Before the flood: Miocene otoliths from eastern Amazon Pirabas Formation reveal a Caribbean-type fish fauna

• DOI: 10.1016/j.jsames.2014.09.021
• Publication Date: 2014-10-03T23:24:00Z
• Authors: Orangel Aguilera; Werner Schwarzhans; Heloísa Moraes-Sa...; Aguinaldo Nepomuceno
• Keywords: Neogene

The Pirabas Formation of Early Miocene age represents the final stage central western Atlantic carbonate platform in northeastern South America, predating emplacement Amazon delta system. otolith-based fossil fish fauna is represented by 38 species typical a shallow marine environment. A total 18 are described new to science from families Congridae, Batrachoididae, Bythitidae, Sciaenidae and Paralichthyidae. was associated with high benthic planktic primary productivity including seagrass meadows, calcareous algae suspension-feeders. break todays bioprovince at Amazonas mouth not evident Fm., which shows good correlation Gatunian/proto-Caribbean known an only slightly younger time window Trinidad Venezuela. Differences observed those faunal associations interpreted be mainly due stratigraphic geographic environmental differences. We postulate that emergence river close its present day location has terminated cycle Fm. pushed back northwards certain proportion here described.