The Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (GOBE) greatly enriched marine biodiversity, promoted the complexification of ecosystems, and laid the foundation for the subsequent flourishing of marine life. The discovery of Ordovician Konservat-Lagerstätten is crucial for understanding the processes and ecosystem evolution associated with the GOBE. However, most known Ordovician Konservat-Lagerstätten are derived from shallow-water environments; those from deep-water (slope-basin) settings are extremely rare. This preservational bias severely limits a comprehensive understanding of the distribution and dynamic evolution of biodiversity in the Ordovician. Here, we report the Fuping Fauna, a deep-water slope facies Konservat-Lagerstätte from the Upper Ordovician (Katian) in the southern part of the North China craton. This fauna is composed mainly of eurypterids, cheloniellids, aglaspidids, bivalved arthropods, megacheirans, cnidarians, brachiopods, molluscs, conodonts, and coprolites, representing the first Ordovician Konservat-Lagerstätte discovered in the North China craton. Its unique environment (carbonate contourites) and distinctive biological features (diverse fauna with the absence of typical Ordovician taxa, such as trilobites and graptolites) enrich our understanding of the biological assemblages and ecological niches of the Ordovician deep-water ecosystems. The discovery of the Fuping Fauna not only expands the distribution range and sedimentary environment of the Ordovician Konservat-Lagerstätten but also indicates that the deep-water fauna exhibited high ecological complexity and biodiversity in the prime of the GOBE.
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Research Article|
July 03, 2025
Early Publication
Fuping Fauna: A deep-water fauna in the prime of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event Available to Purchase
Yilong Liu;
Yilong Liu
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
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Dan Tu;
Dan Tu
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
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Ruoying Fan;
Ruoying Fan
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
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Qingyang Xu;
Qingyang Xu
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
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Xin Hu;
Xin Hu
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
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Ruiwen Zong;
Ruiwen Zong
2
State Key Laboratory of Geomicrobiology and Environmental Changes, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
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Yiming Gong
Yiming Gong
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China2
State Key Laboratory of Geomicrobiology and Environmental Changes, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
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Yilong Liu
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
Dan Tu
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
Ruoying Fan
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
Qingyang Xu
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
Xin Hu
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
Ruiwen Zong
2
State Key Laboratory of Geomicrobiology and Environmental Changes, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
Yiming Gong
1
School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China2
State Key Laboratory of Geomicrobiology and Environmental Changes, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
Publisher: Geological Society of America
Received:
26 Apr 2025
Revision Received:
10 Jun 2025
Accepted:
22 Jun 2025
First Online:
03 Jul 2025
Online ISSN: 1943-2682
Print ISSN: 0091-7613
© 2025 Geological Society of America
Geology (2025)
Article history
Received:
26 Apr 2025
Revision Received:
10 Jun 2025
Accepted:
22 Jun 2025
First Online:
03 Jul 2025
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CitationYilong Liu, Dan Tu, Ruoying Fan, Qingyang Xu, Xin Hu, Ruiwen Zong, Yiming Gong; Fuping Fauna: A deep-water fauna in the prime of the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event. Geology 2025; doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G53475.1
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