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Magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) are diverse prokaryotes that produce magnetic nanocrystals within intracellular membranes (magnetosomes). Here, we present a large-scale analysis of diversity and magnetosome biomineralization in modern magnetotactic cocci, which are the most abundant MTB morphotypes in nature. Nineteen novel magnetotactic cocci species are identified phylogenetically and structurally at the single-cell level. Phylogenetic analysis demonstrates that the cocci cluster into an independent branch from other Alphaproteobacteria MTB, that is, within the Etaproteobacteria class in the Proteobacteria phylum. Statistical analysis reveals species-specific biomineralization of magnetosomal magnetite morphologies. This further confirms that magnetosome biomineralization is controlled strictly by the MTB cell and differs among species or strains. The post-mortem remains of MTB are often preserved as magnetofossils within sediments or sedimentary rocks, yet paleobiological and geological interpretation of their fossil record remains challenging. Our results indicate that magnetofossil morphology could be a promising proxy for retrieving paleobiological information about ancient MTB.

金沢大学理工研究域地球社会基盤学系, Single-domain magnetite particles exhibit minimum susceptibility along their elongation, resulting in so-called inverse fabric of the anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS). We report the discovery of inverse AMS fabrics from pelagic clay recovered by a ∼12m long piston core from the western North Pacific. A previous study identified fossil single-domain magnetite produced by magnetotactic bacteria (magnetofossils) as the dominant ferrimagnetic mineral in the sediment. The inverse AMS fabrics were found in a ∼2m zone. The ∼6 and ∼4m of sediment above and below this zone showed normal, horizontal AMS fabrics. Rock magnetic data and ferromagnetic resonance spectroscopy indicated that magnetofossils account for most of the mean susceptibility regardless of normal or inverse AMS. This was explained by the mixing models where the inverse fabric from magnetofossils is nearly balanced by the normal fabrics of terrigenous minerals. The corrected degree of AMS carried by magnetofossils in the sediment was estimated to be ∼1.01, which is comparable to that of typical pelagic sediment at shallow depth. On the other hand, terrigenous minerals in the sediment were estimated to have higher degree of anisotropy, possibly reflecting burial and subsequent erosion of >80m of sediment, which was also suggested by a subbottom acoustic stratigraphy. This suggests that inverse AMS fabrics due to magnetofossils may be widespread in pelagic clay without strong compaction. ©2019. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved.

金沢大学理工研究域地球社会基盤学系, Relative abundance of magnetite originated from magnetotactic bacteria (magnetofossils) in sediments may influence relative paleointensity (RPI) estimations of the geomagnetic field, as some studies reported an inverse correlation between RPI and the ratio of anhysteretic remanent magnetization susceptibility to saturation isothermal remanent magnetization (kARM/SIRM), a proxy of the proportion of biogenic to terrigenous magnetic minerals as well as magnetic grain size. This study aims to evaluate the influence of magnetofossils on RPI estimations more selectively using first-order reversal curve (FORC) diagrams. We studied three cores (KR0515-PC4, MD982187, and MR1402-PC1) from the western equatorial Pacific, among which large differences exist in the average natural remanent magnetization intensity normalized by ARM and kARM/SIRM. Principal component analyses (PCAs) were applied to FORC diagrams measured on bulk specimens from the three cores and silicate-hosted magnetic inclusions extracted from Core MD982187, and three endmembers (EMs) were revealed (EM1: silicate-hosted magnetic inclusions, EM2: other terrigenous, EM3: biogenic). EM3 proportions vary widely among the three cores. The average RPI decreases with increasing EM3 proportion, which is probably caused by higher ARM acquisition efficiency of magnetofossils due to small magnetostatic interactions. EM3 proportion correlates with kARM/SIRM, which confirms that kARM/SIRM represents the proportion of biogenic to terrigenous magnetic components. Core MR1402-PC1 has the highest EM3 proportion, and its within-core variation is small. From FORC-PCA applied solely to this core, we infer that the configurations of biogenic magnetite chains such as bending and collapse may also influence kARM/SIRM and RPI estimations. © 2021. The Authors.

21 pages; International audience; Magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) intracellularly precipitate magnetite (Fe3O4) crystals that can be preserved in the geological record. When MTB die, the so-called magnetofossils constitute valuable proxies for paleoenvironmental reconstructions and are suspected to represent some of the oldest traces of biomineralization on Earth. Yet, the biogenicity of putative magnetofossils found in ancient terrestrial and extra-terrestrial samples is still largely debated and their significance for past climate still holds uncertainties. Here we studied a sedimentary sequence from the Indian Ocean (ODP Hole 711A) recording the Middle Eocene Climatic Optimum (MECO) through which a magnetofossil-rich interval was deposited. We investigated for the first time the potential of Fe isotopes as a biosignature in magnetofossils and thoroughly describe MECO related paleoenvironmental disruptions based on major and trace element concentrations. Bulk sediment Fe isotopes showed limited variations, with δ56Fe around −0.13 ± 0.04‰ (n = 24), linked to detrital iron rather than MTB activity. Hence, a sequential chemical extraction protocol was applied to determine the specific composition of magnetite. We discuss analytical biases related to this protocol (i.e. partial phyllosilicate and Mn-oxide leaching) and apply corrections to the data. Outside the magnetofossil-rich interval, Fe isotope compositions of oxides (mainly biotic and/or abiotic magnetites and possibly Fe coprecipitated with Mn-oxides) display a small range averaging −0.54 ± 0.05‰, and are interpreted as reflecting dominantly hydrothermal contribution, a conclusion also supported by prominent Eu anomaly. In contrast, the magnetofossil-rich interval shows larger δ56Fe variability in oxides, from −0.12 to −0.94‰, decreasing upwards in the stratigraphic section. This interval likely records enhanced Fe supply from atmospheric fallout, increase in biological productivity (illustrated by increased Ba accumulation rate) and subsequent development of ferruginous conditions in the sediment porewater. Covariations of Fe isotope compositions and Mn/Fe ratios can be explained by a vertical migration of a redox front and associated diagenetic modifications. Precipitation of barite (BaSO4) in the sediments after organic matter decay probably favored the preservation of magnetofossils by decreasing SO42- concentration in porewaters and subsequent H2S production, which usually dissolve magnetite in the sulfidic zone. Finally, we model the evolution of porewater fluid and estimate Fe isotope fractionation between magnetofossils and fluid to Δ56Femag-Fe(II)aq = 0.1–0.3‰, a value significantly different from abiotic magnetite fractionation (~1.5‰). Contrasting with recent results on MTB laboratory culture, no mass independent fractionation of Fe isotopes was observed in the present study. Nevertheless, the diverse geochemical proxies presented here provide important constraints on paleoclimate and magnetofossil biogenicity evaluation.

Magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) play an important role in biogeochemical cycles of iron and remanent magnetization acquisition of sediments. It is generally considered that magnetite-producing MTB prefer chemical conditions in the oxic-anoxic transition zone (OATZ). We studied the distribution of fossil MTB magnetite (magnetofossils) and microbes phylogenetically related to MTB within deep-sea surface sediments across the OATZ. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) observations and rock-magnetic proxies show that magnetofossils commonly occur both within the OATZ and above it, even at the top of surface oxidized layers, and that the proportion of magnetofossils with a teardrop morphology increases within the OATZ. Consistent results were obtained from the pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA gene fragments. Operational taxonomic units (OTUs) related to Nitrospirae and OP3 MTB, which produce teardrop-shape magnetosomes, were detected only within the OATZ, whereas OTUs related to alphaproteobacterial MTB, which produce equant or elongated magnetite particles, were distributed above the OATZ. These results suggest that magnetofossil morphology can be used to detect past OATZs, and that some MTB lineages can occur ubiquitously in marine sediments rather than being limited within the OATZ. Our results imply that the timing of remanent magnetization acquisition may depend on the inhabiting MTB lineages.

Understanding marine environmental change and associated biological turnover across the Palaeocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM; ~56 Ma)—the most pronounced Cenozoic short-term global warming event—is important because of the potential role of the ocean in atmospheric CO2 drawdown, yet proxies for tracing marine productivity and oxygenation across the PETM are limited and results remain controversial. Here we show that a high-resolution record of South Atlantic Ocean bottom water oxygenation can be extracted from exceptionally preserved magnetofossils—the bioinorganic magnetite nanocrystals produced by magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) using a new multiscale environmental magnetic approach. Our results suggest that a transient MTB bloom occurred due to increased nutrient supply. Bottom water oxygenation decreased gradually from the onset to the peak PETM. These observations provide a record of microbial response to the PETM and establish the value of magnetofossils as palaeoenvironmental indicators., Understanding the response of marine productivity and CO2 drawdown to past warming events can provide important insights into the future. Here, the authors use bacterial magnetite nanoparticle fossils to reconstruct nutrient supply and marine deoxygenation during the Palaeocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum.

Near-shore marine sediments deposited during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum at Wilson Lake, NJ, contain abundant conventional and giant magnetofossils. We find that giant, needle-shaped magnetofossils from Wilson Lake produce distinct magnetic signatures in low-noise, high-resolution first-order reversal curve (FORC) measurements. These magnetic measurements on bulk sediment samples identify the presence of giant, needle-shaped magnetofossils. Our results are supported by micromagnetic simulations of giant needle morphologies measured from transmission electron micrographs of magnetic extracts from Wilson Lake sediments. These simulations underscore the single-domain characteristics and the large magnetic coercivity associated with the extreme crystal elongation of giant needles. Giant magnetofossils have so far only been identified in sediments deposited during global hyperthermal events and therefore may serve as magnetic biomarkers of environmental disturbances. Our results show that FORC measurements are a nondestructive method for identifying giant magnetofossil assemblages in bulk sediments, which will help test their ecology and significance with respect to environmental change.

Redox variations govern a multitude of key geochemical and microbiological processes within lacustrine and marine systems, yet the interpretation of these geological archives can be limited because redox-sensitive microorganisms leave behind sparse fossil evidence. Here, we assess a biologically controlled magnetic proxy through investigation of a well-constrained sedimentary record covering a perturbation of redox-conditions driven by a complete trophic cycle in Lake Constance. Ferromagnetic resonance spectroscopy of sediments reveals strong uniaxial anisotropy, indicative of single-domain magnetite particles in intact or fragmentary chain arrangements, which are an unambiguous trait of magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) and their magnetofossil remains. We show that biogenic magnetite formed intra-cellularly in MTB faithfully records changing redox-conditions at or close to the sediment water-interface. Biogenic magnetite within sedimentary records points to the proliferation of MTB parallel to a decline in water column dissolved oxygen and the formation of sulfidic surface sediments in Lake Constance associated with an episode of eutrophication (1955–1991). We conclude that magnetofossils may serve as a sensitive geological proxy to reconstruct dynamic redox-changes along the sediment-water interface and bottom waters., Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 545, ISSN:0012-821X, ISSN:1385-013X

金沢大学理工研究域地球社会基盤学系, Magnetic detection and classification of magnetofossils have been proposed as potential tools for paleoenvironmental studies. Magnetosomes in bacterial species living in different environmental conditions exhibit different grain morphologies and chain configurations, which determine their magnetic properties. Recently, abundant magnetofossils have been reported from unfossiliferous pelagic red clay. However, little is known about their geometry and magnetic properties. Here we report very low coercivity biogenic magnetite in red clay from Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Site 777 in the northern Mariana Basin. Analyzed sediment showed non-interacting, stable single-domain-like magnetic behaviors. Acquisition of isothermal remanence was decomposed into five components, and a component with mean coercivity below 10mT accounted for around 25 % of the remanence in some samples. Based on comparisons with semi-quantitative transmission electron microscopy observations of magnetic extracts, this component appears to be carried by octahedral grains with size and shape very similar to biogenic magnetite in red clay from other sites. Micromagnetic calculations indicated that isolated maghemite octahedra may be responsible for the observed low coercivity component. Based on these results, we conclude that the low coercivity component represents non-chained biogenic magnetite that has been oxidized to maghemite. The crystal morphology, geological setting, and lithology do not suggest unusual environmental conditions for ODP Site 777, so the relative amount of chained versus non-chained grains may represent subtle environmental differences. We suggest that non-chained magnetofossils may be widespread in deep-sea sediments. Some methods could overlook the presence of non-chained magnetite, affecting the identification and quantification of magnetofossils. © 2021. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved.

Sedimentary records of the Early Cenozoic indicate a series of events with climatic and carbon cycle variability known as hyperthermals. A ~350-kyr-long event of environmental disruption during the Paleocene, not described before and here named Selandian–Thanetian Transition Event (STTE), has been recognized and well constrained in the western Tethys Contessa Road section (Gubbio, Italy) through high-resolution biostratigraphic, geochemical, and rock-magnetic data. The STTE exhibits peculiar stressed ecological responses among calcareous nannofossils and foraminifera, which highlight marked environmental perturbation affecting the biosphere. The environmental instability is not confined within the photic zone but extends to the seafloor leading to little more trophic conditions of the sea surface waters with an enhanced, but of short measure, nutrient availability on the seafloor conditions and marked rise of lysocline. Magnetic Susceptibly (MS) is dominantly controlled by the balance between carbonate productivity and detrital supply, as evidenced by the strong correlation between MS and CaCO3 (%) (r2 = −0.72). However, we also document two components in the isothermal remanent magnetization (IRM) and first-order reversal curves (FORC) diagrams that prove the occurrence of biogenic magnetite throughout the STTE. Systematic variations in bio-geochemical and magnetic parameters show the relative abundance of carbonate production (or inversely dissolution of carbonate) versus detrital supply during the STTE, which induced higher populations of magnetotactic bacteria through increased terrigenous input and, therefore, increased nutrient supply. Noteworthy, the uppermost part of the STTE includes the equivalent of the suspected hyperthermal, short-lived Early Late Paleocene Event (ELPE). The ELPE event shows an episode of increase in magnetic properties of the sediments, including an increase in magnetofossil concentration, as indicated by IRM components and FORC diagrams. The comparison of biotic and abiotic records throughout the STTE at Contessa Road section with available data across the ELPE from former investigated ocean and land-based sites provides lines of evidence that this latter event might be indeed only the terminal part of a long-lasting environmental change than hitherto supposed.

We build micromagnetic models to investigate the magnetic properties of biogenic magnetite – a common type of magnetic mineral that is responsible for recording a wide range of biological, geophysical and geological processes on earth. The geometry of modelled particles is based on realistic size and shape distributions from nanoscale observations. Systematic changes in microstructures of biogenic magnetite ensembles are built and their magnetic properties are calculated, which enables a quantitative and separate assessment of the effect of crystal morphology and chain structures. Although the same particle size and shape distributions are used in all calculations, simulation results document large variations in magnetic properties, i.e., wide distributions of coercivity ( B c = ∼ 10 –60 mT), coercivity of remanence ( B cr = ∼ 14 –81 mT), dispersion parameter ( DP = ∼ 0.1 –0.5), and skewness values ( S = ∼ 0.7 –1.1) due to variable degree of anisotropy and magnetostatic interactions. Previously, the commonly observed “biogenic soft” and “biogenic hard” components on biogenic magnetite-bearing samples were often interpreted to reflect crystal morphologies, and that the small DP values of coercivity distributions were an indication of narrow particle size distributions. Our simulations suggest that these speculations are not always the case and that magnetosome microstructures likely exert a dominant control over their magnetic properties. Our modelling results provide a new theoretical perspective on the magnetic properties of biogenic magnetite, which is important for understanding magnetic proxy signals from magnetofossils in a wide range of environmental and geological settings, and for the search for biogenic magnetite in terrestrial rocks and in extra-terrestrial materials.

Magnetite occurs widely in natural environments in both inorganic and biogenic forms. Discrimination of the origin of magnetite has important implications, from searching for past microbial activity to interpreting paleomagnetic and environmental magnetic records in a wide range of settings. In this study, we present rock magnetic and electron microscopic analyses of marine sediments from the continental margin of Oman. Low-temperature magnetic data reveal two distinct Verwey transition (Tv) temperatures that are associated with the presence of biogenic and inorganic magnetite. This interpretation is consistent with room temperature magnetic properties and is confirmed by electron microscopic analyses. Our study justifies the use of two distinct Tv temperatures as a diagnostic signature for discriminating inorganic and biogenic magnetite. Simple low-temperature magnetic measurements, therefore, provide a tool to recognize rapidly the origin of magnetite within natural samples. In addition, our analyses reveal progressive down-core dissolution of detrital and biogenic magnetite, but with preservation of significant amounts of fine-grained magnetite within sediments that have been subjected to severe diagenetic alteration. We demonstrate that preservation of magnetite in such environments is due to protection of fine-grained magnetite inclusions within silicate hosts. Our results, therefore, also provide new insights into diagenetic processes in marine sediments.

Redox variations govern a multitude of key geochemical and microbiological processes within lacustrine and marine systems, yet the interpretation of these geological archives can be limited because redox-sensitive microorganisms leave behind sparse fossil evidence. Here, we assess a biologically controlled magnetic proxy through investigation of a well-constrained sedimentary record covering a perturbation of redox-conditions driven by a complete trophic cycle in Lake Constance. Ferromagnetic resonance spectroscopy of sediments reveals strong uniaxial anisotropy, indicative of single-domain magnetite particles in intact or fragmentary chain arrangements, which are an unambiguous trait of magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) and their magnetofossil remains. We show that biogenic magnetite formed intra-cellularly in MTB faithfully records changing redox-conditions at or close to the sediment water-interface. Biogenic magnetite within sedimentary records points to the proliferation of MTB parallel to a decline in water column dissolved oxygen and the formation of sulfidic surface sediments in Lake Constance associated with an episode of eutrophication (1955–1991). We conclude that magnetofossils may serve as a sensitive geological proxy to reconstruct dynamic redox-changes along the sediment-water interface and bottom waters.

The oriented chains of nanoscale Fe-oxide particles produced by magnetotactic bacteria are a striking example of biomineralization. Several distinguishing features of magnetite particles that comprise bacterial magnetosomes have been proposed to collectively constitute a biosignature of magnetotactic bacteria (Thomas-Keprta et al., 2001). These features include high crystallinity, chemical purity, a single-domain magnetic structure, well-defined crystal morphology, and arrangement of particles in chain structures. Here, we show that magnetite derived from the inorganic breakdown of nanocrystalline goethite exhibits magnetic properties and morphologies remarkably similar to those of biogenic magnetite from magnetosomes. During heating in reducing conditions, oriented nanogoethite aggregates undergo dehydroxylation and transform into stoichiometric magnetite. We demonstrate that highly crystalline single-domain magnetite with euhedral grain morphologies produced abiogenically from goethite meets several of the biogenicity criteria commonly used for the identification of magnetofossils. Furthermore, the suboxic conditions necessary for magnetofossil preservation in sediments are conducive to the reductive alteration of nanogoethite, as well as the preservation of detrital magnetite originally formed from goethite. The findings of this study have potential implications for the identification of biogenic magnetite, particularly in older sediments where diagenesis commonly disrupts the chain structure of magnetosomes. Our results indicate that isolated magnetofossils cannot be positively distinguished from inorganic magnetite on the basis of their magnetic properties and morphology, and that intact chain structures remain the only reliable distinguishing feature of fossil magnetosomes., This work was supported by the “Agence nationale de la recherche” (France) under project 2010-BLAN-604-01. Dennis Kent and Joshua Feinberg are thanked for their constructive reviews. This is IPGP contribution 3826., Final draft post-review

[1] The widespread occurrence of magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) in several types of marine and freshwater sediment, and the role of fossil magnetosomes (magnetofossils) as main remanent magnetization carriers therein, has important paleomagnetic and paleoenvironmental implications. Despite numerous studies on MTB biology and on magnetofossil preservation in geological records, no detailed information is yet available on how magnetotaxis (i.e., the ability to navigate along magnetic field lines) is performed in sedimentary environments, and on how magnetofossils possibly record the Earth magnetic field. We provide for the first time experimental evidence for these processes. MTB living in sediment are poorly aligned with the geomagnetic field, contrary to what is observed in water. This can explain the seemingly excessive magnetic moment of most MTB. The observed alignment is sufficient for supporting magnetotaxis across the typical thickness of chemical gradients. Experiments with magnetofossil-rich sediment suggest that a natural remanent magnetization (NRM) is acquired by magnetofossils in the so-called benthic mixed layer, where natural MTB populations usually occur. The acquired NRM is proportional to the applied field at least up to ∼160 µT, and its intensity is compatible with values observed in nature for same sediment types. Therefore, if fossil magnetosome chains are not subjected to further alteration by early diagenetic processes, they can provide useful relative paleointensities. We propose a preliminary model to explain early stages of magnetofossil NRM acquisition as the result of a dynamic equilibrium between magnetic torques and randomizing forces due to sediment mixing.

Pelagic carbonates are deposited far from continents, usually at water depths of 3000–6000 m, at rates below 10 cm/kyr, and are a globally important sediment type. Recent advances, with recognition of widespread preservation of biogenic magnetite (the inorganic remains of magnetotactic bacteria), have fundamentally changed our understanding of the magnetic properties of pelagic carbonates. We review evidence for the magnetic minerals typically preserved in pelagic carbonates, the effects of magnetic mineral diagenesis on paleomagnetic and environmental magnetic records of pelagic carbonates, and what magnetic properties can tell us about the open-ocean environments in which pelagic carbonates are deposited. We also discuss briefly late diagenetic remagnetisations recorded by some carbonates. Despite recent advances in our knowledge of these phenomena, much remains undiscovered. We are only at early stages of understanding how biogenic magnetite gives rise to paleomagnetic signals in sediments and whether it carries a poorly understood biogeochemical remanent magnetisation. Recently developed techniques have potential for testing how different magnetotactic bacterial species, which produce different magnetite morphologies, respond to changing nutrient and oxygenation conditions. Future work needs to test whether it is possible to develop proxies for ancient nutrient conditions from well-calibrated modern magnetotactic bacterial occurrences. A tantalizing link between giant magnetofossils and Paleogene hyperthermal events needs to be tested; much remains to be learned about the relationship between climate and the organisms that biomineralised these large and novel magnetite morphologies. Rather than being a well-worn subject that has been studied for over 60 years, the magnetic properties of pelagic carbonates hold many secrets that await discovery.

International audience; Fossil biominerals and fossils of microorganisms in ancient rocks contain important biogeochemical signals. Decoding this record may reveal crucial information about the evolution of life on Earth and terrestrial paleoenvironments. However, the identification of traces of life especially in very old rocks is extremely challenging because the morphological and chemical signatures of biominerals and microfossils are subtle, of microscopic size and inevitably alteredwith aging. In this review,we stress on the fact that biomineralization is often the first step of fossilization and produces particular chemical, structural and morphological features that can be preserved in fossil biominerals ormicrofossils, with a special focus on Fe-biomineralization. The taphonomic processes affecting biominerals andmicrofossils and altering theirmorphology and/or chemical composition over time are then discussed in light of experimental fossilization simulations and field sample analyses. Wesuggest that taxonomic biases observed in the fossil record may be related to differential abilities of species to trigger biomineralization. This calls for studies of the effective biomineralizing activity and fossilization potential of each species present in highly diverse natural microbial communities. Finally, recent analytical developments leave little doubt that very substantial progress in the study of biomineralization processes and ancient biostructures will be achieved in the near future.

Mineral magnetic and ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) measurements made on the sediments from Lake Ely, Pennsylvania reveal the presence of magnetotactic bacteria magnetofossils. Saturation isothermal remanent magnetization (SIRM) data from a 1.25 m long piston core taken from the deepest part of the lake show a large intensity decrease at depths between 30 and 75 cm in the sediment column most likely the result of reductive diagenesis. Modeling of isothermal remanent magnetization (IRM) and anhysteretic remanent magnetization (ARM) acquisition data indicates the presence of biogenic soft (BS) and biogenic hard (BH) magnetosome coercivity components, even at depths in the core greatly affected by reductive diagenesis. First-order reversal curve distribution diagrams for two samples support this interpretation. Modeling of the FMR data also indicates the presence of the BS and BH magnetosome coercivity components, but the relative importance of the two components is opposite to that seen for the IRM and ARM acquisition modeling. A correlation between SIRM variations and local rainfall recorded over the past 70 years suggests that magnetofossil concentrations recorded paleo-rainfall variations in the most recent lake sediments. Multi-taper method spectral analysis of SIRM variations in the piston core, tied to time by varve counting from 1600 common era (CE) to 1128 before CE, show centennial scale periodicities similar to those observed in spectral analysis of a 230 year long historical rainfall record for the northeastern US reconstructed to Philadelphia, PA. This result indicates that enough magnetofossils can survive reductive diagenesis to retain a record of paleorainfall variations, suggesting that they can be a powerful paleoclimate proxy.

Magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) produce chains of intracellular magnetite and/or greigite crystals and respond to an ambient magnetic field. MTB are considered to be microaerophilic to anaerobic organisms that live at and below the oxic-anoxic transition zone of aquatic environments. On the basis of rock magnetic analyses, including first-order reversal curve diagrams and isothermal remanent magnetization component analyses, along with transmission electron microscopy, we demonstrate that bacterial magnetites (magnetofossils) dominate magnetic mineral assemblages throughout a 76 m thickness of red clay at Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Site U1365 in the South Pacific Gyre, as well as in subsurface red clay of the North Pacific Gyre, where the sediment column contains abundant dissolved oxygen and no oxic-anoxic transition zone exists. This implies that MTB inhabit red clay; this conflicts with widespread interpretations of MTB ecology, namely that they are microaerophilic, requiring low levels of oxygen to grow and produce magnetite, and that magnetotaxis is used to help them find optimal positions in a strong vertical chemical gradient. Most magnetofossils in the red clay have cubo-octahedral morphology. This supports the notion that magnetofossil morphology can be a paleoenvironmental indicator; the proportion of elongated magnetofossils increases in less oxic environments. Our results also have implications for red-clay paleomagnetism in that magnetofossils may cause much-delayed remanence acquisition if MTB can live at decimeter depths within red clay.

Magnetic properties of pelagic marine sediments that record the Middle Eocene Climatic Optimum (MECO) at ~ 40 Ma provide information about major environmental changes. The main variations observed during this transient warming event reflect a bacterial magnetofossil signal, but the cause of the linkage between bacterial production and climate remains unclear. We present an environmental magnetic study of middle Eocene deep-sea sediments from the northern edge of Madingley Rise (Ocean Drilling Program Hole 711A, equatorial Indian Ocean) to investigate the origin of the increased magnetic mineral concentration concomitant with subchron C18n.2n, which corresponds to the MECO interval in ODP Hole 711A. This magnetic mineral peak also coincides with a change in lithofacies from calcareous nannofossils to radiolarian ooze, and a slight increase in clay concentration. Magnetite is the main magnetic mineral in the MECO sediments, which occurs as magnetically non-interacting single domain biogenic particles. The increased magnetic mineral concentration across the MECO event is likely to have been caused by increased eolian iron fertilization. This is interpreted to have given rise to increased surface ocean productivity, where increased delivery of iron and nutrients to the seafloor enhanced magnetotactic bacterial populations during the MECO event.

Magnetic properties are increasingly used for paleoclimatic and paleoceanographic studies. Utilizing recently developed proxies, an environmental magnetic study was conducted on the uppermost 12 m sediments of Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Site U1337 in the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. This interval is above the Fe-redox boundary, and covers the past ∼800 k.y. The site is located near the present southern boundary of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), and is thus expected to be sensitive to variations of the ITCZ position. The ratio of anhysteretic remanent magnetization susceptibility to saturation isothermal remanent magnetization ( k ARM /SIRM), first-order reversal curve diagrams, and IRM acquisition curves indicate that the magnetic mineral assemblage consists of a dominant biogenic component and a minor terrigenous component. Two groups, the biogenic soft (BS) and hard (BH), are identified for the biogenic component, and probably correspond to different magnetofossil morphology. The BH component, probably carried by elongated magnetofossils, increases in sediments of glacial periods, which are probably in less oxic conditions due to increased ocean productivity. This demonstrates that magnetofossil morphology, which can be discriminated by the rock magnetic technique, is a sensitive indicator of slight oxic-suboxic environmental fluctuations in sediments. Temporal variations of the terrigenous component, most likely transported as eolian dust, were estimated from the k ARM /SIRM ratio and S ratio (ratio of a moderate field IRM to SIRM, representing relative contribution of lower- and higher-coercivity magnetic minerals); significant glacial-interglacial variations occurred at marine isotope stage (MIS) 10 and before, but not after. In addition, coeval upcore increases in sedimentation rates and the BH component were observed, suggesting increased productivity. These observations may indicate that the position of the ITCZ was more southward than today ca. 250 ka and before.

article i nfo Article history: Magnetotactic bacteria intracellularly biomineralize magnetite of an ideal grain size for recording palaeomagnetic signals. However, bacterial magnetite has only been reported in a few pre-Quaternary records because progressive burial into anoxic diagenetic environments causes its dissolution. Deep-sea carbonate sequences provide optimal environments for preserving bacterial magnetite due to low rates of organic carbon burial and expanded pore-water redox zonations. Such sequences often do not become anoxic for tens to hundreds of metres below the seafloor. Nevertheless, the biogeochemical factors that control magnetotactic bacterial populations in such settings are not well known. We document the preservation of bacterial magnetite, which dominates the palaeomagnetic signal throughout Eocene pelagic carbonates from the southern Kerguelen Plateau, Southern Ocean. We provide evidence that iron fertilization, associated with increased aeolian dust flux, resulted in surface water eutrophication in the late Eocene that controlled bacterial magnetite abundance via export of organic carbon to the seafloor. Increased flux of aeolian iron- bearing phases also delivered iron to the seafloor, some of which became bioavailable through iron reduction. Our results suggest that magnetotactic bacterial populations in pelagic settings depend crucially on particulate iron and organic carbon delivery to the seafloor.

An apparently complete carbonate-rich Cretaceous–Tertiary boundary interval in ODP section 119-738C-20R-5 from the southern Kerguelen Plateau provides a unique insight into processes of magnetization acquisition in marine carbonates. The boundary interval is characterized by a 1-m-thick clay-rich zone. Distinct depositional lamina are preserved within the basal 15 cm of this zone; the upper part is bioturbated. Previous studies have demonstrated that the bulk of the detrital fraction in the laminated and bioturbated carbonates has the same local source, and hence, the two intervals likely had similar initial detrital assemblages. Magnetic properties of these rocks, however, differ significantly. The laminated sediments have a higher content of non-silicate-bound iron, yet approximately an order of magnitude lower intensity of the natural remanent magnetization compared to the bioturbated rocks. Our detailed rock magnetic study indicates that in the bioturbated interval the dominant iron-bearing phase is single-domain magnetite, likely of biogenic origin. In the laminated interval, apart from a small ferromagnetic fraction with multi-domain-like behavior, non-silicate-bound iron is mainly sequestered in paramagnetic phases, likely poorly-crystalline oxyhydroxides. It appears that a shut-down of biological productivity after the K–T event allowed preservation of the initial detrital/early authigenic iron phases that are dominated by reactive iron oxyhydroxides. With recovery of the normal biological activity as evidenced by resumption of bioturbation, the oxyhydroxides had been replaced with biogenic magnetite. Thus produced biochemical magnetization led to a several-fold increase in the remanence. Our results suggest that in areas where bioavailable iron constitutes a significant part of the detrital input, such as in pelagic marine environments distant from clastic sources, the biochemical remanent magnetization may be the dominant process of magnetization acquisition.

Magnetotactic bacteria contain chains of magnetically interacting crystals (magnetosome crystals), which they use for navigation (magnetotaxis). To improve magnetotaxis efficiency, the magnetosome crystals (usually magnetite or greigite in composition) should be magnetically stable single-domain (SSD) particles. Smaller single-domain particles become magnetically unstable owing to thermal fluctuations and are termed superparamagnetic (SP). Previous calculations for the SSD/SP threshold size or blocking volume did not include the contribution of magnetic interactions. In this study, the blocking volume has been calculated as a function of grain elongation and separation for chains of identical magnetite grains. The inclusion of magnetic interactions was found to decrease the blocking volume, thereby increasing the range of SSD behaviour. Combining the results with previously published calculations for the SSD to multidomain threshold size in chains of magnetite reveals that interactions significantly increase the SSD range. We argue that chains of interacting magnetosome crystals found in magnetotactic bacteria have used this effect to improve magnetotaxis.

Magnetotactic bacteria, which most commonly live within the oxic-anoxic transition zone (OATZ) of aquatic environments, produce intracellular crystals of magnetic minerals, specifically magnetite or greigite. The crystals cause the bacteria to orient themselves passively with respect to the geomagnetic field and thereby facilitate the bacteria’s search for optimal conditions within the sharp chemical gradients of the OATZ. The bacteria may also gain energy from the redox cycling of their crystals. Because magnetotactic bacteria benefit from their magnetic moments, natural selection has promoted the development of traits that increase the efficiency with which the intracellular crystals impart magnetic moments to cells. These traits also allow crystals produced by magnetotactic bacteria (called magnetofossils when preserved in sediments) to be distinguished from abiogenic particles and particles produced as extracellular byproducts of bacterial metabolism. Magnetofossils are recognizable based on their narrow size and shape distributions, distinctive morphologies with blunt crystal edges, chain arrangement, chemical purity, and crystallographic perfection. This article presents a scheme for rating magnetofossil robustness based on these traits. The magnetofossil record extends robustly to the Cretaceous and with lesser certainty to the late Archean. Because magnetotactic bacteria predominantly live in the OATZ, the abundance and character of their fossils can reflect environmental changes that alter the chemical stratification of sediments and the water column. The magnetofossil record therefore provides an underutilized archive of paleoenvironmental information. Several studies have demonstrated a relationship between magnetofossil abundance and glacial/interglacial cycles, likely mediated by changes in pore water oxygen levels. More speculatively, a better-developed magnetofossil record might provide constraints on the long-term evolution of marine redox stratification. More work in modern and ancient settings is necessary to explicate the mechanisms linking the abundance and character of magnetofossils to ancient biogeochemistry.