Ben Creisler
Some recent China-related papers:
Lufeng County in Southwest China is one of the most famous lagerstÃtten in which Early Jurassic dinosaurs can be found. The reason for the burial of large body size dinosaur fossils at this site is still an enigma, although it could be attributed to either suitable habitats or good preservation conditions. Both of these factors are indirectly regulated by climatic conditions. Therefore, a quantitative reconstruction of the terrestrial palaeoclimate of the Lufeng area during the Early Jurassic could help shed new light on this issue. In this study, we analysed the stable isotope compositions of oxygen and carbon (Î13C and Î18O) in apatite phosphate and carbonate from the tooth enamel and compact bones of basal sauropodiform and Sinosaurus fossils. The oxygen isotopes provided a mean annual temperature (MAT) of â21âÂâ3ÂC, and the carbon isotopes allowed us to estimate a mean annual precipitation (MAP) of 965âÂâ460âmm/yr during the Early Jurassic in Lufeng County. These conditions correspond to a relatively arid tropical savanna climate hospitable to vertebrate life. We also compared the spatial relationship between the global distribution of dinosaur fossils and climatically sensitive deposits during the Jurassic. The dinosaur fossil distribution reveals a strong preference for arid regions. We therefore suggest that 'savanna-like' tropical conditions helped accommodate a large number of dinosaurs and preserve their carcasses in the Lufeng area during the Early Jurassic.
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Not yet mentioned on the DML:
Free pdf:
LI Xing-wen, TANG Yong-zhong, XING Li-da, WANG Qin-wei, WU Hao & TANG Yu (2021)
Distribution characteristics and evaluation of dinosaur tracks in Shaanxi Province.
Global Geology 40(1): 7-14 (Chinese edition)
doi: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-5589.2021.01.002
The distribution characteristics and scientific values of dinosaur tracks in Shaanxi Province are summarized by systematically compiling the previous research achievements. Altogether 11 dinosaur tracksites are discovered in Shaanxi Province, and the dinosaur-track-bearing formations mainly belong to the Middle Jurassic Yan'an Formation and Early Cretaceous Luohe Formation. According to the dinosaur tracks in Shaanxi Province, 5 ichnogenus and 9 ichnospecies are nominated, and the dinosaur trackmakers are mostly theropod with small size. Based on the study of dinosaur tracksïthe lack of dinosaur skeleton fossils in Shaanxi Province are compensated, the ichnotaxa in China are enriched, the stratigraphic correlation in the same sedimentary environment between different regions are realized, and the dinosaurs trackmakers lived in an alternate climate of seasonal drought-humid environment are indicated.
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