Part of the geologic importance of the Araripe Basin is related to the ocurrence of a bituminous shale that has been mineralized with metallic suphides. This layer occurs along the NE flank of the basin and belongs to the upper part of the Missao Velha Formation, of probably Neocomian age. In this paper, a preliminary palynologic analysis of this shale is presented, and the information thus obtained, together with data on other fossils, is used for stratigraphic and paleoecologic interpretations.
