Carbon isotopic records in paleosols over the Pliocene in Northern China: Implication on vegetation development and Tibetan uplift

Abstract

Carbon isotopic composition of pedogenic carbonate can be used to estimate the proportion of C4 and C3 plants. Here we present carbon isotopic data of carbonate in a red earth section at Xifeng, central Loess Plateau. Results show that C4 vegetation increased in ∼4.4 Ma B.P., stabilized between 4.0 and 3.0 Ma B.P. The character and timing of C4 expansion on the Loess Plateau are similar, but different with other localities, e.g. Pakistan and Africa, implying that regional climate changes were main factors driving the expansion of C4 plants. This event is comparable in timing with increased aridity evidenced by Xifeng grain size and North Pacific eolian dust records. Therefore we argue that the Pliocene expansion of C4 plants in northern China might have been caused by the increased aridity, which in turn might be related to rapid uplift of the Tibetan Plateau.