The Corumbá Group is a Neoproterozoic succession of terrigenous and carbonate sedimentary rocks located at the southern Paraguay Belt, central Brazil. The upper units of the Corumbá Group include the Ediacaran carbonate Bocaina and Tamengo formations, whose limit is characterized by polymictic breccias recognized in several sites from Corumbá to Serra da Bodoquena, Mato Grosso do Sul. Despite the widespread occurrence, the breccias are poorly described and their origin is uncertain. The aim of this study is to present the differences between sedimentary and tectonic breccias of the Corumbá Group and propose a genesis model for each. The sedimentary breccias comprise mainly matrix-supported chaotic facies that formed by submarine mass flows on slope aprons. Sea level fall and/or increased faulting rates exposed the underlying units and triggered the gravity fluxes by creating a steep slope. The base of the sedimentary breccia represents a major unconformity within the carbonate sedimentation of the Corumbá Group, with potential correlation to other Ediacaran units. The subsequent development of the Paraguay fold-thrust belt caused the formation of tectonic breccias in reverse fault zones. Cataclasis and mylonitization deformed the dolomitic host rock by fracturing and produced a fine foliated matrix.
<p>The Neoproterozoic-Paleozoic transition was marked by profound modifications in the Earth-Life system, as evidenced by intense perturbations in biogechemical cycles and the appearance of complex macroscopic life. Many questions remain regarding the relationship and feedback between the biotic and abiotic processes that operated in that period, particularly the interconnections between changes in paleoclimate, tectonics, and the biological evolution. Here we present new geochemical data for the Nama Group, South Nam&#237;bia, sampled as part of the ICDP GRIND (Geological Research through Integrated Neoproterozoic Drilling) project, a global scientific collaboration that aims to study, in an integrated and multidisciplinary way, different sedimentary sequences in Namibia, China and Brazil, which encompass the terminal Ediacaran and the base of the Cambrian. Our sampling was carried out in the entire stratigraphic interval of the Nama Group in a 5 m resolution, always respecting the variations in facies and fossiliferous content and avoiding highly disturbed strata. X-ray fluorescence analyses were conducted 745 samples through a portable XRF device. The preliminary results of major elements, such as Si, Al, Ti, Sr and Ca, show major environmental shifts in the stratigraphic column, usually reflecting facies variations. The preliminary data presented herein is of key importance for the subsequent studies in the drill cores of the GRIND project, comprising geochronology, isotope analyses and paleontology.</p>
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