Stable Isotope Profiles of the Fossil Mollusks from Marginal Marine Environment: Is Carbon from the Seasonal Methanogenesis?

Stable isotope profiles with fine-scale resolution were constructed from the fossil mollusk shells, Mercernaria mercernaria, obtained from the late Pleistocene transgressive deposits of Gomez Pit, Virginia, USA. Incremental sampling were made along the axis of maximum growth to provide high-resolution ${\delta}^{18}$O and ${\delta}^{13}$C records. The ${\delta}^{18}$O shell profiles exhibit a series of pronounced cycles in the overall amplitude, corresponding to strong seasonal variations in temperature, which is apparently positive environmental variable. Contrasts between the patterns of ${\delta}^{18}$O and ${\delta}^{13}$C profiles reflect the relationship influencing the seasonal carbon cycling in the shallow marine environment. Positive anomalies of the ${\delta}^{13}$C values during the summer were observed to be out of phase with the ${\delta}^{18}$O profile. Such relatively heavier carbon source may be alternated due to seasonal methanogenesis during the summer. A hypothesized methane-based system may be operated in the shallow and marginal marine environment, resulting in a ${\delta}^{13}$C enriched bicarbonate pool, in which the heavier isotope seems to be incorporated to the shell carbonate.