First finding of upper Silurian and Lower Devonian conodonts from the Peloritani Mountains (NE Sicily, southern Italy). [Primo ritrovamento di conodonti del Siluriano superiore e Devoniano Inferiore nei Monti Peloritani (Sicilia nord-orientale; Italia meridionale)].

In the Peloritani Mountains (NE Sicily), the Favoscuro west section (near Pizzo Leo, between Floresta and Roccella Valdemone, Messina Province) cross-cuts the Variscan basement of the Longi-Taormina Unit. This section, in the less deformed part, shows a mildly metamorphosed continuous 50-m-thick Palaeozoic succession of metamarls and calc-schists with a bed of nodular metalimestones occurring at the base and of calc-schists at the top. The basal bed yielded a conodont fauna consisting of several fragments of Pa elements of Ancoradella cf. A. ploeckensis Walliser, 1964 (Ludlow, Ancoradella ploeckensis - Polygnathoides siluricus zones). The topmost bed yielded one fragment of a Pa element of Polygnatus cf. P. kitabicus Yolkin, Weddige, Izokh & Erina, 1994 (early Emsian, Polygnathus kitabicus - Polygnathus excavatus zones). This conodont fauna, although not well preserved due to greenschist facies metamorphism and deformation, for the first time enables the recognition of upper Silurian and Lower Devonian rocks in the Peloritani Mountains. The Favoscuro west section studied herein is of important stratigraphic significance as it encompasses the Silurian/Devonian boundary.