Lecture 12 Oxygen deficiency

in the geological record

Biomarkers and paleoenvironments

Plankton ecology
Redox changes and water column stratification
Sea-surface temperature

Mechanisms for ocean deoxygenation

Examples of oceanic anoxic events (OAEs)

Cretaceous OAE-2 (Cenomanian-Turonian, ~93.5 Ma)
Permian-Triassic mass extinction (~252 Ma)

1
 Global marine primary production - sized
Microphytoplankton >20 mm
Diatoms & Dinoflagellates

Nanophytoplankton 2-20 mm
These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions. Prymnesiophytes

Please see the images on

http://www.obs-vlfr.fr/LOV/OMT/fichiers_PDF/UItz_et_al._GBC_10.pdf

Picophytoplankton <2 mm
Cyanobacteria

Uitz et al. (2010 Global Biogeochemical Cycles)

Evolution of modern marine phytoplankton

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

Katz et al. (2005 Annu. Rev. Ecol. Evol. Syst)

Biomarkers & phytoplankton evolution

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

Schwart & Empt (2006

4 Palaeo)
Biomarkers & phytoplankton evolution

After Knoll 5et al. (2007)

 Biomarkers for cyanobacteria

After Knoll et al. (2007)

Proxies for water column stratification and
oxygen deficiency

7
 Tetrahymanol & Gammacerane
Miocene Gessoso-solfifera Formation

Tetrahymanol

This image has been removed

due to copyright restrictions.
H3CS 3-methylthiogammacerane

H Gammacerane

Sinninghe Damste et al. (1995 GCA)

 Lycopane

Mid-Cretaceous (Cenomanian-Turonian) OAE

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

Surface sediments
Arabian Sea

9 Sinninghe Damste et al. (2003, EPSL)

Preservation of extended side-chain hopanes

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

Kster et al. (1997, GCA)

10
Anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox)

Lipids with linear concatenated cyclobutane moieties

[3]-ladderane 2-alkyl glycerol monoether

[5]-ladderane FAME

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

[3]-ladderane FAME

Sinninghe Damste et al. (2005, FEBS)

11
Markers for nitrogen cycling

archaea

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

OH
bacteria

O O
N
+ Marine
OPO crenarchaea:
nitrification
O Anammox
bacteria:
Anaerobic
oxidation of
ammonium

12
 Photic zone euxinia

Source: Roger Summons

13
14

Source: Roger Summons

The Black Sea water chemistry

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

15
Wakeham et al. (2007, Organic Geochemistry)
The Black Sea - biomarkers

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

16
Wakeham et al. (2007, Organic Geochemistry)
The Black Sea - biomarkers

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

17
Wakeham et al. (2007, Organic Geochemistry)
The Black Sea - biomarkers

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

18
Wakeham et al. (2007, Organic Geochemistry)
 IPLs follow water column stratification: Black Sea

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

Oxic: phototrophs

Suboxic: anoxygenic phototrophs

Ammonium oxidizing crenarchaea

Anoxic: sulfate-reducing bacteria, unknown

anaerobic bacteria

Schubotz et al., EM (2009)

 BHPs in OMZs

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

20
Saenz et al. (2011, Organic Geochemistry)
 BHPs in OMZs

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

21
Saenz et al. (2011, Organic Geochemistry)
 Proxies for Sea Surface Temperature

http://www.nodc.noaa.gov

22
Image courtesy of NOAA.
Temperature proxies: Long-chain Alkenones

23
 Alkenones in marine surface sediments

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

24
Mller et al. (1998)
 Sea Surface Temperature: TEX86

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

II III V
IV

25 Schouten et al. (2002, EPSL); Kim et al. (2008, GCA)

Oxygen deficiency in the past

26
 OAEs, extinctions & black shales

After Takashima et al. (2006)

 28
After Takashima et al. (2006)
Ocean anoxia & black shale formation

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

Takashima et al. (2006, Oceanography)

29
 Feedback mechanisms & deoxygenation

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

30
Meyer & Kump (2008 Annu. Rev. Earth Planet. Sci.)
 Mechanisms for ocean anoxia: Volcanism

CO2

Black shales

After Bralower (2008, Nature)

Turgeon & Creaser (2008, Nature)
Meyer & Kump (2008, Annu. Rev. Earth Planet. Sci)
Mechanisms for ocean anoxia: Orbital forcing

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

Zachos et al. (2001, Science)

32
Oxygen deficiency in the past
Cretaceous OAEs

33
 The Cretaceous World & black shales

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

34
Takashima et al. (2006)
 Oceanic Anoxic Events (OAEs)
Major perturbation in
the global climate
ocean system
Chemical and/or
biological changes in
the world oceans
Black carbon-rich
shales from deep
oceans to shealf
seas
Enhanced
productivity
Enhanced
preservation of
organic matter
Reduced circulation

After Takashima et al. (2006)

 Small latitudinal temperature gradient

Intense volcanism & high

pCO2
Greenhouse climate & high
sea surface temperatures
Enhanced primary
productivity
This image has been removed due
to copyright restrictions.
Widespread anoxia and
euxinia
High burial of organic carbon
Positive isotopic excursion

36

Takashima et al. (2006)

 Cenomanian-Turonian OAE-2

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

37
Foster et al. (2007 Paleoceanography)
 Large Igneous Provinces (IPLs) and OAEs

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

38
Turgeon and Creaser (2008 Nature)
Cretaceous Sea Surface Temperatures

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

39

Sinninghe Damste et al. (2010)

Cyanobacteria & N2 fixation

These images have been removed due to copyright restrictions.

Kuypers et al. (2004 Geology)

40
Cyanobacteria & N2 fixation

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

Kuypers et al. (2004 Geology)

41
Massive expansion of Marine Archaea

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

Kuypers et al. (2001)

42
Oxygen deficiency in the past
Permian-Triassic boundary

43
 Permian-Triassic mass extinction (~252 Ma)

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

44

Shen et al. (2011 Nature)

 Photic zone euxinia at the P-T

Image courtesy
45
of MIT Press.
Lindsay Hays (2010 PhD Thesis)
Meishan, southern China

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

46

Cao et al. (2009, EPSL)

Meishan, southern China

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

47

Cao et al. (2009, EPSL)

Meishan, southern China

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

48

Cao et al. (2009, EPSL)

Nitrogen fixation across the P-T

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

49

Luo et al. (2011, Geology)

 Western Australia

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

50

Grice et al. (2005 Science)

 Isotope anomaly

This image has been removed due to copyright restrictions.

51

Grice et al. (2005 Science)

 Isotope anomaly

52

Lindsay Hays (2010 PhD Thesis) Image courtesy of MIT Press.

 Isotope anomaly

Lindsay Hays (2010 PhD Thesis) Image courtesy of MIT Press.

MIT OpenCourseWare
http://ocw.mit.edu

12.158 Molecular Biogeochemistry

Fall 2011

For information about citing these materials or our Terms of Use, visit: http://ocw.mit.edu/terms.

54