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Chinese basin may have been a refuge during largest mass extinction. Do we need another?

Researchers say Turpan-Hami Basin in Xinjiang hosted diverse plant life throughout end-Permian mass extinction 252 million years ago

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An artist’s reconstruction of the South Taodonggou section of the Turpan-Hami Basin before the mass extinction. Image: Yang Dinghua
Victoria Bela
Fossil evidence of a diverse plant ecosystem that thrived in a Chinese desert during the world’s largest mass extinction could offer insight into how humans could survive a future great dying event.
Researchers from China and the United States discovered there was a “life oasis” for terrestrial plants in a region of the Turpan-Hami Basin in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in western China during the end-Permian mass extinction around 252 million years ago.

Considered to be the largest mass extinction in which life on Earth nearly came to an end, the event wiped out around 80 per cent of marine species. The exact cause of the event is still not clear, although evidence points to major volcanic eruptions and global warming.

While the catastrophic impact on marine life is well known, the impact on terrestrial ecosystems has been subject to debate.

Strata exposed in South Taodonggou, in western China, where the terrestrial refugium was found. The yellow dot is the location of volcanic ash with the radiometrically dated age. The star denotes location of the complete tetrapod skeleton shown in the lower panel. Image: NIGPAS
Strata exposed in South Taodonggou, in western China, where the terrestrial refugium was found. The yellow dot is the location of volcanic ash with the radiometrically dated age. The star denotes location of the complete tetrapod skeleton shown in the lower panel. Image: NIGPAS

“Our fossil records, calibrated by a high-resolution age model, reveal the presence of vibrant regional gymnospermous forests and fern fields [in this region], while marine organisms experienced mass extinction,” the team wrote in a paper published in the peer-reviewed journal Science Advances on March 12.

Through analysis of fossil pollen and spores, the team found that the South Taodonggou section of the Turpan-Hami Basin hosted diverse plant life 160,000 years before the extinction began and 160,000 years after it ended.

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