A rapid lake-shallowing event terminated preservation of the Miocene Clarkia FossilKonservat-Lagerstätte(Idaho, USA)

Research Article| March 01, 2017 A rapid lake-shallowing event terminated preservation of the Miocene Clarkia Fossil Konservat-Lagerstätte (Idaho, USA) Huanye Wang; Huanye Wang 1SKLLQG, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an 710061, China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Qin Leng; Qin Leng 2Laboratory for Terrestrial Environments, Department of Science and Technology, College of Arts and Sciences, Bryant University, Smithfield, Rhode Island 02917, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Weiguo Liu; Weiguo Liu 1SKLLQG, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an 710061, China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Hong Yang Hong Yang * 2Laboratory for Terrestrial Environments, Department of Science and Technology, College of Arts and Sciences, Bryant University, Smithfield, Rhode Island 02917, USA *E-mail: hyang@bryant.edu Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Huanye Wang 1SKLLQG, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an 710061, China Qin Leng 2Laboratory for Terrestrial Environments, Department of Science and Technology, College of Arts and Sciences, Bryant University, Smithfield, Rhode Island 02917, USA Weiguo Liu 1SKLLQG, Institute of Earth Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an 710061, China Hong Yang * 2Laboratory for Terrestrial Environments, Department of Science and Technology, College of Arts and Sciences, Bryant University, Smithfield, Rhode Island 02917, USA *E-mail: hyang@bryant.edu Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 01 Aug 2016 Revision Received: 23 Nov 2016 Accepted: 28 Nov 2016 First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Online Issn: 1943-2682 Print Issn: 0091-7613 © 2017 Geological Society of America Geology (2017) 45 (3): 239–242. https://doi.org/10.1130/G38434.1 Article history Received: 01 Aug 2016 Revision Received: 23 Nov 2016 Accepted: 28 Nov 2016 First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Huanye Wang, Qin Leng, Weiguo Liu, Hong Yang; A rapid lake-shallowing event terminated preservation of the Miocene Clarkia Fossil Konservat-Lagerstätte (Idaho, USA). Geology 2017;; 45 (3): 239–242. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G38434.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract The world-renowned middle Miocene Clarkia lacustrine deposits (15.4–16.0 Ma) in northern Idaho, United States, known as Fossil Lagerstätten, yield extraordinary fossils that preserve in situ ancient biomolecules and organic biomarkers. The sudden formation of the Clarkia Lake basin by means of the Columbia River Basalt damming the proto–St. Maries River is well documented, but less is known about the tempo and mode of the lake environmental succession which impacted on the preservation of these Fossil Lagerstätten. Here, we present evidence for a previously unrecognized, geologically instantaneous drop in the Clarkia Lake water level, using tetraether-based water-depth proxies from a continuous sedimentary sequence at the classic P-33 site. Terrestrial hydrological conditions inferred from compound-specific hydrogen isotope compositions (δD) and tetraether-derived temperature estimates from the same sequence show that the rapid shallowing by >10 m was independent of regional climatic changes. We hypothesize that a volcanic-related geological event was primarily responsible for the rapid reduction of Clarkia Lake water depth—an event that played a decisive role in switching depositional conditions for Clarkia Fossil Lagerstätten from a conservation deposit to a concentration deposit. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.