Characterization of the Fauna of the Middle Cambrian Nelson Limestone

中寒武统纳尔逊石灰岩动物群的表征

• 批准号: 9909302
• 负责人: Bruce Lieberman
• 金额: $ 6万
• 依托单位: University of Kansas Center for Research Inc
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2000
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2000-06-01 至 2002-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9909302&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Characterization; Fauna; Middle; Cambrian; Nelson

9909302LiebermanThis award, provided by the Antarctic Geology and Geophysics Program of the Office of Polar Programs, provides support for a study of Cambrian invertebrate fossils from Antarctica. The Cambrian period was a time of major tectonic activity within the Antarctic continent. Current understanding of the nature of this tectonic activity in Antarctica, and Cambrian Antarctic geology in general, has advanced considerably through several lines of geological research. However, enigmas still remain, and these are partly related to the fact that Antarctica is comprised of some micro-continental blocks and fault bounded regions whose position during the Cambrian, and the time when they collided with Antarctica, is not precisely constrained. The immediate objective of this research is to thoroughly describe and analyze (monograph) the Middle Cambrian trilobite fauna from the Nelson Limestone based on recent collections made in the Pensacola Mountains. This will be an important first step in addressing some of the enigmas of Cambrian Antarctic geology because it will allow three objectives to be attained. First, the elements of the fauna will be placed into a pre-existing sequence-stratigraphic framework for the Nelson Limestone. Second, the elements of this fauna will be used to help expand a Middle Cambrian biostratigraphy for Antarctica. Third, the elements of the fauna will be used to determine patterns of faunal similarity between the Pensacola Mountains and the Middle Cambrian of various Antarctic microcontinents and terranes. Objectives 1 and 2 will increase our understanding of the timing of events in Antarctica, and these, along with the third objective, will help increase our understanding of the relative position of the different parts of Antarctica in the Middle Cambrian. Each of these objectives will also increase our general understanding of Cambrian Antarctic geology. The fauna that will be monographed is in collections housed at the University of Kansas, and they are accompanied by precise locality data. The work will benefit from collaborations with other scientists at the University of Kansas who have significant expertise related to Cambrian biostratigraphy.

9909302 Liebermanthis奖，由南极计划办公室的南极地质和地球物理学计划提供，为研究寒武纪无脊椎动物化石的研究提供了支持。寒武纪时期是南极大陆内主要构造活动的时期。当前对南极这种构造活性的性质以及一般的寒武纪南极地质的理解已通过多种地质研究促进了大大发展。但是，谜团仍然存在，这些谜团部分与南极洲的某些微型块和断层有界区组成的事实有关，它们在寒武纪期间的位置以及与南极洲相撞的时间并不精确地受到约束。这项研究的直接目的是彻底描述和分析（专着）基于彭萨科拉山脉最近收藏的尼尔森石灰石中寒武纪三叶树中部动物区系。这将是解决寒武纪南极地质的某些谜团的重要第一步，因为它将允许达到三个目标。首先，将动物群的元素放在尼尔森石灰石的先前存在的序列 - 地层框架中。其次，该动物群的元素将用于帮助扩大寒武纪中部的生物地层学。第三，动物群的元素将用于确定彭萨科拉山脉与各种南极微型内部和地形的中部寒武纪之间的动物相似性模式。目标1和2将提高我们对南极事件时间安排的理解，而这些目标以及第三个目标将有助于我们对南极洲不同地区在中部寒武纪不同地区的相对位置的理解。这些目标中的每一个还将增加我们对寒武纪南极地质的一般理解。将要专着的动物区系在堪萨斯大学的收藏中，并伴随着精确的地方数据。这项工作将受益于与堪萨斯大学的其他科学家的合作，这些科学家具有与寒武纪生物地层学有关的重要专业知识。