Revised correlation of Silurian Provincial Series of North America with global and regional chronostratigraphic units and δ ¹³ C _carb chemostratigraphy

Abstract

Cramer, B.D., Brett, C.E., Melchin, M.J., Männik, P., Kleffner, M.A., McLaughlin, P.I., Loydell, D.K., Munnecke, A., Jeppsson, L., Corradini, C., Brunton, F.R. & Saltzman, M.R. 2011: Revised correlation of Silurian Provincial Series of North America with global and regional chronostratigraphic units and δ13Ccarb chemostratigraphy. Lethaia, Vol. 44, pp. 185–202. Recent revisions to the biostratigraphic and chronostratigraphic assignment of strata from the type area of the Niagaran Provincial Series (a regional chronostratigraphic unit) have demonstrated the need to revise the chronostratigraphic correlation of the Silurian System of North America. Recently, the working group to restudy the base of the Wenlock Series has developed an extremely high‐resolution global chronostratigraphy for the Telychian and Sheinwoodian stages by integrating graptolite and conodont biostratigraphy with carbonate carbon isotope (δ13Ccarb) chemostratigraphy. This improved global chronostratigraphy has required such significant chronostratigraphic revisions to the North American succession that much of the Silurian System in North America is currently in a state of flux and needs further refinement. This report serves as an update of the progress on recalibrating the global chronostratigraphic correlation of North American Provincial Series and Stage boundaries in their type area. The revised North American classification is correlated with global series and stages as well as regional classifications used in the United Kingdom, the East Baltic, Australia, China, the Barrandian, and Altaj. Twenty‐four potential stage slices, based primarily on graptolite and conodont zones and correlated to the global series and stages, are illustrated alongside a new composite δ13Ccarb curve for the Silurian. Conodont, graptolite, isotope, New York, Ontario, series, Silurian, stage.

Upper Homerian (Silurian) high-resolution correlation using cyclostratigraphy: an example from western Lithuania

“…9). Lower (4 th ) order cycles (Gl 4,1 and Gl 4,2 ) are broadly comparable to the Ho2 and Ho3 sequences recognized in different sections of Europe and North America (Barrick 1997;Calner 1999;Cramer et al 2011;Cramer et al 2012;Marshall et al 2012;Ray and Butcher 2010). However, according to the precise cyclostratigraphical placement, based on the spectral analysis and sig- .…”

“…The middle-upper Homerian positive δ 13 C excursion for the first time was identified in the AngloWelsh area (U.K.) (Corfield et al 1992) and now is well known around the world. This excursion is characterized by two distinct positive peaks of δ 13 C values (Cramer et al 2011).…”

Gauging the impact of glacioeustasy on a mid-latitude early Silurian basin margin, mid Wales, UK

“…Melchin, Cooper & Sadler (2004), Cramer et al (2011b) and Melchin, Sadler & Cramer (2012) all located its base within the triangulatus Biozone and its top in the leptotheca Biozone. However, in an intervening paper, Cramer et al (2011a) placed its base in the convolutus Biozone and its top within the sedgwickii Biozone, albeit with boundaries that indicated uncertainty with respect to the graptolite biozonation fig. 3).…”

Facies development and sequence stratigraphy of the Ludfordian (Upper Silurian) deposits in the Zbruch River Valley, Podolia, western Ukraine: local facies overprint on the δ13Ccarb record of a global stable carbon isotope excursion

“…Of potential utility for constraining the stratigraphic position of the interval investigated in the present study is the positive stable CIE recognized globally in the Ludfordian (Wenzel and Joachimski 1996;Bickert et al 1997;Kaljo et al 1997;Azmy et al 1998;Wigforss-Lange 1999;Wenzel et al 2000;Saltzman 2001;Calner 2005b;Martma et al 2005;Kaljo and Martma 2006;Jeppsson et al 2007;Kaljo et al 2007;Lehnert et al 2007;Eriksson and Calner 2008;Barrick et al 2010;Kozłowski and Munnecke 2010;Munnecke et al 2010;Cramer et al 2011;Loydell and Frýda 2011;Kaljo et al 2012;Kozłowski and Sobień 2012;Manda et al 2012). The beginning of the excursion coincides with an abrupt decrease in abundance of Polygnathoides siluricus, shortly before its Last Appearance Datum (LAD) (Martma et al 2005;Kaljo and Martma 2006;Jeppsson et al 2007;Lehnert et al 2007;Eriksson and Calner 2008).…”

“…The Ludfordian (Upper Silurian) stage was the time of the most pronounced positive stable carbon isotope excursion (CIE) in the Phanerozoic, known as the Lau excursion (Wenzel and Joachimski 1996;Bickert et al 1997;Wigforss-Lange 1999;Calner et al 2004;Martma et al 2005; Kaljo and Martma 2006;Jeppsson et al 2007;Kaljo et al 2007; Lehnert et al 2007;Eriksson and Calner 2008;Barrick et al 2010;Kozłowski and Munnecke 2010;Munnecke et al 2010;Cramer et al 2011;Loydell and Frýda 2011;Jeppsson et al 2012;Kaljo et al 2012;Kozłowski and Sobień 2012). Very good geochemical, biostratigraphical, and paleoecological documentation exists for the Lau excursion, and it is often used as a model to study positive CIEs, which are widely used as chemostratigraphic markers and as indicators of perturbations of the global carbon cycle (Jeppsson 1990;Aldridge et al 1993;Bickert et al 1997;Jeppsson and Aldridge 2000;Munnecke et al 2003;Calner 2005a;Melchin and Holmden 2006;Cramer and Saltzman 2007a, b;Fanton and Holmden 2007;Calner et al 2008;Małkowski et al 2009;Kozłowski and Sobień 2012).…”