Miocene planktonic foraminifera of ODP Hole 130-806B

Fuente: PANGAEA
Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Nathan, Stephen A, Leckie, R Mark
Format: Dataset Open Access
Language:en
Published: PANGAEA 2009
Subjects:
Online Access:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1867170461601759232
author Nathan, Stephen A
Leckie, R Mark
author_facet Nathan, Stephen A
Leckie, R Mark
collection Datos científicos de ciencias marinas y ambientales
contents We document the waxing and waning of a “proto-warm pool” in the western equatorial Pacific (WEP) based on a study of multi-species planktic foraminiferal isotope ratios and census data spanning the 13.2–5.8 Ma interval at ODP Site 806. We hypothesize that the presence or absence of a proto-warm pool in the WEP, caused by the progressive tectonic constriction of the Indonesian Seaway and modulated by sea level fluctuations, created El Niño/La Niña-like alternations of hydrographic conditions across the equatorial Pacific during the late Miocene. This hypothesis is supported by the general antithetical relationship observed between carbonate productivity and preservation in the western and eastern equatorial Pacific, which we propose is caused by these alternating ocean–climate states. Warming of thermocline and surface waters, as well as a major change in planktic foraminferal assemblages record a two-step phase of proto-warm pool development ~11.6–10 Ma, which coincides with Miocene isotope events Mi5 and Mi6, and sea-level low stands. We suggest that these changes in the biota and structure of the upper water column in the WEP mark the initiation of a more modern equatorial current system, including the development of the Equatorial Undercurrent (EUC), as La Niña-like conditions became established across the tropical Pacific. This situation sustained carbonate and silica productivity in the eastern equatorial Pacific (EEP) at a time when carbonate preservation sharply declined in the Caribbean. Proto-warm pool weakening after ~10 Ma may have contributed to the nadir of a similar “carbonate crash” in the EEP. Cooling of the thermocline and increased abundances of thermocline taxa herald the decay of the proto-warm pool and higher productivity in the WEP, particularly ~ 9.0–8.8 Ma coincident with a major perturbation in tropical nannofossil assemblages. We suggest that this interval of increased productivity records El Niño-like conditions across the tropical Pacific and the initial phase of the widespread “biogenic bloom”. Resurgence of a later proto-warm pool in the WEP ~6.5-6.1 Ma may have spurred renewed La Niña-like conditions, which contributed to a strong late phase of the “biogenic bloom” in the EEP.
format Dataset Open Access
id pangaea_https___doi_org_10_1594_PANGAEA_775951
institution PANGAEA
language en
publishDate 2009
publisher PANGAEA
record_format pangaea
spellingShingle Miocene planktonic foraminifera of ODP Hole 130-806B
Nathan, Stephen A
Leckie, R Mark
130-806B; DRILL; Drilling/drill rig; Joides Resolution; Leg130; North Pacific Ocean; Ocean Drilling Program; ODP
We document the waxing and waning of a “proto-warm pool” in the western equatorial Pacific (WEP) based on a study of multi-species planktic foraminiferal isotope ratios and census data spanning the 13.2–5.8 Ma interval at ODP Site 806. We hypothesize that the presence or absence of a proto-warm pool in the WEP, caused by the progressive tectonic constriction of the Indonesian Seaway and modulated by sea level fluctuations, created El Niño/La Niña-like alternations of hydrographic conditions across the equatorial Pacific during the late Miocene. This hypothesis is supported by the general antithetical relationship observed between carbonate productivity and preservation in the western and eastern equatorial Pacific, which we propose is caused by these alternating ocean–climate states. Warming of thermocline and surface waters, as well as a major change in planktic foraminferal assemblages record a two-step phase of proto-warm pool development ~11.6–10 Ma, which coincides with Miocene isotope events Mi5 and Mi6, and sea-level low stands. We suggest that these changes in the biota and structure of the upper water column in the WEP mark the initiation of a more modern equatorial current system, including the development of the Equatorial Undercurrent (EUC), as La Niña-like conditions became established across the tropical Pacific. This situation sustained carbonate and silica productivity in the eastern equatorial Pacific (EEP) at a time when carbonate preservation sharply declined in the Caribbean. Proto-warm pool weakening after ~10 Ma may have contributed to the nadir of a similar “carbonate crash” in the EEP. Cooling of the thermocline and increased abundances of thermocline taxa herald the decay of the proto-warm pool and higher productivity in the WEP, particularly ~ 9.0–8.8 Ma coincident with a major perturbation in tropical nannofossil assemblages. We suggest that this interval of increased productivity records El Niño-like conditions across the tropical Pacific and the initial phase of the widespread “biogenic bloom”. Resurgence of a later proto-warm pool in the WEP ~6.5-6.1 Ma may have spurred renewed La Niña-like conditions, which contributed to a strong late phase of the “biogenic bloom” in the EEP.
title Miocene planktonic foraminifera of ODP Hole 130-806B
topic 130-806B; DRILL; Drilling/drill rig; Joides Resolution; Leg130; North Pacific Ocean; Ocean Drilling Program; ODP
url https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.775951