δ18O and δ13C in fossil shells of Radix sp. from the sediment succession of a dammed palaeo‐lake in the Yarlung Tsangpo valley,Tibet, China |
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| Authors: | Hai‐Ping Hu Jin‐Liang Feng Feng Chen |
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| Institution: | 1. Key Laboratory of Tibetan Environment Changes and Land Surface Processes, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China;2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China |
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| Abstract: | A series of confirmed and suspected dammed palaeo‐lake sedimentary successions is scattered within the middle Yarlung Tsangpo valley in Tibet. However, the chronology, the genesis of the dam and its location, the water level of the dammed lake, the process of dam failure and the spatiotemporal relationships between the sedimentary successions remain controversial. Here, we focus on one sedimentary succession of the suspected dammed palaeo‐lake at Xigazê. We measured the grain‐size distribution, magnetic susceptibility, organic and inorganic carbon content, and δ13Corg and δ15Ntotal ratios of the sediments. In addition, we measured the δ18Oshell and δ13Cshell values of modern and fossil Radix sp. shells, and the δ18Owater and δ13CDIC values of the ambient water with different hydrological regimes. The results indicate that the δ18Oshell values of modern Radix sp. and the δ18Owater of the ambient water body significantly depend on its hydrological status. In addition, a strong positive relationship was observed between δ18Oshell values of modern Radix sp. shells and the δ18Owater of the ambient water on the Tibetan Plateau. According to this correlation, the δ18Owater values of the palaeo‐water body are reconstructed using the δ18Oshell values of Radix sp. fossil shells in the Xigazê section. Further, based on the δ18Oshell values of fossil Radix sp., the reconstructed δ18Owater of the palaeo‐water body and the specific habitats of Radix sp., we infer that the sedimentary succession in the Xigazê broad valley was mainly formed within the backwater terminal zone of a dammed palaeo‐lake and that the elevation of the water level of the lake was approximately 3811 m a.s.l. AMS 14C dating indicates that the deposits of the dammed palaeo‐lake were formed at about 33–22 cal. ka BP. Finally, the presence of Radix sp. fossil shells within the Xigazê section suggests that Radix sp. survived the late Last Glacial Period on the Tibetan Plateau. |
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