Authigenic replacement of cyanobacterially precipitated calcium carbonate by aluminium‐silicates in giant microbialites of Lake Van (Turkey)

Kremer, Barbara; Kaźmierczak, J.; Kempe, S.

doi:10.1111/sed.12529

Cited by 17 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 68 publications

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“…The shift in facies composition from carbonate‐dominated to clastic‐dominated fabrics appears to be related to hydrological regime changes influenced by surficial water supply. It is also possible, and as demonstrated in modern situations, that some parameters like alkalinity, water temperature, and biological processes may have controlled carbonate saturation and precipitation (e.g., Kremer et al., 2019).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A 571 million‐year‐old alkaline volcanic lake photosynthesizing microbial community, the Anti‐atlas, Morocco

et al. 2020

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The Ediacaran period coincides with the emergence of ancestral animal lineages and cyanobacteria capable of thriving in nutrient deficient oceans which together with photosynthetic eukaryotic dominance, culminated in the rapid oxygenation of the Ediacaran atmosphere. However, ecological evidence for the colonization of the Ediacaran terrestrial biosphere by photosynthetic communities and their contribution to the oxygenation of the biosphere at this time is very sparse. Here, we expand the repertoire of Ediacaran habitable environments to a specific microbial community that thrived in an extreme alkaline volcanic lake 571 Myr ago in the Anti‐atlas of Morocco. The microbial fabrics preserve evidence of primary growth structures, comprised of two main microbialitic units, with the lower section consisting of irregular and patchy thrombolytic mesoclots associated with composite microbialitic domes. Calcirudite interbeds, dominated by wave‐rippled sandy calcarenites and stromatoclasts, fill the interdome troughs and seal the dome tops. A meter‐thick epiclastic stromatolite bed grading upwards from a dominantly flat to wavy laminated base, transitions into low convex laminae consisting of decimeter to meter‐thick dome‐shaped stromatolitic columns, overlies the thrombolitic and composite microbialitic facies. Microbialitic beds constructed during periods of limited clastic input, and underlain by coarse‐grained microbialite‐derived clasts and by the wave‐rippled calcarenites, suggest high‐energy events associated with lake expansion. High‐resolution microscopy revealed spherulitic aggregates and structures reminiscent of coccoidal microbial cell casts and mineralized extra‐polymeric substances (EPS). The primary fabrics and multistage diagenetic features, represented by active carbonate production, photosynthesizing microbial communities, photosynthetic gas bubbles, gas escape structures, and tufted mats, suggest specialized oxygenic photosynthesizers thriving in alkaline volcanic lakes, contributed toward oxygen variability in the Ediacaran terrestrial biosphere.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A 571 million‐year‐old alkaline volcanic lake photosynthesizing microbial community, the Anti‐atlas, Morocco

et al. 2020

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“…Authigenic Ca-Mg aluminium-silicates occur as aggregates on the calcite crystals, EPS and as coatings/fillings of the filamentous microbes. The impregnation of EPS with Si, Al, Ca, Mg, K and Fe, and the formation of amorphous silica or authigenic aluminium-silicate minerals have been observed in various hydrothermal and lacustrine case studies and attributed to biologically induced and influenced mineralization (Allen et al, 2000; Konhauser et al, 2001; Arp et al, 2003; Lalonde et al, 2005; Pentecost, 2005; Jones and Peng, 2012; Peng and Jones, 2013; Jones and Peng, 2014ab, 2015, 2016; Kremer et al, 2019).…”

Section: Interpretation and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The influence of microbial mats on travertine precipitation in active hydrothermal systems (Central Italy)

Porta

Reitner²

2020

Preprint

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The study of hydrothermal travertines contributes to the understanding of the interaction between physico-chemical processes and the role played by microbial mats and biofilms in influencing carbonate precipitation. Three active travertine sites were investigated in Central Italy to identify the types of carbonate precipitates and the associated microbial mats at varying physico-chemical parameters. Carbonate precipitated fabrics at the decimetre- to millimetre-scale and microbial mats vary with decreasing water temperature: a) at high temperature (55-44°C) calcite or aragonite crystals precipitate on microbial mats of sulphide oxidizing, sulphate reducing and anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria forming filamentous streamer fabrics, b) at intermediate temperature (44-40°C), rafts, coated gas bubbles and dendrites are associated with Spirulina cyanobacteria and other filamentous and rod-shaped cyanobacteria, c) low temperature (34-33°C) laminated crusts and oncoids in a terraced slope system are associated with diverse Oscillatoriales and Nostocales filamentous cyanobacteria, sparse Spirulina and diatoms. At the microscale, carbonate precipitates are similar in the three sites consisting of prismatic calcite (40-100 μm long, 20-40 μm wide) or acicular aragonite crystals organized in radial spherulites, overlying or embedded within biofilm EPS (Extracellular Polymeric Substances). Microsparite and sparite crystal size decreases with decreasing temperature and clotted peloidal micrite dominates at temperatures < 40°C, also encrusting filamentous microbes. Carbonates are associated with gypsum and Ca-phosphate crystals; EPS elemental composition is enriched in Si, Al, Mg, Ca, P, S and authigenic aluminium-silicates form aggregates on EPS.This study confirms that microbial communities in hydrothermal travertine settings vary as a function of temperature. Carbonate precipitate types at the microscale do not vary considerably, despite different microbial communities suggesting that travertine precipitation, driven by CO2 degassing, is influenced by biofilm EPS acting as template for crystal nucleation (EPS-mediated mineralization) and affecting the fabric types, independently from specific microbial metabolism.

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“…Tazaki argued that coccidial bacteria could promote nucleation of silicates on coccoidal bacteria cell walls by immobilization of metal ions [52]. The observations from modern calcareous microbialites in Van Gölü (Lake Van) confirmed the formation process of siliceous mineral phases [56]: abundant minute aragonite grains precipitated first in vivo in the EPS; then these grains were rapidly succeeded and/or supplemented in the dead biomass of the cyanobacterial mat by authigenic Al-Mg-Fe siliceous phases. Fein et al concluded that Si-phase mineralization is an effect of Fe and Al adsorption [57] and that bacterial EPS may serve as templates for Fe/Al oxide precipitations [52].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The microorganisms induced precipitation of the silicate phase have been the subject of extensive studies [ 52 – 56 ]. Tazaki argued that coccidial bacteria could promote nucleation of silicates on coccoidal bacteria cell walls by immobilization of metal ions [ 52 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Calcified coccoid from Cambrian Miaolingian: Revealing the potential cellular structure of Epiphyton

et al. 2019

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Epiphyton, Renalcis, and Girvanella are ubiquitous genera of calcified cyanobacteria/algae from Early Paleozoic shallow-marine limestones. One genus, Epiphyton, is characterized by a particular dendritic outline, and extensive research has revealed the morphology of calcified remains although little information on cellular structure is known. The mass occurrence of calcified Epiphyton in microbialites from Cambrian Miaolingian, the Mianchi area of North China is preserved as black clots within thrombolites and have dendritic and spherical outlines when viewed with a petrographic microscope. These remains, visible under scanning electron microscope (SEM), also comprise spherical or rectangle capsules. These capsules are made up from external envelopes and internal calcite with numerous pits, which closely resemble modern benthic coccoid cyanobacteria. These pits are between 2 μm and 4 μm in diameter and are interpreted here to represent the remnants of degraded coccoid cells, while the calcite that surrounds these pits is interpreted as calcified thin extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). In contrast, associated capsular envelopes represent thick EPS mineralized by calcium carbonate with an admixture of Al-Mg-Fe silicates. Dendritic ‘thalli’ are typically stacked apically because of the repeated growth and calcification of these capsules. Carbon and oxygen isotope results are interpreted to indicate that both photosynthesis and heterotrophic bacterial metabolism (especially sulfate reducing bacteria) contributed to carbonate precipitation by elevated alkalinity. Epiphyton are therefore here interpreted as colonies of calcified coccoid cyanobacteria, and the carbonate-oversaturated seawater during the Cambrian was conducive to their mineralization.

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Authigenic replacement of cyanobacterially precipitated calcium carbonate by aluminium‐silicates in giant microbialites of Lake Van (Turkey)

Cited by 17 publications

References 68 publications

A 571 million‐year‐old alkaline volcanic lake photosynthesizing microbial community, the Anti‐atlas, Morocco

A 571 million‐year‐old alkaline volcanic lake photosynthesizing microbial community, the Anti‐atlas, Morocco

The influence of microbial mats on travertine precipitation in active hydrothermal systems (Central Italy)

Calcified coccoid from Cambrian Miaolingian: Revealing the potential cellular structure of Epiphyton

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