Palynomorph distribution in Recent sediments from the Labrador Sea

1994 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
André Rochon ◽  
Anne de Vernal
Keyword(s):  
Surface Water ◽  
Primary Productivity ◽  
Water Masses ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Labrador Sea ◽  
Dinoflagellate Cysts ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Surface Conditions ◽  
Dinoflagellate Cyst

Surface sediments from the Labrador Sea and Baffin Bay have been examined for their palynomorph content. Pollen and spore assemblages reflect the vegetation zones of eastern Canada, although long-distance atmospheric transport results in over-representation of Pinus and spores. A linear decrease of pollen input is observed with distance from the source vegetation; the abyssal domain receives less than 2% of the initial input. The abundance of dinoflagellate cysts reflects a relatively high primary productivity in surface water masses which seems proportional to the benthic productivity, as shown by the concentrations of organic linings of foraminifers. The relative abundance of dinoflagellate cyst taxa and principal component analysis led to the definition of three assemblages that can be related to sea-surface conditions and current pattern. The modern distribution of dinoflagellate cysts was used to interpret assemblages recovered in five box cores from the deep Labrador Sea. Results reveal important changes in sea-surface conditions during the Holocene. At the end of the last glacial period, the productivity in surface waters was sparse, notably on the continental slope off southwest Greenland. Shortly after the deglaciation, the primary productivity increased, probably due to the improvement of sea-surface conditions. At about 5000 BP, the dinoflagellate cyst concentrations and fluxes reach maximum values, and the assemblages are marked by the augmentation of Nematosphaeropsis labyrinthus relative to Operculodinium centrocarpum. This trend is associated with a cooling and the increased influence of the inner component of the Greenland Current in surface water masses of the Labrador Sea. It marks the establishment of modern conditions in the basin.

Dinoflagellate cyst distribution in high-latitude marine environments and quantitative reconstruction of sea-surface salinity, temperature, and seasonality

1994 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 48-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne de Vernal ◽  
Jean-Louis Turon ◽  
Joel Guiot
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
High Latitude ◽  
Transfer Functions ◽  
Ice Cover ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Labrador Sea ◽  
Marine Environments ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Surface Conditions ◽  
Dinoflagellate Cyst

A data base of 179 reference sites documents the relations between the assemblages of organic-walled dinoflagellate cysts and sea-surface temperature, salinity, and seasonality throughout the North Atlantic, adjacent subpolar basins (Labrador Sea, Baffin Bay, Irminger and Iceland basins) and epicontinental environments off eastern Canada (estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence, Hudson Bay). Principal-component analyses show close relationships between dinoflagellate cyst data and sea-surface conditions: the first component (71.1% of the variance) correlates with the winter temperature, salinity, and seasonal duration of sea-ice cover, whereas the second component (11.3% of the variance) appears mainly related to summer temperature. Transfer functions using the best analogue method were tested by reconstructing modern sea-surface conditions on the basis of the reference dinoflagellate cyst assemblages. The correlation coefficient between instrumental averages and reconstructed values ranges from 0.87 (August temperature) to 0.97 (annual duration of sea-ice cover). These transfer functions appear most accurate for the reconstruction of sea-surface conditions in marginal marine environments of high-latitude basins. The only reservation concerns the validity of reconstruction in offshore regions characterized by low productivity where sparse cyst fluxes may result from long-distance transport through currents. The transfer functions that were applied in, as an example, a late Quaternary sequence of the Davis Strait in the northern Labrador Sea, notably suggest seasonal sea-ice cover extent of 6–10 months/year and August temperature and salinity of 1–4 °C and 31–33‰, respectively, during the last glacial optimum (isotopic stage 2).

scholarly journals Planktic foraminifera and structure of surface water masses at the SW Svalbard margin in relation to climate changes during the last 2000 years

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Zamelczyk ◽  
Tine Lander Rasmussen ◽  
Markus Raitzsch ◽  
Melissa Chierici
Keyword(s):  
Surface Water ◽  
Sea Ice ◽  
Time Scale ◽  
Climate Changes ◽  
Water Masses ◽  
Warm Period ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Planktic Foraminifera ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Surface Conditions

Abstract. We present a high-resolution record of properties in the subsurface (250–100 m), near surface (100–30 m) and surface (30–0 m) water masses at the SW Svalbard margin in relation to climate changes during the last 2000 years. The study is based on planktic foraminiferal proxies including the distribution patterns of planktic foraminiferal faunas, δ18O and δ13C values measured on Neogloboquadrina pachyderma, Turborotalita quinqueloba, and Globigerinita uvula, Mg / Ca-, δ18O- and transfer function-based sea surface temperatures, mean shell weights and other geochemical and sedimentological data. We compared paleo-data with modern planktic foraminiferal fauna distributions and the carbonate chemistry of the surface ocean. The results showed that cold sea surface conditions prevailed at ~ 400–800 AD and ~ 1400–1950 AD are associated with the local expression of the Dark Ages Cold Period and Little Ice Age, respectively. Warm sea surface conditions occurred at ~ 21–400 AD, ~ 800–1400 AD and from ~ 1950 AD until present and are linked to the second half of the Roman Warm Period, Medieval Warm Period and recent warming, respectively. On the centennial to multi-centennial time scale, sea surface conditions seem to be governed by the inflow of Atlantic water masses (subsurface and surface) and the presence of sea-ice and the variability of sea-ice margin (near surface water masses). However, the close correlation of sea surface temperature recorded by planktic foraminifera with total solar irradiance implies that solar activity could have exerted a dominant influence on the sea surface conditions on the decadal to multidecadal time scale.

scholarly journals Surface waters properties in the Laptev and the East-Siberian Seas in summer 2018 from in situ and satellite data

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anastasiia Tarasenko ◽  
Alexandre Supply ◽  
Nikita Kusse-Tiuz ◽  
Vladimir Ivanov ◽  
Mikhail Makhotin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surface Water ◽  
Satellite Data ◽  
Water Masses ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Ekman Transport ◽  
Water Displacement ◽  
Wind Speeds ◽  
In Situ Data ◽  
Ocean Salinity

Abstract. Variability of surface water masses of the Laptev and the East-Siberian seas in August–September 2018 is studied using in situ and satellite data. In situ data was collected during ARKTIKA-2018 expedition and then completed with satellite estimates of sea surface temperature (SST) and salinity (SSS), sea surface height, satellite-derived wind speeds and sea ice concentrations. Derivation of SSS is still challenging in high latitude regions, and the quality of Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) SSS retrieval was improved by applying a threshold on SSS weekly error. The validity of SST and SSS products is demonstrated using ARKTIKA-2018 continuous thermosalinograph measurements and CTD casts. The surface gradients and mixing of river and sea waters in the free of ice and ice covered areas is described with a special attention to the marginal ice zone. The Ekman transport was calculated to better understand the pathway of surface water displacement. T-S diagram using surface satellite estimates shows a possibility to investigate the surface water masses transformation in detail.

scholarly journals Paleoenvironments along the Eastern Laurentide Ice Sheet Margin and Timing of the Last Ice Maximum and Retreat

2008 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 265-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne de Vernal ◽  
Claude Hillaire-Marcel
Keyword(s):  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Atlantic Water ◽  
Polar Front ◽  
Water Masses ◽  
Labrador Sea ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
North Atlantic Water ◽  
Late Wisconsinan

ABSTRACT Palynological and isotopic analysis in a few deep-sea cores from the Labrador Sea reveals strong environmental changes related to the Late Pleistocene glacial fluctuations over eastern Canada. On the whole, the Labrador Sea was characterized by strong exchanges between North Atlantic water masses, Arctic outflows, and meltwater discharges from Laurentide, Greenland and lnuitian ice sheets. The penetration of temperate Atlantic waters persisted throughout most of the Late Pleistocene, with a brief interruption during the Late Wisconsinan. During this glacial substage, a slight but continuous meltwater runoff from the Laurentide ice margins grounded on the northern Labrador Shelf is indicated by relatively low 18O values and low-salinity (< 30‰) dinocyst assemblages. The calving of the ice margin, the melwater outflow and the subsequent dilution of surface waters offshore Labrador probably contributed to the dispersal of floating ice and, consequently, to a southward displacement of the polar front restraining the penetration of North Atlantic waters into the Labrador Sea. The advection of southern air masses along the Laurentide ice margins, shown by pollen assemblages, was favourable to abundant precipitation and therefore, high ice accumulation rates, especially over northern Labrador during the Late Wisconsinan. The déglaciation is marked by a brief, but significant, melting event of northern Laurentide ice shortly after 17 ka. The main glacial retreat occurred after ca. 11 ka. It allowed restoration of WSW-ENE atmospheric trajectories, increased phytoplanktonic productivity, and penetration of North Atlantic water masses into the Labrador Sea.

Southwest Pacific sea surface conditions during Marine Isotope Stage 11 — Results from dinoflagellate cysts

2016 ◽  
Vol 446 ◽  
pp. 19-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph G. Prebble ◽  
Erica M. Crouch ◽  
Giuseppe Cortese ◽  
Lionel Carter ◽  
Helen Neil ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sea Surface ◽  
Marine Isotope Stage ◽  
Dinoflagellate Cysts ◽  
Surface Conditions ◽  
Southwest Pacific

Sea surface conditions in the southern Nordic Seas during the Holocene based on dinoflagellate cyst assemblages

The Holocene ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 722-735 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Van Nieuwenhove ◽  
Astrid Baumann ◽  
Jens Matthiessen ◽  
Sophie Bonnet ◽  
Anne de Vernal
Keyword(s):  
Sea Surface ◽  
Nordic Seas ◽  
Surface Conditions ◽  
The Holocene ◽  
Dinoflagellate Cyst

scholarly journals Environmental Factors Affecting Spatial Dinoflagellate Cyst Distribution in Surface Sediments Off Aveiro-Figueira da Foz (Atlantic Iberian Margin)

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iria García-Moreiras ◽  
Anabela Oliveira ◽  
Ana I. Santos ◽  
Paulo B. Oliveira ◽  
Ana Amorim
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Sea Surface Salinity ◽  
Latitudinal Gradients ◽  
Supporting Evidence ◽  
Dinoflagellate Cysts ◽  
Surface Salinity ◽  
Good Correspondence ◽  
Dinoflagellate Cyst ◽  
Iberian Margin

Resting cysts of planktonic dinoflagellates, once produced, sink to the seabed where they can remain viable for a long time. These cysts have important ecological roles, such as acting as the inoculum for the development of planktonic populations. Moreover, dinoflagellate cyst records from depth sediment cores are broadly used as a proxy to infer past environmental conditions. In this study, the main objective was to obtain information on the relationships between the spatial distribution of modern dinoflagellate cysts and present-day hydrography in the NW Iberian shelf. Cyst assemblages were analyzed in 51 surface sediment samples with varying grain sizes, collected at different water depths, following nine transects perpendicular to the coast, between Aveiro and Figueira da Foz (Atlantic Iberian margin). Multivariate statistical analyses revealed marked land-sea and latitudinal gradients in the distribution of cysts, and helped investigate how environmental factors [water depth, grain size, sea-surface temperature (SST), sea-surface salinity (SSS), bottom temperature (BTT) and surface chlorophyll-a concentration (CHL)] influence modern dinoflagellate cyst composition and abundances. Three main ecological signals were identified in the modern dinoflagellate cyst assemblages: (1) the heterotroph signal as the main upwelling signal; (2) the dominance of P. reticulatum and L. polyedra signal, indicative of warm stratified conditions, possibly reflecting transitional environments between more active inshore upwelling and warmer offshore waters; and (3) the G. catenatum signal for the presence of mid-shelf upwelling fronts. The almost absence of viable cysts of the toxic and potentially toxic species G. catenatum L. polyedra and P. reticulatum suggests that in the study area, for these species, there is no build-up of significant cyst beds and thus planktonic populations must depend on other seeding processes. These results are the first detailed modern distribution of dinoflagellate cysts in the NW Iberian Atlantic margin (off Portugal), and show a good correspondence with hydrographic features of summer upwelling season in the study area, meaning that they are reflecting water column characteristics and therefore may be used as supporting evidence for the interpretation of stratigraphic cyst records and reconstruction of past marine ecosystems in W Iberia.

scholarly journals New species of the dinoflagellate cyst genus <i>Svalbardella</i> Manum, 1960, emend. from the Paleogene and Neogene of the northern high to middle latitudes

2020 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 139-154
Author(s):  
Kasia K. Śliwińska ◽  
Martin J. Head
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
North Atlantic ◽  
Wide Distribution ◽  
Labrador Sea ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
Dinoflagellate Cyst ◽  
Middle Latitudes ◽  
The North ◽  
Lower Oligocene ◽  
The North Sea

Abstract. Species of the fusiform peridiniacean dinoflagellate cyst genera Svalbardella Manum, 1960, emend. (Eocene–Oligocene) and Palaeocystodinium Alberti, 1961 (Late Cretaceous–Miocene), have been examined from the high to middle latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere: Spitsbergen, Norwegian-Greenland Sea, Labrador Sea, western North Atlantic, and the North Sea basin. The genus Svalbardella is emended to comprise species with smooth or finely ornamented surfaces and for which one or both horns are bluntly rounded. Svalbardella clausii sp. nov. has a narrow range restricted to the lowermost Chattian (close to the NP24–NP25 boundary and within Chron C9n), and it therefore appears a useful stratigraphical marker. This species has a wide distribution across the North Atlantic, having been reported from the North Sea basin, western North Atlantic, and the Labrador Sea. Svalbardella clausii sp. nov. overlaps stratigraphically with the reoccurrence interval of Svalbardella cooksoniae Manum, 1960, and spans the Oi-2b cooling maximum. Its presence may therefore be related to the establishment of cooler surface waters at this time. Svalbardella kareniae sp. nov. has a discordant occurrence: Lower Oligocene and Lower Miocene of the Norwegian Sea at Deep Sea Drilling Project Site 338 and Ocean Drilling Program Site 643, respectively, and mid-Oligocene of the North Sea. Its distribution suggests that Svalbardella kareniae sp. nov. favours more open marine conditions. Palaeocystodinium obesum Fensome et al., 2009, described from offshore eastern Canada where it has a highest occurrence in the Lower Oligocene, is emended to include specimens with a finely ornamented periphragm and traces of tabulation in addition to the archeopyle.

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