Discerning the interactions between environmental parameters reflected in δ13C and δ18O of recent fluvial tufas: Lessons from a Mediterranean climate region

Osácar, María Cinta; Arenas, Concha; Auqué, Luis F.; Sancho, Carlos; Sanclemente, Gabriel Pardo; Vázquez‐Urbez, Marta

doi:10.1016/j.sedgeo.2016.09.004

Cited by 14 publications

(30 citation statements)

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“…Osácar et al . () related the six‐month cyclic δ 18 O variation in the River Piedra stromatolites to seasonal temperature variations. In the present work, based on the correlation between the water temperature (Tw) variations and the textural variations of six‐month deposits of two sites in the River Piedra, the dense and porous composite laminae correlate with high and low temperature periods, respectively (Figs A, B, A and B).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Climatic (air temperature and precipitation) and hydrological (discharge) data over the 13 year period were obtained from Agencia Estatal de Meteorolog ıa and Confederaci on Hidrogr afica del Ebro. Results concerning deposition rates, hydrochemistry and stable-isotope composition are provided by V azquez-Urbez et al (2010), Arenas et al (2014) andOs acar et al (2016).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Temporal and environmental significance of microbial lamination: Insights from Recent fluvial stromatolites in the River Piedra, Spain

Arenas

Jones

2017

Sedimentology

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Despite extensive research, the environmental and temporal significance of microbial lamination is still ambiguous because of the complexity of the parameters that control its development. A 13 year monitored record of modern fast‐accreting calcite stromatolites (mean 14 mm year−1) from artificial substrates installed in rapid flow in the River Piedra (north‐east Spain) allows comparison of the sedimentological attributes of successive six‐month depositional packages with the known climatic, hydrophysical and hydrochemical parameters of the depositional system. The stromatolites are formed of dense, porous and macrocrystalline composite laminae. The dense and porous composite laminae, which are composed of two to eight laminae consisting largely of calcified cyanobacteria, are characterized by: (i) dense composite laminae, up to 15 mm thick, mostly with successive dense laminae and minor alternating dense and porous laminae; and (ii) porous composite laminae, up to 12 mm thick, consisting mainly of porous laminae alternating with thinner dense laminae. Most of the dense composite laminae formed during the warm periods (April to September), whereas most of the porous composite laminae developed in the cool periods (October to March). Each dense and porous composite lamina represents up to or slightly longer than six months. The alternation of these two types of composite laminae parallels seasonal changes in temperature. The dense and porous laminae result from shorter (for example, intraseasonal) variations in temperature, insolation and hydrological conditions. The macrocrystalline laminae, with crystals >100 μm long, occur isolated and grouped into composite laminae up to 1·7 mm thick. Their occurrence suggests the absence or poor development of microbial mats over periods of weeks to several months. Thus, stromatolite lamination can record different‐order, periodic and non‐periodic changes in the magnitude of environmental parameters over a single year. These results hold important implications for the temporal and environmental interpretation of lamination in microbial structures.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Temporal and environmental significance of microbial lamination: Insights from Recent fluvial stromatolites in the River Piedra, Spain

Arenas

Jones

2017

Sedimentology

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“…Similarly, textural and d 18 O and d 13 C variations of the laminae in mid-Cretaceous lacustrine stromatolites that grew in semiarid to arid conditions have been attributed to local climatic conditions that caused temporal oscillations in lake salinity and productivity (Nehza et al, 2009). In fluvial environments, cyclic d 18 O variations have generally been attributed to seasonal variations in temperature given that evaporation has little effect on isotope fractionation in this setting (Chafetz et al, 1991;Andrews & Brasier, 2005;Kano et al, 2007;Os acar et al, 2013;Os acar et al, 2016).…”

Section: Significance Of the Types Of Laminae And Lamination In The Ementioning

confidence: 99%

Lacustrine stromatolites: Useful structures for environmental interpretation – an example from the Miocene Ebro Basin

2019

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The significance of stromatolites as depositional environmental indicators and the underlying causes of lamination in the lacustrine realm are poorly understood. Stromatolites in a ca 600 m thick Miocene succession in the Ebro Basin are good candidates to shed light on these issues because they are intimately related to other lacustrine carbonate and sulphate facies, grew under variable environmental conditions and show distinct lamination patterns. These stromatolites are associated with wave‐related, clastic‐carbonate laminated limestones. Both facies consist of calcite and variable amounts of dolomite. Thin planar stromatolites (up to 10 cm thick and less than 6 m long) occurred in very shallow water. These stromatolites represented first biological colonization after: (i) subaerial exposure in the palustrine environment (i.e. at the beginning of deepening cycles); or (ii) erosion due to surge action, then coating very irregular surfaces on laminated limestones (i.e. through shallowing or deepening cycles). Sometimes they are associated with evaporative pumping. Stratiform stromatolites (10 to 30 cm high and tens of metres long) and domed stromatolites (10 to 30 cm high and long) developed in deeper settings, between the surge periods that produced hummocky cross‐stratification and horizontal lamination offshore. Changes in stromatolite lamina shape, and thus in the growth forms through time, can be attributed to changes in water depth, whereas variations in lamina continuity are linked to water energy and sediment supply. Growth of the stromatolites resulted from in situ calcite precipitation and capture of minor amounts of fine‐grained carbonate particles. Based on texture, four types of simple laminae are distinguished. The simple micrite and microsparite laminae can be grouped into light and dark composite laminae, which represent, respectively, high and low Precipitation/Evaporation ratio periods. Different lamination patterns provide new ideas for the interpretation of microbial laminations as a function of variations in climate‐dependent parameters (primarily the Precipitation/Evaporation ratio) over variable timescales.

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“…The River Piedra valley (the Spanish word piedra means stone) hosts thick and extensive Quaternary tufas that have been the focus of several studies (Vázquez-Urbez et al 2011Sancho et al 2015). Moreover, at present, a prominent feature of this river is the presence of a large tufa formation, which has allowed periodic monitoring over 13 years in the Monasterio de Piedra Natural Park, an excellent site for present tufa formation (e.g., Vázquez-Urbez et al 2010;Arenas et al , 2014Osácar et al 2013Osácar et al , 2016.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this paper representative samples of middle Pleistocene stromatolite tufa collected from the River Piedra area are compared with present-day tufa stromatolites formed in similar conditions in the same river. This recent record formed from 2000 to 2012 on an artificial substrate in the Natural Park, where environmental conditions were known (Arenas et al 2014;Osácar et al 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coupling textural and stable-isotope variations in fluvial stromatolites: Comparison of Pleistocene and recent records in NE Spain

et al. 2019

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Textural and stable isotopic features of two middle Pleistocene fluvial stromatolite profiles are compared to a recent stromatolite, both formed in the River Piedra system (NE Spain), to test the reliability of climatic, hydrologic and depositional information derived from ancient records. The Pleistocene stromatolites formed in a multi-domed, highly-inclined cascade-barrage. The recent stromatolite also formed in a highly-inclined cascade of the River Piedra, the sedimentary conditions of which were periodically examined between the years 2000 and 2012. The Pleistocene stromatolites are formed of an alternation of 1) thin large-crystal laminae (type A), with elongated crystals up to 1 mm long, and 2) thick small-crystal laminae (type B), consisting of cyanobacterial fan-and bushshaped bodies. The textural and isotopic comparison with the recent stromatolite shows that each A-B couplet corresponds to one year. The type-A laminae are comparable to the macrocrystalline laminae that occur in the cool-period deposits of the recent stromatolite, and the type-B laminae are comparable to the warm-period deposits of the recent stromatolite. Water temperatures (Tw), calculated from δ 18 O calcite and present measures of δ 18 O water , were similar in the Pleistocene and recent specimens, and close to the measured river Tw. Thus, the Pleistocene stromatolites formed not far from isotopic equilibrium, as did the recent stromatolite. The Pleistocene δ 18 O calcite biannual oscillation is wider in amplitude than in the recent stromatolite, which suggests larger differences in Tw through the year in the Pleistocene than at present. The Pleistocene δ 13 C calcite does not show any pattern; and the values are slightly higher than the recent ones. The co-evolution of δ 18 O and δ 13 C is parallel in the Pleistocene stromatolites, matching the recent stromatolite behavior. These results and their comparison with other ancient examples prove that textural and isotopic features in ancient stromatolites are useful tools to infer past depositional, climatic and hydrological conditions. Moreover, interpretations from recent fluvial stromatolites can be extrapolated to past environments to help decipher patterns of past processes, in cases where both recent and ancient stromatolites can be compared within one environmental setting. Such comparisons may be used to help interpretations of ancient stromatolites where the modern ones are not available to study.

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Discerning the interactions between environmental parameters reflected in δ13C and δ18O of recent fluvial tufas: Lessons from a Mediterranean climate region

Cited by 14 publications

References 38 publications

Temporal and environmental significance of microbial lamination: Insights from Recent fluvial stromatolites in the River Piedra, Spain

Temporal and environmental significance of microbial lamination: Insights from Recent fluvial stromatolites in the River Piedra, Spain

Lacustrine stromatolites: Useful structures for environmental interpretation – an example from the Miocene Ebro Basin

Coupling textural and stable-isotope variations in fluvial stromatolites: Comparison of Pleistocene and recent records in NE Spain

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