On Earth and Life

1. Which is not a feature of Vitosek (1997) Introduced species, a significant component of human caused global change?

Humans move species beyond their native ranges both deliberately and inadvertently, and many of these species become established and spread in their new habitat
Biological invasions are widespread and significant but cannot be a component of human caused global environmental change
Distribution of invasion on continents, there is an inc in the no. of invading species per area from N to S until 1 reaches dry subtropical regions, invasions are relatively low in the tropics, then inc again in S temp areas
Oceanic island invasions have always had a great impact on the native species, however recently so has continental islands and these invasions represent a human caused breakdown of the regional distinctiveness of Earths flora and fauna
Human caused global environmental change are driven proximately by the industrial and agricultural enterprises of humanity, and ultimately by the explosive growth over the past 2C of both the human population and per capita resource use
Consequences on invasions, no and variety of species intros makes clear that it is no exaggeration to say biological invasions are breaking down the biogeographic barriers that have created and maintained the major floral and faunal regions of earth

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Co2 and temperature can be measured via physical chemistry, planetary geometry and current global modelling but not from time-series of geological data
The primary reason for the return of low CO2 was carbon consumption by hydrolytic weathering and photosynthesis, stimulated by mountain uplift and changing patterns of oceanic thermohaline circulation
Geological tests of this idea seek to compare proxies of past atmospheric CO2 with other proxies of palaeotemperature. For at least the past 300 Myr, there is a remarkably high temporal correlation between peaks of atmospheric CO2
1) Stomatal density has changed by different partial pressures of CO2 2) warm palaeotemperature in the ocean corresponds with high atmospheric 3) There has been current CO2 levels in the past such as in the Early Tertiary
Past CO2 highs were in times of catastrophic release of CH4 from clathrates, but of asteroid and comet impacts, flood basalt eruptions and mass extinctions.
CO2–temperature uncoupling has been proposed from geological time-series of carbon isotopic composition of palaeosols and of marine phytoplankton, which fail to indicate high CO2 at known times of high palaeotemperature
Co2 and temperature have had a relationship since 300 Myr

That the use of sedimentary DNA shows that these megafauna persisted in Alaska until 10,500 yr BP, as opposed to 13,000-15,000 yr BP which was shown by LADS
SedaDNA showed that megafauna we extinct long before the onset of the Holocene and that they never overlapped with humans for several millenia
Claims that the main cause of megafauna extinction was solely down to overkill and other factors such as climate, vegetation, hyper diseases and terrestrial impact did not contribute at all

Short range endemic soil dwelling invertebrates show that at least some of them are the result of old lineages that diversified in NZ before the hypothesised submersion event 22mya
NZ has been traditionally considered to host ancient bioata that originated by dispersal after it separated from Australia, 80mya
The ancient origins of its biota have been questioned recently with some suggesting that all current land organisms had to arrive to the islands after it re-emerged from the ocean 22mya
NZ has been traditionally considered to host ancient bioata that originated by vicariance after it separated from Australia, 80mya
NZ had indeed had old lineages as well as recently diversified lineages and compare this situation with that of other more stable areas of Neotropics.

Loss of sulphide in oceans middle to late Proterozoic
The sulphur isotope record indicates and increase of ocean sulphate, 2.3 Gyr, leading to an increased rate of sulphide from sulphate reduction
Last large precipitation of BIF's around 1.8Gyr, which precipitated from an ocean whose bottom waters contained dissolved ferrous iron
Redox sedimentary burial of organic matter, iron and uranium, reflect the conditions previaling during the weathering
The sedimentation processes terminated when aerobic bottom waters developed, oxidizing the iron and removing it from the solution