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Carbon Isotopic Evolution of the Late Ediacaran Gaojiashan Biota on the Northern Yangtze Platform, South China
Author(s) -
Qingjun GUO,
Yinan DENG,
Xinglian YANG
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
acta geologica sinica ‐ english edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.444
H-Index - 61
eISSN - 1755-6724
pISSN - 1000-9515
DOI - 10.1111/1755-6724.12013
Subject(s) - biota , isotopes of carbon , geology , total organic carbon , carbonate , paleontology , carbon fibers , carbon cycle , carbon sink , sedimentary rock , earth science , ecology , geochemistry , ecosystem , oceanography , chemistry , biology , climate change , materials science , organic chemistry , composite number , composite material
Metazoan fossils in the Gaojiashan Biota are famous for being well preserved and may provide new insights into the early evolution and skeletonization of Metazoans. We are studying the isotopic compositions of organic and carbonate carbon from a sequence of sedimentary rocks at the Gaojiashan section, northern Yangtze Platform, Shaanxi Province of China. Organic carbon isotope values display a range between −30.8‰ and −24.7‰ with clear stratigraphic variations. Carbonate carbon isotope data vary between 0.1‰ and +6‰. Positive δ 13 C values from sediments with Gaojiashan biota reflect temporal variations in carbon turnover, i.e. an increasing in photosynthetic carbon fixation followed by an increasing subsequent fractional organic carbon burial, and that related to bio‐radiation such as increasing algae, bacteria, and original creatures productivity in biomass. These secular variations are interpreted to reflect perturbations of the regional carbon cycle, specifically changes in the fractional burial of organic carbon, and discuss the relationship between Gaojiashan biota and paleoenvrionmental variation.