CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Eighty-one species of spores and pollen grains together with algae and fungi remains were recovered from the shallow lacustrine successions of the La Veteada Formation at the Chaschuil river section (27¡ã43¡ä50.5¡åS-68¡ã01¡ä17.0¡åW), Sierra de Narv¨¢ez, Catamarca Province, Famatina Range, which are herein described and/or illustrated. This palynoflora is composed dominantly by a diverse association of taeniate pollen groups (68%), bisaccate (non-taeniate) pollen grains (24%), with less significant proportions of spores. The studied palynoflora is referred to the upper part of the LW (Lueckisporites-Weylandites) Biozone, thus a Middle Permian (Guadalupian) age is established, mainly based on the presence of Corisaccites alutas Venkatachala and Kar, Lueckisporites angoulensis Jardin¨¦, L. nyakapandensis Hart, L. stenotaensis Men¨¦ndez, L. virkkiae (Potoni¨¦ and Klaus) Clarke, Lunatisporites variesectus Archangelsky and Gamerro, Staurosaccites cordubensis Archangelsky and Gamerro, Striatoabieites anaverrucosus Archangelsky and Gamerro, Vittatina corrugata Marques-Toigo, V. costabilis Wilson, V. subsaccata Samoilovich, Convolutispora archangelskyi Playford and Dino, Striomonosaccites cicatricosus Archangelsky and Gamerro. Several species are recorded for the first time in Permian strata from Argentina, extending their chronostratigraphic records. Lueckisporites balmei (Tiwari and Vijaya) comb. nov. is proposed. Gondwanic biostratigraphic distribution of selected species recorded in this assemblage is presented in a range-chart. This palynofloral association is composed mainly by allochthonous elements derived from gymnosperms, conifers and pteridosperms, together with rare authochthonous elements related to the local vegetation represented by pteridophyte and sphenophyll components. Warm arid and/or semiarid climatic conditions prevailed in the Paganzo Basin during deposition of the La Veteada Formation.