Paleoambientes del Cuaternario tardío del sur de Mendoza: estado del conocimiento, problemas y perspectivas

CLAUDIO GERMAN DE FRANCESCO; DIEGUEZ, S.

Arqueología y ambientes de áreas naturales protegidas de la provincia de Mendoza

Anales de Arqueología y Etnología

Lugar: Mendoza; Año: 2006; p. 69 - 80

The aim of this contribution is to reveal the potentiality of the geological and paleontological record preserved in the area of Llancanelo, Mendoza (34º/37ºS and 70º/67ºW), as sources of data for reconstructing the environmental history of the region during the late Quaternary.An emphasis on the geological description of the area, and the stratigraphic and paleontological description of alluvial successions, is given. The paleoecological analysis of three profiles that crop out on the margin of the Atuel River suggests the development of two distinct environments (damp habitats with low water circulation and well-oxygenated permanent water bodies) probably related to climatic variations in a regional extent.The preliminary information gathered here brings an important first step in the understanding of the environmental changes that took place in southern Mendoza, and pose questions about the mode in which these environmental changes would have been influenced human settlements.