Eocene prevalence of monsoon-like climate over eastern China reflected by hydrological dynamics

Abstract

Hydrological dynamics of sedimentary basins are essential for understanding regional climatic pattern in the geological past. In previous qualitative studies lithologically depending on the occurrence of featured sedimentary rocks, the Eocene climate of China had been subdivided into three latitudinal zones, with one subtropical high-controlled arid zone throughout middle China, and two humid zones respectively in the north and south. However, recent advances on mammalian fauna distribution, plant fossil-based quantitative paleoclimatic reconstruction, and modeling experiment jointly suggest that the relatively humid monsoonal climate might have prevailed over the territory. Here we examine and compare sedimentary sequences of 10 Eocene sections across eastern China, and hence the lake level fluctuations, to discuss the nature of climate type. Our results show that, instead of the categorically zonal pattern, the hydroclimate dynamics is intensified landward. This is demonstrated by the fact that, in contrast to the wide developed coal layers around the periphery, evaporites are growingly occurred endocentrically to the central part of middle China. However, although we have had assumed that all evaporites are indicator of extreme aridity, the highly oscillated climate in the central part of middle China was humid in the majority of the Eocene, distinct from permanent arid as seen in deserts or steppe along modern horse latitude. From the upcountry distribution pattern of the Eocene hydrological dynamics, it appears that the relatively dry climate in central China was caused by the impact of continentality or rain shadow effect under monsoonal, or monsoon-like climate.