Detailed description of spatio-temporal framework fossil-bearing strata is fundamental significance for understanding the evolution organisms and regional tectonics. The Qujing Haikou formations are two lithological units exposed in eastern Yunnan, southwestern China, both bear rich fossils indicative a Middle Devonian age, while their relationship or lateral correlation remains unclear. Based ...

Citation: Lupoi JS, Fritz LP, Parris TM, Hackley PC, Solotky L, Eble CF and Schlaegle S (2017) Assessment of Thermal Maturity Trends in Devonian–Mississippian Source Rocks Using Raman Spectroscopy: Limitations of Peak-Fitting Method. Front. Energy Res. 5:24. doi: 10.3389/fenrg.2017.00024 assessment of Thermal Maturity Trends in Devonian–Mississippian source rocks Using raman spectroscopy: limit...

Coombs Hill, a new fossil locality in the Witpoort Formation (Witteberg Group) of South Africa, preserves record Famennian (Late Devonian) life Gondwana. Fossil plants collected at Hill are preliminarily assigned to several classes. Shelly invertebrates include variety bivalve mollusc forms, some which appear be preserved position. Biodiversity is comparable that well-known Waterloo Farm lagers...

The middle Paleozoic (?420-350 Myr) records a major increase in ocean-atmosphere oxygen levels; however, the timing and pattern of oxygenation are poorly constrained. Two well-dated North American locations Nevada Illinois were used to generate high-resolution U-isotopic profile (?238U) spanning ?70 Myr Paleozoic. Stratigraphic geochemical data support interpretation that represents near-primar...

BACKGROUND Living gnathostomes (jawed vertebrates) comprise two divisions, Chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fishes, including euchondrichthyans with prismatic calcified cartilage, and extinct stem chondrichthyans) and Osteichthyes (bony fishes including tetrapods). Most of the early chondrichthyan ('shark') record is based upon isolated teeth, spines, and scales, with the oldest articulated sharks...

Recent geophysical analyses suggest the presence of a late Paleozoic oxygen pulse beginning in the late Devonian and continuing through to the late Carboniferous. During this period, plant terrestrialization and global carbon deposition resulted in a dramatic increase in atmospheric oxygen levels, ultimately yielding concentrations potentially as high as 35% relative to the contemporary value o...

The oldest-known air-breathing land animal is the millipede Pneumodesmus newmani, found in the Cowie Harbour Fish Bed at Stonehaven, Scotland. Here we report the youngest, most concordant 238U-206Pb zircon age from ash below the fish bed of 413.7±4.4 Ma (±2σ), whereas the youngest age from a tuffaceous sandstone above the fish bed is statistically indistinguishable at 414.3±7.1 Ma. The Cowie Ha...

The South China Block is situated in the Eastern Asian margin. Since Neoproterozoic, its tectonic evolution was constrained by successive consumption-closure processes of Paleo-South China, Proto-Tethys, Paleo-Tethys, and Paleo-Pacific oceans. Studies suggest that this block initially formed Neoproterozoic assembly Yangtze Cathaysia blocks following subduction-accretion Ocean. Then after, it ex...