Determining the location of the Cretaceous-Paleogene(K-Pg) boundary in terrestrial strata is highly significant for studying the evolution of terrestrial ecosystems at the end of the Cretaceous(especially the extincti...Determining the location of the Cretaceous-Paleogene(K-Pg) boundary in terrestrial strata is highly significant for studying the evolution of terrestrial ecosystems at the end of the Cretaceous(especially the extinction of non-avian dinosaurs). At present, research on terrestrial K-Pg boundaries worldwide is concentrated in the middle and high latitudes, such as North America and Northeast China. Although many studies have also been carried out in the Nanxiong Basin, located at low latitudes(which has become the standard for dividing and comparing the continental K-Pg stratigraphy in China), many researchers have proposed four possible boundaries from different perspectives. Therefore, the exact location remains to be determined. In this study, the total mercury(Hg) content, environmental magnetism, geochemistry, and other parameters for the samples collected near the four boundaries were determined and compared with existing records. Results indicated that: 1) The total Hg content significantly increased in the upper part of the Zhenshui Formation and Pingling part of the Shanghu Formation with sharp fluctuations. As per latest dating results of Deccan Traps, the significantly high Hg value was attributed to the Deccan Traps eruption. Boundary 1 was located in the middle of the Hg anomaly interval, which was consistent with the relationship between the global K-Pg boundary and time of volcanic eruption. 2) The reconstructed paleoclimate evolution curve revealed that the red sediments in the basin recorded the late Maastrichtian warming event(66.2 Ma). Regarding the relationship between the four boundaries and this warming event, only boundary 1 was found to be closest to the real K-Pg boundary of the Nanxiong Basin.展开更多
The complex patterns of trace elements including Ir and isotope distributions in the three K/T sections of the Nanxiong Basin prove the existence of two environmental events in the latest Cretaceous and earliest Paleo...The complex patterns of trace elements including Ir and isotope distributions in the three K/T sections of the Nanxiong Basin prove the existence of two environmental events in the latest Cretaceous and earliest Paleocene. The first geochemical environmental event occurred at about 2 Ma prior to the K/T boundary interval, where the dinosaur diversity was hardly reduced, except that a number of patho-logical eggshells appeared. The second one was larger and occurred just at and near the Creta-ceous-Paleogene (K/T) boundary. The extinction of the dinosaurs spread out within 250 ka with major extinction beginning at the boundary interval. This is even later than their extinction in Montana, North America and in India. The cause of the dinosaur extinction may be the result of a complex multiple events brought about by the coincidence of global environment change marked by multiple Ir and δ 18O anomalies, and environmental poisoning characterized by other trace elements derived from the local source. Successive short- and long-term conditions of geochemically induced environmental stress negatively affected the reproductive process and thus contributed to the extinction of the dinosaurs.展开更多
Pantodonta was one of the first groups of eutherians to evolve at the beginning of Cenozoic era,including the largest herbivores at that time.Pantodonta shows considerable diversity during the Paleocene and Eocene,wit...Pantodonta was one of the first groups of eutherians to evolve at the beginning of Cenozoic era,including the largest herbivores at that time.Pantodonta shows considerable diversity during the Paleocene and Eocene,with most of the species having been discovered in Asia and North America.Here,we report on a new pantodont,represented by lower jaws with well-preserved dentition,discovered from the Middle Paleocene Nongshan Formation of the Nanxiong Basin,Guangdong Province,China.Its unique dental and mandibular characteristics distinguish it well from any known Asian pantodont,but are quite consistent with North American taxa,especially Pantolambda and Titanoides.The new specimen is identified as Nanxiongilambda yei gen.et sp.nov.,characterized by the combination of the following morphological features:thick and robust mandible with a conspicuous anteroexternal flange,high positioned condyloid process,posteriorly protruding angular process,robust but not elongated lower canines,double-rooted p1,small but distinct talonids on posterior lower premolars,talonids nearly as wide as trigonids on lower molars,and m3 with a well-developed hypoconulid and a distinct entoconid.The new discovery marks the first record of a pantolambdid pantodont outside of North America,suggesting a broader geographical distribution and intercontinental dispersal of this clade during the Paleocene.Considering the more primitive Pantolambda only found from Torrejonian to early Tiffanian NALMA(equivalent to middle-late Shanghuan to early Nongshanian ALMA),which is slightly earlier than Nanxiongilambda(early Nongshanian ALMA),pantolambdids have likely undergone a particular wave of migration from North America to Asia during the Early-Middle Paleocene.Previous researches have suggested that pantodonts had dispersed only from Asia to North America during the Early Paleocene,but our new specimen indicates the biotic dispersal may have occurred in the opposite direction.The new specimen also contributes to the renewal of the evolutionary history of pantodonts and provides further insights into the migration and dispersal of Paleocene mammals.展开更多
The Zhutian and Dafeng formations （Upper Cretaceous） of the Heyuan Basin in northeastern Guangdong Province, China, have produced thousands of dinosaur eggs. Macromorphological features （egg diameter, egg shape, ou...The Zhutian and Dafeng formations （Upper Cretaceous） of the Heyuan Basin in northeastern Guangdong Province, China, have produced thousands of dinosaur eggs. Macromorphological features （egg diameter, egg shape, outer surface texture, and shell thickness） of 461 eggs were analyzed using non-destructive techniques and subjected to statistical analyses in order to assess their diversity and taxonomic affinities. Three types （1, 2 and 3） of eggs were discerned based on shape and outer surface morphology. Type 1 eggs are spherical to ellipsoidal in shape and have a rough surface. Three subtypes （Type 1-A-l, l-A-2, and l-B） are apparent from scatter plots and cluster analyses of egg diameters and shell thickness. Type 2 eggs are elongate with linear ornamentation on the surface, and are comparable to eggs that belong to the oofamily Elongatoolithidae. Type 3 eggs are elongate with a smooth surface, and are assigned to the oofamily Prismatoolithidae. Macromorphological features of the various egg types suggest that Type 1 could have been laid by ornithischian, sauropod or therizinosaur dinosaurs, Type 2 by oviraptorids, and Type 3 by troodontids. This study represents the first comprehensive statistical analysis of macrofeatures of dinosaur eggs, and reveals taxonomic diversity in the dinosaurs that were laying eggs in the Upper Cretaceous Heyuan area heretofore unrecognized in skeletal remains.展开更多
The Nanxiong red-bed basin and its adjacent Zhuguang granite form a distinctive basin-mountain landform in the Nanling region, South China. Research results suggest that the Zhuguang granite is a polyphase composite p...The Nanxiong red-bed basin and its adjacent Zhuguang granite form a distinctive basin-mountain landform in the Nanling region, South China. Research results suggest that the Zhuguang granite is a polyphase composite pluton developed on the metamorphic basement of the paleo-Tethys-paleo-Asian tectonic regime and possesses geometrical and kinematic features of hot-doming extensional tectonics at the middle-upper crustal level, which is considered as a magmatic complex that resulted from the collision-orogeny during the Indosinian Period, the subduction-consuming during the Early Yanshanian Period and the intra-continental basaltic underplating and deep-seated geodynamics during the Late Yanshanian Period. The Nanxiong basin is a Late Cretaceous-Paleogene asymmetric faulted basin that is characterized by a fault boundary on the northern side and an uncomformable boundary on the southern side, its deposit center was migrated gradually from south to north. Structural kinematic results on the basin-mountain coupled zone demonstrate that the ductile and the brittle rheological layers show a quite coincident sense of shear, implying that it is a continuous process from the ductile extensional deformation followed by locally sinistral strike-slip shear at a middle-crustal level to the brittle tensional deformation at a upper-crustal level during formation of granitic doming extensional tectonics. The Zhuguang granite and the Nanxiong faulted basin constructed a semi-graben tectonic system. Lithological and geochemical results suggest that the Late Triassic to Jurassic granitic bodies in the Zhuguang have some similar features: high SiO2, Al2O3, K2O contents, alkalinity index > 2.8, ANKC value > 1.1, LREE-enriched pattern with high REE contents, marked negative Eu anomalies, enrichment in Rb and Th, depletion in Ba and Nb, showing a K-rich and Al-rich calc-alkaline affinity, which suggest a continuous magmatic evolution from Late Triassic to Jurassic. Formation of Nanxiong basin and evolution of basin-mountain system were controlled both by the Zhuguang granitic-doming and the regional extensional tectonics. Development of the olivine basalt in the basin suggests that tension action was very strong during lava eruption. The magma-type zircon grains of basalt from the Nanxiong basin yielded the SHRIMP age of 96±1Ma, providing reliable geochronological constraint on the tectono-thermal event and basin-mountain evolution in the Nanling region, South China.展开更多
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 41602185 and 41772180)the International Geoscience Programme (IGCP 679)the Innovation Research Team Fund of Fujian Normal University (Grant No. IRTL1705)。
文摘Determining the location of the Cretaceous-Paleogene(K-Pg) boundary in terrestrial strata is highly significant for studying the evolution of terrestrial ecosystems at the end of the Cretaceous(especially the extinction of non-avian dinosaurs). At present, research on terrestrial K-Pg boundaries worldwide is concentrated in the middle and high latitudes, such as North America and Northeast China. Although many studies have also been carried out in the Nanxiong Basin, located at low latitudes(which has become the standard for dividing and comparing the continental K-Pg stratigraphy in China), many researchers have proposed four possible boundaries from different perspectives. Therefore, the exact location remains to be determined. In this study, the total mercury(Hg) content, environmental magnetism, geochemistry, and other parameters for the samples collected near the four boundaries were determined and compared with existing records. Results indicated that: 1) The total Hg content significantly increased in the upper part of the Zhenshui Formation and Pingling part of the Shanghu Formation with sharp fluctuations. As per latest dating results of Deccan Traps, the significantly high Hg value was attributed to the Deccan Traps eruption. Boundary 1 was located in the middle of the Hg anomaly interval, which was consistent with the relationship between the global K-Pg boundary and time of volcanic eruption. 2) The reconstructed paleoclimate evolution curve revealed that the red sediments in the basin recorded the late Maastrichtian warming event(66.2 Ma). Regarding the relationship between the four boundaries and this warming event, only boundary 1 was found to be closest to the real K-Pg boundary of the Nanxiong Basin.
基金Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 40472018)the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. 21039751)
文摘The complex patterns of trace elements including Ir and isotope distributions in the three K/T sections of the Nanxiong Basin prove the existence of two environmental events in the latest Cretaceous and earliest Paleocene. The first geochemical environmental event occurred at about 2 Ma prior to the K/T boundary interval, where the dinosaur diversity was hardly reduced, except that a number of patho-logical eggshells appeared. The second one was larger and occurred just at and near the Creta-ceous-Paleogene (K/T) boundary. The extinction of the dinosaurs spread out within 250 ka with major extinction beginning at the boundary interval. This is even later than their extinction in Montana, North America and in India. The cause of the dinosaur extinction may be the result of a complex multiple events brought about by the coincidence of global environment change marked by multiple Ir and δ 18O anomalies, and environmental poisoning characterized by other trace elements derived from the local source. Successive short- and long-term conditions of geochemically induced environmental stress negatively affected the reproductive process and thus contributed to the extinction of the dinosaurs.
文摘Pantodonta was one of the first groups of eutherians to evolve at the beginning of Cenozoic era,including the largest herbivores at that time.Pantodonta shows considerable diversity during the Paleocene and Eocene,with most of the species having been discovered in Asia and North America.Here,we report on a new pantodont,represented by lower jaws with well-preserved dentition,discovered from the Middle Paleocene Nongshan Formation of the Nanxiong Basin,Guangdong Province,China.Its unique dental and mandibular characteristics distinguish it well from any known Asian pantodont,but are quite consistent with North American taxa,especially Pantolambda and Titanoides.The new specimen is identified as Nanxiongilambda yei gen.et sp.nov.,characterized by the combination of the following morphological features:thick and robust mandible with a conspicuous anteroexternal flange,high positioned condyloid process,posteriorly protruding angular process,robust but not elongated lower canines,double-rooted p1,small but distinct talonids on posterior lower premolars,talonids nearly as wide as trigonids on lower molars,and m3 with a well-developed hypoconulid and a distinct entoconid.The new discovery marks the first record of a pantolambdid pantodont outside of North America,suggesting a broader geographical distribution and intercontinental dispersal of this clade during the Paleocene.Considering the more primitive Pantolambda only found from Torrejonian to early Tiffanian NALMA(equivalent to middle-late Shanghuan to early Nongshanian ALMA),which is slightly earlier than Nanxiongilambda(early Nongshanian ALMA),pantolambdids have likely undergone a particular wave of migration from North America to Asia during the Early-Middle Paleocene.Previous researches have suggested that pantodonts had dispersed only from Asia to North America during the Early Paleocene,but our new specimen indicates the biotic dispersal may have occurred in the opposite direction.The new specimen also contributes to the renewal of the evolutionary history of pantodonts and provides further insights into the migration and dispersal of Paleocene mammals.
基金supported by agrant from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (40872017)
文摘The Zhutian and Dafeng formations （Upper Cretaceous） of the Heyuan Basin in northeastern Guangdong Province, China, have produced thousands of dinosaur eggs. Macromorphological features （egg diameter, egg shape, outer surface texture, and shell thickness） of 461 eggs were analyzed using non-destructive techniques and subjected to statistical analyses in order to assess their diversity and taxonomic affinities. Three types （1, 2 and 3） of eggs were discerned based on shape and outer surface morphology. Type 1 eggs are spherical to ellipsoidal in shape and have a rough surface. Three subtypes （Type 1-A-l, l-A-2, and l-B） are apparent from scatter plots and cluster analyses of egg diameters and shell thickness. Type 2 eggs are elongate with linear ornamentation on the surface, and are comparable to eggs that belong to the oofamily Elongatoolithidae. Type 3 eggs are elongate with a smooth surface, and are assigned to the oofamily Prismatoolithidae. Macromorphological features of the various egg types suggest that Type 1 could have been laid by ornithischian, sauropod or therizinosaur dinosaurs, Type 2 by oviraptorids, and Type 3 by troodontids. This study represents the first comprehensive statistical analysis of macrofeatures of dinosaur eggs, and reveals taxonomic diversity in the dinosaurs that were laying eggs in the Upper Cretaceous Heyuan area heretofore unrecognized in skeletal remains.
基金This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.40172067 and 40173001)the Key Project Foundation(Grant No.40132010).
文摘The Nanxiong red-bed basin and its adjacent Zhuguang granite form a distinctive basin-mountain landform in the Nanling region, South China. Research results suggest that the Zhuguang granite is a polyphase composite pluton developed on the metamorphic basement of the paleo-Tethys-paleo-Asian tectonic regime and possesses geometrical and kinematic features of hot-doming extensional tectonics at the middle-upper crustal level, which is considered as a magmatic complex that resulted from the collision-orogeny during the Indosinian Period, the subduction-consuming during the Early Yanshanian Period and the intra-continental basaltic underplating and deep-seated geodynamics during the Late Yanshanian Period. The Nanxiong basin is a Late Cretaceous-Paleogene asymmetric faulted basin that is characterized by a fault boundary on the northern side and an uncomformable boundary on the southern side, its deposit center was migrated gradually from south to north. Structural kinematic results on the basin-mountain coupled zone demonstrate that the ductile and the brittle rheological layers show a quite coincident sense of shear, implying that it is a continuous process from the ductile extensional deformation followed by locally sinistral strike-slip shear at a middle-crustal level to the brittle tensional deformation at a upper-crustal level during formation of granitic doming extensional tectonics. The Zhuguang granite and the Nanxiong faulted basin constructed a semi-graben tectonic system. Lithological and geochemical results suggest that the Late Triassic to Jurassic granitic bodies in the Zhuguang have some similar features: high SiO2, Al2O3, K2O contents, alkalinity index > 2.8, ANKC value > 1.1, LREE-enriched pattern with high REE contents, marked negative Eu anomalies, enrichment in Rb and Th, depletion in Ba and Nb, showing a K-rich and Al-rich calc-alkaline affinity, which suggest a continuous magmatic evolution from Late Triassic to Jurassic. Formation of Nanxiong basin and evolution of basin-mountain system were controlled both by the Zhuguang granitic-doming and the regional extensional tectonics. Development of the olivine basalt in the basin suggests that tension action was very strong during lava eruption. The magma-type zircon grains of basalt from the Nanxiong basin yielded the SHRIMP age of 96±1Ma, providing reliable geochronological constraint on the tectono-thermal event and basin-mountain evolution in the Nanling region, South China.
