Praetaberina new genus (type species: Taberina bingistani henson, 1948): A stratigraphic marker for the late cenomanian

A detailed architectural analysis has been performed on the porcelaneous species Taherina bingistani Henson, 1948 from diverse localities, including its type locality in Iran. Characterized by a subcylindrical to slightly conical shape, with a cribbed apertural face, the Cenomanian Middle-East species bingistani is removed from the American early- Paleogene genus Taherina Keijzer, 1945 (type species: T. cubana) and ascribed to the new genus Praetaberina. In the early stages of growth, the chambers are planispiral-involute, becoming uncoiled in the later stages. The interior of the chambers shows numerous septula and pillars. The septula are radial and distributed in the marginal area of the chamber lumen, while the pillars occupy the central area and are regularly distributed between the intercameral foramina. Pillars are in alignment from one chamber to the next. A new species, from southeast Italy, Praetaberina apula, is also erected. It differs from P. bingistani in its smaller size and significantly reduced structural elements. Both species characterize upper Cenomanian shallow-water deposits.