Anomalous mercury (Hg) contents recorded near the Permian-Triassic boundary (PTB) are often linked to Siberian Traps Large Igneous Province (STLIP) volcanism and the Permian-Triassic boundary mass extinction (PTBME). However, mounting evidence indicates that the relation between STLIP volcanism and Hg “anomalies” is not straightforward. This study focuses on the timing and provenance of volcanic fluxes around the PTBME in South China. We constrain carbon isotope (δ13C) and Hg concentration and isotope records by utilizing high-precision U-Pb zircon ages from two expanded deep-water marine sections spanning the Late Permian to Early Triassic in the Nanpanjiang Basin. Results reveal two episodes of Hg enrichment. The oldest episode predates the onset of a large negative δ13C excursion, which is documented to be older than 252.07 ± 0.130 Ma. The second episode occurred between 251.822 ± 0.060 Ma and 251.589 ± 0.062 Ma, coinciding with the nadir of the δ13C excursion. Volcanic ash geochemistry and Hg isotope compositions suggest that mercury was sourced from subduction-related volcanic arc magmatism in the Tethys region, which peaked between 251.668 ± 0.079 Ma and 251.589 ± 0.052 Ma. These results are compatible with suggestions that regional arc volcanism contributed to the causes of the PTBME in South China and provide evidence that Hg anomalies close to the PTB are not a reliable stratigraphic marker for the PTB extinction event. This study demonstrates that the relations between volcanism, environmental perturbations and mass extinction during the Permian-Triassic transition are better resolved with the aid of high-precision U-Pb zircon ages.

Eurasian permafrost soils contain large amounts of organic carbon (OC) and mercury (Hg), sequestered by vegetation during past and present interglacial periods. Lake sediment archives may help understand past OC and Hg dynamics and how they interact with climate-related variables. We investigated Hg accumulation, OC dynamics, and Hg and OC stable isotopes in a 14,000 year sediment record from lake Malaya Chabyda (Central Yakutia, Russia). Sediment Hg was correlated to OC (p value <0.01), with lower OC and Hg accumulation rates (OCAR, HgAR) during the cold Younger Dryas (YD, 12,900­–11,700 cal BP), when the lake level was low. Elevated sediment Δ200Hg (0.05 ± 0.11‰), representing dominant HgII deposition, and low δ13C, indicates low lake primary productivity during the YD. During the early Holocene, Δ200Hg and Δ199Hg decreased, while δ13C, δ202Hg, OCAR, and HgAR increased, suggesting enhanced algal primary productivity, in deeper, more turbid waters. From 4,100 cal BP to present, Hg/OC ratios and HgAR increased at constant OCAR, indicating an additional Hg source to the lake. Analysis of Hg isotopes suggests enhanced direct Hg0 uptake into lake waters, driven by primary production and efficient Hg burial. Our observations suggest that the gradual climate warming since the Last Glacial Termination and into the late Holocene led to enhanced OC and Hg burial in northern lakes and watersheds. Early Holocene enhanced Hg burial, but not OC, is possibly related to a renewed increase in lake primary productivity. Continued global warming may lead to further Hg sequestration in northern aquatic ecosystems.