A particular non-stromatolitic carbonate succession making up the third member of the Mesoproterozoic Gaoyuzhuang （高于庄） Formation might demonstrate that a stromatolite decline of the Mesoproterozoic occurring at ca. 1 450 Ma besides other three events of the Proterozoic, respectively, occurred at ca. 2 000 Ma, ca. 1 000 Ma, and ca. 675 Ma. The forming duration of this non-stromatolitic carbonate succession can be generally correlative to that of a similar depositional succession in North America, i.e. a non-stromatolitic carbonate succession made up by the Helena Formation of the Belt Supergroup, which suggests that the stromatolite decline occurring at ca. 1 450 Ma may be a global event. This information endows the non-stromatolitic carbonate succession making up the third member of the Gaoyuzhuang Formation in the Yanshan （燕山） area with important significance for the further understanding of Precambrian sedimentology. The Mesoproterozoic Gaoyuzhuang Formation in Yanshan area is a set of more than 1 000 m thick carbonate strata that can be divided into four members （or subformations）. The first member （or the Guandi （官地） subformation） is marked by a set of stromatolitic dolomites overlying a set of transgressive sandstones; the second member （or the Sangshu＇an （桑树鞍） subformation） is a set of manganese dolomites with a few stromatolites; the third member （or the Zhangjiayu （张家峪） subformation） is chiefly made up of leiolite and laminite limestones and is characterized by the development of molar-tooth structures in leiolite limestone; the fourth member （or the Huanxiusi （环秀寺） subformation） is composed of a set of dolomites of stromatolitic reefs or lithoherms. Sequence-stratigraphic divisions at two sections, i.e. the Jixian （蓟县） Section in Tianjin （天津） and the Qiangou （千沟） Section of Yanqing （延庆） County in Beijing （北京）, demonstrate that a particularly non-stromatolitic succession making up the thi
Most Phanerozoic oolites are marked by ooids with a diameter less than 2 mm. Observations on a Neoproterozoic oolite have resulted in a change of concept. The term ＂pisolite＂ that traditionally referred to oolites with a grain size of more than 2 ram, is now restricted to those coated carbonate grains formed by meteoritic freshwater diagenesis; oolites with a grain size of more than 2 mm are now defined as ＂giant＂. Particular unusual giant oolites within a set of oolitic-bank limestones with thicknesses of more than 40 m in the top part of the Lower Triassic （Induan） Daye （Ruiping） Formation at the Lichuan section in the western part of Hubei Province in South China, represent an important sedimentological phenomenon in both the specific geological period and the geological setting that is related to the end-Permian biological mass extinction. Like the giant oolites of the Neoproterozoic that represent deposits where oolites formed in a vast low-angle carbonate ramp at that special geological period, the Triassic Daye Formation at the study section are significant because they provide a comparative example to help understand the evolving carbonate world reflected by oolites, the origin of which is still uncertain, and they give insight into the sedimentation pattern of the desolate sea floor, which resulted from the mass extinction at the turn of the Permian into the Triassic.
Both the macroscopic feature and the sequence-stratigraphic position of the molar-tooth structure developed in the third member of the Gaoyuzhuang （高于庄） Formation at the Jixian （蓟县） Section in Tianjin （天津） can provide some useful information about its origin and can reveal some problems to be further researched in the future. The Mesoproterozoic Gaoyuzhuang Formation is a set of 1 600 m thick carbonate strata. This formation can be divided into four members. The first member is mainly made up of stromatolitic dolomites; the second is marked by a set of manganese dolomites; the third is mainly composed of lamina limestones with the development of molar-tooth strcutures; the fourth is a set of stromatolitic-lithoherm dolomites. According to lithofacies and its succession, several types of meter-scale cycles can be discerned in the Gaoyuzhuang Formation： the L-M type, the subtidal type and the peritidal type. There is a regularly vertical stacking pattern for meter-scale cycles in the third-order sequence. Therefore, the Mesoproterozoic Gaoyuzhuang Formation can be divided into 13 third-order sequences （SQ1 to SQ13 ） and can further be grouped into 4 second-order sequences. The third member is marked by lamina limestones and can be grouped into three third-order sequences （SQ9 to SQ11 ）. The molar-tooth structure is developed in the middle part of the third sequence, i.e. SQH , in the third member. Several features of this kind of molar-tooth structure reflect some features of carbonate sedimentation in the Precambrian, such as the particular configuration, abundant organic matter, and easy silication. Stromatolites are chiefly formed in a shallow tidal-flat environment; lamina are mainly formed in the shallow ramp and molar-tooth structures are mainly generated in a relatively more deep-water environment from the middle to the deep ramp. Therefore, similar to stromatolite and lamina, the molartooth structure might also be a kind of bio-sedimentation structure. This suggestion is
