Original Article
A Window onto the Eocene (Cenozoic): The Palaeontological Record of the Sobrarbe-Pirineos UNESCO Global Geopark (Huesca, Aragon, Spain)
Authors
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Jose Ignacio Canudo
*
1
- Ainara Badiola 2
- Anchel Belmonte 3
- Jesús Cardiel 4
- Gloria Cuenca-Bescos 1
- Ester Diaz Berenguer 1
- Fernando Ferratges 1
- Miguel Moreno Azanza 5
- Adan Perez Garcia 6
- Manuel Perez Pueyo 1
- Roi Silva Casal 7
- Samuel Zamora Iranzo 1, 8
Abstract
The Sobrarbe-Pirineos UNESCO Global Geopark, located in the Central Pyrenees, is a region of remarkable geodiversity that includes extensive Eocene fossil-bearing sites and constitutes an important archive of paleobiodiversity. The Sobrarbe-Pirineos Geopark hosts outcrops of Eocene formations bearing an unusual abundance and diversity of fossils from marine and continental sedimentary environments, making the Sobrarbe-Pirineos Geopark a perfect window for learning about tropical ecosystems of the Eocene of southern Europe. These environments were in part tectonically controlled and offer a unique opportunity to understand how faunas changed in an active area. Here, we outline the main groups of fossils from the Sobrarbe-Pirineos Geopark, including popular examples such as the “Crocodile of Ordesa-Vio” and the sirenian Sobrarbesiren. The Geopark has been a major tool in the geoconservation of Eocene fossils.
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Additional Information
Geoconservation Research (Geoconserv. Res.)
Volume 4 (2021)
Issue 2, December 2021 - Paleontological Heritage and Geoconservation in the UNESCO European Geoparks (Part II) edited by Dan Grigorescu, Michael Benton, Vachik Hairapetian
Page Numbers: 561-572
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