GEOL 766: Earth Systems Change

Lecture 08: Thursday, September 18, 2008: Mass extinctions and driving mechanisms

Suggested reading list :

A few general reviews related to mass extinctions
1. Crowley, T.J., and North, G.R., 1988, Abrupt Climate Change and Extinction Events in Earth History: Science, v. 240, p. 996-1002.
2. Benton, M., 1995, Diversification and extinction in the history of life: Science, v. 268, p. 52-58.
3. Benison, K.C., Goldstein, R.H., Wopenka, B., Burruss, R.C., and Pasteris, J.D., 1998, Extremely acid Permian lakes and ground waters in North America: Nature, v. 392, p. 911-914.
4. Jackson, J.B.C., and Johnson, K.G., 2001, Measuring Past Biodiversity: Science, v. 293, p. 2401-2404.
5. Jablonski, D., 2004, Extinction: past and present: Nature, v. 427, p. 589.
6. Kirchner, J.W., and Weil, A., 2000, Delayed biological recovery from extinctions throughout the fossil record: Nature, v. 404, p. 177-180.

The following contains some references related to the big five mass extinctions, but the Permian-Triassic boundary is not included. Please see references in discussion T2: End of Permian Mass Extinction.
Late Ordovician
1. Thorslund, P., and Wickman, F.E., 1981, Middle Ordovician chondrite in fossiliferous limestone from Brunflo, central Sweden: Nature, v. 289, p. 285-286.
2. Nystrom, J.O., Lindstrom, M., and Wickman, F.E., 1988, Discovery of a second Ordovician meteorite using chromite as a tracer: Nature, v. 336, p. 572-574.
3. Wang, K., Chatterton, B.D.E., Attrep, M., and Orth, C.J., 1992, Iridium abundance maxima at the latest Ordovician mass extinction horizon, Yangtze Basin, China; terrestrial or extraterrestrial?: Geology, v. 20, p. 39-42.
4. Finney, S.C., Berry, W.B.N., Cooper, J.D., Ripperdan, R.L., Sweet, W.C., Jacobson, S.R., Soufiane, A., Achab, A., and Noble, P.J., 1999, Late Ordovician mass extinction; a new perspective from stratigraphic sections in central Nevada: Geology, v. 27, p. 215-218.
5. Sheehan, P.M., and Harris, M.T., 2004, Microbialite resurgence after the Late Ordovician extinction: Nature, v. 430, p. 75-78.
6. Sutcliffe, O.E., Dowdeswell, J.A., Whittington, R.J., Theron, J.N., and Craig, J., 2000, Calibrating the Late Ordovician glaciation and mass extinction by the eccentricity cycles of Earth's orbit: Geology, v. 28, p. 967-970.

Late Devonian
1. Joachimski, M.M., and Buggisch, W., 2002, Conodont apatite δ¹⁸O signatures indicate climatic cooling as a trigger of the Late Devonian mass extinction: Geology, v. 30, p. 711-714.
Also see the following comments and reply:
    Gong, Y.-M., and Xu, R., 2003, COMMENT: Geology, v. 31, p. 383.
    Joachimski, M.M., and Buggisch, W., 2002, REPLY: Geology, v. 31, p. 384
2. Murphy, A.E., Sageman, B.B., and Hollander, D.J., 2000, Eutrophication by decoupling of the marine biogeochemical cycles of C, N, and P: A mechanism for the Late Devonian mass extinction: Geology, v. 28, p. 427-430.
Also see the following comments and reply:
    Racki, G., and Wignall, P., 2001, Comment and Reply: Geology, v. 29, p. 469-470.
3. Warme, J.E., and Sandberg, C.A., 1996, Alamo Megabreccia: Record of a Late Devonian Impact in Southern Nevada: GSA Today, v. 6, no. 1, p. 1-7.
4. Gao, G., 1993, The temperatures and oxygen-isotope composition of early Devonian oceans: Nature, v. 361, p. 712-714.
5. Wang, K., Attrep, M., and Orth, C.J., 1993, Global iridium anomaly, mass extinction, and redox change at the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary: Geology, v. 21, p. 1071-1074.
6. Xu, Dao-Yi, X., Zheng, V., Qin-Wen, Z., Zhi-Da, S., Yi-Yin, S., and Lian-Fang, Y., 1986, Significance of a δ¹³C anomaly near the Devonian/Carboniferous boundary at the Muhua section, South China: Nature, v. 321, p. 854-855.
7. McGhee, G.R., Gilmore, J.S., Orth, C.J., and Olsen, E., 1984, No geochemical evidence for an asteroidal impact at late Devonian mass extinction horizon, v. 308, p. 629-631.
8. Leroux, H., Warme, J.E., and Doukhan, J.-C., 1995, Shocked quartz in the Alamo Breccia, southern Nevada; evidence for a Devonian impact event: Geology, v. 23, p. 1003-1006.

Something close to Nevada (in case you go to the field and look at the Devonian rocks):
9. Sandberg, C.A., Morrow, J.R., and Ziegler, W., 2002, Late Devonian sea-level changes, catastrophic events, and mass extinctions, in Koeberl, C., and MacLeod, K.G., eds., Catastrophic Events and Mass Extinctions: Impacts and Beyond: Boulder, Colorado, Geological Society of America Special Paper 356, p. 473–487.
10. Morrow, J.R., Sandberg, C.A., and Harris, A.G., 2005, Late Devonian Alamo Impact, southern Nevada, USA: Evidence of size, marine site, and widespread effects, in Kenkmann, T., Horz, F., and Deutsch, A., eds., Large meteorite impacts III, Geological Society of America Special Paper 384, p. 259-280.
11. Morrow, J.R., 2006, Impacts and mass extinctions revisited: Palaios, v. 21, p. 313-315.
12. Morrow, J.R., and Sandberg, C.A., 2008, Evolution of Devonian carbonate-shelf margin, Nevada: Geosphere, v. 4, p. 445-458.

Triassic-Jurassic boundary
1. Whiteside, J.H., Olsen, P.E., Kent, D.V., Fowell, S.J., and Et-Touhami, M., 2008, Synchrony between the Central Atlantic magmatic province and the Triassic-Jurassic mass-extinction event? Reply to Marzoli et al: Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, v. 262, p. 194-198.
2. Whiteside, J.H., Olsen, P.E., Kent, D.V., Fowell, S.J., and Et-Touhami, M., 2007, Synchrony between the Central Atlantic magmatic province and the Triassic-Jurassic mass-extinction event?: Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, v. 244, p. 345-367.
3. Marzoli, A., Bertrand, H., Knight, K.B., Cirilli, S., Buratti, N., Verati, C., Nomade, S., Renne, P.R., Youbi, N., Martini, R., Allenbach, K., Neuwerth, R., Rapaille, C., Zaninetti, L., and Bellieni, G., 2004, Synchrony of the Central Atlantic magmatic province and the Triassic-Jurassic boundary climatic and biotic crisis: Geology, v. 32, p. 973-976.
4. Ward, P.D., Garrison, G.H., Haggart, J.W., Kring, D.A., and Beattie, M.J., 2004, Isotopic evidence bearing on Late Triassic extinction events, Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia, and implications for the duration and cause of the Triassic/Jurassic mass extinction: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, v. 224, p. 589-600.
5. Olsen, P.E., Kent, D.V., Sues, H.D., Koeberl, C., Huber, H., Montanari, A., Rainforth, E.C., Fowell, S.J., Szajna, M.J., and Hartline, B.W., 2002, Ascent of Dinosaurs Linked to an Iridium Anomaly at the Triassic-Jurassic Boundary: Science, v. 296, p. 1305-1307.
6. Olsen, P.E., 1999, Giant Lava Flows, Mass Extinctions, and Mantle Plumes: Science, v. 284, p. 604-605.
7. Marzoli, A., Renne, P.R., Piccirillo, E.M., Ernesto, M., Bellieni, G., and Min, A.D., 1999, Extensive 200-Million-Year-Old Continental Flood Basalts of the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province: Science, v. 284, p. 616-618.

K/T boundary
1. Coxall, H.K., D'Hondt, S., and Zachos, J.C., 2006, Pelagic evolution and environmental recovery after the Cretaceous-Paleogene mass extinction: Geology, v. 34, p. 297-300.
2. Wilf, P., Johnson, K.R., and Huber, B.T., 2003, Correlated terrestrial and marine evidence for global climate changes before mass extinction at the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, v. 100, p. 599-604.
3. Kirchner, J.W., and Weil, A., 2000, Delayed biological recovery from extinctions throughout the fossil record: Nature, v. 404, p. 177-180.
4. D'Hondt, S., Donaghay, P., Zachos, J.C., Luttenberg, D., and Lindinger, M., 1998, Organic Carbon Fluxes and Ecological Recovery from the Cretaceous-Tertiary Mass Extinction: Science, v. 282, p. 276-279.
5. Zachos, J.C., Arthur, M.A., and Dean, W.E., 1989, Geochemical evidence for suppression of pelagic marine productivity at the Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary: Nature, v. 337, p. 61-64.