New! Sign up for our free email newsletter.
Science News
from research organizations

When life returned after a volcanic mass extinction

Date:
April 8, 2016
Source:
University of Utah
Summary:
A new study used fossils and mercury isotopes from volcanic gas deposited in ancient proto-Pacific Ocean sediment deposits in Nevada to determine when life recovered following the end-Triassic mass extinction 201.5 million years ago.
Share:
FULL STORY

A worldwide mass extinction 201.5 million years ago wiped out 60 percent of sea life, including coral reefs and shelled marine animals. On land, the dead included many plants as well as giant reptiles that competed with the earliest dinosaurs.

The mass extinction apparently was caused by huge carbon dioxide emissions from gargantuan volcanic eruptions in the center of the supercontinent Pangea, which eventually broke into today's modern continents. The eruptions were in what is named the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province because the Atlantic Ocean eventually formed there as Pangea broke apart.

In the April 6 issue of the journal Nature Communications, a new study used fossils and mercury isotopes from volcanic gas deposited in ancient proto-Pacific Ocean sediment deposits in Nevada to determine when life recovered following the mass extinction at the end of the Triassic Period. The Proto-Pacific surrounded Pangea.

Kathleen Ritterbush, an assistant professor of geology and geophysics at the University of Utah, co-authored the study. It found a significant recovery of sea life didn't occur until after the end of the massive volcanic eruptions, which occurred in spurts between 201.6 million and 200.9 million years ago.

While colleagues did the mercury analysis, Ritterbush collected rocks and analyzed ancient sea sponges. Traces of mercury in rock showed the timing of major lava eruptions as Pangea split.

Although squid-like ammonites diversified rapidly when eruptions ceased, seafloor ecology recovered slowly. Sponges carpeted coastal habitats for about 2 million years before mollusks and corals finally re-established ecosystems as complex as before the eruptions.


Story Source:

Materials provided by University of Utah. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


Journal Reference:

  1. Alyson M. Thibodeau, Kathleen Ritterbush, Joyce A. Yager, A. Joshua West, Yadira Ibarra, David J. Bottjer, William M. Berelson, Bridget A. Bergquist, Frank A. Corsetti. Mercury anomalies and the timing of biotic recovery following the end-Triassic mass extinction. Nature Communications, 2016; 7: 11147 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms11147

Cite This Page:

University of Utah. "When life returned after a volcanic mass extinction." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 8 April 2016. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/04/160408112409.htm>.
University of Utah. (2016, April 8). When life returned after a volcanic mass extinction. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 18, 2024 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/04/160408112409.htm
University of Utah. "When life returned after a volcanic mass extinction." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/04/160408112409.htm (accessed March 18, 2024).

Explore More

from ScienceDaily

RELATED STORIES