First and oldest record of Seebachia bronni, type species of Seebachia (Bivalvia: Astartidae), from the late Tithonian (Jurassic) of Kutch, India, and its palaeobiogeographic and evolutionary implications.

This article focuses on the discovery and analysis of the oldest known occurrence of *Seebachia bronni* Krauss, 1850, a bivalve species within the family Astartidae, from the upper Tithonian (Late Jurassic) ferruginous oolitic bands of Kutch, western India. Quantitative morphological and morphometrical analyses distinguish *S. bronni* from closely related species of the genus *Pruvostiella* (subgenus *Eoseebachia*), supporting recent taxonomic revisions that separate these taxa. The presence of *S. bronni* in India, alongside its known occurrences in Madagascar, Tanzania, and South Africa, suggests marine connections among these regions during the Late Jurassic, likely facilitated by high global sea levels and marine transgressions. Additionally, the study notes an apparent evolutionary increase in body size of *S. bronni* from the Oxfordian of Madagascar to the Early Cretaceous of South Africa, although limited fossil records prevent definitive conclusions on this trend.