Conodont Zonation of the Kasimovian (Upper Pennsylvanian) in Russia and Its Correlation in Other Regions of the World

The conodont zones in the regions of Russia where marine deposits of the Upper Carboniferous (Upper Pennsylvanian) Kasimovian Stage crop out, are characterized and correlated. Conodont-based zonal subdivisions proposed in the General Stratigraphic Scale of Russia (GSSC) are used as a tool for comparison with regional scales of other regions of the world (USA Midcontinent, South China and Western Europe). Some features of the distribution of cosmopolitan and endemic conodont species in different biogeographical areas are analyzed. A similar distribution of zonal species has been established in the basins of the central part of the East European Platform, the South Urals, Donets Basin and in sections of South China. The North American Midcontinent differs in the species composition of conodonts and apparently belongs to a different biogeographic province.