About 252 million years ago, more than 81 percent of animal life in the oceans and 89 percent of animal life on land went extinct. This event, called the "end-Permian mass extinction" (EPME), represents the greatest catastrophe in the history of life on Earth. The proximate driver of the event has long been a mystery. About 252 million years ago, more than 81 percent of animal life in the oceans and 89 percent of animal life on land went extinct. This event, called the "end-Permian mass extinction" (EPME), represents the greatest catastrophe in the history of life on Earth. The proximate driver of the event has long been a mystery. However, a new study led by scientists from the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (NIGPAS) and Nanjing University has now revealed that Felsic volcanism in South China drove the EPME. The study was published in Science Advances on Nov. 17. Previous studies suggested that volcano eruptions in Siberia, an event called the "Siberian Traps large igneous province (STLIP)," was the single major driver of the mass extinction event. The support for this argument comes from the observation that STLIP was large enough to perturb the global environment. The team, however, noted that temporal links between the mass extinction and volcanism were largely based on sedimentary records from South China, while the Siberian region does not contain direct evidence of biological extinction. The scientists also noted that more than one-third of the erupted volcanic rocks and the entire STLIP intrusive magmatism postdated the end-Permian mass extinction horizon. Therefore, the team wanted to determine if volcanic eruptions from other regions could help explain the EPME. In this study, the team focused on terrestrial ecosystems, which were decimated during the EPME. Typically, scientists identify ancient volcanic eruptions by looking at the abundance of volcanic rocks preserved on Earth's present-day surface, and anomalies of elemental mercury in ancient sedimentary rocks. But volcanic rocks can be weathered or covered and disappear from the Earth's surface. Furthermore, enrichment of elemental mercury in sedimentary rocks does not always indicate the presence of volcanic eruptions. To overcome this, the team pioneered a new and more efficient approach. By studying variations in elemental copper and its isotopes recorded in sedimentary rocks, the team was able to infer large-scale volcano eruptions near the studied outcrops. These sediments, collected in modern-day South China, recorded the entire EPME. The resulting extreme elemental copper enrichment and the associated anomalously light isotopic compositions in the EPME interval in South China gave the answers the researchers were looking for. They were able to show that large-scale eruptions near the South China Block were synchronous with the EPME. The new study has strengthened the case that the STLIP may not have been the sole trigger for the extinction. "This finding provides critical new insights into mechanisms that led to the extinction of animal life both in the ocean and on the land. We suggest that felsic volcanism in South China was a key contributor to the environmental deterioration that led to the end-Permian mass extinction," said Prof. ZHANG Hua from NIGPAS, the first author of the study. The discovery calls attention to the possible effects of modern climate change. The new study estimated that volcanic SO2 injections would have produced several degrees of rapid cooling before or coincident with the more protracted global warming caused by CO2 injections. Such swings in end-Permian climate from volcanic carbon and sulfur outgassing could create deadly environments for ecosystems. "One of the most interesting and worrying things about the end-Permian extinction is how similar those events are to what is happening today," said corresponding author Prof. SHEN Shuzhong from Nanjing University. "Similar to what happened during the end-Permian period, the modern Earth is facing rapid climate warming due to anthropogenic CO2 emissions."
Fig. 1 Photographs and photomicrographs of Cu-rich sulfide and charcoal from the terrestrial Permian-Triassic transition. (Image by NIGPAS)
Fig. 2 Schematic showing the formation process of copper-rich deposits within the EPME interval in South China. (Image by NIGPAS)
Contact: LIU Yun, Propagandist Email: yunliu@nigpas.ac.cn Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, China
The acritarch fossil assemblage in chert can be compared with other regional assemblages in the world at the same time, and can be also used for outcrop and drilling core biostratigraphic correlation, which has important industrial significance. During the Ordovician period, siliceous rocks were widely deposited in many parts of the world, including Kazakhstan and eastern Australia. Although the micropaleontology of Ordovician deep-sea cherts is relatively well documented, microfossil assemblages in Ordovician shallow-marine cherts are less well-known. Recently, associate researchers MENG Fanwei and YAN Kui, and master student YUAN Xuejun, from Nanjing Institute of Geology and paleontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (NIGPAS), in cooperation with senior engineers ZHANG Zhili and LI Huili, from Sinopec petroleum exploration and Development Research Institute, studied the drilled carbonate rock core of Yijianfang Formation in the Middle Ordovician of Well YJ-1 in the north of Tarim Basin, China, and found a large number of chert nodules in the carbonate rock. The related research results were published in the international SCI journal Carbonates and Evaporites. Abundant fossil algal assemblages were found in the sections of chert nodules. It includes 11 genera of planktonic algae fossils (acritarch) and filamentous cyanobacteria, revealing the biological assemblage of Middle Ordovician chert facies. The Yijianfang Formation fossil assemblage indicates a deep offshore depositional environment. Sedimentological evidence also suggests that the limestone that hosts the chert interval was deposited in a low- to moderate-energy, restricted, inner carbonate platform. Cherts formed by silicification during late diagenesis. Previously, Chinese Ordovician micro planktonic algae fossils (acritarch) basically came from shale immersion. This study is the first study of Ordovician chert facies fossils in China, which enriches the understanding of Ordovician biosphere. The acritarch fossil assemblage in chert can be compared with other regional assemblages in the world at the same time, and can be also used for outcrop and drilling core biostratigraphic correlation, which has important industrial significance. This research is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the China-Israel cooperation Project of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, and the original innovation project of "from 0 to 1" of the basic frontier science research program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Reference: Zhang, Zl., Meng, Fw., Zheng, Qf. et al. Microfossils from nodular cherts in the Middle Ordovician Yijianfang Formation carbonates (Well YJ1X), Tarim Basin, China. Carbonates Evaporites 36, 38 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13146-021-00689-7. Figure 1. Fossil algae in nodule cherts of Yijianfang Formation in Middle Ordovician of Well YJ-1 in northern Tarim Basin, China Contact: LIU Yun, Propagandist Email: yunliu@nigpas.ac.cn Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, China
The end-Permian mass extinction (EPME) led to a severe terrestrial ecosystem collapse. Insects have diversified over the past approximately 400 million years and account for roughly half of the biodiversity on Earth today. However, the ecological response of insects to the EPME remains poorly understood. The end-Permian mass extinction (EPME) led to a severe terrestrial ecosystem collapse. Insects have diversified over the past approximately 400 million years and account for roughly half of the biodiversity on Earth today. However, the ecological response of insects to the EPME remains poorly understood. Beetles (Coleoptera) are the most speciose group of extant insects, with a stratigraphic range dating back to at least the lowest Permian. They have a rich fossil record since the Permian and display a wide array of lifestyles. Their fossil record thus offers a unique and complementary perspective for studying the ecological response of insects to the EPME. Recently, postgraduate researcher ZHAO Xianye, Prof. WANG Bo from the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (NIGPAS), and other researchers from China, Russia, the USA and UK analyzed the evolutionary history of early beetles. Their findings suggest that xylophagous (feeding on or in wood) beetles probably played a key and underappreciated role in the Permian carbon cycle and early archaic beetles experienced severe ecological consequences of end-Permian deforestation. These results further provide new insights into the ecological role of insects in deep-time terrestrial ecosystems as well as the ecological response of insects to deforestation and global warming. The study was published in the international academic journal eLife on Nov. 8. The research team compiled an updated database of beetles from the Early Permian to Middle Triassic based on the taxonomic revision of fossils. They analyzed the evolution of taxonomic diversity, morphological disparity and palaeoecological shifts of beetles from the Early Permian to Middle Triassic through phylogenetic and palaeoecological reconstructions and morphospace analyses of fossil material. The suite of analyses show that Permian xylophagous beetles suffered a severe extinction during the EPME largely due to the collapse of forest ecosystems, thus resulting in an Early Triassic gap of xylophagous beetles. New xylophagous beetles appeared widely in the early Middle Triassic, which is consistent with the restoration of forest ecosystems. Permian beetles probably played an important ecological role in forest ecosystems because most Permian beetles were probably xylophagous insects that consumed living and dead woody stems. Furthermore, xylophagous beetles may have been responsible for the decrease of oxygen concentrations in the Permian. The research highlights the ecological significance of insects in deep-time terrestrial ecosystems. Extant insects are suffering from dramatic declines in abundance and diversity largely due to anthropogenic deforestation and global warming. However, xylophagous insects have been largely neglected in studies of the current extinction crisis. The current study may help researchers better understand future changes in insect diversity and abundance and the consequences of such developments as the world faces global environmental change. This research was supported by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the National Natural Science Foundation of China.
Fig. 1 Examples of Permian beetles and reconstructions. (Image by NIGPAS)
Fig. 2 Phylogeny of early beetles (A) and genus percentages of xylophagous groups (B) (Image by NIGPAS)
Contact: LIU Yun, Propagandist Email: yunliu@nigpas.ac.cn Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, China
The Ediacaran Period (635–539 million years ago, Ma) is a pivotal period in Earth history, archiving the rise of complex macroscopic life. This evolutionary milestone occurred in the aftermath of extreme climate perturbations, the Cryogenian snowball Earth events, and amid dramatic changes in the global carbon cycle and ocean redox conditions. The Ediacaran Period (635–539 million years ago, Ma) is a pivotal period in Earth history, archiving the rise of complex macroscopic life. This evolutionary milestone occurred in the aftermath of extreme climate perturbations, the Cryogenian snowball Earth events, and amid dramatic changes in the global carbon cycle and ocean redox conditions. These perturbations, including the Shuram event which is the largest magnitude negative carbon isotope excursion in Earth history, have been documented worldwide, and are commonly employed to establish regional to global stratigraphic correlations. However, there is a lack of a chronostratigraphic framework at sufficient resolution for testing hypotheses related to the tempo, magnitude/duration of the events (especially the Shuram), their global expression, or their co-relationship with biospheric evolutionary innovations. Published in Science Advances, a study by an international research team led by Prof. Zhu Maoyan (Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences) presents new radio-isotopic dates from Ediacaran successions in South China and White Sea area. The new dates provide age constraints on both the Ediacaran fossil assemblages and the carbonate carbon isotope perturbations. The upper Ediacaran is characterized by the typical Ediacara-type fossils. Three assemblages of the fossils have been recognized: the Avalon, White Sea, and Nama. The age ranges of the Avalon and Nama assemblages have been constrained at 575–560 Ma and 550–539 Ma, respectively. New dates from the study indicate that the White Sea assemblage spans a time interval started earlier than 557 Ma and ended later than 553 Ma. The age constraints on these three fossil assemblages can facilitate our understanding of the evolution in the late Ediacaran. New dates from South China also provide age constraints on the Doushantuo acanthomorphic acritarchs, Weng’an biota, Wenghui biota, Miaohe biota, and Ediacara-type fossils in the Dengying Formation. The terminal timing of the Shuram event was constrained at 551 Ma. However, the lack of high precision radio-isotopic dates and the complexity of local stratigraphy have given rise to much debate about the number of negative carbon isotope excursions in the late Ediacaran and the age of the Shuram event. The new dates indicate that there are two negative carbon isotope excursions in 575-550 Ma. The older and long-lasting one is the Shuram event, and the younger and short-lived one occurred at 550 Ma. The authors also compile a global Ediacaran geochronology database and suggest that the Shuran event occurred between 575 Ma and 565 Ma with an uncertainty on the order of a few million years. Older than the Shuram event, another short-lived negative carbon isotope excursion, which is locally called WANCE in South China, is dated at ~587 Ma. The presented Ediacaran age model for the carbon cycle perturbations and fossil records provides the necessary chronometric context to test causal relationships, if any, between them. At the current resolution, these transitions in the fossil record coincide with the carbonate carbon isotope excursions, suggestive of a potential causal relationship between environmental perturbations recorded in the carbon cycle and biological turnovers. The study was supported by grants from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Natural Environment Research Council of the UK, the United States National Science Foundation, and the Russian Science Foundation. Reference: Yang, C.*, Rooney, A.D.*, Condon, D.J., Li, X.-H., Grazhdankin, D. V, Bowyer, F.T., Hu, C., Macdonald, F.A., and Zhu, M.*, 2021, The tempo of Ediacaran evolution. Science Advances, 7, eabi9643. https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.abi9643. Fig. 1 Integrated radio-isotopic dates, fossil ranges, and carbon isotopic profile of the Ediacaran Period
Contact: LIU Yun, Propagandist Email: yunliu@nigpas.ac.cn Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, China
As the index fossils in Middle to Late Ordovician, the classification and phylogeny of lituitids have been long debated. There have been several cladistic analyses of the phylogeny of different groups of 'nautiloid' cephalopods, including classification at lower taxonomic levels, generic affinities and their evolutionary path at higher taxonomic levels. However, a systematic and comprehensive analysis is still pending, and many taxa have never been investigated. Lituitid cephalopods are distinguished from other Ordovician cephalopods by their specific conch shape and ornaments. Most of them have a coiled or cyrtoconic part at the early growth stage, and then develop the uncoiled or fully straight conch at the late stage. As the index fossils in Middle to Late Ordovician, the classification and phylogeny of lituitids have been long debated. Recently, Dr. FANG Xiang and colleagues from Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (NIGPAS), and researchers from Universitat Zürich, University of Helsinki, Charles University in Prague and Mahasarakham University, conducted phylogenic analysis on Lituitida (Cepahlopoda), based on the large amount materials from South China. This work has been published in Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. The first cladistic analysis of the order Lituitida based on published was presented, as well as some new, material. Three clades are recovered within the ingroup of lituitids, Sinoceras, Ancistroceras and Lituites; the former group correspond to the family Sinoceratidae, and the latter two to the Lituitidae. "The topology shows that the Sinoceratidae represents the basal branch, while the Lituitidae represents a monophyletic, derived clade", Dr. FANG Xiang says, "Furthermore, we describe new material of four species (three of which are newly defined) in four genera of the order Lituitida from the well-exposed, Middle to Upper Ordovician of Hubei (South China). Tyrioceras longicameratum from South China is the first reported occurrence of Tyrioceras in China, which has significant palaeogeographical implications." This research is supported by Chinese Academy of Sciences Strategic Priority Research Program and National Natural Science Foundation of China. Reference: Fang, X.*, Pohle, A., Kroger, B., Aubrechtová, M., Burrett, C., Zhang, Y.B., Zhang, Y.D., 2021. Phylogeny of Middle–Late Ordovician lituitid cephalopods based on cladistic analysis. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology, 19(9): 633–350. https://doi.org/10.1080/14772019.2021.1944354. Cladistic analysis on Lituitida (Cephalopoda) Rhynchorthoceras yizanense sp. nov. from Datianba Formation, Sangzhi, Hunan Province Contact: LIU Yun, Propagandist Email: yunliu@nigpas.ac.cn Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, China
The study provides a fundamental revisions to the traditional Permian terrestrial depositional history and chronostratigraphy of the North China block, and provide a new timeline and important insights for the history of continental collision, floral turnovers, and paleoclimate change as recorded in the North China block. The study provides a fundamental revisions to the traditional Permian terrestrial depositional history and chronostratigraphy of the North China block, and provide a new timeline and important insights for the history of continental collision, floral turnovers, and paleoclimate change as recorded in the North China block. The North China block occupied northerly tropical to subtropical paleolatitudes, marginal to the Paleo-Asian Ocean (PAO), during the critical Cisuralian (298.9-273.0 Ma) transitions from an icehouse to a greenhouse world. The late Carboniferous to Permian marine and marginal-marine to terrestrial sequences in North China preserve highly diverse and abundant plant fossils in addition to their significant economic hydrocarbon resources. These characteristics provide a unique opportunity to investigate the interactions among terrestrial biotic evolution, regional tectonics, and global climate change during a critical period of geologic history. However, poor constraints on age and correlation have hampered a deep understanding of those events in the North China block. In the absence of diagnostic marine fossils from key intervals, stratigraphic correlation within and beyond North China has relied on uncalibrated palynostratigraphy and phytostratigraphy and magnetostratigraphy. Detrital zircon geochronology by U-Pb in situ analyses from Permian volcaniclastic sandstones generally lacked the necessary precision or stratigraphic range to place reliable constraints on depositional ages. Recently, the Late Paleozoic research group from Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (NIGPAS), Nanjing University and other researchers from China, USA and Canada, report high-precision U-Pb zircon geochronology by the chemical abrasion–isotope dilution–thermal ionization mass spectrometry (CA-ID-TIMS) method focused on bentonitic tuffs from the Permian succession in North China. New high-precision U-Pb geochronology necessitates major revisions to the temporal framework for the Permian terrestrial system in North China. The research results were recently published in the international academic journal Geology. The Upper Shihhotse Formation spans the latest Asselian to the early Kungurian, as opposed to its previous Wordian to Wuchiapingian age assignments. A major depositional gap during the late Cisuralian to Guadalupian in the northern North China block may have been caused by convergent tectonics associated with the closure and/or subduction of the PAO. The great loss of highly diverse and abundant Cathaysian floras and the widespread invasion of the Angaran floras under arid climate conditions in the North China block happened during the late Cisuralian to Guadalupian, but its exact timing is uncertain due to the long hiatus. The Cisuralian global aridification may have been associated with extensive LIP volcanism and the rise of atmospheric CO2 in the waning stages of the LPIA. The research was supported by the Strategic Priority Research Programs (B) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Reference: Q. Wu, J. Ramezani, H. Zhang*, J. Wang, F. Zeng, Y. Zhang, F. Liu, J. Chen, Y. Cai, Z. Hou, C. Liu, W. Yang, C. M. Henderson, S. Shen*,2021, High-precision U-Pb age constraints on the Permian floral turnovers, paleoclimate change and tectonics of North China. Geology 49, 677–681. https://doi.org/10.1130/G48051.1 Figure 1. Compilation of Permian global events in parallel with Earth system changes in the North China block. Contact: LIU Yun, Propagandist Email: yunliu@nigpas.ac.cn Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, China
A new report was recently published in the international journal Global and Planetary Change on the pattern of vegetation turnover during the end-Triassic mass extinction on the basis of fern communities from South China. A new report was recently published in the international journal Global and Planetary Change on the pattern of vegetation turnover during the end-Triassic mass extinction on the basis of fern communities from South China. The end-Triassic mass extinction (ETME) is one of the five most severe extinction events in Earth history and caused the disappearance of ca. 80% of all species. The terrestrial ecosystems were also greatly affected by this extinction, but the severity of the land plant diversity loss is not well understood. Although compared with palynology data, plant macrofossils usually have a limited stratigraphic resolution, but tracked their species diversity and lived environment can provide a more intuitive and effective method for studying the extinction rate and evolution mode of terrestrial vegetation. Recently, an international research team leading by Prof. WANG Yongdong from the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (NIGPAS), Dr. ZHOU Ning, Prof. ZHANG Xingliang, from the Department of Geology of Northwest University, China and Prof. Wolfram Kürschner from Department of Geosciences, University of Oslo have investigated the diversity and ecology of fern during the Triassic-Jurassic (Tr–J) transition in the Sichuan Basin of South China and focused for the first time on the impact of the end-Triassic mass extinction event on the fern communities. The researchers collected fossil fern records, approximately 67 species ascribed to 16 genera of eight families, from 16 localities of the Rhaetian Xujiahe Formation to the lowermost Jurassic Zhenzhuchong Formation. The results indicate that a gradual decline at both the genus and species levels of macro-microflora of ferns at ETME with no obvious mass extinctions in the Sichuan Basin. However, the fern and palynological data show a clear vegetation turnover after the end-Triassic in the Sichuan Basin demonstrated that the response of vegetation changes in places far away from CAMP volcanism. The multivariate statistical approaches (principal coordinates analysis, cluster analysis, network analysis) for fern macro-remains and spores data infer a warm and humid climate during the Rhaetian. The significant increase of typical dry-resistant taxa across the Tr-J boundary, indicating a dryer environment at the earliest Jurassic. This study was jointly supported by the Strategic Priority Research Program (B) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the National Natural Science Foundation of China, State Key Programme of Basic Research of Ministry of Science and Technology, China and SKLPS State Key Lab Funding of NIGPAS. Reference: Ning Zhou, Yuanyuan Xu, Liqin Li, Ning Lu, Pengcheng An, Mihai Emilian Popa, Wolfram Michael Kürschner*, Xingliang Zhang, Yongdong Wang*, 2021. Pattern of vegetation turnover during the end-Triassic mass extinction: Trends of fern communities from South China with global context. Global and Planetary Change. Volume 205, October 2021, 103585. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2021.103585. The diversity changes of fern species during Triassic–Jurassic transition in the Sichuan Basin and the scatter diagrams illustrating the agreement between the fern macro-remains and spores in the northeastern Sichuan basin. Left：Cluster dendrogram and PCoA biplots showing the diversity of (A) fern macro-remains (species level) and (B) fern spores (genera level) ; Right: Networks of co-occurring of (A) fern macro-remains (species level) and (B) fern spores (genera level) based on correlation analysis. Sketch drawing of some fern species from the Upper Triassic in the Sichuan Basin A. Dictyophyllum nilssoni；B. Marattia muensteri； C. Hausmannia emeiensis；D. Danaeopsis fecunda Sketch drawing of some fern species from the Upper Triassic and Lower Jurassic in the Sichuan Basin A. Coniopteris tiehshanensis；B. Todites kwangyuanensis；C. Cynepteris lasiophora；D. Phlebopteris xiangyuensisContact: LIU Yun, Propagandist Email: yunliu@nigpas.ac.cn Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, China
The research expanded our understanding of the morphological diversity and geographical distribution of mixopterids. Eurypterids (Arthropoda: Chelicerata), normally known as sea scorpions, are an important extinct group of Paleozoic chelicerate arthropods. As a star animal in the Silurian sea (about 430 million years ago), its evolutionary history and paleoecological significance have always attracted attentions of both researchers and the public. Mixopterids are a remarkable group of eurypterids characterized by extremely specialized prosomal appendages. These limbs were presumably used for prey-capture, like the ‘catching basket’ formed by the spiny pedipalps of whip spiders. However, in contrast to their popularity, our knowledge of these bizarre animals is limited to only four species in two genera which all based on a few fossil specimens from the Silurian Laurussia 80 years ago. Recently, postgraduate WANG Han, Prof. WANG Bo and other researchers from China, German and England described a new mixopterid, Terropterus xiushanensis gen. et sp. nov. from the Lower Silurian of South China. Their finding represents the first mixopterids in Gondwana, and also the oldest mixopterids. The research expanded our understanding of the morphological diversity and geographical distribution of mixopterids. The research results were recently published as a cover paper in the international academic journal Science Bulletin. Terropterus is relatively large, estimated to have been nearly a meter in length. It bears particularly enlarged prosomal limb III, characterized by a unique arrangement of spines on it. The well-preserved appendages and other body parts fossils provided new evidences for expanding morphological diversity of Mixopteridae. By morphological comparison and phylogenetic analysis, researchers suggested more complex evolutionary relationships of this group than previously thought. Terropterus, a large arthropod with "sharp weapon", may have been playing an important role of top predators in Early Silurian shallow marine of South China. Meanwhile, the first Gondwanan mixopterid- along with other eurypterids from China and some undescribed specimens- suggests an under-collecting bias in this group. Future work, especially in Asia, may reveal a more cosmopolitan distribution of mixopterids and perhaps other groups of eurypterids. This research was supported by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the National Natural Science Foundation of China. Mr. YANG Dinghua (from NIGPAS) made the artist’s reconstruction. Reference: Wang Han *, Dunlop J., Gai Zhikun, Lei Xiaojie, Jarzembowski E. A., Wang Bo *, First mixopterid eurypterids (Arthropoda: Chelicerata) from the Lower Silurian of South China, Science Bulletin, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scib.2021.07.019Fig.1 Cover image of Science Bulletin. (Reconstruction drawing by Dinghua Yang) Fig.2 Terropterus xiushanensis. (a, c, d, e, f: appendages; b: reconstruction drawing, dorsal and ventral views; g: genital operculum and the genital appendage) Fig. 3 Result of the phylogenetic analysis. (The position of Terropterus xiushanensis is highlighted in blue) Contact: LIU Yun, PropagandistEmail: yunliu@nigpas.ac.cn Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, China
Anthrophyopsis Nathorst 1878 is an extinct but representative Late Triassic gymnosperm genus with uncertain systematic affinities and poorly understood morphology and anatomy. Since its earliest report by Nathorst in 1878, this fossil has been documented worldwide. However, the taxonomic statuses and the leaf morphological variation of this fossil plant remain questionable. Anthrophyopsis Nathorst 1878 is an extinct but representative Late Triassic gymnosperm genus with uncertain systematic affinities and poorly understood morphology and anatomy. Since its earliest report by Nathorst in 1878, this fossil has been documented worldwide. However, the taxonomic statuses and the leaf morphological variation of this fossil plant remain questionable. Recently, an international research team led by Prof. WANG Yongdong (Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Science(NIGPAS) ), collaborated with Prof. Mihai E. Popa from University of Bucharest of Romania, and Prof. ZHANG Tingshan’s team (Southwest Petroleum University of China), has published a new study in international journal Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology. In this research, we carried out a comprehensive systematic study of Anthrophyopsis and investigated the significance of its tempo-spatial distribution pattern. The team collected several well-preserved fossil material belonging to Anthrophyopsis from the Upper Triassic Xujiahe Formation in Guangyuan City of northern Sichuan Basin, South China. The newly collected specimens show leaves with incisions which even can generate a unipinnate leaf architecture (Figs. 1, 2). Wang says, “these specimens show various outlines with depths of incision for different leaves, pointing to transitional shapes between entire and lobed margins.” This enables a detailed and updated morphological diagnosis emendation of this fossil at genus and species level. Based on this, a new reconstruction of its type species Anthrophyopsis crassinervis was carried out with emphasis of its heteromorphic leaf morphologies (Fig. 3). The re-investigation on the global fossil record shows that among 16 species of Anthrophyopsis documented worldwide, only three of them are valid species (including Anthrophyopsis crassinervis, A. tuberculata and A. venulosa). Other four species need further revision, and nine species are invalid. In addition, Anthrophyopsis has a short stratigraphic range and confined to Upper Triassic sequences, from the Carnian to the Rhaetian, and it has a distinct stratigraphic significance. Anthrophyopsis possibly originated from the South China Block during the Carnian, migrated along the northern frame of the Tethys realm, and finally arrived in Middle East and Europe. The short stratigraphic range of Anthrophyopsis in the Southern Floristic Province (SFP) implies a climate differentiation between the SFP and the Northern Floristic Province (NFP) during the Late Triassic (Fig.4). The limited occurrences of valid Anthrophyopsis species in the Southern Floristic Province of China during the Late Triassic indicate that this genus represents a sensitive stratigraphic and palaeoclimatic marker. This study was co-sponsored by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, Strategic Priority Research Program (B) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy. Reference: Xu Yuanyuan, Mihai E. Popa*, Zhang Tingshan, Lu Ning, Zeng Jianli, Zhang Xiaoqing, Li Liqin, Wang Yongdong*, 2021. Re–appraisal of Anthrophyopsis (Gymnospermae): New material from China and global fossil records. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 292(3): 104475. DOI: 10.1016/j.revpalbo.2021.104475. Fig.1 Anthrophyopsis crassinervis from Guangyuan area of northern Sichuan Basin, South China, showing showing almost entire margin with crenation Fig.2 Anthrophyopsis crassinervis from Guangyuan area of northern Sichuan Basin, South China, showing thick midrib with secondary vein meshes and leaf margin with deep incisions
Fig. 4 Palaeogeographic map showing the distribution of genus Anthrophyopsis around the world during the Late Triassic and its suggested migration routes. Contact: LIU Yun, Propagandist Email: yunliu@nigpas.ac.cn Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, China
The western Liaoning region is known as one of the most significant fossil localities for the Jurassic osmundaceous rhizome remains in the Northern Hemisphere. Recently, a new species of osmundaceous rhizome, Claytosmunda zhangiana sp. nov. was reported with associated fungal remains represented by fungal hyphae in this spectacular osmundaceous rhizome. The research team led by Prof. WANG Yongdong (Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, CAS), Dr. TIAN Ning (Shenyang Normal University), and Dr. JIANG Zikun (Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences) has carried out a systematic study on a structurally preserved permineralized osmundaceous rhizomes from the Jurassic of western Liaoning. This new finding results were published in the international journal Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology. The results not only further enriches the record of fossil diversity of Mesozoic osmundaceous rhizomes in China, but also contributes to further understanding the evolution of plant–fungal interactions in the Jurassic forest understorey ecosystem. The fossil material was collected from the Middle Jurassic Tiaojishan Formation in western Liaoning Province, NE China, ca. 160 Ma. Prof. WANG says, “the fossil specimen is represented by a rhizomatous stem consisting of a pith, a dictyoxylic siphonostele, a two-layered cortex, and a mantle of petiole bases”. A remarkably specialized heterogeneous petiolar sclerotic ring, whose abaxial side is occupied by a dumbbell-shaped thick-walled fiber arch, characterizes this new fossil species. This results helps for exploring the anatomical diversity of petiolar sclerotic rings of the Mesozoic and extant osmundaceous plants. Additionally, five major types of petiolar sclerotic rings are recognized. Specifically, the fungal remains, represented by branched hyphae and a kind of saprophytes, are found within the fern rhizome. This represents the first report of fungal remains associated with osmundaceous rhizomes in China. This study was jointly supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Strategic Priority Research Program (B) of the CAS, the Liaoning Revitalization Talents Program, and the State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy (NIGPAS, CAS). Reference: Tian, N.*, Wang, Y.D.*, Jiang, Z.K., 2021. A new permineralized osmundaceous rhizome with fungal remains from the Jurassic of western Liaoning, NE China. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 290: 104414. Doi: 10.1016/j.revpalbo.2021.104414 (*corresponding author).
Fig.1 Claytosmunda zhangiana sp. nov. from the Middle Jurassic of western Liaoning Province, NE China Fig.2 Anatomical details of the petiole bases of Claytosmunda zhangiana sp. nov. Fig.3 Sketch drawing of the petiole bases of Claytosmunda zhangiana sp. nov. Fig.4 Fungal hyphae found within the permineralized osmundaceous rhizome
