Ocorrência de Psilophytales na formação furnas, borda leste da Bacia do Parana

Resumo

In the course of a paleontologic-sedimentologic survey of the Furnas Formation the authors had opportunity to record the occurrence of Psilophytales in this unit. The plants are quite well preserved in the form of light brown colored impressions in a micaceous, light gray, laminated and barely ondulated siltstones. The fossiliferous interval is within the uppermost section of the Furnas, near its upper contact with the Ponta Grossa Formation. The fossiliferous site is on the road to Represa dos Alagados, 200m to the east of the bridge over the Verde River in the vicinity of the city of Ponta Grossa. Plant remains of this group are known elsewhere from tne Latest Silurian through the Middle Devonian. However, the generic classification of the Brazilian material will probably provide the bases for a more precise biostratigraphic datation of the upper Furnas Formation. The Psilophytales are regarded as a plant group restricted to continental environments. This is in accordance with the lithologic characteristics of the sequence where they were found. A detailed stratigraphic profile of the section reveals a moderate to low energy fluvial sequence.