department of Geological Engineering, 06800, Ankara, Turkey * Corresponding author. email: cokuyucu@ktun.edu.tr ABSTRACT: The Karakaya Complex widely exposed in the north of Turkey can be differentiated into two units as the Lower Karakaya Complex and Upper Karakaya Complex. A tectonic slice composed of medium to thick-bedded limestone belonging to the Upper Karakaya Nappe is located to the south of Ankara near Gökçehüyük village. A very diverse fusulinid fauna from this slice has two new taxa of Middle Permian (Capitanian) age. As a result of the study of the fusulinids from the strata of the Upper Karakaya Nappe, two new genera Postkwantoella and Kahlerinella are proposed as well as two subfamilies: Kwantoellinae subfam. nov. (Postkwantoella) and Kahlerininae (Kahlerinella). The new genus Postkwantoella differs from the similar genus Kwantoella by well-developed axial fillings and fewer volutions. Wall structure and completely straight coiling of these latter two genera indicates that they should be classified under the Kwantoellinae subfam. nov. The other new genus, Kahlerinella, is differentiated from the closely related genus Kahlerina by having len- ticular early whorls, globular test shape and by the absence of chomata. Keywords: Permian, Capitanian, fusulinid, Karakaya Complex, Turkey INTRODUCTION Among Permian foraminifers, fusulinids are one of the most widespread and well-studied fossil groups and they have very important stratigraphic value for Permian chronostratigraphy. One of the main peaks of fusulinid diversity occurred during the Permian in the Capitanian (Leven 2003), but there is also a sig- nificant extinction event that took place at the end of Capitanian (Wang et al. 2004; Davydov et al. 2016; Arefifard and Payne 2020). The beginning of the Capitanian corresponds to the last peak of generic diversity of fusulinids which is represented by the diversification of the superfamily Neoschwageridea Solovieva 1978. Though the origin of the genus Kahlerina, which is very similar to the newly described genus Kahlerinella Okuyucu n. gen., is not clear what the root stock of it was. It possibly derived from the family Verbeekinidae Staff and Wedekind 1910 and a possible relation of the genus Misellina (Leven 1965). While opinion differs on the interpretation of the evolution of kahlerinids (e.g., Kobayashi 2011), it is clear that there is a phylogenetic relation between family Verbeekinidae and the subfamily Kahlerininae due to similarities (e.g., test shape and wall structure). The schubertellids, staffellids and ozawainellids are the other groups which reached their highest diversity during the Capitanian. Agreement on the wall structure of the schubertel- lids and the phylogenetic development and relationships be- tween genera is still controversial. The wall structure of the genera included in the subfamily Biwaellinae and the genera in- cluded in the newly established Kwantoellinae Okuyucu subfam. nov. are very similar to each other and indicate a close phylogenetic relationship. The present study focuses on the taxonomic description of two new Middle Permian (Capitanian) genera Postkwantoella Okuyucu n. gen. and Kahlerinella Okuyucu n. gen. and their evolutionary changes during the Capitanian. The phylogenetic position and taxonomic constraints of the new taxa are made by comparision of wall structure and other morphological criteria. GEOLOGICAL SETTING The “Ankara Mélange” is a broad term proposed by Bailey and Mc Callien (1950) for including three major units as “pre-Juras- sic Karakaya Complex”, “Jurassic-Cretaceous sedimentary units” and “the Senonian Ophiolitic Mélange”. The Karakaya Complex, the oldest unit in this mélange, “is a general tectonostratigraphic term for the strongly deformed and locally metamorphosed Permo-Triassic orogenic series in the Pontides, northern Turkey” sensu Okay and GöncüoÈlu (2004). Previously, it was introduced by Bingöl et al. (1975) as “the Karakaya Formation” for designating pre-Jurassic blocky series widely distributed in Turkey from the Biga Peninsula to the An- kara region. Subsequently, engör et al. (1984) renamed this for- mation as the “Karakaya Complex”. In the Ankara region, this unit was separately named as “the Dikmen Greywacke” by Erol (1956), “ Mélange with calcareous blocks” by Norman (1975), “Composite Serie” by ÇalgÏn et al. (1973), “Kulm flysch forma- tion” by Erk (1977), “the ElmadaÈ and Kecikaya Formation of Ankara Group” by Akyürek et al. (1984), “the Lower Karakaya Nappe” by KoçyiÈit (1987) and “the Karakaya Group” by KoçyiÈit (1992). The Karakaya Complex is subdivided into two parts; lower and an upper (Okay and GöncüoÈlu 2004). Whereas the Lower Karakaya Complex is represented by a highly de- formed sequence of metabasites intercalated with phyllitte and marble, the Upper Karakaya Complex is formed by four different tectonostratigraphic units; a) an arkosic sandstone series, b) a greywacke series, c) a basalt, limestone, grain flows, debris flow Stratigraphy, vol. 19, no. 1, text-figures 1–3, plates 1–2, pages 65–74, 2022 https://doi.org/10.29041/strat.19.1.04 65