The southeastern Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB) records the assembly process between several micro-continental blocks and the North China Craton (NCC), with the consumption of the Paleo-Asian Ocean (PAO), but whether the S-wards subduction of the PAO beneath the northern NCC was ongoing during Carboniferous–Permian time is still being debated. A key issue to resolve this controversy is whether the Carboniferous magmatism in the northern NCC was continental arc magmatism. The Alxa Block is the western segment of the northern NCC and contiguous to the southeastern CAOB, and their Carboniferous–Permian magmatism could have occurred in similar tectonic settings. In this contribution, new zircon U–Pb ages, elemental geochemistry and Sr–Nd isotopic analyses are presented for three early Carboniferous granitic plutons in the southwestern Alxa Block. Two newly identified aluminous A-type granites, an alkali-feldspar granite (331.6 ± 1.6 Ma) and a monzogranite (331.8 ± 1.7 Ma), exhibit juvenile and radiogenic Sr–Nd isotopic features, respectively. Although a granodiorite (326.2 ± 6.6 Ma) is characterized by high Sr/Y ratios (97.4–139.9), which is generally treated as an adikitic feature, this sample has highly radiogenic Sr–Nd isotopes and displays significantly higher K2O/Na2O ratios than typical adakites. These three granites were probably derived from the partial melting of Precambrian continental crustal sources heated by upwelling asthenosphere in lithospheric extensional setting. Regionally, both the Alxa Block and the southeastern CAOB are characterized by the formation of early Carboniferous extension-related magmatic rocks but lack coeval sedimentary deposits, suggesting a uniform lithospheric extensional setting rather than a simple continental arc.

The late Viséan anthracosauroid Eldeceeon rolfei from the East Kirkton Limestone of Scotland is re-described. Information from two originally described and two newly identified specimens broadens our knowledge of this tetrapod. A detailed account of individual skull bones and a revision of key axial and appendicular features are provided, alongside the first complete reconstructions of the skull and lower jaw and a revised reconstruction of the postcranial skeleton. In comparison to Silvanerpeton, the only other anthracosauroid from East Kirkton, Eldeceeon is characterised by a proportionally wider semi-elliptical skull, comparatively smaller nostrils set farther apart, smaller and more rounded orbits, a shorter skull table with gently convex lateral margins, and a deeper suspensorium with a straight posterior margin and a small dorsal embayment. The remarkably large hind feet and elongate toes of Eldeceeon presumably represent an adaptation for attaining high locomotory speed through increased stride length and reduced stride frequency. This would necessitate great muscle force but few muscle contractions. At the beginning of a new stride cycle, repositioning the pes anteriorly and lifting the toes off the ground would require a strong and large muscle to pull the femur upward and rotate it inward and forward. It is hypothesised that such muscle might correspond to the puboischiofemoralis internus 2, which would extend along the posterior half of the vertebral column, consistent with the occurrence of long, curved ribs in the anterior half of the trunk. Using maximum parsimony and Bayesian inference, cladistic analyses of all major groups of stem amniotes retrieve a sister group relationship between Eldeceeon and Silvanerpeton, either as the most plesiomorphic stem amniote clade or as a clade immediately crownward of anthracosauroids.

The Cambrian–Ordovician metasedimentary rocks of the Meguma terrane (Canadian Appalachians) were extensively intruded by silicic plutons during Middle Devonian to Early Carboniferous times. Syn-plutonic but volumetrically minor mafic-ultramafic intrusions were also emplaced. In most localities, the silicic plutons and mafic-ultramafic intrusions do not appear to be petrogenetically related and are likely derived from different sources. The Attwoods Brook gabbronorite of SW Nova Scotia yielded an in situ zircon weighted-mean 206Pb–238U age of 357.9 ± 3.3 Ma that is within the uncertainty of the age of the neighbouring Wedgeport pluton (357 ± 1 Ma). The Wedgeport pluton is a rare example of a mantle-derived, peraluminous A-type granite within the Meguma terrane. The similar ages and Nd isotopes of the Attwoods Brook gabbronorite (εNd(t) = +1.1 to +4.0) and Wedgeport pluton (εNd(t) = +2.1 to +3.3) suggest the two intrusions are petrogenetically related. Fractional crystallization modelling demonstrates that a parental magma similar to the Attwoods Brook gabbronorite can produce residual silicic liquids that resemble the granites of the Wedgeport pluton, indicating that they could be members of the same intrusive complex. The emplacement of the gabbronorite and Wedgeport pluton occurred during a period of tensional plate stress that was contemporaneous with rifting of the Maritimes Basin that produced the Fountain Lake continental flood basalts and A-type granites of the Cobequid Highlands within the Avalon terrane. It is possible that the Early Carboniferous rocks of SW Nova Scotia are related to the rifted-related magmatism within the Maritimes Basin.

Stan Wood had a gift for finding exceptional Early Carboniferous fossils. Among them are 32 type specimens. His discoveries significantly changed our understanding of the history of life on Earth. Many of the fossils he collected are on display in museums across the UK and the localities he discovered continue to yield important new material. Here we briefly review some of Stan Wood's key achievements and describe the legacy he left.

The first half of the Mississippian or Early Carboniferous (Tournaisian to mid- Viséan), an interval of about 20 million years, has become known as “Romer's Gap” because of its poor tetrapod record. Recent discoveries emphasise the differences between pre-“Gap” Devonian tetrapods, unambiguous stem-group members retaining numerous “fish” characters indicative of an at least partially aquatic lifestyle, and post-“Gap” Carboniferous tetrapods, which are far more diverse and include fully terrestrial representatives of the main crown-group lineages. It seems that “Romer's Gap” coincided with the cladogenetic events leading to the origin of the tetrapod crown group. Here, we describe a partial right lower jaw ramus of a tetrapod from the late Tournaisian or early Viséan of Scotland. The large and robust jaw displays a distinctive character combination, including a significant mesial lamina of the strongly sculptured angular, an open sulcus for the mandibular lateral line, a non-ossified narrow Meckelian exposure, a well-defined dorsal longitudinal denticle ridge on the prearticular, and a mesially open adductor fossa. A phylogenetic analysis places this specimen in a trichotomy with Crassigyrinus and baphetids + higher tetrapods in the upper part of the tetrapod stem group, above Whatcheeria, Pederpes, Ossinodus, Sigournea and Greererpeton. It represents a small but significant step in the gradual closure of “Romer's Gap”.

Ultrapotassic plutons from several domains of the Variscan orogenic belt have been in turn interpreted as syn- to post-orogenic due to their age spread, but assessment of their geodynamic setting and source regions is still open to interpretation. In the Svoge region (Bulgaria), at the southern margin of the Balkan orogen, peralkalic plutons are hosted within Ordovician pelites. The main intrusion, with lamproitic affinity, which hosts monzodiorite xenoliths and a polyphase syenite suite, was emplaced at a shallow level. 40Ar–39Ar dating by step-heating of amphibole and biotite yielded a Early Carboniferous intrusion age for the main body (337 ± 4 and 339.1 ± 1.6 Ma). The lamproite intrusion is silica-rich compared with bona fide lamproites and characterized by moderate LILE and LaN/YbN enrichments. Sr and Nd isotopic data (initial ϵNd in the range −4.87 to −5.88) suggest an origin in a depleted lithospheric mantle, possibly refertilized by eo-Variscan subduction. The high-K syn-tectonic plutonism in several zones of the Variscan orogen (Bohemian, Austro-Alpine, Vosges, French and Corsica domains) is consistent with a derivation of high-K magmatism from partial melting of metasomatized mantle following the subduction along the collision front between Gondwana and Laurasia.