Lower Cenomanian (Cretaceous) corals from Cobreces (Cantabria, northern Spain). Part I: superfamilies Actinastreoidea, Amphiastreoidea, Caryophyllioidea

The present contribution constitutes the first part of a series of publications on the lower Cenomanian (lower Upper Cretaceous) coral fauna of Cobreces in Cantabria (Spain). The fauna, derived from a complex of several patch reefs in the lower Altamira Formation, encompasses a total of approximately 140 coral species and is the largest known Cenomanian coral fauna to date. Here, a detailed introduction to the geology and outcrop area is provided and six species of four genera of the superfamilies Actinastreoidea, Amphiastreoidea, and Caryophyllioidea (previously classified in the suborders Archeocaeniina, Amphiastreina, Caryophylliina) are presented.