Pace, magnitude, and nature of terrestrial climate change through the end-Permian extinction in southeastern Gondwana

Abstract

Rapid climate change was a major contributor to the end-Permian extinction (EPE). Although well constrained for the marine realm, relatively few records document the pace, nature, and magnitude of climate change across the EPE in terrestrial environments. We generated proxy records for chemical weathering and land surface temperature from continental margin deposits of the high-latitude southeastern margin of Gondwana. Regional climate simulations provide additional context. Results show that Glossopteris forest-mire ecosystems collapsed during a pulse of intense chemical weathering and peak warmth, which capped ~1 m.y. of gradual warming and intensification of seasonality. Erosion resulting from loss of vegetation was short lived in the low-relief landscape. Earliest Triassic climate was ~10–14 °C warmer than the late Lopingian and landscapes were no longer persistently wet. Aridification, commonly linked to the EPE, developed gradually, facilitating the persistence of refugia for moisture-loving terrestrial groups.

Paleoclimate-induced stress on polar forested ecosystems prior to the Permian–Triassic mass extinction

“…Longer-term averages of paleoclimate information are derived from the morphologic and geochemical analysis of paleosols and sedimentary rocks (Figs. 3g, 4e) 18,19,[31][32][33] . The Late Permian witnessed an increase in land surface temperatures (LSTs) by 10ºC or more 19 , consistent between eastern Australia, Antarctica.…”

“…3g, 4e) 18,19,[31][32][33] . The Late Permian witnessed an increase in land surface temperatures (LSTs) by 10ºC or more 19 , consistent between eastern Australia, Antarctica. However, the paleotropical North China craton sedimentary record shows a comparatively muted temperature increase of ~5ºC 31 (Fig.…”

Editorial: Permian Extinctions

“…That succession, the Siberian Traps, is a Large Igneous Province (LIP; Ivanov et al, 2013). Mounting geochemical, high-resolution geochronological, and magnetostratigraphic data, coupled with GCM modeling of the LIP effects on the Permian world (e.g., Frank et al, 2021), continue to reinforce the role(s) that the Siberian Traps played in this event.…”

“…That succession, the Siberian Traps, is a Large Igneous Province (LIP; Ivanov et al, 2013). Mounting geochemical, high-resolution geochronological, and magnetostratigraphic data, coupled with GCM modeling of the LIP effects on the Permian world (e.g., Frank et al, 2021), continue to reinforce the role(s) that the Siberian Traps played in this event.Multidisciplinary studies, incorporating these data into the rock record of various coeval geographic settings, has allowed further refinement in our understanding of the turnoverand-extinction patterns of the Late Paleozoic biosphere. Evidence continues to be unearthed about the extent and timing of perturbation and extinction in terrestrial and marine communities.…”

Living fast in the Triassic: New data on life history in Lystrosaurus (Therapsida: Dicynodontia) from northeastern Pangea

“…Climatic differences in the high-southern (60˚S) versus mid-northern (45˚N) paleolatitudes [104,105] is another possible explanation for the observed difference in body size and inferred lifespan in Lystrosaurus. Paleoclimate reconstructions of the latest Permian to earliest Triassic show extreme increases in temperature and aridity [106][107][108][109], mega monsoons [110,111], chemical weathering, soil erosion, and geochemical and isotopic signatures of mass wasting and greenhouse conditions [8,105,112,113]. Facies that span the terrestrial Permo-Triassic boundary of the Karoo Basin are interpreted as a change from meandering rivers to low-sinuosity braid-plains, resulting from increased aridity and a die-off of rooted plants that supported river morphologies [114,115].…”