Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 252 (2007) 56 – 65

www.elsevier.com/locate/palaeo

Conodont biostratigraphic control on transitional marine

to non-marine Permian–Triassic boundary sequences
in Yunnan–Guizhou, China
I. Metcalfe a,⁎, R.S. Nicoll b
a
Asia Centre, University of New England, Armidale NSW 2351, Australia
b
Earth and Marine Sciences, Australian National University, Canberra ACT 0200, Australia
Accepted 30 November 2006

Abstract

The recovery of conodonts associated with ash beds and magnetostratigraphy in the key Zhongzhai Section, near Langdai, Liuzhi,
Guizhou Province, provides precise and definitive control on the position of the Permian–Triassic boundary in the transition from
marine to non-marine facies of western Guizhou and eastern Yunnan Provinces of southwestern China. In the Zhongzhai Section the
boundary interval consists of a lower limestone, 20 cm thick, that contains fragments of Hindeodus sp. and Clarkina sp. This is
overlain by a 50 cm thick black shale bed containing an abundant brachiopod fauna, but only a single conodont fragment. This bed is
in turn overlain by a 23 cm thick limestone that contains Clarkina meishanensis, Merrillina ultima, Hindeodus changxingensis,
H. praeparvus and H. eurypyge. Directly over this limestone is a 5 cm thick ash bed followed by a 10 cm thick black shale, which is
overlain by a second, upper, ash bed that is 3 cm thick. On top of the upper ash bed is a 20 cm thick silty limestone containing an
abundant dwarf conodont fauna, dominated by Hindeodus, and containing H. parvus but also including Clarkina tulongensis. The
Permian–Triassic boundary is placed at the level of the black shale located between the two ash beds.
© 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Permian–Triassic boundary; Conodonts; Marine to non-marine transition; Yunnan–Guizhou, China

1. Introduction Meishan, Zhejiang Province, South China, where there is

A major ongoing issue in resolving current debates
on and identifying the causative mechanism(s) for
the Permian–Triassic mass extinction, and subsequent
recovery of global ecosystems, is precise correlation of
Permian–Triassic transitional sequences and associated
events within and between marine and non-marine se-
quences. The formally defined Permian–Triassic bound-
ary (Yin et al., 2001) is located in a marine sequence at
⁎ Corresponding author.
E-mail address: imetcal2@une.edu.au (I. Metcalfe).
0031-0182/$ - see front matter © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2006.11.034
an excellent conodont biostratigraphic record (Zhang
et al., 1995; Mei et al., 1998; Nicoll et al., 2002; Jiang
et al., 2007) which provides the formal definition of the
base of the Triassic at the first appearance of Hindeodus
parvus (Kozur & Pjatakova). In western Guizhou and
eastern Yunnan Provinces, South China, there are well-
exposed, complete Permian–Triassic sedimentary rock
sequences that represent a transition from fully marine in
the east, through paralic to non-marine environments in
the west (Peng et al., 2005). We here present new
unequivocal biostratigraphic constraints on the place-
ment of the P–T boundary in these important marine to
 I. Metcalfe, R.S. Nicoll / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 252 (2007) 56–65
non-marine transitional sequences which is linked to
regionally persistent volcanic ash bed markers and
magnetostratigraphy (Mundil et al., 2004). Our work in
Guizhou and Yunnan forms part of a much larger umbrella
international research program led by the senior author
which has been conducting multidisciplinary studies of
P–T sequences at key marine and non-marine localities
throughout China (Fig. 1). The P–T sequences of South
China, including those in Guizhou and Yunnan, contain
multiple volcanic ash/clay beds. The volcanic clay beds in
Zhejiang and Sichuan Provinces have now been dated by
our research group and have provided a robust definitive
age of 252.6 +/− 0.2 Ma for the P–T boundary main mass
extinction through U–Pb zircon dating at the Meishan and
Shangsi marine sections (Mundil et al., 2001; Mundil et
al., 2004). In addition to undertaking biostratigraphic,
chemostratigraphic and isotopic dating, our group has
also undertaken magnetostratigraphic studies of P–T
transitional sequences in China, including the Zhongzhai
section. The placement of the biostratigraphic P–T
Fig. 1. Map showing the location of the Zhongzhai section and other Permian–Triassic boundary sections studied in China.
57
boundary here presented, and its relationship to magne-
tostratigraphy and regionally persistent volcanic ash
“event” marker beds provide an effective means to
correlate the P–T boundary and mass extinction levels
in these marine to non-marine sequences in South China.
2. General Permian–Triassic stratigraphy and
palaeogeography of eastern Yunnan and western
Guizhou provinces
Late Permian–Early Triassic strata in eastern Yunnan
and western Guizhou, SW China, represent a transition
from terrestrial non-marine deposition (lacustrine-swamp
facies) in the west on the margin of the “Sichuan–Yunnan
old land” through coastal marsh-littoral facies further east
to littoral and fully marine neritic facies in the east (Fig. 2).
These sequences overly the end Guadalupian Emeishan
basalts. Lithologies in the non-marine western sequences
are dominated by sandstones and siltstones with coal.
Transitional coastal–marginal marine sequences include
58 I. Metcalfe, R.S. Nicoll / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 252 (2007) 56–65

Fig. 2. Above: Late Permian (Changhsingian) palaeogeography of eastern Yunnan and western Guizhou and location of the Zhongzhai section.
Below: generalised lithostratigraphy along the cross-sectional line A–B from west to east. After Peng et al. (2005).

sandstones, mudstones/shales and thin intercalated sandy
limestones and limestones, whilst fully marine sequences
in the east comprise dominantly limestones with minor
mudstones, and chert (Nanjing Institute of Geology and
Palaeontology, 1980; Peng et al., 2005). The Zhongzhai
section, reported on here, is exposed in a road cutting
located approximately 150 km WSW of Guiyang and
25 km SW of Liuzhi in western Guizhou Province. GPS
coordinates for the base of the measured section at
Zhongzhai are 26°09.110N 105°17.113E. Lithologies are
predominantly siltstones, sandstones and mudstones with
minor silty or sandy limestones, shale and thin volcanic
ash/clay beds.
3. Lithostratigraphy of the Zhongzhai section
A lithostratigraphic log, measured by the authors in
2001 is presented in Fig. 3. A total of 76.5 m of section
were measured in detail (Fig. 3). Samples were collected
for conodont (Plate 1) extraction and for palynological
investigations. Oriented drillcore samples were collect-
ed for palaeomagnetic investigations to determine the
magnetostratigraphy of the section. The positions of all
samples are indicated on the log of Fig. 3. The measured
sequence spans the upper part of the Longtan Formation
and the lower part of the Yelang Formation. The
boundary between these two formations was placed by
the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology
(1980) at the base of the 5 cm thick volcanic clay at
6.23 m in our section.
The lower part of the Longtan Formation (not exposed
and hence not measured by us) comprises 6+ m thick
bedded limestone with fusulinids and brachiopods,
overlain by 9.13m thick-bedded grey-green sandstone
(Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, 1980).
The upper part of the Longtan Formation comprises grey-
 I. Metcalfe, R.S. Nicoll / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 252 (2007) 56–65 59

Fig. 3. Lithostratigraphical measured section and magnetostratigraphy of the upper Longtan and lower Yelang Formations of the Zhongzhai section
showing conodont and palynology sample locations, palaeomagnetic drill core sample locations, and occurrence of important fossils. Four digit
conodont and palynology sample numbers are prefixed by 640.

green carbonaceous siltstones and mudstones with thin lopods. The lower Yelang Formation comprises approx-
sandy limestones and calcareous nodules containing imately 15.5 m mudstones with minor siltstones and thin
brachiopods, bivalves, gastropods, ostracods and cepha- silty limestones, overlain by, in ascending order, 35.5 m
60 I. Metcalfe, R.S. Nicoll / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 252 (2007) 56–65

Plate 1. Conodonts from the Permian-Triassic boundary beds at Zhongzhai. All figures are Pa elements.

1. Hindeodus parvus Kozur & Pjatakova, lateral view of specimen 1673, sample 6405549.
2, 3, and 4. Hindeodus eurypyge Nicoll, Metcalfe & Wang, oral, outer lateral and posterior views of specimen 1670, sample 6405548.
5, 6. Hindeodus eurypyge Nicoll, Metcalfe & Wang, oral and outer lateral views of specimen 1671, sample 6405548.
7, 8. Hindeodus changxingensis Wang, lateral views of specimens 1668 and 1669, sample 6405548.
9. Clarkina tulongensis Tian, oral view of specimen 1672, sample 6405549.
10, 11. Clarkina meishanensis Zhang, Lai and Ding, inner lateral and oral views of specimen 1660, sample 6405548.
12. Merrillina ultima Kozur, lateral view of specimen 1665, sample 6405548.

siltstones with silty limestone near the base, 4.5 m Claraia wangi) and the brachiopod genus Lingula are
mudstones and 14+ m green sandstone with minor particularly abundant in the lower Yelang Formation.
mudstone (Fig. 3). The bivalve genus Claraia (including Both Claraia and Lingula appear in the section at 6 m in
 I. Metcalfe, R.S. Nicoll / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 252 (2007) 56–65
our section, immediately above the mass extinction and
magnetic reversal levels.
The P–T boundary interval, which also straddles the
Longtan–Yelang Formations boundary, consists of a
lower 20 cm thick limestone overlain by a 50 cm thick
black shale bed containing an abundant brachiopod
fauna. This bed is in turn overlain by a 23 cm thick
limestone a 5 cm thick ash bed followed by a 10 cm
thick black shale, a second, upper, ash bed that is 3 cm
thick, then followed by a 20 cm thick silty limestone
(Figs. 3 and 4).
4. The Permian–Triassic biostratigraphic boundary
and its placement in the Zhongzhai section
The Permian–Triassic boundary is defined by the
first appearance of the conodont species Hindeodus
parvus (Kozur & Pjatakova) (Yin et al., 2001). At the
Global Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) at Meishan,
China, this occurs at the base of Bed 27c which is 17 cm
above the main mass extinction level at the base of
volcanic ash Bed 25 (Jin et al., 2000; Yin et al., 2001;
Nicoll et al., 2002; Fig. 2). Lithological correlation
between the Meishan GSSP and the Zhongzhai section,
suggested that the P–T boundary should be positioned
between the two volcanic ash beds in the sequence at
6.23 and 6.38 m in the section (Fig. 3). Macrofaunal and
palynofloral data support this position (Nanjing Institute
of Geology and Palaeontology, 1980; Peng et al., 2005)
but to date important boundary defining conodonts were
not reported from the section. We here report conodont
faunas from the Zhongzhai section which unequivocally
Fig. 4. Photograph of the Permian–Triassic boundary beds of the Zhongzhai section and stratigraphically important conodonts.
61
places the Permian–Triassic boundary between our
samples 5548 and 5549 and almost certainly between
the two volcanic ash beds at 6.23 and 6.38 m in the
section, allowing these ash beds to be used for proxy
correlation of the boundary into non-marine facies to the
west.
4.1. Conodont faunas
Two, and possibly three, distinctive age diagnostic
faunas were recovered in this study (Table 1). Samples
6405548, and probably 6405546, contain a fauna typical
of the latest Permian to earliest Triassic transition
(Nicoll et al., 2002). All of the Hindeodus species are
restricted to the immediate boundary interval, being
found both just below and just above the boundary.
According to Kozur (2005) Merrillina ultima, here
recorded from sample 6405548, is restricted to the latest
Permian, and represents the Late Permian (Changhsin-
gian Stage) Merrillina ultima–Stepanovites? mostleri
Zone.
Sample 6405549 contains a fauna diagnostic of the
earliest Triassic with Hindeodus parvus. The other Hin-
deodus species from this sample are found in both the
latest Permian and earliest Triassic. Clarkina tulongensis
co-occurs with Clarkina carinata and ranges from the
latest Permian into the earliest Triassic. This fauna
represents the Hindeodus parvus Zone.
Samples 6405552 and 6405553 contain only broken
fragments of conodonts. None of the elements are well
enough preserved to attempt specific identification, but
the nature of the denticles in the P-type elements suggests
62 I. Metcalfe, R.S. Nicoll / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 252 (2007) 56–65

Table 1
Conodonts recovered from samples in the Zhongzhai section, see Fig. 3 for position
Sample Species/abundance Sample wt. CAI
6405553 2 conodont element fragments 5 kg 1
? Neospathodus sp. indet. 2 fragments
6405552 7 conodont element fragments 5 kg 1
Indet. fragments (7)
6405551 0 conodonts 5 kg N/A
Associated fauna/flora: wood fragments, 1 ostracod
6405550 0 conodonts 5 kg N/A
6405549 277 conodont elements and fragments 5 kg 1
Clarkina tulongensis Tian 1 Pa element
Clarkina sp. indet. 1 Pa element fragment
Hindeodus latidentatus Kozur, Mostler & Rahimi-Yazd 7 Pa elements
Hindeodus parvus Kozur & Pjatakova 40 Pa elements
Hindeodus typicalis (Sweet) 10 Pa elements
Hindeodus spp. indet. 59 Pa elements
Ramiform elements, all species 161 elements
Associated fauna: ostracods, phosphatic fragments, gastropod, bivalve
6405548 500+ conodont elements and fragments 5 kg 1
Clarkina meishanensis Zhang, Lai and Ding 35 Pa elements
Hindeodus changxingensis Wang 27 Pa elements
Hindeodus eurypyge Nicoll, Metcalfe & Wang 41 Pa elements
Hindeodus praeparvus Kozur 72 Pa elements
Hindeodus n. sp. A Nicoll, Metcalfe & Wang 7 Pa elements
Hindeodus spp. Pa fragments 125 elements
Merrillina ultima Kozur 13 Pa elements
Ramiform elements of all species uncounted
Associated fauna: ostracods, forams, fish teeth, phosphatic fragments
6405547 1 conodont element fragment 5 kg 1
Genus and species indet. 1 element fragment
Associated fauna: fish teeth (2), phosphatic fragments
6405546 27 conodont elements and fragments 5 kg 1
Clarkina sp. 1 element fragment
Clarkina sp. indet. 2 element fragment
Hindeodus sp. A 1 element fragment
Hindeodus sp. B 10 element fragments
Ramiform elements 13 fragments
Associated fauna: forams (3 species), bivalves, crinoids, phosphatic fragments
Sample weight is that of processed sample. CAI = conodont color alteration index (Epstein et al., 1977).

they should be assigned to Neospathodus rather than
Hindeodus. This would place this part of the section in the
early, but not earliest Triassic (Induan).
5. Magnetostratigraphy and its relationship to the
P–T boundary
Global palaeomagnetic data show that there is a
reversed to normal magnetic polarity transition just
below the biostratigraphic P–T boundary and approx-
imately coincident with the main end-Permian mass
extinction level (Steiner et al., 1989; Zhu and Liu, 1999;
Scholger et al., 2000; Szurlies et al., 2003; De Kock and
Kirschvink, 2004; Glen et al., in preparation). Our
group's magnetostratigraphic work at Shangsi and other
P–T sections in China (Glen et al., in preparation)
confirms this (Fig. 4) and our results from the
Zhongzhai section (Fig. 5) demonstrate a reversed to
normal transition at 6 m in our section, just 33 cm below
the P–T boundary here defined by conodonts (Nomade
et al., 2002; Glen et al., in preparation). This magnetic
reversal, coupled with the volcanic ash beds at the
boundary serve as excellent proxies for identifying the
boundary and mass extinction levels in non-marine
sequences to the west of the Zhongzhai section.
6. Stable carbon isotope records
It is now well established that a significant negative
stable carbon isotope shift occurs globally at or imme-
diately following the P–T mass extinction, and this is
recorded by both carbonate and organic carbon isotope
 I. Metcalfe, R.S. Nicoll / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 252 (2007) 56–65
Fig. 5. Correlation of Permian–Triassic magnetostratigraphies demonstrating the consistent reversed to normal transition just below the Permian–
Triassic boundary.
records in both marine and non-marine environments (e.g.
Holser et al., 1989; Wang et al., 1994; Morante, 1996;
Wignall et al., 1998; Krull and Retallack, 2000). The
negative shift appears more consistently as a single large
shift in the marine environment and for carbonate data
(Holser and Magaritz, 1987; Baud et al., 1989; Krystyn
et al., 2003; Krull et al., 2004) whereas observed negative
shifts in non-marine and terrestrial environments are less
clear, more facies and lithology dependent, and often
marked by multiple shifts related to the major climatic
perturbations during the extinction interval (Morante,
1996; Krull and Retallack, 2000; Twitchett et al., 2001;
De Wit et al., 2002; Foster and Afonin, 2005). It is also
more difficult to deconvolute shifts in organic carbon
isotope compositions due to kerogen type from global
climate and extinction related driving mechanisms (Poole
et al., 2004).
Stable carbon isotope data is only available for the non-
marine P–T Chahe section in eastern Yunnan and western
Guizhou (see Fig. 1 for location). In this section, a
negative isotope excursion, interpreted as the P–T
boundary excursion by Peng et al. (2005) is recorded at
a level corresponding to two clay beds (Fig. 6) that may be
correlatives of the volcanic clay beds at the boundary at
63
Zhongzhai. A magnetostratigraphic study at Chahe would
provide a vital new proxy for correlation and if the
magnetic reversal identified at Zhongzhai and elsewhere
can be located then correlation of the Chahe non-marine
section with the standard marine GSSP could be robustly
made. Stable isotope data for Zhongzhai would also aid
this correlation.
7. Conclusions
The Permian–Triassic boundary is unequivocally
placed between our samples 6405548 and 6405549 in
the Zhongzhai section. This level corresponds to two
volcanic ash beds which appear to be regionally
persistent allowing lithological correlation of the P–T
boundary interval between marine and non-marine
sections in SW China. A magnetostratigraphic reversed
to normal transition occurs just below the boundary
level at Zhongzhai, consistent with global records and
this, together with stable isotope data may provide
further proxy correlations of the marine to non-marine
P–T sequences in the region. Further work is required to
effect such proxy correlation. There are no published
isotopic dates for the volcanic ash beds that occur at the
64 I. Metcalfe, R.S. Nicoll / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 252 (2007) 56–65

Fig. 6. Organic carbon isotope curve and lithostratigraphy for the Chahe non-marine section, eastern Yunnan (from Peng et al., 2005).

boundary level in the Yunnan–Guizhou region and
confirmation of the isochronous nature of these beds
would be confirmed by precise dating of these volcanic
layers.
Acknowledgements
This work formed part of a larger research program
on the Permian–Triassic boundary supported by an
Australian Research Council grant to I. Metcalfe. The
authors wish to thank Xulong Lai, Kexin Zhang and
Paul Wignall for their constructive suggestions that have
improved the manuscript.
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