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Geological Society, London, Special Publications; 1996; v. 102; p. 135-161;
DOI: 10.1144/GSL.SP.1996.001.01.11
© 1996 Geological Society of London

Palaeozoic

Searching for extinction/recovery gradients: the Frasnian-Famennian interval, Mokrá Section, Moravia, central Europe

Petr Cejchan & Jindrich Hladil

Geological Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, Rozvojová 135, CZ-16502 Praha 6-Suchdol, Czech Republic

A series of ancient seafloors colonized by diverse organisms has been documented from the Upper Devonian rocks of the Western Mokrá Quarry. Situated in the southern tectonic closure of the Moravian Karst, the Frasnian-Famennian shallow carbonate ramps exhibit both Rhenish and Ukrainian affinities. Reconstruction of palaeo-sea floor horizons results in a series of 28 quadrats sufficient for further evaluation. Eighty-five taxa involved were scrutinized for abundance, occupied area, skeletal mass production and biomass production. The aim of the study was to determine whether the observed sequence of quadrats can be distinguished from a random one, and to discover any possible unidimensional gradient as a latent control. Monte Carlo simulations and a graph theoretical approach were utilized. Although the raw data seemed chaotic, the simulations demonstrated the observed sequence is not random. A significant influence of a hidden control is thus suggested. Fifteen characteristics of quadrats (e.g. diversity, number of taxa, vertical stratification of community, number of patches) were utilized for final interpretation. The gradient reconstructed by TSP algorithm reveals a significant crisis within the uppermost part of the Amphipora-bearing limestone.