Palaeoecology of coralline sponge-coral meadows from the upper jurassic of Portugal

The Comophyllia polymorpha-Crispispongia cf.expansa association of the Kimmeridgian Alcobaça Formation occurs in a 5–10 m thick unit that can be followed for at least 10 km in the vicinity of Alcobaça (Estremadura). Corals, coralline sponges (mainly Calcarea), cryptalgal crusts and, to a lesser extent, crinoids are the dominant constituents of the autochthonous community relic which can be grouped in framebuilders, framework encrusters, frame binders, reef-dwellers, and reef destroyers. These organisms formed low meadows in a shallow, fully marine environment subject to low rates of sedimentation and moderate to low energy levels punctuated by rare high energy events. The abundance of coralline sponges in reefs and reef-like communities is uncommon in the Jurassic and appears to be restricted to very shallow water environments..