Response of benthic invertebrates to the Permo-Triassic climate crisis (RiS ID 12072)

The Permo-Triassic (P/T) climate crisis caused the most catastrophic extinction in Earth’s history, with a species loss of 81-95%. Intensive volcanic activity related to the emplacement of the Siberian traps caused several environmental changes, such as an increase in temperature, ocean acidification, anoxia and heavy metal pollution, that could have directly caused the extinction. Little evidence of the impact of this catastrophic event has been documented in the Boreal realm during the P/T crisis. This fieldwork in Svalbard campaign aims to assess the response of the benthic invertebrates to the P/T climate crisis in high latitudes. The fieldwork expedition will focus on 3 sections carefully selected sections from the thirteen sections visited in this project's previous fieldwork campaign in 2023 and the findings of expeditions in the 80s and 90. The fieldwork efforts will help to build a baseline for the Permian fossil community, complete the sampling across the P/T and expand the database to the Early Triassic. It will continue acquiring drone pictures to build up digital outcrop models of the sections. The digital outcrop models will access the protected and most isolated areas at a low environmental and economic cost. All the information collected from the sites, including descriptions, stratigraphic logs, detailed pictures and outcrop models, will be accessible through the Svalbox (RiS 11401) database for follow-up projects. The planned fieldwork is aligned with UNIS ambitions of leading an international deep-time paleoclimate research drilling campaign (SVALCLIME) and will provide relevant information for the next steps of this project.