Collaborative Research: Testing the reduction of aerobic habitat as a common kill mechanism for major mass extinction events

该项目将利用地质记录中的三次大规模灭绝事件作为研究系统，研究海洋动物生态系统对环境变化的反应。具体来说，该项目将测试一个假设，即在这些事件中，大部分灭绝可以解释为温度升高和氧气供应减少对动物呼吸的压力。地球化学数据将用于限制在这些大规模灭绝事件期间不断变化的海洋条件的计算机模拟。动物呼吸的实验室研究结果将与化石数据配对，以评估空间和分类群之间灭绝强度的差异是否可以通过环境变化的空间变化或分类群之间承受环境变化能力的差异来解释。该项目将为一批研究生和博士后提供跨学科培训。它将通过创建一个网站来进一步影响STEM教育，该网站将允许访问模型结果，以便学生可以可视化和探索模型输出，以了解大陆配置，海洋条件和生物多样性之间的因果关系。调查人员还将在主要会议上提供关于地球系统建模和数据解释的短期课程，这些课程将被记录下来供异步使用。该项目还将涉及一个播客系列的发展，解决我们如何重建古代地球系统，并使用这些重建，以更好地了解现在和预测未来。在这个项目中，假设将被测试，通过限制有氧呼吸在气候变化和海洋脱氧栖息地的损失可以解释的规模，分类选择性，和纬度变化的强度晚泥盆世（弗拉斯期-Fammenian），二叠纪末，三叠纪末大规模灭绝事件。古氧化还原和古气候代用数据以及成岩蚀变的地球化学指标将用于每一次重大事件前后的全球平均和当地条件，并结合地球系统模型的预测和海洋动物化石记录的发生数据，以将灭绝的各个方面与那些需要其他解释的生理压力解释分开。通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The project will study the response of marine animal ecosystems to environmental change using three mass extinction events from the geological record as study systems. Specifically, the project will test the hypothesis that a large proportion of extinction during these events can be explained by the stresses that elevated temperatures and reduced oxygen availability place on animal respiration. Geochemical data will be used to constrain computer simulations of changing ocean conditions during these mass extinction events. Results from laboratory studies on animal respiration will then be paired with fossil data to assess whether differences in extinction intensity in space and across taxonomic groups can be explained by spatial variation in environmental change or differences among taxonomic groups in their ability to withstand environmental change. The project will provide interdisciplinary training to a group of graduate students and post-docs. It will further impact STEM education through the creation of a website that will allow access to model results so that students can visualize and explore model output to understand cause-effect relationships between continental configuration, ocean conditions, and biological diversity. The investigators will also offer short-courses on Earth system modeling and data interpretation at major conferences that will be recorded for asynchronous use. The project will also involve the development of a podcast series addressing how we reconstruct the ancient Earth system and use these reconstructions to better understand the present and predict the future.In this project, the hypothesis will be tested that the loss of habitat through constraints on aerobic respiration under climate change and ocean deoxygenation can explain the magnitude, taxonomic selectivity, and latitude variation in intensity for the Late Devonian (Frasnian-Fammenian), end-Permian, and end-Triassic mass extinction events. Paleoredox and paleoclimate proxy data and geochemical indicators of diagenetic alteration will be used for both global average and local conditions before and after each major event combined with predictions from Earth system models and occurrence data from the fossil record of marine animals to separate aspects of extinction than can be explained by physiological stress from those that require other explanations.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.