In the

geologic timescale The geologic time scale or geological time scale (GTS) is a representation of time based on the rock record of Earth. It is a system of chronological dating that uses chronostratigraphy (the process of relating strata to time) and geochron ...

, the Capitanian is an

age Age or AGE may refer to: Time and its effects * Age, the amount of time someone has been alive or something has existed ** East Asian age reckoning, an Asian system of marking age starting at 1 * Ageing or aging, the process of becoming older ...

stage Stage, stages, or staging may refer to: Arts and media Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly Brit ...

of the

Permian The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years, from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.902 Mya. It is the s ...

. It is also the uppermost or latest of three subdivisions of the

Guadalupian The Guadalupian is the second and middle Series (stratigraphy), series/Epoch (geology), epoch of the Permian. The Guadalupian was preceded by the Cisuralian and followed by the Lopingian. It is named after the Guadalupe Mountains of New Mexico an ...

Epoch In chronology and periodization, an epoch or reference epoch is an instant in time chosen as the origin of a particular calendar era. The "epoch" serves as a reference point from which time is measured. The moment of epoch is usually decided b ...

Series Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used i ...

. The Capitanian lasted between and million years ago. It was preceded by the

Wordian In the geologic timescale, the Wordian is an age or stage of the Permian. It is the middle of three subdivisions of the Guadalupian Epoch or Series. The Wordian lasted between and million years ago (Ma). It was preceded by the Roadian and fo ...

and followed by the

Wuchiapingian In the geologic timescale, the Wuchiapingian or Wujiapingian (from in the Liangshan area of Hanzhong, Shaanxi Province ) is an age or stage of the Permian. It is also the lower or earlier of two subdivisions of the Lopingian Epoch or S ...

.; 2004: ''A Geologic Time Scale 2004'',

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

Press A significant mass extinction event occurred at the end of this stage, which was associated with anoxia and

acidification Acidification may refer to: * Ocean acidification, decrease in the pH of the Earth's oceans * Freshwater acidification, atmospheric depositions and soil leaching of SOx and NOx * Soil acidification, buildup of hydrogen cations, which reduces the ...

in the oceans and possibly caused by the volcanic eruptions that produced the

Emeishan Traps The Emeishan Traps constitute a flood basalt volcanic province, or large igneous province, in south-western China, centred in Sichuan province. It is sometimes referred to as the Permian Emeishan Large Igneous Province or Emeishan Flood Basalts. Li ...

. This extinction event may be related to the much larger

Permian–Triassic extinction event The Permian–Triassic extinction event (also known as the P–T extinction event, the Late Permian extinction event, the Latest Permian extinction event, the End-Permian extinction event, and colloquially as the Great Dying,) was an extinction ...

that followed about 10 million years later.

Stratigraphy

The Capitanian Stage was introduced into scientific literature by

George Burr Richardson George Burr Richardson (1872–1949) was an American geologist who participated in extensive field work for the United States Geological Survey (USGS) in Alaska, Pennsylvania, California, Texas, Colorado, and Utah. In Texas, Richardson described ...

in 1904. The name comes from the Capitan Reef in the

Guadalupe Mountains The Guadalupe Mountains () are a mountain range located in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. The range includes the highest summit in Texas, Guadalupe Peak, , and the "signature peak" of West Texas, El Capitan, both of which are located wi ...

(

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, United States). The Capitanian was first used as a stratigraphic subdivision of the Guadalupian in 1961, when both names were still only used regionally in the southern US. The stage was added to the internationally used ICS timescale in 2001.

Definitions

The base of the Capitanian Stage is defined as the place in the stratigraphic record where fossils of

conodont Conodonts, are an extinct group of marine jawless vertebrates belonging to the class Conodonta (from Ancient Greek κῶνος (''kōnos''), meaning " cone", and ὀδούς (''odoús''), meaning "tooth"). They are primarily known from their hard ...

species ''

Jinogondolella ''Jinogondolella'' is an extinct genus of conodonts. Mesogondolella and Jinogondolella (Conodonta): Multielement definition of the taxa that bracket the basal Guadalupian The Guadalupian is the second and middle Series (stratigraphy), series/ ...

postserrata'' first appear. The global reference profile for this stratigraphic boundary is located at Nipple Hill in the southern Guadalupe Mountains of Texas. The top of the Capitanian (the base of the Wuchiapingian and Lopingian series) is defined as the place in the stratigraphic record where the conodont species ''

Clarkina ''Clarkina'' is an extinct genus of conodonts. It is considered to be an offshore, outer shelf or basinal, deep-water taxon. The genus name is a tribute to David Leigh Clark. Synonyms ''Clarkina'' Soodan 1975 is a junior synonym for the pre ...

postbitteri postbitteri'' first appears. The Capitanian Stage was part of the time in which the

Zechstein The Zechstein ( German either from ''mine stone'' or ''tough stone'') is a unit of sedimentary rock layers of Late Permian ( Lopingian) age located in the European Permian Basin which stretches from the east coast of England to northern Poland. T ...

was deposited in Europe. It is coeval with the old European regional Saxonian Stage. In the eastern Tethys domain, the Capitanian overlaps the regional Murgabian Stage, the Midian Stage and the lower part of the Laibinian Stage. In Russia the Capitanian equals the lower part of the regional Severodvinian Stage.

Biostratigraphy

The Capitanian contains one

ammonite Ammonoids are extinct, (typically) coiled-shelled cephalopods comprising the subclass Ammonoidea. They are more closely related to living octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish (which comprise the clade Coleoidea) than they are to nautiluses (family N ...

biozone In biostratigraphy, biostratigraphic units or biozones are intervals of geological strata that are defined on the basis of their characteristic fossil taxon, taxa, as opposed to a Lithostratigraphy, lithostratigraphic unit which is defined by the ...

('' Timorites'') and three conodont biozones: *zone of ''

postbitteri hongshuiensis'' *zone of ''Jinogondolella altudaensis'' *zone of ''Jinogondolella postserrata'' Larger fusulinid species permit a division in two biozones: *zone of '' Rausserella'' *zone of '' Afganella schenki''

Capitanian life

Olson’s Extinction Olson's Extinction was a mass extinction that occurred in the late Cisuralian or early Guadalupian epoch of the Permian period, predating the much larger Permian–Triassic extinction event. The event is named after American paleontologist Evere ...

, in the early

(

Roadian In the geologic timescale, the Roadian is an age or stage of the Permian. It is the earliest or lower of three subdivisions of the Guadalupian Epoch or Series. The Roadian lasted between and million years ago (Ma). It was preceded by the Kun ...

), led to an extended period of low diversity when worldwide two-thirds of terrestrial vertebrate life was lost. Global diversity rose dramatically in the Capitanian, probably the result of disaster taxa filling empty guilds, only to fall again when the end-Guadalupian event caused a diversity drop in the

Notable formations

* Capitan Formation (

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

, USA)

Events

Carbon isotope Carbon (6C) has 14 known isotopes, from to as well as , of which only and are stable. The longest-lived radioisotope is , with a half-life of years. This is also the only carbon radioisotope found in nature, as trace quantities are formed ...

s in marine

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

from the Capitanian age show an increase in δ¹³C values. The change in carbon isotopes in the sea water reflects cooling of global climates. This climatic cooling may have caused the end-Capitanian extinction event among species that lived in warm water, like larger

fusulinid The Fusulinida is an extinct order within the Foraminifera in which the tests are traditionally considered to have been composed of microgranular calcite. Like all forams, they were single-celled organisms. In advanced forms the test wall was d ...

s (Verbeekninidae), large

bivalve Bivalvia () or bivalves, in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class (biology), class of aquatic animal, aquatic molluscs (marine and freshwater) that have laterally compressed soft bodies enclosed b ...

s (

Alatoconchidae Alatoconchidae is an extinct family of prehistoric bivalves that lived in the early to middle Permian period. Genera belonging to Alatoconchidae are characterized by their shell that is strongly compressed in the dorsoventral direction. Some spec ...

) and

rugose Rugose means "wrinkled". It may refer to: * Rugosa, an extinct order of coral, whose rugose shape earned it the name * Rugose, adjectival form of rugae Species with "rugose" in their names * ''Idiosoma nigrum'', more commonly, a black rugose tra ...

corals, and Waagenophyllidae.

References

External links

GeoWhen Database - CapitanianUpper Paleozoic stratigraphic chart
at the website of the subcommission for stratigraphic information of the ICS {{Geological history, p, p Permian geochronology Guadalupian . Permian geology of Texas