Comparison of ESR and TIMS U/Th dating of marine isotope stage (MIS) 5e, 5c, and 5a coral from Barbados—implications for palaeo sea-level changes in the Caribbean

Abstract. Evidence for sea-level change during and around Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5e (ca. 125 ka) in southern Africa derives from a wide variety of geomorphic and sedimentological sea-level indicators, supported in the past 2 decades by absolute chronological control, particularly on littoral deposits, some of which have a quantifiable relationship to former sea level. In addition to these proxies, data provided by both terrestrial (dune sediments and archaeological remains) and marine (lagoonal and nearshore littoral sediments) limiting points provide broad constraints on sea level. Here, we review publications describing such data points. Using the framework of the World Atlas of Last Interglacial Shorelines, we insert in a standardized database (https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4459297, Cooper and Green, 2020) all the elements available to assess former palaeo-relative sea level (palaeo-RSL) and the chronological constraints associated with them (including uncertainties). Overall, we reviewed 71 studies, from which we extracted 39 sea-level indicators and 26 limiting points. As far as age attribution is concerned, early analysis of molluscs and whole-rock beachrock samples using U series allowed dating of several sea-level indicators during the 1980s, but the more widespread application of optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating since 2004 has yielded many more (and more accurate) sea-level indicators from several sites. This has helped resolve the nature and timing of MIS 5e shorelines and has the potential to further elucidate the apparent presence of two or more sea-level peaks at several South African sites during this interval. The standardized sea-level database presented in this paper is the first of its kind for this region. Future research should be directed to improve the stratigraphic description of last interglacial shorelines and to obtain better dating, high-accuracy elevation measurements with better palaeo-RSL interpretation.

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The last interglacial (MIS 5e) cycle at Little Bahama Bank: A history of climate and sea-level changes

10.5194/cp-2018-38 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Anastasia Zhuravleva ◽

Henning A. Bauch

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Ocean Circulation ◽

Climatic Variability ◽

Meridional Overturning Circulation ◽

Sea Level Changes ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

Foraminiferal Assemblage ◽

The Mean ◽

Mis 5E ◽

And Sea Level

Abstract. Shallow-water sediments of the Bahama region containing the last interglacial (MIS 5e) are ideal to investigate the region's sensitivity to past climatic and sea level changes. Here we present new faunal, isotopic and XRF-sediment core data from the northern slope of the Little Bahama Bank. The results suggest that the bank top remained flooded across the last interglacial plateau, ~ 129–117 ka, arguing for a relative sea level above −6 m for this time period. In addition, climatic variability, which today is closely coupled with movements of the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ), is interpreted based on stable isotopes and foraminiferal assemblage records. During early MIS 5e, the mean annual ITCZ position moved northward in line with increased solar forcing and a recovered Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). The early MIS 5e warmth peak was intersected, however, by a millennial-scale cooling event, consistent with a southward shift in the mean annual ITCZ position. This tropical shift is ascribed to the transitional climatic regime of early MIS 5e, characterized by persistent high-latitude freshening and, thereby, unstable AMOC mode. Our records from the Bahama region demonstrate that not only was there a tight relation between local sedimentation regimes and last interglacial sea level history, via the atmospheric forcing we could further infer an intra-interglacial connectivity between the polar and subtropical latitudes that left its imprint also on the ocean circulation.

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Sundaland's subsidence requires revisiting its biogeography

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-3575 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Laurent Husson ◽

Florian Boucher ◽

Anta-Clarisse Sarr ◽

Pierre Sepulchre ◽

Sri Yudawati Cahyarini

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Divergence Time ◽

Fold Increase ◽

Biodiversity Hotspot ◽

Marine Isotope Stage ◽

Malay Peninsula ◽

Sea Level Changes ◽

Sunda Shelf ◽

Late Pliocene ◽

Sea Level Variations

<div> <div> <div> <p>It is widely accepted that sea level changes intermittently inun- dated the Sunda Shelf throughout the Pleistocene, separating Java, Sumatra and Borneo from the Malay Peninsula and from each other. On this basis, the dynamics of the biodiversity hotspot of Sundaland is consistently regarded as solely contingent on glacial sea level os- cillations, with interglacial highstands creating intermittent dispersal barriers between disjunct landmasses. However, recent findings on the geomorphology of the currently submerged Sunda shelf sug- gest that it subsided during the Pleistocene and that, over the Late Pliocene and Quaternary, is was never submerged prior to Marine Isotope Stage 11 (MIS 11, 400 ka). This would have enabled the dispersal of terrestrial organisms regardless of sea level variations until 400 ka and hampered movements thereafter, at least during interglacial periods. Existing phylogeographic data for terrestrial organisms conform to this scenario: available divergence time esti- mates reveal an 8&#8208; to 9&#8208;fold increase in the rate of vicariance be- tween landmasses of Sundaland after 400 ka, corresponding to the onset of episodic flooding of the Sunda shelf. These results highlight how reconsidering the paleogeographic setting of Sundaland chal- lenges understanding the mechanisms generating Southeast Asian biodiversity.</p> </div> </div> </div>

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MIS 5e relative sea-level changes in the Mediterranean Sea: Contribution of isostatic disequilibrium

Quaternary Science Reviews ◽

10.1016/j.quascirev.2018.01.004 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 185 ◽

pp. 122-134 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

Paolo Stocchi ◽

Matteo Vacchi ◽

Thomas Lorscheid ◽

Bas de Boer ◽

Alexander R. Simms ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Sea Level ◽

Sea Level Changes ◽

Relative Sea Level ◽

The Mediterranean ◽

Mis 5E

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Tectonics, sea-level changes and palaeoenvironments in the early Pleistocene of Rome (Italy)

Quaternary Research ◽

10.1016/j.yqres.2009.03.003 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 72 (1) ◽

pp. 143-155 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

Domenico Cosentino ◽

Paola Cipollari ◽

Letizia Di Bella ◽

Alessandra Esposito ◽

Costanza Faranda ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Marine Isotope Stage ◽

Early Pleistocene ◽

Pleistocene Glaciation ◽

Calcareous Nannofossil ◽

Sea Level Changes ◽

Relative Sea Level ◽

Early Pliocene ◽

Lower Pleistocene ◽

Important Marker

AbstractThe historical site of the Monte Mario lower Pleistocene succession (Rome, Italy) is an important marker of the Pliocene/Pleistocene boundary. Recently, the Monte Mario site was excavated and restudied. A spectacular angular unconformity characterizes the contact between the Monte Vaticano and the Monte Mario formations, which marks the Pliocene/Pleistocene boundary. Biostratigraphical analyses carried out on ostracod, foraminifer, and calcareous nannofossil assemblages indicate an Early Pliocene age (topmost Zanclean, 3.81–3.70 Ma) for the underlying Monte Vaticano Formation, whereas the Monte Mario Formation has been dated as early Pleistocene (Santernian, 1.66–1.59 Ma). Palaeomagnetic analyses point to C2Ar and C1r2r polarity chrons for the Monte Vaticano and the Monte Mario formations, respectively. The Monte Mario Formation consists of two obliquity-forced depositional sequences (MM1 and MM2) characterized by transgressive systems tracts of littoral marine environments at depths, respectively, of 40–80 m and 15–20 m. The data obtained from foraminifer and ostracod assemblages allow us to reconstruct early Pleistocene relative sea-level changes near Rome. At the Plio/Pleistocene transition, a relative sea-level drop of at least 260 m occurred, as a result of both tectonic uplift of the central Tyrrhenian margin and glacio-eustatic changes linked to early Pleistocene glaciation (Marine Isotope Stage 58).

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The influence of rock uplift rate on the formation and preservation of individual marine terraces during multiple sea-level stands

Geology ◽

10.1130/g49245.1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Luca C. Malatesta ◽

Noah J. Finnegan ◽

Kimberly L. Huppert ◽

Emily I. Carreño

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Crustal Deformation ◽

Total Duration ◽

Marine Isotope Stage ◽

Uplift Rate ◽

Marine Terraces ◽

Uplift Rates ◽

Wave Erosion ◽

Mis 5E

Marine terraces are a cornerstone for the study of paleo sea level and crustal deformation. Commonly, individual erosive marine terraces are attributed to unique sea-level high stands based on the reasoning that marine platforms could only be significantly widened at the beginning of an interglacial. However, this logic implies that wave erosion is insignificant at other times. We postulate that the erosion potential at a given bedrock elevation datum is proportional to the total duration of sea-level occupation at that datum. The total duration of sea-level occupation depends strongly on rock uplift rate. Certain rock uplift rates may promote the generation and preservation of particular terraces while others prevent them. For example, at rock uplift of ~1.2 mm/yr, the Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5e (ca. 120 ka) high stand reoccupies the elevation of the MIS 6d–e mid-stand, favoring creation of a wider terrace than at higher or lower rock uplift rates. Thus, misidentification of terraces can occur if each terrace in a sequence is assumed to form uniquely at successive interglacial high stands and to reflect their relative elevations. Developing a graphical proxy for the entire erosion potential of sea-level history allows us to address creation and preservation biases at different rock uplift rates.

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MIS 5e sea-level proxies in the eastern Mediterranean coastal region

10.5194/essd-2020-357 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Barbara Mauz ◽

Dorit Sivan ◽

Ehud Galili

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Eastern Mediterranean ◽

Coastal Region ◽

Mediterranean Area ◽

Early Years ◽

Sea Level Changes ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

Mis 5E ◽

Raised Beaches ◽

Eastern Mediterranean Area

Abstract. Mediterranean raised beaches were subject to Quaternary research since the early years of the 20th century. The uniqueness of a warm-loving molluscs fauna immigrating into the Mediterranean made the coastline a prime subject for studying Quaternary sea-level changes. Today, we have a detailed picture of this historically important coastline characterised by tectonically dormant coastal zone alternating with zones that are subject to subsidence or uplift. As part of the Word Atlas of last interglacial shorelines (WALIS) database we compiled 21 MIS 5e proxies for the for the eastern Mediterranean area available at http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4274178 (Israel; Sivan and Galili, 2020) and at http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4283819 (Turkey, Egypt, Tunisia; Mauz, 2020). All these datapoints are sea-level indicators of variable quality situated between −1 ± 4 m and 7 ± 2 m resulting in a reconstructed MIS 5e palaeo-sea level situated between −1 ± 4 m and 13 ± 10 m.

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Quaternary evolution and paleoclimatology of the coastal cave of Selinitsa (SW Peloponnese, Greece) based on geomorphological and geochemical data

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-6516 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Isidoros Kampolis ◽

Vasilios Skliros ◽

Stavros Triantafyllidis

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Eastern Mediterranean ◽

Eastern Coast ◽

Middle Pleistocene ◽

Interglacial Period ◽

Level Fluctuation ◽

Sea Level Changes ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

Sea Level Fluctuation ◽

Mis 5E

<p>The present study examines the Quaternary evolution of the Selinitsa coastal cave in SW Peloponnese, in an attempt to provide new insights on the paleogeographical and paleoclimatological conditions of the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. The entrance of Selinitsa Cave is located +18 m above present sea level (a.p.s.l.) on the eastern coast of Messiniakos Gulf (SW Peloponnese), an area of constant uplift since Middle Pleistocene. Considering the phreatic origin of Selinitsa and the presence of sea level indicators at its entrance (biological and geomorphological markers such as tidal notches and <em>Lithophaga</em> borings), all together qualify the cave suitable for the study of former sea level changes and more particularly, those during the last interglacial period. The MIS 5e is considered the most suitable geological period for the estimation of future sea level rise due to the plethora of geological data at-or-near the coastal zone combined to sea-level fluctuation circles from Middle Pleistocene to-date. Previous results from Selinitsa Cave place the sea level of the latest phase of the last interglacial at +18 m a.p.s.l.</p><p>The Eastern Mediterranean is the least studied area relative to the Western Mediterranean, regarding sea level changes during Marine Isotope Stage 5e (MIS 5e). In order to reconstruct the paleogeography of the area and shed light on the climatic conditions of this period, our study involved geological mapping, field measurements and identification of geomorphological features (marine terraces, coastal caves and former sedimentary tidal environments). Additionally, 3D mapping of Selinitsa was conducted in order to precisely define its relative location in respect to the present sea level. Moreover, X-ray diffraction, optical microscopy, mineralogy and major and trace element geochemistry of speleothems and clastic sediments found in the inner part of Selinitsa were also employed and combined to the aforementioned geomorphological data.</p><p>The objective of the study is to provide a model for the development and the paleoclimatic conditions of the Selinitsa Cave during Late Pleistocene, how sea-level affected the aforementioned system, and finally provide an estimate of sea-level fluctuation over the last 125 ka.</p>

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Compilation of Last Interglacial (Marine Isotope Stage 5e) sea level indicators in the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, and the east coast of Florida, USA

10.5194/essd-2021-391 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Andrea Dutton ◽

Alexandra Villa ◽

Peter M. Chutcharavan

Keyword(s):

Sea Level ◽

Atlantic Coast ◽

Marine Isotope Stage ◽

Last Interglacial ◽

The Bahamas ◽

The Past ◽

Subaerial Exposure ◽

Fossil Corals ◽

Community Effort ◽

Mis 5E

Abstract. This paper provides a summary of published sea level archives representing the past position of sea level during the Last Interglacial sea level highstand in the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, and the eastern (Atlantic) coast of Florida, USA. These data were assembled as part of a community effort to build the World Atlas of Last Interglacial Shorelines (WALIS) database. Shallow marine deposits from this sea level highstand are widespread across the region and are dominated by carbonate sedimentary features. In addition to depositional (constructional) sedimentary indicators of past sea level position, there is also evidence of erosion, dissolution, and/or subaerial exposure in places that can place an upper limit on the position of sea level. The sea level indicators that have been observed within this region and attributed to Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 5e include corals, oolites, and other coastal sedimentary features. Here we compile a total of 50 relative sea level indicators including 36 in the Bahamas, three in West Caicos, and a remaining 10 for the eastern seaboard of Florida. We have also compiled U-Th age data for 24 fossil corals and 56 oolite samples. While some of these archives have been dated using U-Th disequilibrium methods, amino acid racemization, or optically stimulated luminescence, other features have more uncertain ages that have been deduced in the context of regional mapping and stratigraphy. Sedimentary archives in this region that constrain the elevation of the past position of sea level are associated with uncertainties that range from a couple decimeters to several meters. Across the Bahamas and on West Caicos, one of the observations that emerges from this compilation is that estimation of sea level position in this region during Marine Isotope Stage 5e is complicated by widespread stratigraphic evidence for at least one sea level oscillation. This evidence is defined by submarine features separated by erosion and subaerial exposure, meaning that there were likely multiple distinct peaks in sea level rather than just one. To this end, the timing of these individual sea level indicators becomes important when compiling and comparing data across the region given that different archives may have formed during different sub-orbital peaks in sea level.

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