Journal article
Phosphorus-cycle disturbances during the Late Devonian anoxic events
LME Percival, DPG Bond, M Rakociński, L Marynowski, AVS Hood, T Adatte, JE Spangenberg, KB Föllmi
Global and Planetary Change | ELSEVIER | Published : 2020
Abstract
The Late Devonian was marked by repeated faunal crises and episodes of geographically widespread marine anoxia, and featured one of the ‘Big Five’ mass extinctions of the Phanerozoic Aeon during the Frasnian–Famennian transition. However, the processes responsible for causing the numerous anoxic events remain unclear. This study highlights the occurrence of disturbances to the phosphorus cycle during several Late Devonian crises by investigating sedimentary concentrations of the element (Ptot) as a tracer of nutrient influx, as well as its ratio with total organic carbon (TOC) to infer the recycling of the element from marine sediments. Increased TOC/Ptot ratios in the Frasnian–Famennian Low..
View full abstractGrants
Awarded by Université de Lausanne
Funding Acknowledgements
We greatly appreciate constructive and insightful comments that have improved this manuscript, from Paul Wignall and two anonymous reviewers, laboratory assistance given by Jean-Claude Lavanchy, and Olivier Reubi, and we also thank Grzegorz Racki, Agnieszka Pisarzowska, David De Vleeschouwer, Anne-Christine da Silva, Malcolm Wallace, Alice Shuster, and Ronnie Guthrie for scientific discussions and help collecting geological samples in the field. Additional thanks go to Brahimsamba Bomou and Dominik Fleitmann for analysis of phosphorus contents and carbon-isotope compositions of the Erfoud samples, respectively, and Gerta Keller and the 2008 University of Princeton graduate student class to Morocco for assistance collecting the Moroccan samples. We gratefully acknowledge the National Science Centre-Poland (MAESTRO grant 2013/08/A/ST10/00717, including M.R. and L.M.), the Natural Environment Research Council (grant number NE/J01799X/1 to D.P.G.B.), the Baragwanath Research Fund, Australia (A.v.S.H.) and the University of Lausanne (L.M.E.P.) for funding.