Paleontological Site Arroio Cancela

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Skull of a baby exaeretodon found here.
Skull of a baby exaeretodon found here.
Figure 1: Site Cancela, in this circle.
Figure 1: Site Cancela, in this circle.

Site Paleontological Arroio Cancela is located in the city of Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil in the neighborhood Nossa Senhora de Lourdes, and belongs to Santa Maria Formation, and this at an altitude of 107 meters above sea level. This site is found fossils of vertebrates of the Triassic, with about 225 million years.

The site belongs to Paleorrota and is located 600 meters from the Station Road of Santa Maria City. At the corner of the street Irmão Donato with street Otavio Alves de Oliveira, a hundred meters from the site, is school State General Edson de Figueiredo, and next to a shopping center.

Thirty-five meter above the site Cancela are the Paleontological Site Largo Padre Daniel Cargin and Paleontological Site Bela Vista. In Paleontological Site Largo Padre Daniel Cargin (Point 1, Figure 1) is where he collected a Therioherpeton Cargnini and Paleontological Site Bela Vista (Point 2, Figure 1) were found fragments of skull unidentified. Both sites are located near the Cerrito hill, and belong to Caturrita Formation.

[edit] Area under study

Figure 2: Main points of studies of the site.
Figure 2: Main points of studies of the site.



The area that is in the circle, has 9 hectar and is crossed by stream Cancela and starts the beginning of the Osvaldo Aranha Street and follows toward Fernando Ferrari avenue. In this excerpt are found fossils of animals of the triassic, and there are a lot red soil exposed. The main points of studies and collections are listed as 1, 2 and 3 in Figure 2. The passage that goes from point 1 to point 3, measuring 185 meters. The passage that goes from point 3 to the street Otavio Alves de Oliveira, measuring 142 meters.

Description of points:

  1. It was collected where a baby dinosaur, saurischia, kind undefined. The body of the animal measured approximately 70 cm head to the tip of the tail. This animal was about 70% of his body preserved, and had 50% of the skull. The vertebrae were articulated, and had all the vertebrae head to the tail. The animal had a head too small in relation to the body, had a thin, long tail and the teeth had the shape of mountains, were not as pointed as a carnivore. It probably was a herbivore. collected in 1974. (This fossil was lost).
  2. This place has been collected a Rhynchosaur with approximately 30% of the body, which had no skull, and the vertebrae were articulated. It was excavated in the year of 1975. (This fossil was also lost). Recently in 2005, was collected from a young Rhynchosaur this location, with vertebrae unarticulated.
  3. This place was collected four calves, Exaeretodons, in the year of 2004, with much material post-skull and vertebrae unarticulated, which means that the animals have undergone an advanced state of decomposition before being completely covered by sediments. It was found Rhynchosaur, in the year 2002, with approximately 60% of the body, and articulated vertebrae. These fossils were donated to the UFRGS.

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