Rhizoliths in Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction
A special issue of Geosciences (ISSN 2076-3263). This special issue belongs to the section "Sedimentology, Stratigraphy and Palaeontology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2026 | Viewed by 19
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Rhizoliths, the mineralized products of root–sediment interactions, constitute a significantly underutilized proxy in paleoenvironmental research despite their widespread occurrence in sedimentary sequences. While the paleobotanical community has extensively exploited leaf morphology, palynological assemblages, and wood anatomy for paleoclimate reconstruction, rhizoliths have received comparatively minimal attention in the literature.
This systematic neglect represents a critical gap in our methodological arsenal, particularly given rhizoliths' unique preservation potential and distinctive formation mechanisms. Unlike other plant remains that require exceptional taphonomic conditions, rhizoliths form through active biomineralization processes and diagenetic replacement, resulting in preferential preservation across diverse depositional environments and geological timescales.
Recent geochemical analyses demonstrate that rhizolith carbonate phases preserve robust isotopic signatures reflecting soil CO₂ concentrations, precipitation patterns, and temperature regimes. Furthermore, their morphological characteristics provide direct evidence of root architecture responses to edaphic conditions, offering insights into paleosol development and hydrological cycles that complement traditional paleobotanical approaches.
The integration of rhizolith data with established paleoenvironmental proxies could significantly enhance our understanding of terrestrial ecosystem dynamics and climate variability. Given the increasing demand for high-resolution paleoclimate records to inform climate models, the continued marginalization of rhizoliths as paleoenvironmental indicators represents a substantial missed opportunity for advancing our comprehension of Earth system processes.
Prof. Dr. Emmanouil Manutsoglu
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- rhizoliths
- paleoenvironmental reconstruction
- terrestrial paleoclimate
- root fossils
- biomineralization
- isotope geochemistry
- paleosol analysis
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