Late Paleozoic oxygenation of marine environments supported by dolomite U-Pb dating

Michal Ben-Israel, Robert M. Holder, Lyle L. Nelson, Emily F. Smith, Andrew R. C. Kylander-Clark and Uri Ryb ()
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Michal Ben-Israel: The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Robert M. Holder: University of Michigan
Lyle L. Nelson: Carleton University, Ottawa
Emily F. Smith: Johns Hopkins University
Andrew R. C. Kylander-Clark: University of California, Santa Barbara
Uri Ryb: The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-8

Abstract: Abstract Understanding causal relationships between evolution and ocean oxygenation hinges on reliable reconstructions of marine oxygen levels, typically from redox-sensitive geochemical proxies. Here, we develop a proxy, using dolomite U–Pb geochronology, to reconstruct seawater U/Pb ratios. Dolomite samples consistently give U–Pb dates and initial 207Pb/206Pb ratios lower than expected from their stratigraphic ages. These observations are explained by resetting of the U–Pb system long after deposition; the magnitude of deviations from expected initial 207Pb/206Pb are a function of the redox-sensitive U/Pb ratios during deposition. Reconstructed initial U/Pb ratios increased notably in the late-Paleozoic, reflecting an increase in oxygenation of marine environments at that time. This timeline is consistent with documented shifts in some other redox proxies and supports evolution-driven mechanisms for the oxygenation of late-Paleozoic marine environments, as well as suggestions that early animals thrived in oceans that on long time scales were oxygen-limited compared to today.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46660-7

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