Cumming, VM, Poulton, SW, Rooney, AD et al. (1 more author) (2013) Anoxia in the terrestrial environment during the late Mesoproterozoic. Geology, 41 (5). 583 - 586. ISSN 0091-7613
Abstract
A significant body of evidence suggests that the marine environment remained largely anoxic throughout most of the Precambrian. In contrast, the oxygenation history of terrestrial aquatic environments has received little attention, despite the significance of such settings for early eukaryote evolution. To address this, we provide here a geochemical and isotopic assessment of sediments from the late Mesoproterozoic Nonesuch Formation of central North America. We utilize rhenium-osmium (Re-Os) geochronology to yield a depositional age of 1078 ± 24 Ma, while Os isotope compositions support existing evidence for a lacustrine setting. Fe-S-C systematics suggest that the Nonesuch Formation was deposited from an anoxic Fe-rich (ferruginous) water column. Thus, similar to the marine realm, anoxia persisted in terrestrial aquatic environments in the Middle to Late Proterozoic, but sulfidic water column conditions were not ubiquitous. Our data suggest that oxygenation of the terrestrial realm was not pervasive at this time and may not have preceded oxygenation of the marine environment, signifying a major requirement for further investigation of links between the oxygenation state of terrestrial aquatic environments and eukaryote evolution.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2013, Geological Society of America. This is an author produced version of a paper published in Geology. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Environment (Leeds) > School of Earth and Environment (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 13 Mar 2015 13:16 |
Last Modified: | 21 Apr 2015 07:03 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1130/G34299.1 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Geological Society of America |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1130/G34299.1 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:83396 |