An attempt to quantitatively reconstruct the paleo-primary productivity by counting the radiolarian fossils in cherts from the latest Permian Dalong Formation in southwestern China

Abstract

A quantitative reconstruction method of paleo-primary productivity is present on the basis of the investigation on the faunal record in cherts. By obtaining the accumulation rate of radiolarian shells in the cherts and considering all aspects of silica loss before burial, such as dissolution in the eutrophic zone or within the sediments, it is possible to reconstruct the production rate of radiolarian in the surface water, which would be used to estimate the paleo-primary productivity. This method is applied to the end Permian chert sequence from Dalong Formation in Dongpan area, southwestern China. The resulting paleo-primary productivity of the ocean in end Permian south China is about 477.9 g C/m²/a during the sedimentation of cherts, which, to some extent, agrees with the primary productivity reported for some modern oceans.