Madumabisa Mudstone Formation
| Madumabisa Mudstone Formation | |
|---|---|
| Stratigraphic range: Capitanian?–Wuchiapingian ~ | |
| Type | Geological formation |
| Underlies | Escarpment Grit, Ntawere Formation |
| Overlies | Luwumbu Formation, Gwembe Coal Formation |
| Lithology | |
| Primary | Mudstone |
| Location | |
| Country | Zambia, Zimbabwe |
| Type section | |
| Named for | Ndumebiza (Madume), Hwange District, Zimbabwe |
| Named by | Lightfoot (1914) |
The Madumabisa Mudstone Formation is a geologic formation in the Middle to Late Permian of Zambia and Zimbabwe. It comprises ancient lake and river mudstone exposed in two sedimentary basins: the Mid-Zambezi Basin (on the Zambia-Zimbabwe border) and the Luangwa Basin (in northeast Zambia).
Though understudied for many years, the exposures of the Luangwa Basin are among the best records of Late Permian fossils in the world. The upper member of the Madumabisa Mudstone Formation has produced many species of synapsids (animals distantly related to mammals). Dicynodonts (herbivores with tusks and beaks) and gorgonopsians (saber-toothed predators) are particularly common. Similar species are found in the even more fossil-rich Karoo Basin of South Africa, assisting age correlation between the two regions.