Peat wildfires during the Early Cretaceous Aptian–Albian of the Erlian Basin in Inner Mongolia, China

Parts of the Cretaceous period were characterized by widespread wildfire activity. Wildfire evidence can serve as a proxy for paleoclimatic conditions. Charcoal and pyrolyzed polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons preserved in sedimentary records are widely recognized as reliable proxies for wildfire activity, offering insights into the nature of wildfires. This study employed a multi-method approach, integrating polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons analysis, temperature estimation equations for peat combustion, and microscopic images. This methodology was applied to the No. 6 coal from the Shengli Coalfield, Inner Mongolia, China. Results indicate that wildfire temperatures during peat accumulation in the Erlian Basin ranged from approximately 300 to 600 °C. Carbonized fossil assemblages from the Aptian–Albian are globally dominated by ferns and gymnosperms, with angiosperms occurring only rarely. The integration of multiple wildfire proxy records from Inner Mongolia, China, suggest that peatland wildfires were widespread and possibly global during the Early Cretaceous