Plants and Palynomorphs around the Permian-Triassic Boundary of South China

261 Pages·2022·9.169 MB·English

by  Jianxin Yu, Jean Broutin, Zongsheng Lu

New Records of the Great Dying in South China
Jianxin Yu
Jean Broutin
Zongsheng Lu   Editors
Plants and
Palynomorphs
around
the Permian-Triassic
Boundary of South
China
New Records of the Great Dying in South China
SeriesEditors
WeihongHe,StateKeyLaboratoryofBiogeologyandEnvironmentalGeology,
SchoolofEarthSciences,ChinaUniversityofGeosciences,Wuhan,China
JianxinYu,StateKeyLaboratoryofBiogeologyandEnvironmentalGeology,
SchoolofEarthSciences,ChinaUniversityofGeosciences,Wuhan,China
HaishuiJiang,ChinaUniversityofGeosciences,Wuhan,China
New Record of Great Dying in South China series systematically documents the
recently discovered Permian-Triassic biota, including fossil plants, brachiopods,
bivalves,radiolarians,conodonts,foraminifers,ostracods,andstratigraphyacrossthe
PTBinterval.Theseriesfocusesthetaxonomy,phylogeny,biodiversity,biostratig-
raphy,evolutionofbiota,paleoecologyandpaleogeography.Theseriessummarizes
theprocessesofmassextinctionandenvironmentalcrisis.
Moreinformationaboutthisseriesathttps://link.springer.com/bookseries/15421
· ·
Jianxin Yu Jean Broutin Zongsheng Lu
Editors
Plants and Palynomorphs
around the Permian-Triassic
Boundary of South China
Editors
JianxinYu JeanBroutin
SchoolofEarthSciences,StateKey FacultyofSciencesandEngineering
LaboratoryofBiogeology (CR2P,MNHN,CNRS)
andEnvironmentalGeology SorbonneUniversité
ChinaUniversityofGeosciences Paris,France
Wuhan,China
ZongshengLu
SchoolofEarthSciences
ChinaUniversityofGeosciences
Wuhan,China
ISSN 2524-4574 ISSN 2524-4582 (electronic)
NewRecordsoftheGreatDyinginSouthChina
ISBN 978-981-19-1491-1 ISBN 978-981-19-1492-8 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-1492-8
©SpringerNatureSingaporePteLtd.2022
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Preface
Permian-Triassic is an important stage for the earth to evolving from Paleozoic to
Mesozoic. Hence, geologists in the world have been working hard on the origin,
scale,contentandcharacteristicsofthisspecificperiodofdevelopment.Presently,
profoundachievementshavebeenmadeinthestudyofthechangesofmarinebiome
and geologic events. The establishment of marine Permian-Triassic GSSP-global
boundary stratotype sections and points in Meishan, Changxing County, Zhejiang
Province,China,hasmarkedthegreatprogressintheresearchoflarge-scalestrata-
types (Yin et al. 2001). Consequently, a great interest arose for an accurate deter-
minationandidentificationofanaccessoryGSSPinterrestrialenvironments.This
causesinducedinternationalcompetitioninlocatingaglobalstratotypesectionfor
such no typical section which could be acknowledged by most geologists. The
previousstudiesonaPermian-TriassicboundaryinterrestrialfaciesinChinahave
beenconcentratedonitsnorthernarea,speciallyinUrumqi-Fukang-Jimusaronthe
southwestern margin of the Junggar Basin, where the P/T transition deposits are
terrestrial. Detailed study carried out on biostratigraphy, event-stratigraphy, sedi-
mentationandclimatechangesinthisareafacilitatesthissectiontobecompetitive
fora“terrestrial”GSSPoftheterrestrialsection.Lozovsky(1998)oncesuggested
thattheJunggarBasininXinjiang,ChinaandtheMoscowBasininRussiashould
betheidealcandidatesfortheglobalPermian-Triassicstratotypesectionwiththeir
completeness and abundance in vertebrate faunas, which was interrupted by the
Dalongkou event. At present, other basins, such as Karoo Basin in South Africa,
RussianTerrane,BowenBasinandSydneyBasininAustralia,areallimpressiveand
competitive for the global stratotype. The well-conducted biostratigraphic studies
on these basins have revealed the abnormal section boundary which can be corre-
latedwiththatofthemarinefaciesandthusprovedtheexistenceofvariousevents
of global significance, for instance, bacteria events, volcanism, celestial collision,
andenvironmentalcollapse.Therefore,itisstillnecessarytofindandrecommend
anotherbettercandidatesectionfortheterrestrialGSSPinChina.
TheturnfromPermiantoTriassicisoneofthemostcrucialperiodsofthedramatic
earthevolution,whichespeciallyledtotheextinctionof90%marineorganismsand
v
vi Preface
70%terrestrialorganisms.However,opinionsvaryabouttheoriginforsuch“catas-
trophic” extinction. Hence, many hypotheses crop up to account for the principle
ofthisglobalchange,suchasvolcanicevents,celestialcollision,anoxicdeposition,
environmentalchange,magneticoverturn,andsealevelchanges.Onsuchaccount,
the research on the biostratigraphy and paleoclimatology of this period is of great
significance for the precise determination of the accessory stratotype section and
pointsoftheterrestrialPermian-Triassicboundaryandthesolutiontocausesofthe
biologicextinction.
DuringthePermiantoTriassictransition,theWesternGuizhou-EasternYunnan
oftheupperYangtzePlatforminSouthChinawaslocatedontheeasternmarginof
theKangdianMassif.Inthisperiod,theareawasgenerallyinanoffshoreenviron-
ment, receiving successively sediments of terrestrial facies-marine/terrestrial tran-
sitional facies and marine facies. The whole P/T section is well preserved with
well-developedbiome,continuousstrata,andcompletesequence,favorableforthe
studyoftheterrestrialstratigraphyandaccessorystratotypesections.Hence,itcan
beanimportantareaforbothmarineandterrestrialfaciesPermian-Triassicboundary
divisionandcorrelationinSouthChinaandevenallovertheworld.Studiescarried
outbefore1949wereconcentratedonthepreliminarygeologicalunderstandingof
the macro-outlook of stratigraphic biology. Since then, more understandings and
stratigraphic researches have led to the study of the sedimentary environment and
facies as well as the lithological paleogeography. For example, Nanjing Institute
of Geology and Paleontology of Chinese Academy of Science (1980) has made a
considerablesummaryofthestratigraphyinthearea,basedonthedetailedbiogeo-
logicstudy.TheybelievethattheLatePermianterrestrialcoal-bearingstrataorwith
marineintercalationsintheborderareaofGuizhouandYunnancontainacomplete
sequence and are continuous with the overlying “Kayitou Sandshale Formation”,
whichisnowprovedtobetheverybeginningofEarlyTriassicbasedonidentified
bivalves,ostracods,insects,andpalynomorphsandalsothefaciesalterationofthe
bottomstrataofFeixianguanFormation.Yang(1987)andYinetal.(1995)workedin
Panxianontheborderareaonthetransitionsectionfrommarinetoterrestrialfacies
andonthebiostratigraphy.WangandYin(2001)discoveredclaylayersofterrestrial
Permian-Triassic boundary with event stratigraphic index during their research on
thePermian-Triassicstratigraphyofterrestrialfaciesandfirstapproachtothesedi-
mentaryfaciesandsequencestratigraphyineasternYunnanandwesternGuizhou.
The discovery of this boundary clay layer has laid to a foundation for the further
analysisoftheterrestrialboundarystratigraphyintheareaandalsoprovidedfavor-
ableconditionforthecorrelationofmarineandterrestrialfaciesboundarystrataas
wellasforthedeterminationofPermian-Triassicboundary.Peng(2002)hasfurther
investigated the terrestrial Permian-Triassic boundary and discussed the terrestrial
biologicaleventprocess.Allthesestudiesindicatethatthestudyofthesedimentation
environmentandsequencestratigraphyisofgreatimplicationtolocateacandidatefor
beingtheterrestrialPermian-Triassicaccessorysectionandpointstratotypesection
inChina.
On the basis of the previous studies, this new approach covers many Permian-
Triassicsectionsofmarine-terrestrialalternationfaciesandterrestrialfacies.Itstudies
Preface vii
paleontology,stratigraphy,andclimatologyintheareabytheanalysisofthelargeplant
fossilscollectedfromtheoutcropsandmicroflorasobtainedbychemicalprocesswith
multidisciplinaryapproachessoastopresentasystematicaccountofthePermian-
Triassicflora.Itwillexpoundonthegeneraandspeciescompositionanddistribution
ofthefloraaswellastheirinterrelationstopointouttheevolutionofthePermian-
TriassicflorainwesternGuizhouandeasternYunnan.Thiswillbe,ontheonehand,
toestablishtheterrestrial,marine-terrestrialalternationandmarinebiostratigraphic
boundary,theircorrelationand,ontheotherhand,toenrichthestudiesoftheLate
PermiangigantopteridsfloraandEarlyTriassicLycophytainSouthChina,whichmay
filltheblankofknowledgeontheEarliestTriassicfloraassemblageinthisarea.Itis
expectedthatthisstudywillhelpthefurtherprobingoftheplantcomposition,evolu-
tion,andmigrationofthelateCathaysiafloraandtheirrelationshipwiththeflorain
otherareasandwiththepaleogeographicenvironment.
Thisdissertationisbasedonthefieldobservationandcollectingofthepractical
sectionsandlaboratoryanalysis,testing,andprocessingofvarioussamplesreplaced
inaliteraturereviewasexhaustiveaspossibleofrelatedpapers,publishedinChina
andothercountries.Thecontentandtheinnovationsofthisdissertationcanbefound
asfollows.
1 ContentoftheStudy
The focus of this dissertation is the study of the paleofloras and their evolution
dynamics during the critical geological period of the Permian-Triassic transition,
basedonabundantveryplantfossilsdiscoveredinthemarine-terrestrialalternation
andterrestrialstratainwesternGuizhouandeasternYunnan,Southchina.Thisstudy
intends to analyze the characteristics of the flora in this area and their patterns of
extinctionandsurvivalaswellastheirmigrationandevolutiondynamics.Itactually
consistsofthefollowingaspects.
FieldGeologicalInvestigation Thisinvolvedobservationsoftherocktypesin
different areas, their structure and tectonics, thickness change, spatial distribution,
andpaleogeographiclocationontheonehand.Theseobservationsshowthatthereis
noobviouslithologicdifferenceinthedifferentfacies,whichareasetofcontinuous
depositionsectiondominatedbysiltstoneandsiltymudstone.Thedifferenceisthat
theLatePermianXuanweiFormationincludesinterbeddedcoalbedsorcoalseams.
Ontheotherhand,itdealswiththeancientsoilswithabundantrootsystems.Then,
samplesofeachtypeinthedifferentareasmentionedabovehavebeencollectedand
preparedforlaboratoryanalysistoproposeaccuratecorrelations.
StudyofFossilMacroflorasItisnecessarytoworkoutthecompositionofthe
plantfossilassemblagesbeforethestudyofthefloracomposition,theirextinction
andsurvivalaswellastheirevolutiondynamicsinthiscriticalgeologicalperiod.As
indicatedabove,theplantassemblageoftheLatestPermianXuanweiFormationin
SouthChinawasstudiedin1970s,buttherewasalackofanalysisofitsextinction
modeandsurvivalprocessesowingtothestrategyavailablefortheselatestPaleozoic
viii Preface
plants.Meanwhile,thenumberoftheEarliestTriassicplantfossilsisveryrarewhich
werefound,untilthe1980s,onlyinSiberia.Subsequently,WangandWang(1989)
found plant fossils in Liujiagou Formation from Shanxi, North China. In recent
years, with our deeply research, “miniaturized”? fossil plants, with special shape,
werefoundintheEarliestTriassicmostbasalbedsoftheKayitouFormation.The
studyofthesevaluablefossilshasprovidedevidenceforamorepreciselocationof
theterrestrialPermian-Triassicboundary.
StudyofFossilmicroflorasAlthoughthefoursectionsoftheabove-mentioned
Permian-Triassictime,allcontainrichplantfossils,itisnecessarytochooseoneasa
terrestrialaccessorystratotypesectionandpointforthecorrelationwiththemarine
GSSP,Meishansection(GSSP)inChangxing,ZhejiangProvince.Biologically,only
thepalynologicalassemblagescanbethekeyforthischoice.Inthemeantime,the
pollendatamaycompensateforthediversitydistortioncausedbythelimitedpreser-
vationofmacro-plantfossilsandhelptoanaccurateevaluationofthefloralextinction
mode.Inaddition,thisstudyalsodealswiththeanalysisofsporesinsituofsome
plants.
StudyofFossilPlantsofSpecificImplicationsBiostratigraphicandpalaeogeo-
graphicanalysesaremadeonthetypicalelementsofplantassemblagesofdifferent
ages,suchasLobatannulariaandGigantopteridsofLatestPermianXuanweiForma-
tion and Annalepis and Peltspermum of Early Triassic Kayitou Formation (Induan
Age).
2 InnovationsArisingFromThisStudy
Ithasbeenbotheringpaleobotanistsandstratigrapherswhetherplantfossilscanbe
usedtodetermineaccuratelythecontinentalPermian-Triassicboundary.Hence,this
dissertationintendstofindtheindexofterrestrialPermian-Triassicbiostratigraphic
boundaryinSouthChinathatshouldbeofpracticalimplication.
TheplantfossilsfoundintheKayitouFormationinwesternGuizhouandeastern
Yunnan,reportedforthefirsttimeinthisdissertation,shouldfilleduptheblankof
the plant assemblages successions during the Permian-Triassic transition in South
China.Additionally,thisassemblageisatotallynewfloraforitsdifferenceinoutlook
from those known in other areas. Therefore, it is quite necessary and edge-cutting
forthisdissertationtostudyindetailthecompositionofthisflora.
This study is quite interdisciplinary, as it covers aspects in paleobotany, paly-
nology,phytogeography,andplantevolutionarydynamicsinorder,toworkoutthe
terrestrial plant evolution, extinction, migration, and recovery mechanism across
PermianandTriassic.SeeFig.1forvarioussymbolsusedintheillustrations
Duringtheresearch,theauthorshavemadeexcursionstoobserveandcollectfirst-
handdatamanytimesuntilnow.ThePermian-Triassicboundarysectionsobserved
arevaryingfrommarinetoterrestrialfacies,respectivelydeep-waterXinminsection
Preface ix
Fig.1 Illustratesthelegendsusedinthemonograph.1.Pebblycoarsesandstone;2.Coarsesand-
stone;3.Medium-grainedsandstone;4.Fine-grainedsandstone;5.Siltstone;6.muddysiltstone;
7.Siltymudstone;8.Mudstoneorclaystone;9.Coalseam(line);10.Siliceoussiltstone;11.Hori-
zontalbedding;12.Crossbedding;13.Pyritecrystal;14.Fossilleave;15.Fossilroot;16.Petrified
wood;17.Footprintfossil;18.Lenticularrock
in Anshun and Duanshan Section in Huishui, shallow-water Zhongzai section in
Liuzhi, marine-terrestrial alternation Tucheng section in Panxian, Kele section in
HezhangandMidesectioninXuanwei,terrestrialLubeiinHuize,ChaheandZhejue
sectionsinWeining,andsoon.
Wuhan,China JianxinYu
Paris,France JeanBroutin
Wuhan,China ZongshengLu
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