Calcareous algae and small Gorgonacea from the Tirgan Formation in East of Koppeh-Dagh and the first report of Permocalculus? halimedaformis from Iran

Micropaleontological study on the carbonate successions of the Tirgan Formation at the Taherabad village and Eshlir anticline stratigraphic sections is led to identification of various taxa of the calcareous algae belong to the families Dasycladaceae, Triploporellaceae, Udoteaceae, Solenoporaceae and Gymnocodiaceae and also some specimens of small Gorgonacea. Based on the biometric measurements of morphological features, 16 genera and 20 species from the Taherabad section and 12 genera and 16 species from the Eshlir section have been recognized. Moreover, Permocalculus minutus and Permocalculus? halimedaformis have been found for the first time in the Tirgan Formation. Permocalculus? halimedaformis was introduced from the Minis Valley in Romania for the first time and its finding in this research is the second report around the world. According to this new finding, its geographic distribution is being extended more than 2800 km eastward on the northern margin of the Tethys ocean.