The sedimentary record of the Aptian stage is a rich laboratory for the understanding of the functioning of earth systems due to the significant climatic and environmental changes that occurred at this time. Whereas much attention has been paid to the deep-sea record, focusing on isotopic trends and stratigraphic continuity, a better integration with the shallow marine record is beneficial due to its recording of sea-level fluctuations, continental run-off patterns, and biota response. A 650 km long platform-to-basin transect in Tunisia is presented as a reference for the southern NeoTethys domain. It clearly illustrates the late Aptian impact of high magnitude sea level changes, the installation of the Equatorial Humid Belt (EHB) over the northern Afro-Arabian plate with associated siliciclastic shedding and vegetation development; a phenomenon also documented in the Brasilian south Atlantic.

A global synthesis demonstrates the consistent expression of two 2nd order Aptian sequences. The lower, Sequence I, is characterized around the equator by the widespread deposition of carbonates and locally evaporites deposited under arid conditions, whereas the upper, Sequence II, is characterized by locally plant-rich siliciclastics in land-attached settings, deposited under more humid conditions. This abrupt facies and climatic change occurs across a globally expressed sequence boundary that is marked by incised valleys of up to 70 m deep and kilometer-scale width. In the higher altitudes, too cold for carbonates, the facies remained siliciclastic, but the sea level fall is still observed. Ice-rafted dropstones are a common feature in the high latitude Upper Aptian deposits. There is thus strong evidence that the shallow marine Aptian depositional patterns are primarily driven by climate change (ice-caps, glacio-eustasy and reconfiguration of the climate belts with the installation of EHB), whereby local variations on the general theme occur. Incorporation of these insights from the shallow marine record into the deep-water domain will allow for a more holistic view of the Earth system and the range of processes that controlled sedimentation.