Pleistocene volcanism and shifting shorelines at Lake Tahoe, California

Kortemeier, Winifred T.; Calvert, Andrew T.; Moore, James G.; Schweickert, Richard A.

doi:10.1130/ges01551.1

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 45 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…(1997); and Lake Tahoe was constrained to 0.94 Ma following Kortemeier et al . (2018). The merged data set contained 83 lakes with estimates of both species richness and lake age.…”

Section: Biodiversity In Freshwater Lakesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…3. Ages of several lakes in the Hanly et al (2017) data set were modified for accuracy as follows: the age of Lake Malawi was increased from 0.1 to 0.8 Ma, following Wagner et al (2014) and Ivory et al (2016); Lake Tanganyika's age was constrained to 7.4 Ma based on palaeogeographic reconstructions in Cohen et al (1997); and Lake Tahoe was constrained to 0.94 Ma following Kortemeier et al (2018). The merged data set contained 83 lakes with estimates of both species richness and lake age.…”

Section: Biodiversity In Freshwater Lakesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Evolutionary time and species diversity in aquatic ecosystems worldwide

Rabosky

2022

Biological Reviews

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The latitudinal diversity gradient (LDG) is frequently described as the most dramatic biodiversity pattern on Earth, yet ecologists and biogeographers have failed to reach consensus on its primary cause. A key problem in explaining the LDG involves collinearity between multiple factors that are predicted to affect species richness in the same direction. In terrestrial systems, energy input, geographic area, and evolutionary time for species accumulation tend to covary positively with species richness at the largest spatial scales, such that their individual contributions to the LDG are confounded in global analyses. I review three diversity patterns from marine and freshwater systems that break this collinearity and which may thus provide stronger tests of the influence of time on global richness gradients. Specifically, I contrast biodiversity patterns along oceanic depth gradients, in geologically young versus ancient lakes, and in the north versus south polar marine biomes. I focus primarily on fishes due to greater data availability but synthesize patterns for invertebrates where possible. I find that regional-to-global species richness generally declines with depth in the oceans, despite the great age and stability of the deep-sea biome. Geologically ancient lakes generally do not contain more species than young lakes, and the Antarctic marine biome is not appreciably more species rich than the much younger Arctic marine biome. However, endemism is consistently higher in older systems. Patterns for invertebrate groups are less clear than for fishes and reflect a critical need for primary biodiversity data. In summary, the available data suggest that species richness is either decoupled from or only weakly related to the amount of time for diversification. These results suggest that energy, productivity, or geographic area are the primary drivers of large-scale diversity gradients. To the extent that marine and terrestrial diversity gradients result from similar processes, these examples provide evidence against a primary role for evolutionary time as the cause of the LDG.

show abstract

“…(1997); and Lake Tahoe was constrained to 0.94 Ma following Kortemeier et al . (2018). The merged data set contained 83 lakes with estimates of both species richness and lake age.…”

Section: Biodiversity In Freshwater Lakesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Biodiversity In Freshwater Lakesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolutionary time and species diversity in aquatic ecosystems worldwide

Rabosky

2022

Biological Reviews

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The WTDPFZ is clearly younger than the TSFFZ, because 2-2.3 Ma basaltic volcanic rocks and lacustrine sediments are in both hanging-wall and footwall positions on the WTDPFZ (Kortemeier et al, 2018;Schweickert, 2009;Schweickert et al, 2004). Yet both fault systems appear to have been active during late Pleistocene and Holocene times (Howle et al, 2012; this study).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Two million-year-old and older lacustrine sediments, which were deposited in a lake that predated modern Lake Tahoe are found in the hanging wall of the TSFFZ over much of its length ( Fig. 2B; Kortemeier et al, 2018;Lopez et al, 2004;Moore et al, 2006;Schweickert et al, 2005).…”

Section: Regional Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Tahoe-Sierra frontal fault zone, Emerald Bay area, Lake Tahoe, California: History, displacements, and rates

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The location and geometry of the boundary between the Sierra Nevada microplate and the transtensional Walker Lane belt of the Basin and Range Province in the Lake Tahoe area have been debated. Two options are that the active structural boundary is (1) a few km west of Lake Tahoe, along the northwest-trending Tahoe-Sierra frontal fault zone (TSFFZ) or (2) within Lake Tahoe, along the largely submerged, north-trending West Tahoe-Dollar Point fault zone (WTDPFZ). Emerald Bay, a famous scenic locality at the southwest end of Lake Tahoe, is at the juncture between the TSFFZ and the WTDPFZ. There, utilizing high-resolution, multibeam-echosounder maps and derived bathymetric profiles, detailed field studies on land are integrated with bathymetric data and remotely operated vehicle observations to clarify the existence and activity of faults and sedimentology of the bay. Results include the most detailed structural maps of glacial moraines and the bottom of Lake Tahoe ever produced. Glacial moraines on both sides of Emerald Bay clearly have been deformed by normal displacements on faults within the TSFFZ and the WTDPFZ. Tectonic geomorphic features include scarps along moraine crests, locally back-tilted crests, and tectonic reversal of moraine crests, where older, higher moraines locally lie at lower elevations than younger, lower moraines. The alignment of crests of lateral moraines shows that dextral slip has not occurred during or since late Pleistocene glaciations. On the floor of Emerald Bay, submerged youthful faults that correspond to onshore faults that displace glacial moraines have numerous distinct, well-preserved, postglacial fault scarps, for which the vertical component of slip (vertical separation) is estimated. This study clearly demonstrates that the TSFFZ is the active structural boundary of the Sierra Nevada microplate and that the TSFFZ has a higher rate of slip than the WTDPFZ. It also provides evidence for complex range-front evolution, with both zones of normal faults active concurrently at various times.

show abstract

A global database of Mars-relevant hydrovolcanic environments on Earth with potential biosignature preservation

Ryan,

Schmidt,

Osinski

et al. 2024

Geosphere

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Basaltic hydrovolcanic environments on Earth produce abundant glass (sideromelane), which readily alters and acts as an important source of chemical energy for lithotrophic microorganisms; as such, these sites are significant for potential origins-of-life and early life research. Similar environments were identified on Mars and should be considered potential targets for astrobiological investigation. Pleistocene to recent phreatomagmatic and glaciovolcanic structures on Earth include tuff cones, tuff rings, maars, tuyas, and tindars. Such hydrovolcanic deposits contain abundant glass that is variably hydrothermally altered, and some areas contain published evidence of putative microbial habitation and microbially mediated alteration, including microtubules and granular alteration. We analyzed the literature on terrestrial hydrovolcanic environments and created a global database of 45 volcanic fields on Earth with compositions, alteration histories, and structures relevant to Mars. These sites have geochemistry, mineralogy, and syn- and post-eruptive environmental conditions that make them suitable targets for Mars-analogue astrobiological research. Relevant alteration products include palagonite, zeolites, clays, and calcite. Seven of these sites have evidence of microbially mediated alteration, which could be considered a useful biosignature in a Mars-analogue context. The sites are Wells Gray–Clearwater Volcanic Field, Canada; Fort Rock Volcanic Field, Western Snake River Plain Volcanic Field, and Upsal Hogback, USA; Reykjanes Volcanic Field and Western Volcanic Zone, Iceland; and Carapace Nunatak, Antarctica. Based on the properties of these already confirmed sites, along with comparing the remaining 38 Earth volcanic fields to volcanic rocks on Mars, we recommend 11 volcanic fields in particular from our database for future investigations: Auckland and South Auckland volcanic fields, New Zealand; O’ahu, Black Rock Desert, and Black Point, USA; Tuya Volcanic Field, Canada; Karapınar Volcanic Field, Türkiye; Vestmannaeyjar Archipelago, Iceland; Llancanelo Volcanic Field, Argentina; São Miguel Volcanic Field, Azores; and Icefall Nunatak, Antarctica. We recommend reviewing palagonitized tuff samples from these sites for evidence of microbial alteration, in addition to performing geochemical and mineralogical analyses to constrain their magmatic and alteration properties. By studying the rock record of hydrovolcanic environments on Earth to infer habitability and biological alteration, we contribute to establishing the conditions favorable for the origination, survival, and proliferation of life in a Mars-relevant setting.

show abstract

Pleistocene volcanism and shifting shorelines at Lake Tahoe, California

Cited by 5 publications

References 45 publications

Evolutionary time and species diversity in aquatic ecosystems worldwide

Evolutionary time and species diversity in aquatic ecosystems worldwide

The Tahoe-Sierra frontal fault zone, Emerald Bay area, Lake Tahoe, California: History, displacements, and rates

A global database of Mars-relevant hydrovolcanic environments on Earth with potential biosignature preservation

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About