Potencialidade Fossilífera na Cidade de Ituiutaba - MG: breve histórico

Abstract

Fossils are extremely important as a wealth of cultural and scientific heritage in a given location due to several factors. It is possible to record the evolution of life on Earth over hundreds of millions of years, helping to understand how species changed and evolved over time, as well as the adaptations of these organisms to the most diverse environmental changes, in addition to preserve the geological and climatic history of the region. The aim of this work is to present the recent history of fossil finds in the Ituiutaba region, Minas Gerais, with a view to the potential of the municipality of Ituiutaba for National Paleontology and the highlights of fossil sites in Ituiutaba from the perspective of the conservation of scientific and cultural heritage. To this end, bibliographical surveys were carried out using the search tool on the Google Scholar platform, with the terms (a) fossil/fossils, (b) paleontology, (c) Ituiutaba and (d) Triângulo Mineiro as the research target. The literary content obtained in the search was analyzed, which listed articles from academic journals, abstracts from scientific events, articles and publicity news, master's thesis and doctoral thesis. In the last five years, the municipality of Ituiutaba, Minas Gerais, has stood out for the work of researchers in the discovery of fossiliferous occurrences, such as fragments of Dinosauria corresponding to the first record of the group in the municipality, Abelisaurid teeth and a paleoburrow possibly built by fish lung. It is worth highlighting the site popularly known as Serra do Corpo Seco as a potential fossil outcrop to be preserved within the scope of scientific and cultural heritage, as the Abelisaurid teeth and the paleoburrow were found in this location. These discoveries help to better understand the diversity and evolution of organisms in the Bauru Basin, in its rocks that make up the Adamantina and Marília formations, in the Ituiutaba region, as well as the distribution of species from the Cretaceous period in South America. The discovery and the protection of these outcrops are essential for future generations to remain interested in the study of Paleontology.