The Quanji Group is composed of siliciclastics and carbonates and was deposited on a relatively stable block, in the northern margin of the Qaidam Basin, NW China. It is one of the research hotspots in the Qilian-Qinl...The Quanji Group is composed of siliciclastics and carbonates and was deposited on a relatively stable block, in the northern margin of the Qaidam Basin, NW China. It is one of the research hotspots in the Qilian-Qinling-Kunlun tectonic zones. However, it has long been argued whether the up- per Qnanji Group should be assigned to the Precambrian or the Cambrian for lack of convincing fossil evidence. The discovery of ichnofossils, including Rusophycus, Cruziana, Dimorphichnus, Treptichnus, Skolithos, Arenicolites, Palaeophycus, and Helminthopsis, indicates that the upper member of the Zhou- jieshan Formation （top Quanji Group） is Cambrian in age, and at least above the Treptichnus （Phycodes） pedum Biozone, the lowermost biozone in the Cambrian. The lower member of the Zhoujieshan Forma- tion should belong to the Cambrian. During the time when the upper member of the Zhoujieshan For- mation was deposited, the northern margin of the Qaidam Basin was dominated by the Cruziana Ichnofacies, characterizing a lower-energy shelf （shallow） sea environment with moderate-rich oxygen con- tents. In addition, the conglomerates in the Hongtiegou Formation of the Quanji Group underlying the Zhoujieshan Formation were generally regarded as tillites. However, the dolostones of the lower member of the Zhoujieshan Formation are, in lithology and geochemistry, different from the typical cap-dolostones of the Doushantuo Formation in South China, so it is necessary to further study the origins of the lower member of the Zhoujieshan Formation and the conglomerates of the Hongriegou Formarion.展开更多
Over 190 specimens of an attachment ichnofossil Kailidiscus （n. ichnogen.） have been found in the Kaili Bitoa, a Burgess Shale-type biota, from the middle Kaili Formation （early Middle Cambrian） in Taijiang County...Over 190 specimens of an attachment ichnofossil Kailidiscus （n. ichnogen.） have been found in the Kaili Bitoa, a Burgess Shale-type biota, from the middle Kaili Formation （early Middle Cambrian） in Taijiang County, Guizhou Province, southern China. Kailidiscus is an epichnia with a circular to oval attachment platform, on which there is a carbonaceous film probably formed by the body of the living organism. Structures such as a marginal furrow, an inner and outer marginal ride, many convex fold-ridges, and a large caved peripheral furrow on the attachment platform may be the result of basal tissues of a sessile organism that wrinkled to increase the attachment＇s surface area. The Kailidiscus organism may have been a sessile cnidarian attached to the muddy seafioor. Kailidiscus organisms lived in relatively quiet water, and were buried by a sudden influx of sediment.展开更多
Upper Triassic and Middle Jurassic strata of the Xichang Basin in Sichuan Province, southwestern China, yielded important dinosaur ichnofossils. From the Xujiahe Formation of the Yiguojiao tracksite, we report a Late ...Upper Triassic and Middle Jurassic strata of the Xichang Basin in Sichuan Province, southwestern China, yielded important dinosaur ichnofossils. From the Xujiahe Formation of the Yiguojiao tracksite, we report a Late Triassic footprint assemblage in China and the first discovery of diagnostic Triassic sauropodomorph tracks in this region. The tracks share a number of features in common with the ichnogenera Eosauropus(Late Triassic) and Liujianpus(Early Jurassic). The neighboring Bingtu tracksite is stratigraphically younger(Shaximiao Formation, Middle Jurassic) and preserves small tridactyl theropod tracks that represent the first occurrence of the ichnotaxon Carmelopodus in China and Asia. While these tracks are morphologically comparable to those from the Middle Jurassic type locality in North America, the specimens from China show the proximal margin of the digit IV impression in a more cranial position, which may indicate a trackmaker with a relatively short metatarsal IV. In addition to the skeletal record, the Carmelopodus footprints document the presence of small theropods in the dinosaur fauna of the Middle Jurassic Shaximiao Formation.展开更多
基金jointly supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41162003)China Geological Survey (No. 1212011121258)
文摘The Quanji Group is composed of siliciclastics and carbonates and was deposited on a relatively stable block, in the northern margin of the Qaidam Basin, NW China. It is one of the research hotspots in the Qilian-Qinling-Kunlun tectonic zones. However, it has long been argued whether the up- per Qnanji Group should be assigned to the Precambrian or the Cambrian for lack of convincing fossil evidence. The discovery of ichnofossils, including Rusophycus, Cruziana, Dimorphichnus, Treptichnus, Skolithos, Arenicolites, Palaeophycus, and Helminthopsis, indicates that the upper member of the Zhou- jieshan Formation （top Quanji Group） is Cambrian in age, and at least above the Treptichnus （Phycodes） pedum Biozone, the lowermost biozone in the Cambrian. The lower member of the Zhoujieshan Forma- tion should belong to the Cambrian. During the time when the upper member of the Zhoujieshan For- mation was deposited, the northern margin of the Qaidam Basin was dominated by the Cruziana Ichnofacies, characterizing a lower-energy shelf （shallow） sea environment with moderate-rich oxygen con- tents. In addition, the conglomerates in the Hongtiegou Formation of the Quanji Group underlying the Zhoujieshan Formation were generally regarded as tillites. However, the dolostones of the lower member of the Zhoujieshan Formation are, in lithology and geochemistry, different from the typical cap-dolostones of the Doushantuo Formation in South China, so it is necessary to further study the origins of the lower member of the Zhoujieshan Formation and the conglomerates of the Hongriegou Formarion.
基金The study is supported by the National Science Foundation of China （Nos. 40172014 and 40372023） and the Guizhou University Foundation, China.
文摘Over 190 specimens of an attachment ichnofossil Kailidiscus （n. ichnogen.） have been found in the Kaili Bitoa, a Burgess Shale-type biota, from the middle Kaili Formation （early Middle Cambrian） in Taijiang County, Guizhou Province, southern China. Kailidiscus is an epichnia with a circular to oval attachment platform, on which there is a carbonaceous film probably formed by the body of the living organism. Structures such as a marginal furrow, an inner and outer marginal ride, many convex fold-ridges, and a large caved peripheral furrow on the attachment platform may be the result of basal tissues of a sessile organism that wrinkled to increase the attachment＇s surface area. The Kailidiscus organism may have been a sessile cnidarian attached to the muddy seafioor. Kailidiscus organisms lived in relatively quiet water, and were buried by a sudden influx of sediment.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.41772008)the State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy(Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, CAS)(Grant No.173127)and the comprehensive geological and mineral survey in Wumeng mountainous area conducted by China Geological Survey (Grant No.121201010000150002)
文摘Upper Triassic and Middle Jurassic strata of the Xichang Basin in Sichuan Province, southwestern China, yielded important dinosaur ichnofossils. From the Xujiahe Formation of the Yiguojiao tracksite, we report a Late Triassic footprint assemblage in China and the first discovery of diagnostic Triassic sauropodomorph tracks in this region. The tracks share a number of features in common with the ichnogenera Eosauropus(Late Triassic) and Liujianpus(Early Jurassic). The neighboring Bingtu tracksite is stratigraphically younger(Shaximiao Formation, Middle Jurassic) and preserves small tridactyl theropod tracks that represent the first occurrence of the ichnotaxon Carmelopodus in China and Asia. While these tracks are morphologically comparable to those from the Middle Jurassic type locality in North America, the specimens from China show the proximal margin of the digit IV impression in a more cranial position, which may indicate a trackmaker with a relatively short metatarsal IV. In addition to the skeletal record, the Carmelopodus footprints document the presence of small theropods in the dinosaur fauna of the Middle Jurassic Shaximiao Formation.
