Search results for "Benthic zone"
showing 10 items of 265 documents
Marine climate and hydrography of the Coralline Crag (early Pliocene, UK): isotopic evidence from 16 benthic invertebrate taxa
2019
The taxonomic composition of the biota of the Coralline Crag Formation (early Pliocene, eastern England) provides conflicting evidence of seawater temperature during deposition, some taxa indicating cool temperate conditions by analogy with modern representatives or relatives, others warm temperate to subtropical/tropical conditions. Previous isotopic (δ18O) evidence of seasonal seafloor temperatures from serial ontogenetic sampling of bivalve mollusk shells indicated cool temperate winter (<10 °C) and/or summer (<20 °C) conditions but was limited to nine profiles from two species, one ranging into and one occurring exclusively in cool temperate settings at present. We supplement these resu…
Palaeobiogeography of Austral echinoid faunas: a first quantitative approach
2013
Few studies have been devoted to the palaeobiogeography of Antarctic echinoids, all of them analysing and discussing distribution patterns in a qualitative way. The present work aims at exploring the evolution of palaeobiogeographic relationships of Austral echinoid faunas through four time intervals, from the Maastrichtian to the present day, using a quantitative approach: the Bootstrapped Spanning Network procedure. Analyses were successfully performed and improve our knowledge of biogeographic relationships between the different Austral regions. Biogeographic maps were produced that can be easily and intuitively discussed. Our results mostly agree with palaeobiogeographic studies perform…
Transient metazoan reefs in the aftermath of the end-Permian mass extinction
2011
5 pages; International audience; Recovery from the devastating Permian-Triassic mass extinction about 252 million years ago is usually assumed to have spanned the entire 5 million years of the Early Triassic epoch1,2. The post-crisis interval was characterized by large-scale fluctuations of the global carbon cycle and harsh marine conditions, including a combination of ocean acidification, euxinia, and fluctuating productivity3. During this interval, metazoan-dominated reefs are thought to have been replaced by microbial deposits that are considered the hallmark of the Early Triassic4-7. Here we use field and microscopic investigations to document Early Triassic bioaccumulations and reefs f…
High-resolution geochemical and biotic records of the Tethyan 'Bonarelli Level' (OAE2, latest Cenomanian) from the Calabianca-Guidaloca composite sec…
2004
Abstract High-resolution micropalaeontological and chemostratigraphic records for the upper Cenomanian portion of the Calabianca–Guidaloca composite section (NW Sicily) provide new insight into the palaeoclimatic and palaeoceanographic evolution of the Tethys Ocean. The Bonarelli Level equivalent was identified on the basis of lithology and well constrained by calcareous plankton biostratigraphy and radiolarian assemblages, as well as by the δ 13 C curve showing a marked positive excursion (up to 4.7‰). The Bonarelli Level equivalent deposition is characterized by highly eutrophic conditions as testified by radiolarian proliferation. Black shale samples from the Calabianca–Guidaloca composi…
The end of the Messinian salinity crisis: Evidences from the Chelif Basin (Algeria).
2007
How did the Messinian Salinity Crisis end is a matter of intense debate between two opposite concepts i.e., the generalised dilution event, the so-called Lago–Mare, followed by the sudden restoration of the marine conditions at the base of the Zanclean, or the early partial or complete marine refill that would have happened earlier during the upper Messinian. The Chelif Basin of Northwestern Algeria, one of the greatest Messinian marginal basins of the Mediterranean, provides an exceptional opportunity to study in detail how this major paleoenvironmental change occurred through continuous sedimentary records of the Miocene–Pliocene boundary. Five sections representative of both the central …
The end-Triassic mass extinction: A new correlation between extinction events and δ13C fluctuations from a Triassic-Jurassic peritidal succession in …
2018
Abstract A new δ13Ccarb curve was obtained from an expanded peritidal succession in western Sicily and was used to investigate the relationships between isotopic signatures and biological events on carbonate platforms across the Triassic-Jurassic boundary (TJB). The resulting curve shows two main negative carbon isotopic excursions (CIEs) that fit well with the “Initial” and “Main” CIEs that are recognized worldwide and linked to the End-Triassic Extinction (ETE). In the studied section, the first negative CIE marks the disappearance of the large megalodontids, which were replaced by small and thin-shelled specimens, while the “Main” CIE corresponds to the last occurrence (LO) of the megalo…
Geographical and bathymetric distribution of foraminiferal assemblages from the Alboran Sea (western Mediterranean)
2018
A total of 176 surface sediment samples, recovered in the Alboran Sea by the oceanographic vessel Vizconde de Eza during the 2002 and 2003 campaigns, were analysed for their foraminiferal content. Planktonic and benthic foraminifera were picked up, studied and classified. In addition, a series of diversity indices were calculated. An attempt was made to correlate diversity (Fisher alpha index) with longitude, latitude and depth. Planktonic assemblages are strongly dominated by the species Globorotalia inflata (d’Orbigny) together with Globigerina bulloides d’Orbigny. Correlation analysis show only a weak relation between planktonic foraminiferal diversity and both longitude and distance to …
Emsian (Lower Devonian) conodonts from the Daliantang Formation at Daliantang, southeastern Yunnan, China
2021
Abstract The lower/upper Emsian boundary witnessed prominent diversification of biostratigraphically important genera Polygnathus Hinde, Caudicriodus Bultynck, and Latericriodus Muller. In contrast, conodonts previously reported around this boundary from the South China Block were characterized by relatively low species or subspecies diversity, and only a few widely distributed and extensively studied zone-defining taxa were recorded. In this paper, conodonts from the Daliantang Formation at the Daliantang section (Guangnan, southeastern Yunnan), one of the representative sections of the transitional facies between the benthic Xiangzhou facies and the pelagic Nandan facies, are investigated…
Calcareous nannofossil response to Late Cretaceous climate change in the eastern Tethys (Zagros Basin, Iran)
2020
Abstract Coniacian to Maastrichtian changes in calcareous nannofossil assemblages have been investigated in the eastern Tethyan Shahneshin section (central Zagros Basin, Iran). The nannofossil assemblages are mainly composed of Watznaueria spp. (avg. 54%), Retecapsa spp (avg. 7.9%), Cribrosphaerella ehrenbergii (avg. 7.7%) and Micula spp. (avg. 5.7%). Throughout the late Campanian, there is a trend to lower abundances in Watznaueria spp. together with increasing abundances of C. ehrenbergii and Arkhangelskiella cymbiformis, which are considered in this basin as the main cool-water taxa. Our results reveal that, despite a diagenetic impact on calcareous nannoflora, a number of primary paleoe…
Isotopic seawater temperatures in the Albian Gault Clay of the Boulonnais (Paris Basin): Palaeoenvironmental implications
2016
13 pages; International audience; Oxygen isotopes were measured on several types of fossil hardparts from the Gault Clay Formation including benthic and planktonic foraminifera, belemnite guards, and fish small-teeth. Belemnites δ18O values indicate low temperatures (13.5–19.3 °C) with an increase from the Middle to Late Albian. Foraminifera provide variable δ18O values, some too low to be relevant in terms of temperature (until 42 °C). These low values probably result from a diagenetic alteration of the foraminiferal tests even though SEM observations revealed well-preserved microstructures. However, higher foraminiferal δ18O values recorded in some levels indicate temperatures in the rang…