Evidence for rapid climate change in the Mesozoic-Palaeogene greenhouse world

Biotic and Paleoceanographic Changes Across the Late Cretaceous Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 in the Southern High Latitudes (IODP Sites U1513 and U1516, SE Indian Ocean)

Oceanic Anoxic Event 2, spanning the Cenomanian/Turonian boundary (93.9 Ma), was an episode of major perturbations in the global carbon cycle. To investigate the response of biota and the paleoceanographic conditions across this event, we present data from International Ocean Discovery Program sites U1513 and U1516 in the Mentelle Basin (offshore SW Australia; paleolatitude 59°-60°S in the mid-Cretaceous) that register the first complete records of OAE 2 at southern high latitudes. Calcareous nannofossils provide a reliable bio-chronostratigraphic framework. The distribution and abundance patterns of planktonic and benthic foraminifera, radiolaria, and calcispheres permit interpretation of the dynamics of the water mass stratification and provide support for the paleobathymetric reconstruction of the two sites, with Site U1513 located northwest of the Mentelle Basin depocenter and at a deeper depth than Site U1516. The lower OAE 2 interval is characterized by reduced water mass stratification with alternating episodes of enhanced surface water productivity and variations of the thickness of the mixed layer as indicated by the fluctuations in abundance of the intermediate dwelling planktonic foraminifera. The middle OAE 2 interval contains lithologies composed almost entirely of radiolaria reflecting extremely high marine productivity; the low CaCO3 content is consistent with marked shoaling of the Carbonate Compensation Depth and ocean acidification because of CaCO3 undersaturation. Conditions moderated after deposition of the silica-rich, CaCO3-poor rocks as reflected by the microfossil changes indicating a relatively stable water column although episodes of enhanced eutrophy did continue into the lower Turonian at Site U1516.

Anatomy of an extinction revealed by molecular fossils spanning OAE2

The Cenomanian–Turonian mass extinction (Oceanic Anoxic Event 2-OAE2) was a period of profound ecological change that is recorded in the sedimentary record in many locations around the globe. In this study, we provide a new and detailed account of repetitive changes in water column ecology by analyzing the organic geochemical record preserved within the OAE2 section of the Greenhorn Formation, Western Interior Seaway (WIS) of North America. Results from this study provide evidence that OAE2 in the WIS was the result of the cumulative effect of reoccurring environmental stresses rather than a single massive event. During OAE2, extreme variations in biotic composition occurred erratically over periods of several thousands of years as revealed by molecular fossil (biomarker) abundances and distributions calibrated to sedimentation rates. These cycles of marine productivity decline almost certainly had follow-on effects through the ecosystem and likely contributed to the Cenomanian–Turonian mass extinction. While the causes behind organic productivity cycling are yet unproven, we postulate that they may have been linked to repeated episodes of volcanic activity. Catastrophic volcanism and related CO₂ outgassing have been interpreted as main drivers for OAE2, though this study provides new evidence that repetitive, punctuated environmental stresses were also important episodes within the anatomy of OAE2. Following OAE2, these cycles of productivity decline disappeared, and the WIS returned to conditions comparable to pre-OAE2 levels.

Comparative genomics and transcriptomics analysis reveals evolution patterns of selection in the Salix phylogeny

BACKGROUND

Willows are widely distributed in the northern hemisphere and have good adaptability to different living environment. The increasing of genome and transcriptome data provides a chance for comparative analysis to study the evolution patterns with the different origin and geographical distributions in the Salix phylogeny.

RESULTS

Transcript sequences of 10 Salicaceae species were downloaded from public databases. All pairwise of orthologues were identified by comparative analysis in these species, from which we constructed a phylogenetic tree and estimated the rate of diverse. Divergence times were estimated in the 10 Salicaceae using comparative transcriptomic analysis. All of the fast-evolving positive selection sequences were identified, and some cold-, drought-, light-, universal-, and heat- resistance genes were discovered.

CONCLUSIONS

The divergence time of subgenus Vetrix and Salix was about 17.6-16.0 Mya during the period of Middle Miocene Climate Transition (21-14 Mya). Subgenus Vetrix diverged to migratory and resident groups when the climate changed to the cool and dry trend by 14 Mya. Cold- and light- stress genes were involved in positive selection among the resident Vetrix, and which would help them to adapt the cooling stage. Universal- stress genes exhibited positive selection among the migratory group and subgenus Salix. These data are useful for comprehending the adaptive evolution and speciation in the Salix lineage.

Transient cooling episodes during Cretaceous Oceanic Anoxic Events with special reference to OAE 1a (Early Aptian)

The two major oceanic anoxic events of the Cretaceous, those of the Early Aptian (OAE 1a) and the Cenomanian-Turonian boundary (OAE 2), registered some of the highest temperatures reconstructed for the Cretaceous Period, and are thought to be related to the input of volcanically derived carbon dioxide from one or more Large Igneous Provinces. Widely distributed deposition of marine organic matter, the hallmark of OAEs, and intensified silicate weathering in response to a globally accelerated hydrological cycle and/or reaction of seawater with freshly extruded basalt, are both potential mechanisms whereby the content of atmospheric carbon dioxide could have been drawn down to promote cooling, on the assumption that this potential effect was not offset by increased addition of this volcanically derived greenhouse gas. Reduction in the supply of such carbon dioxide, with deposition of organic matter and silicate weathering continuing at the same rate, could also have produced cooling. A transient fall in temperature and increase in marine dissolved oxygen levels is well documented for OAE 2, in the form of the so-called Plenus Cold Event or Benthic Oxic Event, associated with southward invasion of certain boreal faunas and an increase in many redox-sensitive and/or chalcophilic elements in seawater caused by temporary loss of anoxic-euxinic sinks as basalt-seawater interaction continued apace. High-resolution studies of OAE 1a show at least three cooling episodes of probable global distribution, one of which (recorded in the stratigraphy of the so-called C4 Segment) is documented at high enough resolution to show correlation with an increase in carbon-isotope values that was probably due to a rise in the quantities of organic matter being buried globally, with consequent potential drawdown of atmospheric CO2 and/or reduction in volcanic input of this greenhouse gas. Both calcium- and lithium-isotope records suggest an increase in silicate weathering over the OAE 1a interval but current relatively low-resolution records cannot at present be tied to any one cooling episode, although the lowest Li-isotope values do derive from the C4 Segment. Evidence for reoxygenation of the ocean during the transient cooling episodes of OAE 1a is meagre, due to the lack of suitable sedimentary archives, although a negative sulfur-isotope excursion in a Pacific shallow-water carbonate section, which can be interpreted as due to oxidation of pyrite and/or sulfur-rich organic matter in the global ocean, suggests that this phenomenon may also have been a feature of the C4 Segment. Further work is required to elucidate the similarities and differences between OAE 2 and OAE 1a, but both phenomena are demonstrably global in reach and represent major disturbances to the carbon cycle with attendant effects on marine temperatures.This article is part of a discussion meeting issue 'Hyperthermals: rapid and extreme global warming in our geological past'.

Impaired photosynthesis and increased leaf construction costs may induce floral stress during episodes of global warming over macroevolutionary timescales

Global warming events have coincided with turnover of plant species at intervals in Earth history. As mean global temperatures rise, the number, frequency and duration of heat-waves will increase. Ginkgo biloba was grown under controlled climatic conditions at two different day/night temperature regimes (25/20 °C and 35/30 °C) to investigate the impact of heat stress. Photosynthetic CO2-uptake and electron transport were reduced at the higher temperature, while rates of respiration were greater; suggesting that the carbon balance of the leaves was adversely affected. Stomatal conductance and the potential for evaporative cooling of the leaves was reduced at the higher temperature. Furthermore, the capacity of the leaves to dissipate excess energy was also reduced at 35/30 °C, indicating that photo-protective mechanisms were no longer functioning effectively. Leaf economics were adversely affected by heat stress, exhibiting an increase in leaf mass per area and leaf construction costs. This may be consistent with the selective pressures experienced by fossil Ginkgoales during intervals of global warming such as the Triassic - Jurassic boundary or Early Eocene Climatic Optimum. The physiological and morphological responses of the G. biloba leaves were closely interrelated; these relationships may be used to infer the leaf economics and photosynthetic/stress physiology of fossil plants.

The basal nodosaurid ankylosaur Europelta carbonensis n. gen., n. sp. from the Lower Cretaceous (lower Albian) Escucha Formation of northeastern Spain

Nodosaurids are poorly known from the Lower Cretaceous of Europe. Two associated ankylosaur skeletons excavated from the lower Albian carbonaceous member of the Escucha Formation near Ariño in northeastern Teruel, Spain reveal nearly all the diagnostic recognized character that define nodosaurid ankylosaurs. These new specimens comprise a new genus and species of nodosaurid ankylosaur and represent the single most complete taxon of ankylosaur from the Cretaceous of Europe. These two specimens were examined and compared to all other known ankylosaurs. Comparisons of these specimens document that Europelta carbonensis n. gen., n. sp. is a nodosaur and is the sister taxon to the Late Cretaceous nodosaurids Anoplosaurus, Hungarosaurus, and Struthiosaurus, defining a monophyletic clade of European nodosaurids– the Struthiosaurinae.

The impact of global warming and anoxia on marine benthic community dynamics: an example from the Toarcian (Early Jurassic)

The Pliensbachian-Toarcian (Early Jurassic) fossil record is an archive of natural data of benthic community response to global warming and marine long-term hypoxia and anoxia. In the early Toarcian mean temperatures increased by the same order of magnitude as that predicted for the near future; laminated, organic-rich, black shales were deposited in many shallow water epicontinental basins; and a biotic crisis occurred in the marine realm, with the extinction of approximately 5% of families and 26% of genera. High-resolution quantitative abundance data of benthic invertebrates were collected from the Cleveland Basin (North Yorkshire, UK), and analysed with multivariate statistical methods to detect how the fauna responded to environmental changes during the early Toarcian. Twelve biofacies were identified. Their changes through time closely resemble the pattern of faunal degradation and recovery observed in modern habitats affected by anoxia. All four successional stages of community structure recorded in modern studies are recognised in the fossil data (i.e. Stage III: climax; II: transitional; I: pioneer; 0: highly disturbed). Two main faunal turnover events occurred: (i) at the onset of anoxia, with the extinction of most benthic species and the survival of a few adapted to thrive in low-oxygen conditions (Stages I to 0) and (ii) in the recovery, when newly evolved species colonized the re-oxygenated soft sediments and the path of recovery did not retrace of pattern of ecological degradation (Stages I to II). The ordination of samples coupled with sedimentological and palaeotemperature proxy data indicate that the onset of anoxia and the extinction horizon coincide with both a rise in temperature and sea level. Our study of how faunal associations co-vary with long and short term sea level and temperature changes has implications for predicting the long-term effects of "dead zones" in modern oceans.

Nannofossil biostratigraphy, strontium and carbon isotope stratigraphy, cyclostratigraphy and an astronomically calibrated duration of the Late Campanian Radotruncana calcarata Zone

A section from the southern (Austro-Alpine Northern Calcareous Alps) margin of the Penninic Ocean in the NW Tethys realm of Late Campanian age is investigated stratigraphically. Plankton foraminifer and nannofossil biostratigraphy designate the presence of the Globotruncana ventricosa Zone and the Radotruncana (Globotruncanita) calcarata Zone, and standard nannofossil zones CC21-UC15cTP and CC22ab-UC15deTP. The combination of carbon isotope stratigraphy, strontium isotopes, and cyclostratigraphy allows a detailed chronostratigraphic correlation. Periodicity was obtained by power spectral analysis, sinusoidal regression, and Morlet wavelets. The duration of the calcarata Total Range Zone is calculated by orbital cyclicity expressed in thickness data of limestone-marl rhythmites and stable carbon isotope data. Precessional, obliquity, and short and long eccentricity cycles are identified and give an extent of c. 806 kyr for the zone. Mean sediment accumulation rates are as low as 1.99 cm/kyr and correspond well to sediment accumulation rates in similar settings. We further discuss chronostratigraphic implications of our data.

Dating cryptodiran nodes: origin and diversification of the turtle superfamily Testudinoidea

The superfamily Testudinoidea is the most diverse and widely distributed clade of extant turtles. Surprisingly, despite an extensive fossil record, and increasing amount of molecular data available, the temporal origin of this group is still largely unknown. To address this issue, we used a comprehensive molecular dataset to perform phylogenetic and molecular dating analyses, as well as seven fossil constraints to calibrate the ages of the nodes in the phylogeny. The molecular dataset includes the complete mitochondrial genomes of 37 turtle species, including newly sequenced mitochondrial genomes of Phrynops hilarii, Emys orbicularis, Rhinoclemmys punctularia, and Chelonoidis nigra, and four nuclear markers. Our results revealed that the earliest divergences within crown testudinoids occurred around 95.0 Mya, in the early Late Cretaceous, earlier than previously reported, raising new questions about the historical biogeography of this group.

Clay mineral continental amplifier for marine carbon sequestration in a greenhouse ocean

The majority of carbon sequestration at the Earth's surface occurs in marine continental margin settings within fine-grained sediments whose mineral properties are a function of continental climatic conditions. We report very high mineral surface area (MSA) values of 300 and 570 m(2) g in Late Cretaceous black shales from Ocean Drilling Program site 959 of the Deep Ivorian Basin that vary on subcentennial time scales corresponding with abrupt increases from approximately 3 to approximately 18% total organic carbon (TOC). The observed MSA changes with TOC across multiple scales of variability and on a sample-by-sample basis (centimeter scale), provides a rigorous test of a hypothesized influence on organic carbon burial by detrital clay mineral controlled MSA. Changes in TOC also correspond with geochemical and sedimentological evidence for water column anoxia. Bioturbated intervals show a lower organic carbon loading on mineral surface area of 0.1 mg-OC m(-2) when compared to 0.4 mg-OC m(-2) for laminated and sulfidic sediments. Although either anoxia or mineral surface protection may be capable of producing TOC of < 5%, when brought together they produced the very high TOC (10-18%) apparent in these sediments. This nonlinear response in carbon burial resulted from minor precession-driven changes of continental climate influencing clay mineral properties and runoff from the African continent. This study identifies a previously unrecognized land-sea connection among continental weathering, clay mineral production, and anoxia and a nonlinear effect on marine carbon sequestration during the Coniacian-Santonian Oceanic Anoxic Event 3 in the tropical eastern Atlantic.

The influence of basin architecture and eustacy on the evolution of Tethyan Mesozoic and Cenozoic carbonate sequences

During the Mesozoic and Cenozoic Eras, regional tectonic processes, eustatic variations and the volume and distribution of non-carbonate sediment controlled the progressive expansion and rapid reduction of the accommodation space available for the deposition of carbonate sequences, in the area that is now the Mediterranean and Middle East.

We present a simplified super-regional tectonostratigraphic history of this area from earliest Triassic time to the present day, to demonstrate the influence of these large-scale processes on the evolution of major Tethyan Mesozoic and Cenozoic carbonate sequences. The time period is divided into 11 tectonostratigraphic phases (TSP) two of which (1 and 11) are incomplete. Each TSP commenced with major changes in basin architecture in response to regional tectonic processes. Subsequent pulses of transgression and regression generated sequence stratigraphic hierarchies. These stratigraphic hierarchies reflect the interaction between regional and local tectonics, eustatic variations, carbonate growth processes, climate and non-carbonate sediment supply. A map is presented of a major second-order transgressive sequence (TST) within each TSP to illustrate the maximum extent of marine onlap. These maps also include the main plate configurations; active regional tectonic features and the resultant time averaged carbonate gross depositional systems that developed during the transgression.

The sequence of maps illustrate that the volume of available accommodation space during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic Eras reached a maximum during the Late Cretaceous and has been progressively reduced during the Cenozoic Era to the present day minimum.

Global patterns of diversification in the history of modern amphibians

The fossil record of modern amphibians (frogs, salamanders, and caecilians) provides no evidence for major extinction or radiation episodes throughout most of the Mesozoic and early Tertiary. However, long-term gradual diversification is difficult to reconcile with the sensitivity of present-day amphibian faunas to rapid ecological changes and the incidence of similar environmental perturbations in the past that have been associated with high turnover rates in other land vertebrates. To provide a comprehensive overview of the history of amphibian diversification, we constructed a phylogenetic timetree based on a multigene data set of 3.75 kb for 171 species. Our analyses reveal several episodes of accelerated amphibian diversification, which do not fit models of gradual lineage accumulation. Global turning points in the phylogenetic and ecological diversification occurred after the end-Permian mass extinction and in the late Cretaceous. Fluctuations in amphibian diversification show strong temporal correlation with turnover rates in amniotes and the rise of angiosperm-dominated forests. Approximately 86% of modern frog species and >81% of salamander species descended from only five ancestral lineages that produced major radiations in the late Cretaceous and early Tertiary. This proportionally late accumulation of extant lineage diversity contrasts with the long evolutionary history of amphibians but is in line with the Tertiary increase in fossil abundance toward the present.

Evolutionary innovations in the fossil record: the intersection of ecology, development, and macroevolution

The origins of evolutionary innovations have been intensively studied, but relatively little is known about their large-scale ecological patterns. For post-Paleozoic benthic marine invertebrates, which have the richest and most densely sampled fossil record, order-level taxa tend to appear first in onshore, disturbed habitats, even in groups that are now exclusively deep-water (so that present-day distributions are not reliable indicators of original environments). New results presented here show that the onshore-origination pattern is robust to shifts in taxonomic methods and to new paleontological discoveries, and the few available studies suggest that this pattern can also be seen in terms of excursions in morphospace or the acquisition of derived character states, without reference to taxonomic categories. The environmental pattern at high levels contrasts significantly with the origin of low-level novelties (such as defined genera and families) in crinoids, echinoids, and bryozoans, where first appearances tend to conform to their clade-specific bathymetric diversity gradients. This discordance seems to eliminate potential driving mechanisms that simply scale up within-population genetic or ecological processes. Little is known about the factors that promote the onshore-offshore expansion of orders across the continental shelf, or that drive some clades to abandon ancestral habitats for an exclusively deep-water distribution. The origin of evolutionary innovation must ultimately reside in developmental changes, but the onshore-origination bias could emerge from two different dynamics: the pattern could be primarily genetic and developmental, i.e., innovations truly arise onshore; or primarily ecological, i.e., innovations arise randomly but preferentially survive onshore. Whatever the ultimate driving mechanisms, these macroevolutionary patterns show that theories of large-scale evolutionary novelty must include an ecological dimension.

Astronomical pacing of methane release in the Early Jurassic period

A pronounced negative carbon-isotope (delta13C) excursion of approximately 5-7 per thousand (refs 1-7) indicates the occurrence of a significant perturbation to the global carbon cycle during the Early Jurassic period (early Toarcian age, approximately 183 million years ago). The rapid release of 12C-enriched biogenic methane as a result of continental-shelf methane hydrate dissociation has been put forward as a possible explanation for this observation. Here we report high-resolution organic carbon-isotope data from well-preserved mudrocks in Yorkshire, UK, which demonstrate that the carbon-isotope excursion occurred in three abrupt stages, each showing a shift of -2 per thousand to -3 per thousand. Spectral analysis of these carbon-isotope measurements and of high-resolution carbonate abundance data reveals a regular cyclicity. We interpret these results as providing strong evidence that methane release proceeded in three rapid pulses and that these pulses were controlled by astronomically forced changes in climate, superimposed upon longer-term global warming. We also find that the first two pulses of methane release each coincided with the extinction of a large proportion of marine species.

Form, function and environments of the early angiosperms: merging extant phylogeny and ecophysiology with fossils

The flowering plants--angiosperms--appeared during the Early Cretaceous period and within 10-30 Myr dominated the species composition of many floras worldwide. Emerging insights into the phylogenetics of development and discoveries of early angiosperm fossils are shedding increased light on the patterns and processes of early angiosperm evolution. However, we also need to integrate ecology, in particular how early angiosperms established a roothold in pre-existing Mesozoic plant communities. These events were critical in guiding subsequent waves of angiosperm diversification during the Aptian-Albian. Previous pictures of the early flowering plant ecology have been diverse, ranging from large tropical rainforest trees, weedy drought-adapted and colonizing shrubs, disturbance- and sun-loving rhizomatous herbs, and, more recently, aquatic herbs; however, none of these images were tethered to a robust hypothesis of angiosperm phylogeny. Here, we synthesize our current understanding of early angiosperm ecology, focusing on patterns of functional ecology, by merging recent molecular phylogenetic studies and functional studies on extant 'basal angiosperms' with the picture of early angiosperm evolution drawn by the fossil record.

Changes in carbon dioxide during an oceanic anoxic event linked to intrusion into Gondwana coals

The marine sedimentary record exhibits evidence for episodes of enhanced organic carbon burial known as 'oceanic anoxic events' (OAEs). They are characterized by carbon-isotope excursions in marine and terrestrial reservoirs and mass extinction of marine faunas. Causal mechanisms for the enhancement of organic carbon burial during OAEs are still debated, but it is thought that such events should draw down significant quantities of atmospheric carbon dioxide. In the case of the Toarcian OAE (approximately 183 million years ago), a short-lived negative carbon-isotope excursion in oceanic and terrestrial reservoirs has been interpreted to indicate raised atmospheric carbon dioxide caused by oxidation of methane catastrophically released from either marine gas hydrates or magma-intruded organic-rich rocks. Here we test these two leading hypotheses for a negative carbon isotopic excursion marking the initiation of the Toarcian OAE using a high-resolution atmospheric carbon dioxide record obtained from fossil leaf stomatal frequency. We find that coincident with the negative carbon-isotope excursion carbon dioxide is first drawn down by 350 +/- 100 p.p.m.v. and then abruptly elevated by 1,200 +/- 400 p.p.m.v, and infer a global cooling and greenhouse warming of 2.5 +/- 0.1 degrees C and 6.5 +/- 1 degrees C, respectively. The pattern and magnitude of carbon dioxide change are difficult to reconcile with catastrophic input of isotopically light methane from hydrates as the cause of the negative isotopic signal. Our carbon dioxide record better supports a magma-intrusion hypothesis, and suggests that injection of isotopically light carbon from the release of thermogenic methane occurred owing to the intrusion of Gondwana coals by Toarcian-aged Karoo-Ferrar dolerites.

Evidence for abrupt climate changes in annually laminated marine sediments

Annually laminated sediments from marine or lacustrine settings represent valuable high-resolution archives of climate change that record variation due to changing precipitation and run-off from land or variation in biological productivity and flux in the water column. Because of their annual resolution such sediments may capture abrupt changes of interannual to decadal scales rivaling corals and ice cores in resolution. Laminated sediments often occur intermittently in the sediment column, and the onset and cessation of laminae commonly record the abrupt crossing of thresholds related to climate change, for example, in the degree of oxygenation of bottom waters. Such records from marginal basins and continental margins have been pivotal in demonstrating that abrupt changes hitherto documented only in high-latitude ice cores are synchronous with climatic change at low latitudes. These insights into global teleconnections have improved our understanding of the mechanisms of rapid climate change. In deep-sea settings, the discovery of the episodic occurrence of laminated diatom-rich sediments in the Equatorial Pacific and Southern Ocean provides evidence for massive climate-related biogeochemical excursions tied to abrupt changes in the input, distribution and availability of nutrients in the oceans.