Mg/Ca, Ba/Ca, and S/Ca ratios as environmental and growth proxies for bivalve shells from the Haima cold seep, South China Sea

Bivalve shell fossils, cemented by authigenic carbonates, are widely spread in the Haima cold seep, Qiongdongnan Basin of the South China Sea (SCS). In this study, we examined an element profile of Gigantidas platifrons in the Haima cold seeps at a water depth of 1 381 m. Based on the scanning electron microscope (SEM) analyses, the prismatic layer and nacreous layer were identified, which are characterized by prismatic structure and stratified structure, respectively. In addition, the profile can be subdivided into two parts: altered and unaltered zones. Laser inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) mapping shows that the element concentrations of the altered zones were influenced by the authigenic carbonate rocks, whereas the element concentrations of unaltered zones remain stable. In-situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses show that the mineral constituent of the nacreous layer is mainly composed of aragonite. Along with the growth profile, Mg/Ca ratios of unaltered zones have minor variations, ranging 0.72–0.97 mmol/mol (mean=0.87 mmol/mol), with estimated temperatures of 3.8–4.1 °C, indicating that the temperature of the surrounding seawater remains constant and agree with the measured data of 3.9 °C which was conducted by a conductivity-temperature-depth system (CTD). The minor variations of Ba/Ca ratios (0.01–0.06 mmol/mol; mean=0.04 mmol/mol) indicate a relatively stabilized salinity of the surrounding seawater. S/Ca ratios show large variations of 0.04–4.15 mmol/mol (mean=1.37 mmol/mol). S/Ca ratios have regular variations which generally correspond to the variations of the Mg/Ca ratios, highlighting that the S/Ca ratios of bivalve shells show the potential to reflect the growth rate of the Gigantides. However, further studies should be carried out on the understanding of the links between the S/Ca ratios and seepage intensity of cold-seep fluids.