The discovery of Jurassic plants in Shenzhen of Guangdong,southern China and related significance

Investigations of major marine and non-marine geologic and biotic events across the Triassic-Jurassic transition rely predominantly on detailed stratigraphic frameworks and biodiversity analyses. The alternating sequences of marine and terrestrial Triassic-Jurassic for- mations in Guangdong Province represent one of the most remarkable coal-bearing series in southern China. The Lower Jurassic Jinji Formation is widely distributed in Guangdong, with continuously outcropped sections and rich marine and non-marine fossil fauna. However, as little research has been conducted on fossil plant remains in the Jinji Formation, it is difficult to understand the systematics, diversity, and floral aspects of the Jurassic. Here we report on the recent collection of rich fossil plants from the Jinji Formation in the Dapeng area of Shenzhen, southern Guangdong Province. Our studies demonstrate taxonomical affiliations, preservation status, and diversity features of these plant fossils, which are marked by the close associ- ation of densely preserved, pinnae and rachis connected leaves, and the bennettitalean reproductive organs of Wil- liamsoniella, which may represent an Early Jurassic plant community dominated by Otozamites of the bennettitales. This work not only represents the first discovery of fossil plants in the Shenzhen area, but is also the first docu- mentation of Jurassic plants in Guangdong and the Pearl River Delta regions. Research related to these plant fossils will be helpful in the correlation of the Early Mesozoiccoal-bearing strata in Guangdong, and will provide a dee- per understanding of variations in plant diversity of the Triassic and Jurassic transition in southern China. Addi- tionally, it will provide terrestrial plant evidence for explorations in Jurassic palaeoecology, palaeoclimatology, and palaeogeography of southern China.     

Triassic-Jurassic atmospheric CO2 spike.

I question the claim by Tanner et al. that atmospheric CO2 levels remained constant across the Triassic-Jurassic boundary on the grounds of problems with stratigraphic completeness and contamination with atmospheric methane. Because methanogenic CH4 has a light isotope composition and oxidizes readily to CO2, methane-clathrate dissociation and oxidation events cannot be detected by palaeobarometers that use the carbon-isotope composition of palaeosol carbonate.     

Evolution of leaf-form in land plants linked to atmospheric CO2 decline in the Late Palaeozoic era

The widespread appearance of megaphyll leaves, with their branched veins and planate form, did not occur until the close of the Devonian period at about 360 Myr ago. This happened about 40 Myr after simple leafless vascular plants first colonized the land in the Late Silurian/Early Devonian, but the reason for the slow emergence of this common feature of present-day plants is presently unresolved. Here we show, in a series of quantitative analyses using fossil leaf characters and biophysical principles, that the delay was causally linked with a 90% drop in atmospheric pCO2 during the Late Palaeozoic era. In contrast to simulations for a typical Early Devonian land plant, possessing few stomata on leafless stems, those for a planate leaf with the same stomatal characteristics indicate that it would have suffered lethal overheating, because of greater interception of solar energy and low transpiration. When planate leaves first appeared in the Late Devonian and subsequently diversified in the Carboniferous period, they possessed substantially higher stomatal densities. This observation is consistent with the effects of the pCO2 on stomatal development and suggests that the evolution of planate leaves could only have occurred after an increase in stomatal density, allowing higher transpiration rates that were sufficient to maintain cool and viable leaf temperatures.     

A carbon isotope challenge to the snowball Earth

The snowball Earth hypothesis postulates that the planet was entirely covered by ice for millions of years in the Neoproterozoic era, in a self-enhanced glaciation caused by the high albedo of the ice-covered planet. In a hard-snowball picture, the subsequent rapid unfreezing resulted from an ultra-greenhouse event attributed to the buildup of volcanic carbon dioxide (CO(2)) during glaciation. High partial pressures of atmospheric CO(2) (pCO2; from 20,000 to 90,000?p.p.m.v.) in the aftermath of the Marinoan glaciation (～635?Myr ago) have been inferred from both boron and triple oxygen isotopes. These pCO2 values are 50 to 225 times higher than present-day levels. Here, we re-evaluate these estimates using paired carbon isotopic data for carbonate layers that cap Neoproterozoic glacial deposits and are considered to record post-glacial sea level rise. The new data reported here for Brazilian cap carbonates, together with previous ones for time-equivalent units, provide estimates lower than 3,200?p.p.m.v.--and possibly as low as the current value of ～400?p.p.m.v. Our new constraint, and our re-interpretation of the boron and triple oxygen isotope data, provide a completely different picture of the late Neoproterozoic environment, with low atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide and oxygen that are inconsistent with a hard-snowball Earth.     

Stability of atmospheric CO2 levels across the Triassic/Jurassic boundary

The Triassic/Jurassic boundary, 208 million years ago, is associated with widespread extinctions in both the marine and terrestrial biota. The cause of these extinctions has been widely attributed to the eruption of flood basalts of the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province. This volcanic event is thought to have released significant amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere, which could have led to catastrophic greenhouse warming, but the evidence for CO2-induced extinction remains equivocal. Here we present the carbon isotope compositions of pedogenic calcite from palaeosol formations, spanning a 20-Myr period across the Triassic/Jurassic boundary. Using a standard diffusion model, we interpret these isotopic data to represent a rise in atmospheric CO2 concentrations of about 250 p.p.m. across the boundary, as compared with previous estimates of a 2,000-4,000 p.p.m. increase. The relative stability of atmospheric CO2 across this boundary suggests that environmental degradation and extinctions during the Early Jurassic were not caused by volcanic outgassing of CO2. Other volcanic effects-such as the release of atmospheric aerosols or tectonically driven sea-level change-may have been responsible for this event.     

Reconstruction of surface ocean water <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>CO<Subscript>2</Subscript>(aq) in Nansha area,the South China Sea during the last 30 ka

The reconstruction of pCO2 in the tropic ocean is one of the most important issues to understand global climatic changes.In this study,the high-resolution stratigraphic analysis of core 17962 was conducted,which is Iocated in the southern South China Sea(SCS).The contents of sedimentary organic matter,the stable carbon isotopic composition of sedimentary organic matter,and the δ^13C values of black carbon and terrigenons n-alkanes were determined.And the δ^13Cwc value of carbon derived from aquatic was calculated.On the basis of δ^13Corg-pCO2equation proposed by Popp et al.(1989),we estimated the pCO2 in the Nansha area,SCS,since the last glaciation using δ^13Cwc instead of δ^13Corg.The results show that the average pCO2 was estimated at 240 ppm V during the last glaciation,and at 320ppm V in the Holocene.A comparison of surface sea pCO2 with the atmosphere CO2 recorded in the Vostok ice core,indicates that CO2 in surface water of the southern SCS could emit into atmosphere during the last 30ka.     

A 300-million-year record of atmospheric carbon dioxide from fossil plant cuticles

To understand better the link between atmospheric CO2 concentrations and climate over geological time, records of past CO2 are reconstructed from geochemical proxies. Although these records have provided us with a broad picture of CO2 variation throughout the Phanerozoic eon (the past 544 Myr), inconsistencies and gaps remain that still need to be resolved. Here I present a continuous 300-Myr record of stomatal abundance from fossil leaves of four genera of plants that are closely related to the present-day Ginkgo tree. Using the known relationship between leaf stomatal abundance and growing season CO2 concentrations, I reconstruct past atmospheric CO2 concentrations. For the past 300 Myr, only two intervals of low CO2 (<1,000 p.p.m.v.) are inferred, both of which coincide with known ice ages in Neogene (1-8 Myr) and early Permian (275-290 Myr) times. But for most of the Mesozoic era (65-250 Myr), CO2 levels were high (1,000-2,000 p.p.m.v.), with transient excursions to even higher CO2 (>2,000 p.p.m.v.) concentrations. These results are consistent with some reconstructions of past CO2 (refs 1, 2) and palaeotemperature records, but suggest that CO2 reconstructions based on carbon isotope proxies may be compromised by episodic outbursts of isotopically light methane. These results support the role of water vapour, methane and CO2 in greenhouse climate warming over the past 300 Myr.     

The Southern Ocean biogeochemical divide

Modelling studies have demonstrated that the nutrient and carbon cycles in the Southern Ocean play a central role in setting the air-sea balance of CO(2) and global biological production. Box model studies first pointed out that an increase in nutrient utilization in the high latitudes results in a strong decrease in the atmospheric carbon dioxide partial pressure (pCO2). This early research led to two important ideas: high latitude regions are more important in determining atmospheric pCO2 than low latitudes, despite their much smaller area, and nutrient utilization and atmospheric pCO2 are tightly linked. Subsequent general circulation model simulations show that the Southern Ocean is the most important high latitude region in controlling pre-industrial atmospheric CO(2) because it serves as a lid to a larger volume of the deep ocean. Other studies point out the crucial role of the Southern Ocean in the uptake and storage of anthropogenic carbon dioxide and in controlling global biological production. Here we probe the system to determine whether certain regions of the Southern Ocean are more critical than others for air-sea CO(2) balance and the biological export production, by increasing surface nutrient drawdown in an ocean general circulation model. We demonstrate that atmospheric CO(2) and global biological export production are controlled by different regions of the Southern Ocean. The air-sea balance of carbon dioxide is controlled mainly by the biological pump and circulation in the Antarctic deep-water formation region, whereas global export production is controlled mainly by the biological pump and circulation in the Subantarctic intermediate and mode water formation region. The existence of this biogeochemical divide separating the Antarctic from the Subantarctic suggests that it may be possible for climate change or human intervention to modify one of these without greatly altering the other.     

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.     

Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations before 2.2 billion years ago

The composition of the Earth's early atmosphere is a subject of continuing debate. In particular, it has been suggested that elevated concentrations of atmospheric carbon dioxide would have been necessary to maintain normal surface temperatures in the face of lower solar luminosity in early Earth history. Fossil weathering profiles, known as palaeosols, have provided semi-quantitative constraints on atmospheric oxygen partial pressure (pO2) before 2.2 Gyr ago. Here we use the same well studied palaeosols to constrain atmospheric pCO2 between 2.75 and 2.2 Gyr ago. The observation that iron lost from the tops of these profiles was reprecipitated lower down as iron silicate minerals, rather than as iron carbonate, indicates that atmospheric pCO2 must have been less than 10(-1.4) atm--about 100 times today's level of 360 p.p.m., and at least five times lower than that required in one-dimensional climate models to compensate for lower solar luminosity at 2.75 Gyr. Our results suggest that either the Earth's early climate was much more sensitive to increases in pCO2 than has been thought, or that one or more greenhouse gases other than CO2 contributed significantly to the atmosphere's radiative balance during the late Archaean and early Proterozoic eons.     

Latitudinal variations in plankton delta 13C: implications for CO2 and productivity in past oceans

The stable-carbon isotopic composition of marine organic material has varied significantly over geological time, and reflects significant excursions in the isotopic fractionation associated with the uptake of carbon by marine biota. For example, low 13C/12C in Cretaceous sediments has been attributed to elevated atmospheric (and hence oceanic) CO2 partial pressures. A similar depletion in 13C present-day Antarctic plankton has also been ascribed to high CO2 availability. We report, however, that this high-latitude isotope depletion develops at CO2 partial pressures (pCO2 levels) that are often below that of the present atmosphere (340 microatmospheres) , and usually below that of equatorial upwelling systems (> 340 microatmospheres). Nevertheless, because of the much lower water temperatures and, hence, greater CO2 solubility at high latitude, the preceding pCO2 measurements translate into Antarctic surface-water CO2 (aq) concentrations that are as much as 2.5 times higher than in equatorial waters. We calculate that an oceanic pCO2 level of > 800 microatmospheres (over twice the present atmospheric pCO2) in a warmer low-latitude Cretaceous ocean would have been required to produce the plankton 13C depletion preserved in Cretaceous sediments.     

Satellite-derived surface water pCO2 and air-sea CO2 fluxes in the northern South China Sea in summer

An empirical approach is presented for the estimation of the partial pressure of carbon dioxide (pCO2) and air-sea CO2 fluxes in the northern South China Sea in summer using satellite-derived sea surface temperatures (SSTs), chlorophyll-a (Chl a) concentrations, and wind fields. Two algorithms were tested. The first used an SST-dependent equation, and the other involved the introduction of Chl a. Regression equations were developed for summer based on in situ data obtained in July, 2004. Using the monthly average SST and Chl a fields derived from the advanced very high resolution radiometer (AVHRR) and the SeaWiFS (sea-viewing wide field of view sen-sor), respectively, the monthly pCO2 fields were computed. The derived pCO2 was compared with the shipboard pCO2 observations con-ducted in July, 2000. This resulted in a root-mean-square error of 4.6 μatm, suggesting that the satellite-derived pCO2 was in general agreement with the in situ observations. The air-sea CO2 flux was further computed with the aid of the monthly mean QuikSCAT wind speed. We contend that more shipboard data are necessary for refining the empirical algorithms and reducing the uncertainty in the results.     

Carbon isotope excursions across the Permian-Triassic boundary in the Meishan section, Zhejiang Province, China

Both gradual and sharp decrease in organic and carbonate carbon isotope values were detected across the Permian-Triassic boundary in the Meishan section, Changxing, Zhejiang Province, China. The gradual decrease in organic carbon isotope values started at the bottom of Bed 23, coinciding with the strong oscillations of total organic carbon (TOC) contents, indicates increasing fluxes from carbonate to organic carbon reservoir during this interval. A 2.3‰ sharp drop of inorganic carbon isotope values occurred at the uppermost part of Bed 24e. A 3.7‰ sharp drop of organic carbon isotope values occurred in Bed 26. The dramatic drop of inorganic carbon isotope value of 8‰ reported previously is not confirmed from the unweathered carbonate samples in Bed 27. The large-scale fluctuation of organic carbon isotope values in the Yinkeng Formation reflects different extent of mixing of marine and terrestrial organic matters. The gradual depletion and subsequent sharp drop of carbon isotopes near the Permian-Triassic boundary might indicate complex causes of the end-Permian mass extinction.     

Variable effects of nitrogen additions on the stability and turnover of soil carbon

Soils contain the largest near-surface reservoir of terrestrial carbon and so knowledge of the factors controlling soil carbon storage and turnover is essential for understanding the changing global carbon cycle. The influence of climate on decomposition of soil carbon has been well documented, but there remains considerable uncertainty in the potential response of soil carbon dynamics to the rapid global increase in reactive nitrogen (coming largely from agricultural fertilizers and fossil fuel combustion). Here, using 14C, 13C and compound-specific analyses of soil carbon from long-term nitrogen fertilization plots, we show that nitrogen additions significantly accelerate decomposition of light soil carbon fractions (with decadal turnover times) while further stabilizing soil carbon compounds in heavier, mineral-associated fractions (with multidecadal to century lifetimes). Despite these changes in the dynamics of different soil pools, we observed no significant changes in bulk soil carbon, highlighting a limitation inherent to the still widely used single-pool approach to investigating soil carbon responses to changing environmental conditions. It remains to be seen if the effects observed here-caused by relatively high, short-term fertilizer additions-are similar to those arising from lower, long-term additions of nitrogen to natural ecosystems from atmospheric deposition, but our results suggest nonetheless that current models of terrestrial carbon cycling do not contain the mechanisms needed to capture the complex relationship between nitrogen availability and soil carbon storage.     

Acceleration of global warming due to carbon-cycle feedbacks in a coupled climate model

The continued increase in the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide due to anthropogenic emissions is predicted to lead to significant changes in climate. About half of the current emissions are being absorbed by the ocean and by land ecosystems, but this absorption is sensitive to climate as well as to atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations, creating a feedback loop. General circulation models have generally excluded the feedback between climate and the biosphere, using static vegetation distributions and CO2 concentrations from simple carbon-cycle models that do not include climate change. Here we present results from a fully coupled, three-dimensional carbon-climate model, indicating that carbon-cycle feedbacks could significantly accelerate climate change over the twenty-first century. We find that under a 'business as usual' scenario, the terrestrial biosphere acts as an overall carbon sink until about 2050, but turns into a source thereafter. By 2100, the ocean uptake rate of 5 Gt C yr(-1) is balanced by the terrestrial carbon source, and atmospheric CO2 concentrations are 250 p.p.m.v. higher in our fully coupled simulation than in uncoupled carbon models, resulting in a global-mean warming of 5.5 K, as compared to 4 K without the carbon-cycle feedback.     

Outgassing from Amazonian rivers and wetlands as a large tropical source of atmospheric CO2

Terrestrial ecosystems in the humid tropics play a potentially important but presently ambiguous role in the global carbon cycle. Whereas global estimates of atmospheric CO2 exchange indicate that the tropics are near equilibrium or are a source with respect to carbon, ground-based estimates indicate that the amount of carbon that is being absorbed by mature rainforests is similar to or greater than that being released by tropical deforestation (about 1.6 Gt C yr-1). Estimates of the magnitude of carbon sequestration are uncertain, however, depending on whether they are derived from measurements of gas fluxes above forests or of biomass accumulation in vegetation and soils. It is also possible that methodological errors may overestimate rates of carbon uptake or that other loss processes have yet to be identified. Here we demonstrate that outgassing (evasion) of CO2 from rivers and wetlands of the central Amazon basin constitutes an important carbon loss process, equal to 1.2 +/- 0.3 Mg C ha-1 yr-1. This carbon probably originates from organic matter transported from upland and flooded forests, which is then respired and outgassed downstream. Extrapolated across the entire basin, this flux-at 0.5 Gt C yr-1-is an order of magnitude greater than fluvial export of organic carbon to the ocean. From these findings, we suggest that the overall carbon budget of rainforests, summed across terrestrial and aquatic environments, appears closer to being in balance than would be inferred from studies of uplands alone.     

湖北省恩施州化石能源消费与森林固碳效应分析

基于湖北省恩施州能源消费与森林调查资料分析估算化石能源燃烧过程中CO2排放量与森林碳储量的变化情况,研究结果表明,恩施州森林资源碳储量近年来持续增长,年均吸收固定CO2约247．04万t,而2006年恩施州化石能源消费过程中CO2排放量为162．11万t。分析表明恩施州森林资源正在发挥着积极的碳汇作用,维持区域CO2排放量和吸收量的平衡。     

Extreme reversed sexual size dimorphism in the extinct New Zealand moa Dinornis

The ratite moa (Aves; Dinornithiformes) were massive graviportal browsers weighing up to 250 kg (ref. 1) that dominated the New Zealand biota until their extinction approximately 500 yr ago. Despite an extensive Quaternary fossil record, moa taxonomy remains problematic and currently 11 species are recognized. Three Dinornis species were found throughout New Zealand and differed markedly in size (1-2 m height at back) and mass (from approximately 34 to 242 kg). Surprisingly, ancient mitochondrial DNA sequences show that the three species were genetically indistinguishable within each island, but formed separate North and South Island clades. Here we show, using the first sex-linked nuclear sequences from an extinct species, that on each island the three morphological forms actually represent just one species, whose size varied markedly according to sex and habitat. The largest females in this example of extreme reversed sexual size dimorphism were about 280% the weight and 150% the height of the largest males, which is unprecedented among birds and terrestrial mammals. The combination of molecular and palaeontological data highlights the difficulties of analysing extinct groups, even those with detailed fossil records.     

A eudicot from the Early Cretaceous of China

The current molecular systematics of angiosperms recognizes the basal angiosperms and five major angiosperm lineages: the Chloranthaceae, the magnoliids, the monocots, Ceratophyllum and the eudicots, which consist of the basal eudicots and the core eudicots. The eudicots form the majority of the angiosperms in the world today. The flowering plants are of exceptional evolutionary interest because of their diversity of over 250,000 species and their abundance as the dominant vegetation in most terrestrial ecosystems, but little is known of their very early history. In this report we document an early presence of eudicots during the Early Cretaceous Period. Diagnostic characters of the eudicot fossil Leefructus gen. nov. include simple and deeply trilobate leaves clustered at the nodes in threes or fours, basal palinactinodromous primary venation, pinnate secondary venation, and a long axillary reproductive axis terminating in a flattened receptacle bearing five long, narrow pseudo-syncarpous carpels. These morphological characters suggest that its affinities are with the Ranunculaceae, a basal eudicot family. The fossil co-occurs with Archaefructus sinensis and Hyrcantha decussata whereas Archaefructus liaoningensis comes from more ancient sediments. Multiple radiometric dates of the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation place the bed yielding this fossil at 122.6-125.8 million years old. The earliest fossil records of eudicots are 127 to 125 million years old, on the basis of pollen. Thus, Leefructus gen. nov. suggests that the basal eudicots were already present and diverse by the latest Barremian and earliest Aptian.     

Two new carnivores from an unusual late Tertiary forest biota in eastern North America

Late Cenozoic terrestrial fossil records of North America are biased by a predominance of mid-latitude deposits, mostly in the western half of the continent. Consequently, the biological history of eastern North America, including the eastern deciduous forest, remains largely hidden. Unfortunately, vertebrate fossil sites from this vast region are rare, and few pertain to the critically important late Tertiary period, during which intensified global climatic changes took place. Moreover, strong phylogenetic affinities between the flora of eastern North America and eastern Asia clearly demonstrate formerly contiguous connections, but disparity among shared genera (eastern Asia-eastern North America disjunction) implies significant periods of separation since at least the Miocene epoch. Lacustrine sediments deposited within a former sinkhole in the southern Appalachian Mountains provide a rare example of a late Miocene to early Pliocene terrestrial biota from a forested ecosystem. Here we show that the vertebrate remains contained within this deposit represent a unique combination of North American and Eurasian taxa. A new genus and species of the red (lesser) panda (Pristinailurus bristoli), the earliest and most primitive so far known, was recovered. Also among the fauna are a new species of Eurasian badger (Arctomeles dimolodontus) and the largest concentration of fossil tapirs ever recorded. Cladistical analyses of the two new carnivores strongly suggest immigration events that were earlier than and distinct from previous records, and that the close faunal affinities between eastern North America and eastern Asia in the late Tertiary period are consistent with the contemporaneous botanical record.