Oligocene Rhodolith beds in the Central Mediterranean Area

During the Oligocene, extensive carbonate platforms developed in the central Mediterranean. These areas were colonized by different organisms, being the coralline algae one of the most important contributors to the carbonate production. The expansion of seagrass during the Oligocene had a significant influence on the loci of carbonate production by red algae in the meso- and oligophotic zones.while the reduction in atmospheric CO2, deepening of the CCD and rising Mg/Ca ratios favoured hypercalcification of aragonite as well as red algal production This chapter deals with these deposits analyzing the depositional models and the controlling factors contributing to the origin of rhodolith beds