Miaolingian-Furongian (Cambrian) high-resolution marine species richness patterns of the North China Block

Abstract

The Cambrian marks a crucial phase in Earth’s evolutionary history, yet marine biodiversity patterns during the Miaolingian-Furongian interval remain controversial. The North China Block, an independent tectonic plate during this period, hosts a unique biota, offering valuable insights into deep-time marine biodiversity dynamics. This study compiled a new dataset from published geological cross-sections of the Miaolingian-Furongian interval in the North China Block. Using a constrained optimization algorithm, a high-temporal-resolution marine species richness curve has been constructed and analysed along with the origination and extinction rate changes during the period. Contrary to the previously recognized static biodiversity in the Miaolingian-Furongian interval, including the so-called “Furongian Gap”, this study instead revealed three significant biodiversity pulses separated by periods of substantial declines. Additional analysis also identified several turnovers among major fossil groups and in functional diversity (ecological groups), especially during the Miaolingian to Furongian transition. Furthermore, there are major declines in richness shown to coincide with carbon isotope excursions, demonstrating a possible link between environmental change and its impact on marine ecosystems. A detailed comparison of the contemporaneous marine richness patterns and functional diversity between the North China and South China blocks has uncovered some significant disparities in biodiversity patterns, suggesting the significance of spatial/environmental heterogeneity in influencing biodiversity changes, which could easily be obscured by globally compiled biodiversity curves.

Hanhui Huang

PhD candidate of Earth Sciences

I am interested in how, and why, biodiversity changes through time.