rhynie chert

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Rhynie ChertJoshua Vance


Location and Discovery of the Rhynie Chert

Rhynie, Scotland

Discovered by William Mackie in 1912

Fossils were studied by Robert Kidston and William Lang


Age and Geologic Setting for the Rhynie Chert

Deposited in the Early Devonian (396 +/- 12 million years)

Scotland was apart of the super continent Laurussia Located just south of the equator Sub-tropical to tropical environment

Volcanic activity Heavily metamorphosed volcanic bedrock

Extensional Setting Low angle extensional fault to the west

Hot Springs One of the oldest preserved hot spring deposits Siliceous

Similar to present day Yellowstone


Rhynie, Scotland ~396 mya


Paleontological Significance of the Rhynie Chert

Rhynie Chert is one of the oldest preserved terrestrial ecosystems and hot spring deposits

Preservation of organic material on the anatomical scale Delicate plant structures were preserved

Whole life cycles of organisms may be studied Short lived developmental stages have been preserved


Taphonomy of Rhynie Chert Flora and Fauna

Hot springs erupted siliceous hot water that cooled and precipitated silica onto nearby organisms

Soon after death organisms became inundated by siliceous fluids

Organisms were fossilized due to the permeation of silica through organic material or by direct silica replacement

This process most likely occurred quickly


Rhynie Chert Flora

Tracheophytes

Vascular tissue that circulates water which allows them to grow to larger sizes than non-vascular plants

Sporophytes meaning they are diploids (two sets of chromosomes per cell)

Gametophytes meaning they are haploids (one set of chromosomes per cell)

Examples: Aglaophyton, Horneophyton, and Rhynia


Rhynie Chert Fauna

Arthropods

Invertebrates

Examples: Trigonotarbids, Mites, and Euthycarcinoids


Evolutionary Significance of Flora and Fauna

Evolutionary momentum is building up in the Early Devonian Larger diversity of plants and animals Complexity of species is increasing

Plants remain relatively simple No leaves Relatively small in size

Evolutionary advances Vascular tissue Oldest known vascular plants

Plant/animal interactions


Sources

Fisher, Dan. et al. “Localities of the Devonian: Rhynie Chert, Scotland.” 11 May 1998. University of California Museum of Paleontology.< http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/devonian/rhynie.html >

Kerp, Hans. “The Rhynie Chert and it’s Flora.” December 2002. The Palaeobotanical Research Group. University of Munster.< http://www.uni-muenster.de/GeoPalaeontologie/Palaeo/Palbot/erhynie.html >

Nunn, Elizabeth. “The Rhynie Chert.” 2003. Department of Earth Sciences. University of Bristol. < http://palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/Palaeofiles/Lagerstatten/Rhynie/index.html >

Stromberg, C. “The Rhynie Flora: Elaborations on a Theme.” 1998. Department of Integrative Biology. University of California Museum of Paleontology.< http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/IB181/VPL/Elp/Elp2.html >

Steur, Hans. “The Oldest Land Plants.” 2 September 2007. Ellecom, The Netherlands. < http://www.xs4all.nl/~steurh/eng/old2.html >

Trewin, Nigel et al. “The Biota of Early Terrestrial Ecosystems: The Rhynie Chert.” 2 March 2005. The Rhynie Chert Research Group. University of Aberdeen.< http://www.abdn.ac.uk/rhynie/index.htm >

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