Silicified ostracod fauna from Navegaon intertrappean locality (latest Cretaceous/early Paleocene), Chhindwara district, Madhya Pradesh, India

The present study comprises the record of a silicified freshwater ostracod assemblage from a newly discovered intertrappean locality (late Cretaceous/early Paleocene), Chhindwara district, Madhya Pradesh. The use of energy dispersive X-ray analysis demonstrates that ostracod carapaces have been silicified, which is possible in relation to the circulation of generated silica-rich water that was formed by the adjacent Deccan volcanic terrain. The identified ostracods include 12 species of 11 genera. The endobenthic crawler Limnocytheridae ( Frambocythere, Limnocythere and Gomphocythere ) dominate the assemblage and indicate a freshwater body of standing water (lake or pond). The accompanying fish ( Lepisosteus ) and mollusk ( Physa, Viviparus ) specimens provide additional evidence for the environmental condition of the lake or large pond water. In addition, the taxa Gomphocythere, Paracypretta, Eucypris and Cypriodopsis support the endemism hypothesis, while the species Cypria, Limnocythere and Gomphocythere provide evidence in favour of the ‘Out-of-India’ idea.