Reworked Carboniferous spores in Swedish Mesozoic sediments

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Abstract
Reworked Carboniferous spores of continental origin belonging to several determinable species were encountered during biostratigraphical documentation of five Mesozoic boring cores from NW Scania, Sweden. Their presence and stratigraphical age (Namurian) are of particular interest as Carboniferous deposits are previously unknown in Sweden. In order to trace the origin of these reworked spores, detailed mineralogical and sedimentological analyses of selected samples from the Vilhelmsfält core were carried out. From the relatively coarse grain size of the sediments, the well crystallised character of the kaolinite, the angular shape of quartz grains, the presence of feldspars and the state of preservation of the spores it is concluded that the material has not been transported over any great distance. The non-sedimentary character of the quartz grains and the presence of coarse-grained muscovite flakes and feldspars indicate appreciable contributions from Precambrian basement rocks which have undergone kaolinisation. Possible provenance areas of supposedly thin Carboniferous deposits upon uplifted Precambrian basement within the Fennoscandian Border Zone are discussed along with the palaeogeographical implications. A comparison with other relevant palynological investigations has also been made.