Biostratigrafinë

Biostratigrafinë is the scientific discipline that uses fossil content in sedimentary rocks to establish the relative ages of rock units and to correlate strata across regions. The standard term in the field is biostratigraphy; biostigrafinë is a nonstandard variant that may appear in informal or typographical contexts.

Biostratigraphy rests on faunal succession—the principle that fossil organisms occur in a definite, recognizable sequence through time. The central units are biozones, defined by the first and last appearances of particular taxa (FADs and LADs) or by characteristic assemblages. Index fossils are species with wide geographic distribution and narrow temporal ranges that make precise correlations possible.

Practically, biostratigraphy combines field sampling with laboratory identification of fossils, including microfossils such as foraminifera, conodonts, calcareous nannofossils, and palynomorphs, as well as macrofossils. Correlation across sections leads to the construction of biostratigraphic schemes and their alignment with lithostratigraphic units. In modern practice these schemes are linked to chronostratigraphic boundaries through the International Chronostratigraphic Chart and, where possible, radiometric or astrochronologic age models.

Applications include hydrocarbon exploration, sedimentologic correlation, and paleoenvironmental reconstruction. Limitations arise from diachronous ranges, reworking, preservation bias, and uneven fossil records, which can complicate zone definitions and cross-regional correlations.