Outside the band of Miocene beds the Sarmatian, Pontian and Levantine series, often concealed by Quaternary deposits, cover the great part of the Danube plain.
Finally, in the Pontian period, the lagoons became gradually less and less salt, and the deposits are characterized especially by the abundance of shells.
North of the Lycaonian plateau lies another zone of folding which may be divided into the East Pontian and West Pontian arcs.
Even the Pontian beds are sometimes folded.