New dragonflies (Insecta: Odonata: Gomphaeschnidae) from the Yixian Formation in Inner Mongolia, China

Two fossil dragonflies from the Upper Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation in Liutiaogou Village, Ningcheng County, Inner Mongolia, China are described and illustrated. They are assigned to two new genera and species, i.e., Sophoaeschna frigida gen. et sp. nov. and Falsisophoaeschna generalis gen. et sp. nov. within the family Gomphaeschnidae Tillyard & Fraser, 1940. This is the first report of Odonata from Yixian Formation in Inner Mongolia and the second record of fossil Gomphaeschnidae from China.     

Two new Jurassic stoneflies （Insecta： Plecoptera） from Daohugou,Inner Mongolia,China

Two new genera and two new species of family Taeniopterygidae, Mengitaenioptera multiramis gen. et sp. nov. and Noviramonemoura trinervis gen. et sp. nov. are described. These fossils were collected from Daohugou Village （the Middle Jurassic）, Inner Mongolia, China. Hitherto, these fossil species from Daohugou are the oldest taeniopterygids. Both simple and complex venations simultaneously occurred in this group, which reveals that the early diversification of taeniopterids was well underway by the Middle Jurassic. Therefore, we prefer to adopt the Comstock＇s opinion that the venation of taeniopterids was derived from the simple venation of the older group （such as Palaeonemouridae） at much ancient geological time ago. Some of the descendants carried this simple venation; others evolved into complex venation with many additional crossveins and branches.     

New fossil elaterids （Insect： Coleoptera： Polyphaga： Elateridae） from the Middle Jurassic of Inner Mongolia, China

A new genus with a new species of fossil elaterid, Paraprotagrypnus superbus gen. et sp. nov., from the Middle Jurassic Jiulongshan Formation in Daohugou Village (N41°18.979′, E119°14.318′), Shantou Township, Ningcheng County, Inner Mongolia, China is described and illustrated. The genus Paraprotagrypnus belongs to the family of Elateridae, subfamily of Protagrypninae and tribe of Protagrypnini. Some primitive characters of the new genus and new species shed light on the ages between the Jiulongshan Formation in Inner Mongolia and the Yixian Formation in the western Liaoning Province of China. The habitat of the new species is briefly discussed.     

Stratigraphy and age of the Daohugou Bed in Ningcheng, Inner Mongolia

Recent fieldwork has extended the distribution of the Daohugou Bed deposits from the Daohugou Village to its several neighboring areas. The fossil-bearing Daohugou deposits uncomformably overlie complex bedrocks, and comprise three major parts. The red shales in the lower part were misidentified as belonging to the Tuchengzi Formation. Field excavation has indicated that the shales of upper part of the bed are the major fossil-bearing horizon. Due to strong tectonic activities, sediments were often folded with the sequences inverted in the region. Some newly recognized contacts between the Daohugou Bed and the volcanic rocks showed that the ignimbrite of the Tiaojishan Formation （159-164 Ma） underlies the Daohugou deposits, rather than overlying the latter as previously proposed. Thus, the age of the Daohugou deposits should be younger than the age of the ignimbrite, and thus it was incorrect to correlate the Daohugou Bed with the Middle Jurassic Jiulongshan Formation. Although biostratigraphic studies based on conchostracans and insects support a Middle Jurassic-early Late Jurassic age for the Daohugou deposits, vertebrate fossils such as Liaoxitriton, Jeholopterus and feathered maniraptorans show much resemblance to those of the Yixian Formation. In other words, despite the absence of Lycoptera, a typical fish of the Jehol Biota, the Daohugou vertebrate assemblage is closer to that of the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota than to any other biota. We propose that the Daohugou fossil assemblage probably represents the earliest evolutionary stage of the Jehol Biota based on both vertebrate biostratigraphy and the sedimentological and volcanic features which suggest the Daohugou deposit belongs to the same cycle of volcanism and sedimentation as the Yixian Formation of the Jehol Group.     

A new ichnotaxon of fossil bird track from the Early Cretaceous Tianjialou Formation （Barremian-Albian）, Shandong Province, China

It is well known that fossil bird tracks are geological records of ancient birds walking on the sediments. Prior to the 1980s, little attention was paid to fossil bird tracks partly because of the difficulties of field discrimination. Over the last decade, new discoveries on the bird origin and early evolution, as well as their relation to dinosaurs[1] have greatly stimulated dinosaur and ancient bird studies.Accordingly, the paleoenvironmental, paleoecological and early evolutional significan…     

A new Mesozoic caudate （Liaoxitriton daohugouensis sp.nov.） from Inner Mongolia,China

Fossil caudates are rare and mostly preserved by fragmentary material in the Mesozoic. The recent reports of five monotypic genera with articulated skeletons in China have thus drawn worldwide attention. These Chinese forms are yielded in the Lower Cretaceous Jehol Group or slightly lower horizon, and have relatively earlier     

Formation mechanisms of megadunes and lakes in the Badain Jaran Desert, Inner Mongolia

Field observations demonstrate that calc-sinters occurred in the lakes of Badain Jaran Desert. 87Sr/86Sr ratios,14C,δ 13C and mineral com-positions of calc-sinters,and 3He/4He,4He/20Ne,δ 18O,δ D,pH and TDS of water from springs and lakes are analyzed in detail. The results indicate that the lake water is supplied through deep fault zone. The “ker-nel” of stabilized dunes in the Badain Jaran Desert perhaps consists of calc-sinters and calcareous ce-mentation layers. Deep-seated groundwater effuses from this “kernel” and recharges to lakes in desert. Precipitation and snowmelt water from the Qing-hai-Tibet Plateau is fed into the Badain Jaran Desert,Gurinai,Wentougaole and Ejinqi areas through the Xigaze-Langshan Fault zone. The isotopic composi-tions of groundwater in the Alax Plateau are abnor-mal due to the strong evaporation of the Gyaring and Ngoring lake water in the headstream of the Yellow River. Groundwater dissolves dissoluble fractions of rocks during its transportation through the fault zone and flows out of the mouth of spring in the Badan Jaran Desert. The dissoluble fractions are finally de-veloped into calc-sinters and calcareous cementation layers around the spring. Calci-sinters are gradually largened and eventually emerge on the surface of lake water. Eolian sands accumulate on the surfaces of calc-sinters and calcareous cementation layers,and eventually develop into dunes. Invasion of magma causes an increase in the temperature of groundwater within the faults. Groundwater evapora-tion provides water vapor for the formation of humid stabilized dunes during its upwelling. Rhizoconcre-tions found in Yihejigede indicate that the dune was formed and remained immovable 4700 years ago. The height of the megadunes is proportional to thermal quantity carried by the groundwater.     

New ommatids of Ommatinae(Coleoptera:Archostemata:Ommatidae)from the Yixian Formation of western Liaoning,China

Four new fossil species of the family Ommatidae from the Yixian Formation of western Liaoning,China are described. Two of them belong to tribe Brochocoleini:Brochocoleus sulcatus sp.nov.and Brochocoleus angustus sp.nov.The other two refer to tribe Ommatini:Cionocoleus planiusculus sp.nov.and Cionocoleus cervicalis sp.nov.The diagnosis of Brochocoleus and Cionocoleus, respectively,are revised.A preliminary analysis of geographical distribution suggests a possible migration pathway of the genus Bro- chocoleus.The relationship between the genus Cionocoleus and the extant family Crowsoniellidae is briefly discussed.     

Tingia unita sp. nov. （Noeggerathiales） with strobilus from the Lower Permian of Wuda, Inner Mongolia, China

A number of specimens recently collected from the Early Permian Shanxi Formation of Wuda, Inner Mongolia demonstrate that the leafy shoot and strobilus of Tingia unita sp. nov. are both sprouting from a common stem, and consequently improve our understanding of the whole plant mor- phology of this enigmatic taxon of the Cathaysian flora. The strobili are cylinder-like, 1.7-2.5 cm in diameter and over 20 cm in length, with a basal stalk 7―8 mm in width and about 7 cm long. Sporophylls are verticillate, with approximately 8-10 in a whorl. On the adaxial side of each sporophyll a sporangium is attached. The strobilus is heterosporous and the microspores are of the Punctatisporites type. Large leaves vary from linear to oblong with entire lateral margins but are slightly lobed at the apex. Small leaves are generally the same as the large leaves but much narrower. The whole plant is probably a small arborescent tree with leafy shoots and strobili forming a crown, rather than a water plant with larger leaves floating on the surface of the water as previously understood. Features of the new species are in favor of the close affinity between Tingia Halle and Noeg- gerathiales, and accordingly the affinity of Noeg- gerathiales to Progymnospermophyta.     

Discovery of the superlarge gallium ore deposit in Jungar, Inner Mongolia, North China

Gallium, Ge, V, and U are the associated valuable elements in coal. From the 1950s to the 1970s, some researchers in the departments of coal industry and mineral resources of China investigated these elements in coal during geological explorations. The enrichment mechanism and the environmental influence of trace elements in coal have been deeply studied in recent twenty years. With respect to the ore-forming theories and practical utilizations of metals in coal, germanium was furthest studi…     

New fossil elaterid (Coleoptera: Polyphaga: Elateridae) from Yixian Formation of western Liaoning, China

A new species of the elaterid genus Cryptocoelus Dolin and Nel, 2002 from the Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous Yixian Formation in the western Liaoning, China is described. Diagnosis of the genus is revised, and the systematic position of the genus is briefly discussed. Because the elaterids originated in the Early to Mid-Jurassic, this new material from the Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous will enhance our understanding of the transition between ancient elaterids and extant ones, bridge the gap of cryptic relationships between the Mesozoic cupedids and elaterids, and expand our knowledge of their evolutionary history.     

A new fossil genus of Mesosciophilidae （Diptera, Nematocera） with two new species from the Middle Jurassic of Inner Mongolia, China

A new genus within the family Mesosciophilidae,Jurasciophila gen.nov.,with two new species,J.curvula gen.et sp.nov.and J.lepida gen.et sp.nov.,are described and illustrated.They are established based on fossil specimens with bodies and complete wings.All of them were collected from the late Middle Jurassic Jiulongshan Formation of Daohugou in southeastern Inner Mongolia,China.Comparing with two known genera,Mesosciophilina (Kovalev,1985) and Mesosciophilopsis (Blagoderov,1994),the new genus has transitional characters.The distribution pattern of Mesosciophilidae is briefly discussed.     

Mitochondrial DNA analysis of Bronze Age horses recovered from Chifeng region, Inner Mongolia, China

In this study, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis was carried out on 9 Bronze Age horses recovered from Dashanqian and Jinggouzi archaeological sites in Chifeng region, Inner Mongolia. China to explore the origin of Chinese domestic horses. Both mtDNA 16S rRNA gene and control region (D-loop) fragments of ancient horses were amplified and sequenced. The analysis of the highly conservative 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that the burial environment of Chifeng region is suitable for the preservation of ancient DNA (aDNA). Combing 465 mtDNA D-loop sequences representing different breeds from East Asia, Central Asia, Near East and Europe, we constructed a phylogenetic network to investigate the relationship between ancient and modern horses. The phylogenetic network showed that the 9 horses were distributed into different modern horse clusters which were closely related to them representing a certain geographical distribution. Our results showed that the maternal genetic line of the ancient horses in Chifeng region was highly diversified, which contributed to the gene pool of modern domestic horses and suggested a complex origin of domestic horses in China.     

A mid-Holocene drought interval as evidenced by lake desiccation in the Alashan Plateau, Inner Mongolia, China

A warm and stable mid-Holocene climate has been considered to be the typical interglacial situation, in contrast to the last glacial period, and has commonly been used in global climatic modeling[1]. A recent study, however, has proposed that the mid-Holocene was possibly a period of particularly profound change in low latitudes, with land air temperature apparently declining across much of the globe, and with regional differences in precipitation[2]. Traditionally, the mid-Holocene in most p…     

Discovery of Middle Jurassic palaeontinids from Inner Mongolia, China (Homoptera: Palaeontinidae)

A new genus and three new species of fossil Palaeontinidae， Papilioncossus conchatus sp. nov., P. giganteus sp. nov.　and P. pteroideus sp. nov.， are described. All of them were collected from Middle Jurassic Jiulongshan Formation in Inner Mongolia, China. Based on distal part of forewing broader and longer than basal and Sc usually with branches, the new taxa are attributed to Palaeontinidae of Homoptera and compared with genus Pseudocossus. A key to species of Papilioncossus gen. nov. is provided. All type specimens are deposited in the Capital Normal University.     

Mantle xenoliths from Late Cretaceous basalt in eastern Shandong Province： New constraint on the timing of lithospheric thinning in eastern China

Studies of mantle xenoliths hosted in both the Cenozoic alkali basalt and the Early Paleozoic kimberlite suggest that part of the subcontinental lithosphere as thick as more than 100 km has been lost from the Early Paleozoic to Cenozoic[1—8]. Neither the scale and mechanism nor the accurate timing of the lithospheric thinning has been precisely constrained[7-12]. One of the reasons for this is that there are only a few Mesozoic basalts cropped out, especially, few containing mantle-derived …     

Holocene climatic and environmental changes recorded in Baahar Nuur Lake core in the Ordos Plateau, Inner Mongolia of China

A 5.3 m lake core was drilled in Baahar Nuur Lake in the Ordos Plateau, and measurements of meangrain size, organic δ 13C (δ 13Corg), organic carbon content (TOC), C/N, carbonate content, carbonate δ 13C(δ 13Ccar) and δ 18O (δ 18Ocar) were conducted for retrieving the Holocene chronosequence of climaticchanges based on 15 AMS 14C dates. The record documented four major stages of climate change inthe Ordos Plateau: (IV) a cold and dry condition before ～7.65 14C ka BP; (III) a warm and humid stagebetween ～7.65 and ～5.40 ka BP; (II) a generally drier and cooler climate since ～5.40 ka BP with twohumid events occurring from ～4.70 to ～4.60 ka BP and from ～4.20 to ～3.70 ka BP, and (I) a dry climatecharacterized by complete desiccation of the lake after 3.70 ka BP. Stage III can be further divided intothree sub-stages: (IIIa) a warm and humid episode from ～7.65 to ～6.70 ka BP, (IIIb) a warm and relativelydry episode from ～6.70 to ～6.20 ka BP, and (IIIc) the magthermal and maghumid episode of the Holo-cene from ～6.20 to ～5.40 ka BP.     

A mid－Holocene drought interval as evidenced by lake desiccation in the Alashan Plateau,Inner Mongolia,China

The mid-Holocene in China is traditionally thought to be a warm and humid period with a strong sum-mer monsoon, and is often termed the Holocene Climatic Optimum or Megathermal Period. Here we present lakegeomorphologic and lithologicai evidence from the Alashan Plateau, part of the Mongolian Plateau, that indicates stronglake desiccation during the mid-Holocene. High resolution pollen data from Zhuyeze Lake, at the present summermonsoon margin, is also presented. These data show that present lakes and wetlands in the Juyanze Lake basin west of the Badain Jaran desert, in the Zhuyeze Lake basin between the Badain Jaran and Tengger deserts, and in lakes in the eastern Tengger desert, dried or experienced low lake levelsin the mid-Holocene around 5000-7000 cal yr BP. Pollen data further indicate that the vegetation cover declined in both the local areas and in the Qilian Mountains, suggesting the climate was drier than that associated with the presentAsian summer monsoon. This mid-Holocene drought interval was present throughout a quite large region of the south In-ner Mongolian Plateau. The period was also probably colder,at least in the high Asian plateaus and mountains.