Reinvestigation of Devonian-Carboniferous palynostratigraphy in Yalai village, Nyalam County, southern Tibet, China

Peng, Huiping, Qie, Wenkun, Marshall, John E.A., Zhu, Huaicheng, Guo, Wen, Song, Junjun and Liu, Feng (2022) Reinvestigation of Devonian-Carboniferous palynostratigraphy in Yalai village, Nyalam County, southern Tibet, China. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 304 (9), [104702]. (doi:10.1016/j.revpalbo.2022.104702).

Abstract

Reinvestigation of the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary sequence in Yalai village, Nyalam County, southern Tibet, enabled the recovery of well-preserved palynomorphs and conodonts in the Yali section. Based on quantitative analysis of the relative abundances of various palynomorphs, two palynological assemblages are recognized in the Famennian-Tournaisian boundary beds of the Yali section. In ascending order, they are the Retispora lepidophyta–Verrucosisporites irregularis (LI) assemblage and the Retispora lepidophyta–Vallatisporites vallatus (LV) assemblage. Both assemblages are tentatively correlated with the Famennian LN Biozone of Western Europe because of the appearance of Retispora lepidophyta and other index spores such as Vallatisporites verrucosus, Vallatisporites pusillites, Indotriradites explanatus, and Densosporites spitsbergensis in both palynological assemblages. The lower limestones of the Yali Formation yield biostratigraphic markers for the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary, including the conodont Siphonodella sulcata and Protognathodus kockeli, correlated with the VI Biozone from Western Europe and parts of Gondwana. The upper Lazhabu Member of the Yali Formation yielded Retispora lepidophyta, Vallatisporites vallatus, and Vallatisporites pusillites of the LV Biozone, indicating that some typical palynomorphs elements of the LN Biozone of Western Europe persisted into Tournaisian in southern Tibet.

This record has no associated files available for download.

Contributors

Author: John E.A. Marshall

Download statistics