SGER: Testing Chemostratigraphic Correlation in Terrestrial Sediments: Hell Creek Formation, Northeastern Montana

许多对环境敏感的脊椎动物谱系的存活（Archibald和Bryant 1990）掩盖了K/T边界事件的假设严重性。测试替代假设的灭绝和生存跨越K/T边界需要更详细的了解环境变化和生物反应之前的火流星的影响。为了发展这一背景，我们需要一幅关于白垩纪晚期植物群、动物群和自然环境变化的综合图景。这样的整合尚不可能，因为化石植物群和动物群保存在露头带内不同地点的不同沉积环境中。为了统一这些记录，需要一种方法来详细对比地点之间的关系。我建议建立地狱溪组内化石地点的碳同位素化学地层对比框架（主要是最新的马斯特里赫特）在蒙大拿州东北部。拟议的工作将测试以下假设的发展必不可少的化学地层框架：o地狱溪地层中陆地植物有机碳的碳同位素特征的长期变化超过了随机变化和空间平均植物生命力的预期。长期碳同位素曲线的特征在不同的地点被识别，并且可以作为地层联系点在地狱溪组内进行关联。我将通过检查曲线的定量变化来检验第一个假设，该定量变化超过了随机变化和植物生命效应的预期（Arens et al.2000）.然后，我将使用参考曲线的特征，通过将各个地点与海洋记录相关联来检验第二个假设。如果成功的话，这种方法可以广泛应用于比泥盆纪更年轻的岩石，当维管植物殖民土地时。它将使来自不同地方的化石收集更精确地整合，为陆地古生态学家开辟了一个新的问题范围。

AbstractThe survival of many environ- mentally sensitive vertebrate lineages (Archibald and Bryant 1990) belies the hypothesized severity of the K/T boundary event. Testing alternative hypotheses of extinction and survival across the K/T boundary requires a more detailed understanding of environmental change and biotic response preceding the bolide impact. To develop this context, we need an integrated picture of change in the flora, fauna and physical environment in the latest Cretaceous. Such an integration has not yet been possible because fossil floras and faunas are preserved in different depositional environments at different localities within an outcrop belt. To unite these records, a method for detailed correlation among localities is needed.I propose to develop the framework for carbon isotope chemostratigraphic correlation of fossil localities within the Hell Creek Formation (mostly latest Maastrichtian) in northeastern Montana.The proposed work will test the following hypotheses essential to the development of thechemostratigraphic framework:o Secular variation in the carbon isotope signature of land plant organic carbon in the Hell CreekFormation exceeds that expected by random variation and spatially averaged plant vital effects.o Features of the secular carbon isotope curve are recognized at different localities and can act as stratigraphic tie points to correlate within the Hell Creek Formation.I will test the first hypothesis by examining the curve for quantitative variation that exceeds that expected by random variation and plant vital effects (Arens et al.2000).I will then test the second hypothesis by correlating among individual localities, and to the marine record,using features of the reference curve. If successful, this approach could be widely applied in rocks younger than the Devonian, when vascular plants colonized land. It will allow fossil collections from various localities to be more precisely integrated, opening a new spectrum of questions to terrestrial paleoecologists.