As the control center of the modern ecosystem of China, the evolution of the Qinling Orogenic Belt (QOB) influenced the development of East Asian terrestrial ecosystems during the Late Mesozoic. The Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota, distributed along the Shangdan Suture Zone in the QOB, provides key clues for reconstructing the Early Cretaceous terrestrial ecosystems in central China, yet it has lacked research for nearly three decades.
Recently, the PhD candidate SONG Siyu, supervised by Professor ZHENG Daran (Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences), has preliminarily recovered the Early Cretaceous terrestrial biodiversity of the QOB based on fossils from the Fengjiashan (Shangxian Basin), Baiwan (Baiwan Basin), and Nanzhao formations (Mashiping Basin) collected in the QOB, and further discussed their palaeobiogeographical and palaeoecological implications. The results were published online in the journal Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology.
This study reveals new fossils of dinosaur footprints, bivalves, clam shrimp, gastropods, insects, and megaplants, reconstructs the Jehol Biota in the QOB, and establishes a regional stratigraphic framework. Key findings include abundant invertebrate and plant fossils from the Shangxian Basin in Shaanxi Province, as well as the first report of the Early Cretaceous dinosaur footprint and angiosperm fossils from Henan Province. The invertebrate fossil assemblages include the bivalve Arguniella-Sphaerium assemblage, the clam shrimp Eosestheria-Diestheria assemblage, the gastropod Probaicalia vitimensis-Ptychostylus-Reesidella robusta assemblage, and the middle Jehol Entomofauna. These indicate that the Lower Cretaceous in the QOB could be correlated with the Yixian and Jiufotang formations in western Liaoning, and that the Jehol Biota reached the QOB during its middle evolutionary stage.
Within the QOB, the Jehol Biota occur eastward in the Shangxian, Baiwan, and Mashiping basins along the Shangdan Suture Zone. The clam shrimp Eosestheria-Diestheria assemblage co‑occurs in the Shangxian and Baiwan basins, whereas the Jehol Entomofauna is present in all three basins. This distribution pattern suggests the existence of a potential paleo‑drainage system connecting basins in the QOB, which provided suitable palaeoecological conditions for biological flourishing and bridged the southward dispersal of the Jehol Biota in central China.
This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Strategic Priority Research Program (B) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Reference: Song, S., Zhang, X., Teng, X., Li, T., Yu, T., Li, J., Xue, Y., Liu, P., Fang, R., Zhao, X., Zheng, D.*, 2026. Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota in the Qinling Orogenic Belt: palaeobiogeographical and palaeoecological implications. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 698, 113939. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2026.113939.
Fig.1 Clam shrimp fossils from the Fengjiashan Formation of the Shangxian Basin
Fig.2 Insect and megaplant fossils from the Baiwan Formation of the Baiwan Basin
Fig.3 Dinosaur footprint, insect and megaplant fossils from the Nanzhao Formation of the Mashiping Basin
Fig.4 Regional correlation of the Lower Cretaceous in the Qinling Orogenetic Belt
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