Neogene fossils in the Greek Island of Kythera

[Dimitris]

This summer, I visited the beautiful island of Kythera. Located in South Greece, on the joint of three seas, it is a very calm place that combines wild nature, delicious traditional food and history.

 

The lore says that Zeus castrated his father, Kronos. His testicles fell in the sea at the shores of the island and from there Aphrodite (Venus) was born. Goddess of love and fertility, she is also connected with sea due to the way of her birth. This is the point where mythology, history and lore meet. Since the ancient people discovered pectinidae, they built a temple dedicated to Aphrodite.

 

Although I never found the temple, I located the formation. Situated in the middle of the island, the area of Mitata (Μητάτα) is within a Neogene formation. The easiest place to observe the formation is at

36.2508099, 23.0003155

I found many pectinidae and an echinoid, about 15cm diameter. The last one was not fully retrieved. I underestimated its hardness and broke it. 

On the North side of the island, close to the port you will find permian to early Triassic sediments. There I collected a (rock?) fragment of coral. 

On the south side of the island, you will observe Cretaceous formations with some fossilised corals. The place is called Melidoni beach. (Παραλία Μελιδόνι) 

36.1586538, 22.9481317

The formation is accessible with boat or swimming as it is located across the beach. Thus, no photos.. If you visit it, don't let Google deceive you. Follow the local signs since Google will lead you 3kms North. 

 

Since this post has to do with Greece I will include some Greek search keywords, in case someone might be looking info for this area. 

Ελλάδα, Κύθηρα, απολιθώματα, Μητάτα Κενοζωικός 

 

Since tourism has become a little complicated lately, I may visit the place again in October. 

Hope you enjoy the post. 

If you visit the island, don't miss the chance to eat at

 

Mihalis Tavern

Mitata 

[Ludwigia]

Thanks for the trip report. Looks like a great place to visit!

[Monica]

Interesting story re: the area!  It looks like a beautiful place to visit - thanks for sharing!

[Tidgy's Dad]

Beautiful location and interesting report, my friend. 

[digit]

Thanks for showing us fossils from a part of the world that is much better known for its (much more recent) antiquities.

 

We found Greece to be a wonderful place to visit and the food delicious. We did see our share of temples and other ruins while touring the islands and the Peloponnese peninsula. The only fossils we spotted on that trip were part of weathering limestone composing the blocks of a ruin that we visited.

 

http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/75099-museum-of-prehistoric-thera-greece/&do=findComment&comment=793352

 

 

Cheers.

 

-Ken

[Dimitris]

3 hours ago, Ludwigia said:

Thanks for the trip report. Looks like a great place to visit!

Thanks! Indeed the place is beautiful and unspoilt compared to other tourism exploited areas. 

3 hours ago, Monica said:

Interesting story re: the area!  It looks like a beautiful place to visit - thanks for sharing!

Ideal place for couples and families. If you ever find yourself in S. Greece and you have 3-4days spare its a must. You need a car though, zero public transport. 

1 hour ago, Tidgy's Dad said:

Beautiful location and interesting report, my friend. 

Thanks Adam, there is a high chance to follow up on this post in October, since the possibility of Morocco is shrinking close to zero now 

1 hour ago, digit said:

Thanks for showing us fossils from a part of the world that is much better known for its (much more recent) antiquities.

 

We found Greece to be a wonderful place to visit and the food delicious. We did see our share of temples and other ruins while touring the islands and the Peloponnese peninsula. The only fossils we spotted on that trip were part of weathering limestone composing the blocks of a ruin that we visited.

 

http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/75099-museum-of-prehistoric-thera-greece/&do=findComment&comment=793352

 

 

Cheers.

 

-Ken

Hello Ken! Nice report from Thira! I recently saw a similar article for these olives, awesome preservation. 

You will not find many reports for fossils in Greece for many reasons. 

 

Many publications are written in Greek. Fossil is called απολιθωμα. Combine this word with location and you may see more. 

 

Greek scientists avoid to share publicly so that the locations are not looted, like it happened with many artifacts currently displayed in UK and Louvre. 

 

Fossils in Greece are protected under the same law as archeological artifacts. This means extraction and sale is forbidden. The law is not enforced for not protected areas (Like the fossilised forest of Lesvos). Moreover, there are mineral shops that sell fossils from Greece. Technically, these are not legal as well. Responsible collecting will never put you in trouble of course. 

 

Since you are familiar with Peloponnese, some worthy locations are  

1. Epidaurus (Currently private property and formation covered by soil under oil orchard) and Ligourio for triassic ammonites 

2. Aghios Nikolaos fossilised Palm forest in Messinia (close to Neapoli) Protected

3. Close to the medieval fortress of Methoni. Eocene bivalves, a family friend gifted to me when I was child. 

4. Islands of Hydra and Spetses triassic formation. Although the islands belong to the administration of Athens, the formation's age is the same as Epidaurus. 

5. Island of Kythera. Apart from what I reported, there are references for mammals. 

6. Close to Epidaurus there is a creek rich in Cenozoic mammals. 

7. The canal of Korinth, built late 19 century, has exposed many Cenozoic marine fossils. Technically impossible to search there, however the same limestone can be seen near the village of Isthmia. 

Plus more locations mentioned in Paleodb, though you will need to know the language to narrow down the location. 

[Dimitris]

Here we are Kythera Island vol2. 

Since I broke this Clypeaster, I couldn't forget the island and I knew I should go there more prepared. 

 

I gathered all open pit mines and quarries I could find on Google maps and bookmarked them. My collecting gear, apart chisels and two hammers was a large pick axe, many small boxes and a pack of newspapers in order to protect the fragile material. 

 

One day before my departure, I bought a book called "Paleontology of Kythera" by Ph.D. Antonis Bartsiokas. Excellent assistance for the identification of species. 

 

In this post, you will see some in situ photos and the next one will be the finds. 

On personal level, this trip was an amazing and educational experience. 

I can now understand the difference between Pecten and Chlamis. It was an excellent training for my observation skills on order to spot fossils within the formation. I learnt some amazing facts about the geological history of Eastern Mediterranean Sea. 

 

History Part

 

This information is obtained from the book mentioned above. 

The Greek, Albanian and Bulgarian mountains started rising from the Tythis sea approximately 200Ma before. 

 

Kythera, Rhodes and Crete rose 30Ma ago and the orogenesis was completed 13Ma. This period of time, a huge landmass named Aegis, rose and covered the area between Ionian Sea, Asia Minor (nowadays Western coast of Turkey) and south coast of Crete. 

 

The Mediterranean Sea was a closed sea that started drying from places to places, before 7-5Ma. This is described as Messinian Salinity Crisis, which ended during Zanglean (5Ma).

 

Around 5Ma, Gibraltar straits were breached and the Mediterranean was flooded again. Between what we know today as Peloponnese Peninsula and Crete, water breached this passage and the Aegean sea was formed. 

 

Due to the above facts, sedimentary deposits have gaps in terms of marine fauna. 

 

During Pleistocene, the seafloor around Kythera rose by 300m, creating a vast sandy plain. The following "years" the sea level flactuated and many mammals had the opportunity to reach the island. Due to the fact there was bidirectional movement of the species, no nana forms of animals is found. 

 

Hope you liked this rough description of our local geological history, next post finds 

 

 

[Dimitris]

First of all sorry for the lack of scales. 2€ coin is 2.5cm which is 1inch minus 0.4mm.

Lets start with the fossils! 

Two lovely casts of gastropod Conus sp.

There is no shell material on it. 

Another cast of a bivalve. Unknown species. Might be even of brackish origin as I found it in upper layer. 

This is something that is pending identification. One friend suggested it might be part of weathered coral. I made an assumption it might be herbivore mammal tooth. 

The following is another mystery. Might be just a rock or part of spinal cord of cetacean Sirenian sp. 

4 have been found in the island, all left to weather under the elements, vandalism, road works and sand mining. 

Patella sp. 

Just a gastropod I collected in terms of variety. 

Pecten Benedictus. 

The small one has both valves. 

Here is a member of the Balanus, the only one I found. I do not know the exact species. 

Here is a part of Gigantopecten Latissimus, a huge bivalve that can exceed 20cm. Sadly, I did not find a complete sample. 

Two ugly Myotissa Squarrosa with both valves preserved. 

Last pictures of bivalves, upper and lower valve of two huge Ostra Lamellosa. 

Their length can reach 30cm or more. They say counting the shell layers can define its age. 

Another one post will follow with urchins. 

[Dimitris]

Here is my favourite samples and the reason I drove 1200km from Sofia Bulgaria to this island! 

First one a cleaned Clypeaster Altus of 14.5cm.

Here is a Clypeaster Miocenus which I stopped prepping since I spotted 2 cracks. I will continue tomorrow after I get paraloid. 

 

An observation to close the post. 

I never found C. Altus existing on the same level as C. Miocenus. 

Altus was always at least 5meters lower, in between there was a break of marine sediments (Observation of Messinian Crisis?) then it was the layer of Miocenus. 

Hope you like the finds. I did not post all of my urchins since the rest need treatment and look like sand balls. 

[traveltip1]

Very good report. The Greek islands are fantastic and beautiful.

[Dimitris]

1 hour ago, traveltip1 said:

Very good report. The Greek islands are fantastic and beautiful.

Thanks! 

Indeed they are amazing, every aspect considered! 

[fifbrindacier]

On 8/1/2020 at 5:56 AM, Dimitris said:

Wow, nice scenery !

[Monica]

That's a huge, gorgeous Clypeaster altus!  Very impressive!!!

[Dimitris]

Thanks Monica! 

The first one I found was between 16-18cm but being inexperienced, I extracted it in multiple pieces 

 

[Monica]

6 minutes ago, Dimitris said:

Thanks Monica! 

The first one I found was between 16-18cm but being inexperienced, I extracted it in multiple pieces 

 

 

Well you made up for that error with this beautiful specimen