Abstract The terminal Ediacaran fossil record includes microbial mats and body fossils characterized by simple morphologies, which represents a challenge to understand several aspects related to the paleoecology of the emerging complex life. The marine siliciclastic deposits of the Cerro Negro Formation (~560–550 Ma) contain evidence of different styles of microbially induced sedimentary structures (MISS) and discoidal forms associated with them. Different types of MISS, such as Kinneyia and wrinkle structures, elephant skin, and Arumberia, are reported and related to shallow marine depositional environments. These morphologies are commonly associated with the high quality of preservation of body fossils in Ediacaran deposits. The preservation of Aspidella discoidal holdfast is related to biotic and abiotic processes involving substrate sealing by microbial mats, fluidization, and probably organic matter decay. Both abiotic factors (tidal currents and waves, added to liquefaction and sand injection) and biotic factors (substrate biostabilization by microbial mats favoring sediment cohesion) are considered the main ones responsible for the preservation style in the Cerro Negro Formation. This formation constitutes a remarkable example in SW-Gondwana of how preservation dynamics took place on a seabed sealed by microbial mats and is an important deposit conserving diverse Ediacaran forms of life in South America.

Abstract The influence of microbial communities upon sedimentary dynamics is an issue of increasing significance. Over the last decades, studies have revealed a particular class of sedimentary structures and textures produced by the interaction among distinct flows, marine substrate, and benthic microbial communities. We present evidence of the oldest record of microbially-induced sedimentary structures (MISS) in South America, as recorded in low-grade metasedimentary rocks of the Early Mesoproterozoic (∼1536 ± 33 Ma) Tiradentes Formation, state of Minas Gerais, SW Brazil. Types 1, 2, and 3 correspond to wrinkle, pustular, and dome structures related to flat or rippled bed surfaces, preserved in metasandstone deposited in shallow marine settings. Evidence supporting the microbial origin of these structures includes delicate morphology, degree of alignment, presence of original mat cover, and orientation of quartz grains indicating biostabilization. The presence of distinct MISS associated with well-preserved ripple marks, wrinkled surfaces, and flatbeds suggests deposition under varied energy conditions with different potentials for the preservation of surficial structures. Vertical growth of microbial communities influences sediment cohesion and stability. This reduces substrate roughness and, as a consequence, wave and current shear, thereby increasing the preservation potential of bedforms and delicate features of their bedding surfaces.