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The Early Cretaceous brachiopod Peregrinella from Tibet: a confirmed hydrocarbon-seep occurrence for a seep-restricted genus

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Abstract

An occurrence of the dimerelloid brachiopod Peregrinella from northern Tibet is confirmed as associated with a hydrocarbon-seep deposit based on petrographic textures and microfabrics, 13C-depleted authigenic carbonate phases, and paleontology. This is the first confirmed association of a rhynchonellide brachiopod with a Mesozoic seep paleoenvironment located outside of Europe and North America. In addition, we consider aspects of the taxonomy of Peregrinella: (a) several species names have been proposed for specimens of Peregrinella from northern Tibet, but these species may all be referable to P. cheboensis Sun, 1986, the senior subjective synonym; (b) the subgenus Peregrinellina was previously erected based on specimens of Peregrinella from southern Tibet. The subgenus is considered a junior subjective synonym of Peregrinella.

Kurzfassung

Petrographische und paläontologische Merkmale sowie an 13C abgereicherte authigene Karbonatmineralphasen bestätigen die Bildung eines Vorkommens des Brachiopoden Peregrinella (Überfamilie Dimerelloidea) aus dem nördlichen Tibet an einem Kohlenwasserstoff-Fluidaustritt. Bei diesem Befund handelt es sich um den ersten Nachweis, dass ein mesozoischer Vertreter der Ordnung Rhynchonellida außerhalb Europas und Nordamerikas an Fluidaustritten gelebt hat. Zusätzlich werden Aspekte der Taxonomie von Peregrinella betrachtet: (a) für Fossilien aus dem nördlichen Tibet wurden mehrere Artnamen vorgeschlagen, alle diese Arten können aber mit P. cheboensis Sun, 1986 synonymisiert werden; (b) die Untergattung Peregrinellina wurde ursprünglich anhand von Individuen von Peregrinella aus dem südlichen Tibet aufgestellt. Wir betrachten diese Untergattung als nicht gültig und schlagen die Synonymisierung mit Peregrinella vor.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to Dongli Sun (Nanjing, China) for making the sample from the Chebo section, northern Tibet, available for study; Shuzong Shen (Nanjing, China) for additional information on the occurrences of Peregrinella in Tibet; Helmut Willems (Bremen, Germany) for comments on the geology of Tibet; Sylvain Richoz (Graz, Austria) for stable isotope analysis; and Shuang-Ye Wu (Dayton, Ohio, USA) for drafting the paleogeographic map (Fig. 4) and for assistance with translations. Comments by Steffen Kiel (Stockholm, Sweden) and Mike Reich (Munich, Germany) helped to improve the manuscript. MRS acknowledges support from the donors of the American Chemical Society—Petroleum Research Fund.

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  1. Department of Geology, University of Dayton, Dayton, OH, 45469-2364, USA

    Michael R. Sandy

  2. Institut für Geologie, Universität Hamburg, 20146, Hamburg, Germany

    Jörn Peckmann

  3. Department für Geodynamik und Sedimentologie, Universität Wien, 1090, Vienna, Austria

    Jörn Peckmann

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  1. Michael R. Sandy
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Sandy, M.R., Peckmann, J. The Early Cretaceous brachiopod Peregrinella from Tibet: a confirmed hydrocarbon-seep occurrence for a seep-restricted genus. PalZ 90, 691–699 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12542-016-0318-4

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