Pre-mass extinction decline of latest Permian ammonoids

Wolfgang Kiessling, Martin Schobben, Abbas Ghaderi, Vachik Hairapetian, Lucyna Leda, Dieter Korn

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

The devastating end-Permian mass extinction is widely considered to have been caused by large-scale and rapid greenhouse gas release by Siberian magmatism. Although the proximate extinction mechanisms are disputed, there is widespread agreement that a major extinction pulse occurred immediately below the biostratigraphically defined Permian-Triassic boundary. Our statistical analyses of stratigraphic confidence intervals do not comply with a single end-Permian extinction pulse of ammonoids in Iran. High turnover rates and extinction pulses are observed over the last 700 k.y. of the Permian period in two widely separated sections representative of a larger area. Analyses of body sizes and morphological complexity support a gradual decline over the same interval. Similar pre-mass extinction declines and disturbances of the carbon cycle have sometimes been reported from other regions, suggesting a widespread, but often overlooked, environmental deterioration at a global scale, well before the traditional main extinction pulse.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)283-286
Number of pages4
JournalGeology
Volume46
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 24 Jan 2018

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Pre-mass extinction decline of latest Permian ammonoids'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this