Water-level and redox fluctuations in a Sichuan Basin lacustrine system coincident with the Toarcian OAE

Increasing cases have indicated that oceanic anoxic events (OAEs) appear to have records in terrestrial sediments, which provide valuably high-resolution materials for the debated and challenging issues of OAEs. However, the current works are preliminary and need more geological analyses to test. Here we present a case study in the Lower Jurassic Da'anzhai Member of the Toarcian (ca. 180 Ma) Sichuan Basin, SW China. The petrology and sedimentary facies of the Da'anzhai Member were used to reconstruct the relative water-level fluctuations in the Sichuan Basin, which are revealed to be consistent with coeval changes in global sea levels. The Da'anzhai Member was deposited during a period of lake shallowing with enhanced salinities corroborated by the Sr/Ba and S/TOC ratios, when sea level was generally high after global transgression. During the lake shallowing, there were four complete secondary lacustrine deepening–shallowing cycles over shorter time-scales. The total organic carbon contents and organic carbon isotopic stratigraphy show there was a basin wide terrestrial response to the T-OAE as recorded by the Da'anzhai Member. The enrichment factors of Mo relative to PAAS (MoEF) and Corg/P values imply a dysoxic redox condition. The terrestrial response of OAEs is likely caused by changes in hydrological conditions, which were related to the global warming triggered by the Karoo–Ferrar Large Igneous Province. The associated organic carbon accumulation mechanism is a combined effect of elevated primary productivity and oxygen-depleted preservation conditions. Our data suggest that OAEs do have terrestrial response and induce organic carbon accumulation, but the mechanisms are still not much clear and need further studies. •Water-level and redox fluctuations in a Sichuan Basin lacustrine system were revealed.•The fluctuations are coincident with the Toarcian oceanic anoxic event.•Relative water-level fluctuations are consistent with coeval changes in global sea levels.•The response is most likely caused by changes in hydrological conditions.•Organic matter accumulated under elevated primary productivity and dysoxic conditions.