Microfossils from the late Mesoproterozoic - early Neoproterozoic Atar/El Mreïti Group, Taoudeni Basin, Mauritania, northwestern Africa

Sep 5, 2026

Uploaded by Jacob

The well-preserved Meso-Neoproterozoic shallow-marine succession of the Atar/El Mreïti Group in the Taoudeni Basin, Mauritania, enables investigation of the mid-Proterozoic eukaryotic record in Western Africa. Earlier work emphasized stromatolites, biomarkers, chemostratigraphy, and palaeoredox conditions, yet organic-walled microfossil diversity remained poorly characterized. This study reports a new assemblage from three drilled cores, totaling 48 distinct microfossil entities, including 11 unambiguous eukaryotes and multiple unresolved forms.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages76

Reading Time3 h 12 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Microfossil assemblage and diversity

Index fossils and proposed age

Significance for early eukaryotic life

[eprints@whiterose.ac.uk](eprints@whiterose.ac.uk)[ ](eprints@whiterose.ac.uk)[https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk](https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk) Universities of Leeds, Sheffield and York Deposited via The University of Leeds. White Rose Research Online URL for this paper: [https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/id/eprint/110731/](https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/id/eprint/110731/) [Version: Accepted Version](Version: Accepted Version) Article: Beghin, J, Storme, J-Y, Blanpied, C et al. (2017) Microfossils from the late Mesoproterozoic – early Neoproterozoic Atar/El Mreïti Group, Taoudeni Basin, Mauritania, northwestern Africa. Precambrian Research, 291. pp. 63-82. ISSN: 0301-9268 [https://doi.org/10.1016/j.precamres.2017.01.009](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.precamres.2017.01.009) © 2017 Published by Elsevier B.V. Licensed under the Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by)nc-nd/4.0/ Reuse Items deposited in White Rose Research Online are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved unless indicated otherwise. They may be downloaded and/or printed for private study, or other acts as permitted by national copyright laws. The publisher or other rights holders may allow further reproduction and re-use of the full text version. This is indicated by the licence information on the White Rose Research Online record for the item. Takedown If you consider content in White Rose Research Online to be in breach of UK law, please notify us by emailing [eprints@whiterose.ac.uk](eprints@whiterose.ac.uk) including the URL of the record and the reason for the withdrawal request. Accepted Manuscript Microfossils from the late Mesoproterozoic – early Neoproterozoic Atar/El Mreïti Group, Taoudeni Basin, Mauritania, northwestern Africa Jérémie Beghin, Jean-Yves Storme, Christian Blanpied, Nur Gueneli, Jochen J. Brocks, Simon W. Poulton, Emmanuelle J. Javaux PII: S0301-9268(16)30133-4 DOI: [http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.precamres.2017.01.009](http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.precamres.2017.01.009) Reference: PRECAM 4642 To appear in: Precambrian Research Received Date: 9 May 2016 Revised Date: 30 November 2016 Accepted Date: 8 January 2017 Please cite this article as: J. Beghin, J-Y. Storme, C. Blanpied, N. Gueneli, J.J. Brocks, S.W. Poulton, E.J. Javaux, Microfossils from the late Mesoproterozoic – early Neoproterozoic Atar/El Mreïti Group, Taoudeni Basin, Mauritania, northwestern Africa, Precambrian Research (2017), doi: [http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.precamres](http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.precamres). 2017.01.009 This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. 1 Microfossils from the late Mesoproterozoic – early Neoproterozoic Atar/El 2 Mreïti Group, Taoudeni Basin, Mauritania, northwestern Africa 3 Jérémie Beghin 1* , Jean-Yves Storme 1 , Christian Blanpied2 , Nur Gueneli3 , Jochen J. 4 Brocks3 , Simon W. Poulton4 and Emmanuelle J. Javaux1* 5 1 Department of Geology, UR GEOLOGY, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium. 6 *Corresponding authors: [jbeghin@ulg.ac.be](jbeghin@ulg.ac.be) (Jérémie Beghin), [ej.javaux@ulg.ac.be](ej.javaux@ulg.ac.be)[ ](ej.javaux@ulg.ac.be)[7](7) (Emmanuelle Javaux) . Quartier Agora, Bâtiment B18 , Allée du six août, 14 , B-4000 8 Liège , Belgium) 9 2TOTAL, Projets Nouveaux, Paris, France 10 3 Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, 11 ACT 2601 , Australia 12 4School of Earth and Environment, University of Lee

FAQs

What is the main subject of the paper?

The paper investigates well-preserved organic-walled microfossils (acritarchs) from the Atar/El Mreïti Group in the Taoudeni Basin, Mauritania, to understand the mid-Proterozoic eukaryotic record.

How many microfossil entities are reported, and what types?

A total of 48 distinct entities are observed, including 11 unambiguous eukaryotes (ornamented and process-bearing acritarchs) and 37 taxonomically unresolved taxa with possible eukaryotic, probable prokaryotic, and other prokaryotic or eukaryotic assignments.

What age is suggested for the Atar/El Mreïti Group based on the findings?

The general assemblage composition and three possible index fossils support a late Mesoproterozoic to early Neoproterozoic (Tonian) age for the Atar/El Mreïti Group, consistent with lithostratigraphy, chemostratigraphy, and geochronology.

Sep 5, 2026

Uploaded by Jacob