Carbon isotope stratigraphy and conodont biostratigraphy of the Furongian (upper Cambrian) Qingkeng Formation, Anhui Province, South China

We present a new carbon isotope chemostratigraphy for the upper Cambrian carbonate succession of the south Anhui Province, South China, based on new δ13Ccarb data and conodont records. Paraconodont assemblages in the lower part and euconodonts in the middle to upper part of the section were obtained from samples from the Qingkeng Formation. The paraconodont occurrences enable us to recognize the regional Westergaardodina cf. calix–Prooneotodus rotundatus Zone. The Proconodontus Zone is recognized based on the occurrences of euconodonts Proconodontus posterocostatus and Proconodontus muelleri. A positive δ13Ccarb excursion, i.e., the late Jiangshanian Isotopic Carbon Excursion (LJICE) is documented within the Westergaardodina cf. calix–Prooneotodus rotundatus conodont Zone, and correlated with the CPEwc-3 and CPEdb-3 in the Hunan and Zhejiang provinces, and thus representing a regional tie-point for stratigraphical correlation in South China. The correlation of the upper Jiangshanian between South China, Baltica, and Laurentia, suggests the LJICE is also a potentially important tie-point for global correlation. The N1, N2, and N3 negative δ13Ccarb excursions within the Proconodontus and Eoconodontus conodont zones can be traced regionally and intercontinentally. The P2 positive δ13Ccarb excursion, which follows the N3, the Top of Cambrian Excursion (TOCE) or the conceptually synonymous Hellnmaria–Red Tops Boundary (HERB) excursion, can be correlated with the positive Cordylodus proavus spike (CPS) in the Cordylodus proavus Zone. The new data from the Lishan section provide new insights into the high-resolution δ13C profile of the upper Cambrian.