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A Toarcian Ocean Anoxic Event record from an open-ocean setting in the eastern Tethys: Implications for global climatic change and regional environmental perturbation

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Abstract

The Early Toarcian “Oceanic Anoxic Event” (T-OAE) is recorded by marked disruption to both the climate system and marine ecosystems. Here, we present intergraded high-resolution carbon-isotope data (δ13C), bulk geochemistry, mineral characterization from an open-ocean setting in the eastern Tethys. With these data, we (1) construct the high-resolution record of the T-OAE from an open-ocean setting in the eastern Tethys; (2) show that the T-OAE in the Sewa succession was marked by coarser-grained deposits associated with high-energy conditions within the otherwise low-energy claystone deposits that likely linked to a globally increased supply of clastic sediments into marginal and deeper marine basin; (3) propose that the low Corg:Ptotal ratios, in combination with bioturbated structure and depletion or slight enrichment in redox-sensitive trace elements of V, Mo, and U suggest a long-term oxygenation event throughout the T-OAE interval at the Sewa succession, and hence, anoxia may not play a fundamental role during the Toarcian negative CIE in this setting; (4) exhibit that a warming and more humid climate began at the start of the T-OAE, and many episodic changes in sediment provenance throughout the T-OAE interval occurred at this location; and (5) suggest that accumulation of organic-matter sediments during the T-OAE is generally controlled by global climatic changes, but a regional environmental perturbation also might influence the preservation of organic matter.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 91955204) and the Second Tibetan Plateau Scientific Expedition and Research Program (STEP) (Grant No. 2019QZKK080301).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir Geology and Exploitation, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu, 610050, China

    Xiugen Fu

  2. School of Geoscience and Technology, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu, 610500, China

    Xiugen Fu, Jian Wang, Zhongwei Wang & Hengye Wei

  3. Institute of Sedimentary Geology, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, 610059, China

    Huaguo Wen

  4. Chengdu Center, China Geological Survey, Chengdu, 610081, China

    Chunyan Song, Shengqiang Zeng & Xinglei Feng

  5. Qiangtang Institute of Sedimentary Basin, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu, 610500, China

    Xiugen Fu, Jian Wang, Zhongwei Wang & Hengye Wei

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Fu, X., Wang, J., Wen, H. et al. A Toarcian Ocean Anoxic Event record from an open-ocean setting in the eastern Tethys: Implications for global climatic change and regional environmental perturbation. Sci. China Earth Sci. 64, 1860–1872 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11430-020-9753-1

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