Transition from stromatolite to thrombolite fabric: potential role for reticulopodial protists in lake microbialites of a Proterozoic ecosystem analog.

Prior observations suggest that foraminiferan protists use their reticulopodia (anastomosing pseudopodia) to alter sediment fabric by disrupting laminations of subtidal marine stromatolites, erasing the layered structures in an experimental setting. Because microbialites and foraminifera are found in non-marine settings, we hypothesized that foraminifera living in lakes could also disrupt layered microbialite fabric. With this aim and using a variety of multidisciplinary approaches, we conducted field surveys and an experiment on microbialites from Green Lake (GL; Fayetteville, New York State, United States), which has been studied as a Proterozoic ecosystem analog. The lake is meromictic and alkaline, receiving calcium sulfate-rich water in the monimolimnion; it supports a well-developed carbonate platform that provides access to living and relict microbialites. The living microbialites grow from early spring to autumn, forming a laminated mat at their surface (top ~5 mm), but a clotted or massive structure exists at depth (> ~ 1 cm). We observed a morphotype of "naked" foraminiferan-like protist in samples from GL microbialites and sediments; thus, considered the possibility of freshwater foraminiferan impact on microbialite fabric. Results of an experiment that seeded the cultured freshwater foraminifer Haplomyxa saranae onto the GL microbialite surface indicates via micro-CT scanning and anisotropy analysis that the introduced foraminifer impacted uppermost microbialite layering (n = 3 cores); those cores with an added inhibitor lacked changes in anisotropy for two of those three cores. Thus, it remains plausible that the much smaller, relatively common, native free-form reticulate protist, which we identified as Chlamydomyxa labyrinthuloides, can disrupt microbialite fabrics on sub-millimeter scales. Our observations do not exclude contributions of other possible causal factors.

Sources of dehydration fluids underneath the Kamchatka arc.

Fluids mediate the transport of subducted slab material and play a crucial role in the generation of arc magmas. However, the source of subduction-derived fluids remains debated. The Kamchatka arc is an ideal subduction zone to identify the source of fluids because the arc magmas are comparably mafic, their source appears to be essentially free of subducted sediment-derived components, and subducted Hawaii-Emperor Seamount Chain (HESC) is thought to contribute a substantial fluid flux to the Kamchatka magmas. Here we show that Tl isotope ratios are unique tracers of HESC contribution to Kamchatka arc magma sources. In conjunction with trace element ratios and literature data, we trace the progressive dehydration and melting of subducted HESC across the Kamchatka arc. In succession, serpentine (<100 km depth), lawsonite (100-250 km depth) and phengite (>250 km depth) break down and produce fluids that contribute to arc magmatism at the Eastern Volcanic Front (EVF), Central Kamchatka Depression (CKD), and Sredinny Ridge (SR), respectively. However, given the Tl-poor nature of serpentine and lawsonite fluids, simultaneous melting of subducted HESC is required to explain the HESC-like Tl isotope signatures observed in EVF and CKD lavas. In the absence of eclogitic crust melting processes in this region of the Kamchatka arc, we propose that progressive dehydration and melting of a HESC-dominated mélange offers the most compelling interpretation of the combined isotope and trace element data.

Postmelting hydrogen enrichment in the oceanic lithosphere.

The large range of H2O contents recorded in minerals from exhumed mantle rocks has been challenging to interpret, as it often records a combination of melting, metasomatism, and diffusional processes in spatially isolated samples. Here, we determine the temporal variations of H2O contents in pyroxenes from a 24-Ma time series of abyssal peridotites exposed along the Vema fracture zone (Atlantic Ocean). The H2O contents of pyroxenes correlate with both crustal ages and pyroxene chemistry and increase toward younger and more refractory peridotites. These variations are inconsistent with residual values after melting and opposite to trends often observed in mantle xenoliths. Postmelting hydrogen enrichment occurred by ionic diffusion during cryptic metasomatism of peridotite residues by low-degree, volatile-rich melts and was particularly effective in the most depleted peridotites. The presence of hydrous melts under ridges leads to widespread hydrogen incorporation in the oceanic lithosphere, likely lowering mantle viscosity compared to dry models.

Barium isotope evidence for pervasive sediment recycling in the upper mantle.

The upper mantle, as sampled by mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORBs), exhibits significant chemical variability unrelated to mechanisms of melt extraction at ridges. We show that barium isotope variations in global MORBs vary systematically with radiogenic isotopes and trace element ratios, which reflects mixing between depleted and enriched MORB melts. In addition, modern sediments and enriched MORBs share similar Ba isotope signatures. Using modeling, we show that addition of ~0.1% by weight of sediment components into the depleted mantle in subduction zones must impart a sedimentary Ba signature to the overlying mantle and induce low-degree melting that produces the enriched MORB reservoir. Subsequently, these enriched domains convect toward mid-ocean ridges and produce radiogenic isotope variation typical of enriched MORBs. This mechanism can explain the chemical and isotopic features of enriched MORBs and provide strong evidence for pervasive sediment recycling in the upper mantle.

Copper systematics in arc magmas and implications for crust-mantle differentiation.

Arc magmas are important building blocks of the continental crust. Because many arc lavas are oxidized, continent formation is thought to be associated with oxidizing conditions. On the basis of copper's (Cu's) affinity for reduced sulfur phases, we tracked the redox state of arc magmas from mantle source to emplacement in the crust. Primary arc and mid-ocean ridge basalts have identical Cu contents, indicating that the redox states of primitive arc magmas are indistinguishable from that of mid-ocean ridge basalts. During magmatic differentiation, the Cu content of most arc magmas decreases markedly because of sulfide segregation. Because a similar depletion in Cu characterizes global continental crust, the formation of sulfide-bearing cumulates under reducing conditions may be a critical step in continent formation.

The redox state of arc mantle using Zn/Fe systematics.

Many arc lavas are more oxidized than mid-ocean-ridge basalts and subduction introduces oxidized components into the mantle. As a consequence, the sub-arc mantle wedge is widely believed to be oxidized. The Fe oxidation state of sub-arc mantle is, however, difficult to determine directly, and debate persists as to whether this oxidation is intrinsic to the mantle source. Here we show that Zn/Fe(T) (where Fe(T) = Fe(2+) + Fe(3+)) is redox-sensitive and retains a memory of the valence state of Fe in primary arc basalts and their mantle sources. During melting of mantle peridotite, Fe(2+) and Zn behave similarly, but because Fe(3+) is more incompatible than Fe(2+), melts generated in oxidized environments have low Zn/Fe(T). Primitive arc magmas have identical Zn/Fe(T) to mid-ocean-ridge basalts, suggesting that primary mantle melts in arcs and ridges have similar Fe oxidation states. The constancy of Zn/Fe(T) during early differentiation involving olivine requires that Fe(3+)/Fe(T) remains low in the magma. Only after progressive fractionation does Fe(3+)/Fe(T) increase and stabilize magnetite as a fractionating phase. These results suggest that subduction of oxidized crustal material may not significantly alter the redox state of the mantle wedge. Thus, the higher oxidation states of arc lavas must be in part a consequence of shallow-level differentiation processes, though such processes remain poorly understood.