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Paleoclimate evolution and aridification mechanism of the eastern Tethys during the Callovian–Oxfordian: evidence from geochemical records of the Qiangtang Basin, Tibetan Plateau

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Abstract

Global climate during the Jurassic has been commonly described as a uniform greenhouse climate for a long time. However, the climate scenario of a cool episode during the Callovian–Oxfordian transition following by a warming trend during the Oxfordian (163.53 to 157.4 Ma) is documented in many localities of the western Tethys. It is still unclear if a correlatable climate scenario also occurred in the eastern Tethys during the same time interval. In this study, a detailed geochemical analysis on the 1060 m thick successions (the Xiali and Suowa formations) from the Yanshiping section of the Qiangtang Basin, located in the eastern Tethys margin during the Callovian–Oxfordian periods, was performed. To reveal the climate evolution of the basin, carbonate content and soluble salt concentrations (SO42−, Cl−) were chosen as climatic indices. The results show that the overall climate patterns during the deposition of the Xiali and Suowa formations can be divided into three stages: relatively humid (~ 164.0 to 160.9 Ma), dry (~ 160.9 to 159.6 Ma), semi-dry (~ 159.6 to 156.8 Ma). A similar warming climate scenario also occurred in eastern Tethys during the Callovian–Oxfordian transition (~ 160.9 to 159.6 Ma). Besides, we clarify that the Jurassic True polar wander (TPW), the motion of the lithosphere and mantle with respect to Earth’s spin axis, inducing climatic shifts were responsible for the aridification of the Qiangtang Basin during the Callovian–Oxfordian transition with a review of the paleolatitude of the Xiali formation (19.7 + 2.8/−2.6° N) and the Suowa formation (20.7 + 4.1/−3.7° N). It is because the TPW rotations shifted the East Asia blocks (the North and South China, Qiangtang, and Qaidam blocks) from the humid zone to the tropical/subtropical arid zone and triggered the remarkable aridification during the Middle-Late Jurassic (ca. 165–155 Ma).

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Fig. 1

adapted from Brunetti et al. (2015). Most regions of the Western and Eastern Tethys are enclosed in the red and black squares, respectively. Abbreviations, Nam, North America; SAm, South America; Ant, Antarctica; Aus, Australia; G, Greenland; I, Iberia; A, Adria; T, Taurus; AT, Alpine Tethys; BN, Bangong-Nujiang; ES, Elise Sea. QT, Qiangtang Terrane; LT, Lhasa Terrane

Fig. 2

adapted from Song et al. 2016). b Paleogeographic reconstructions of the Tethys region for Late Permian (Changhsingian, at ~ 253 Ma) showing the relative position of the Cimmerian Continent in the Gondwana (compiled from Metcalfe 2013). c Simplified geologic map showing the tectonic and stratigraphic frames of the QB and the location of the studied area (compiled from Fang et al. 2016). Abbreviations, HJSZ, Hoh Xil-Jinsha Suture Zone; BNSZ, Bangong-Nujiang Suture Zone; IYSZ, Indus-Yalung Zangpo Suture Zone; CUB, Central Uplift Belt; NQB, North Qiangtang Basin; SQB, South Qiangtang Basin

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (Grant No. 2011CB403003), the College Innovation Research Program of Gansu Province (Grant No. 2020B-320), the College Innovation Foundation of Gansu Province (Grant No. S202013933013). We are grateful to two anonymous reviewers for constructive and thoughtful comments, and to the editor Binbin Wang for kind editorial handling, which significantly improved the manuscript. Xiaohui Fang, Gang Niu, Sa Zhang, Song Wu, Jing Bao, and Jiwei Yang are thanked for laboratory assistance and fieldwork assistance.

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  1. Lanzhou Resources and Environment Voc-Tech College, Lanzhou, 730000, China

    Yongyao Zeng, Lei Gao & Wenqing Zhao

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  1. Yongyao Zeng
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Zeng, Y., Gao, L. & Zhao, W. Paleoclimate evolution and aridification mechanism of the eastern Tethys during the Callovian–Oxfordian: evidence from geochemical records of the Qiangtang Basin, Tibetan Plateau. Acta Geochim 40, 199–211 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11631-021-00458-2

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