Whale fall Italiana dominata da bivalvi della sottofamiglia Bathymodiolinae

The bones of an unidentified odontocete from the Langhian Pantano Formation (~ 15 million years ago), found near the town of Carpineti (Reggio Emilia), Northern Italy, are associated with more than two hundred specimens of the bathymodioline mussel Adipicola apenninica n. sp., rare specimens of Thyasira sp. and one Lucinidae indet. Based on comparisons with modern and other fossil whale fall communities, the fossil molluscs associated with the odontocete represent a whale fall community during the sulphophilic stage of the ecological succession. Our finding indicates the presence of chemosynthetic communities associated with organic remains in the proto-Mediterranean-Atlantic region at least from the middle Miocene. The previous connection of the Tethyan Realm with both the Atlantic Ocean and the Indo-Pacific, could have played a key role in the evolution and dispersal of bathymodiolins between the two regions.