Soom Shale
Late Ordovician lagerstatte formation in South Africa / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Soom Shale is a member of the Late Ordovician (Hirnantian) Cederberg Formation (Table Mountain Group) in South Africa, renowned for its remarkable preservation of soft-tissue in fossil material.[1] Deposited in still waters, the unit lacks bioturbation, perhaps indicating anoxic conditions.[1]
Soom Shale | |
---|---|
Stratigraphic range: Hirnantian | |
Unit of | Cederberg Formation, Table Mountain Group |
Underlies | Disa Siltstone |
Overlies | Pakhuis Tillite |
Thickness | 10–15 m (33–49 ft) |
Lithology | |
Primary | Shale |
Location | |
Coordinates | 33.0°S 19.0°E / -33.0; 19.0 |
Approximate paleocoordinates | 28.5°S 153.7°E / -28.5; 153.7 |
Region | Western Cape |
Country | South Africa |
It overlies the Pakhuis tillite and is overlain by the Disa Siltstone.[1]
It contains typical Ordovician microfossils, such as chitinozoa, acritarchs and spores, and its shelly fauna is also typical of this time period.[1]
Its macrofauna comprises pelagic organisms that sank rapidly to a barren sea floor.[2] These include brachiopods,[3] eurypterids, conodonts,[4] nektaspids, trilobites and orthoconic cephalopods.