The impact of lithification on the diversity, size distribution, and recovery dynamics of marine invertebrate assemblages

Research Article| February 01, 2009 The impact of lithification on the diversity, size distribution, and recovery dynamics of marine invertebrate assemblages Jocelyn A. Sessa; Jocelyn A. Sessa * 1Department of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802-2714, USA *E-mail: jsessa@psu.edu. Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Mark E. Patzkowsky; Mark E. Patzkowsky 1Department of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802-2714, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Timothy J. Bralower Timothy J. Bralower 1Department of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802-2714, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Jocelyn A. Sessa * 1Department of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802-2714, USA Mark E. Patzkowsky 1Department of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802-2714, USA Timothy J. Bralower 1Department of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802-2714, USA *E-mail: jsessa@psu.edu. Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 24 Jun 2008 Revision Received: 18 Sep 2008 Accepted: 01 Oct 2008 First Online: 12 Oct 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 © 2009 Geological Society of America Geology (2009) 37 (2): 115–118. https://doi.org/10.1130/G25286A.1 Article history Received: 24 Jun 2008 Revision Received: 18 Sep 2008 Accepted: 01 Oct 2008 First Online: 12 Oct 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Jocelyn A. Sessa, Mark E. Patzkowsky, Timothy J. Bralower; The impact of lithification on the diversity, size distribution, and recovery dynamics of marine invertebrate assemblages. Geology 2009;; 37 (2): 115–118. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G25286A.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Lithified marine sediments are not equitably distributed through time, raising the possibility that lithification masks biological signals when data from unlithified and lithified sediments are compared or combined. Using mollusk-dominated assemblages from the early Cenozoic of the Gulf Coastal Plain, we find that lithification conceals small taxa, decreases taxonomic resolution, and exacerbates the undersampling of rare taxa. Lithified assemblages appear less diverse and have less even abundance distributions than coeval unlithified samples. These limitations cannot be overcome by standardization procedures, nor are they likely to be circumvented by collecting larger samples. The effects of this bias, however, can be mitigated by restricting analyses to a single lithification state or to specific size classes. Since lithification selectively obscures small taxa, the magnitude of this bias will be most severe when organisms are particularly small, such as in the aftermath of mass extinctions. In the study area, lithification artificially protracts the recovery period following the Cretaceous-Paleogene mass extinction by ~7 m.y. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.