Major factors controlling Holocene δ 13 C org changes in a seasonal sea-ice environment, Adélie Land, East Antarctica

• Published in: Global Biogeochemical Cycles
• Main Authors: Crosta, X., Crespin, J., Billy, I., Ther, O.
• Other Authors: Environnements et Paléoenvironnements OCéaniques (EPOC), Observatoire aquitain des sciences de l'univers (OASU), Université Sciences et Technologies - Bordeaux 1 (UB)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Sciences et Technologies - Bordeaux 1 (UB)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Centre européen de recherche et d'enseignement des géosciences de l'environnement (CEREGE), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Aix Marseille Université (AMU)-Collège de France (CdF (institution))-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2005
• Subjects: [SDU.OCEAN]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Ocean; Atmosphere; [SDU.STU.OC]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences/Oceanography; [SDU.STU.CL]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences/Climatology; Antarc*; Antarctica; East Antarctica; Sea ice
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-02105693; https://hal.science/hal-02105693/document; https://hal.science/hal-02105693/file/Crosta_GBC2005b.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1029/2004GB002426

International audience In an effort to investigate the controlling factors behind Holocene d 13 C org changes in East Antarctica we report high-resolution down-core records of bulk organic matter carbon isotopic ratios (d 13 C org), diatom census counts, total organic carbon, and biogenic silica content taken from one core recovered in the Adélie Trough. A good correspondence between the d 13 C org record and records of small/large and pennate/centric ratios in many of the core segments indicates that diatom species composition affected Holocene d 13 C org variations, possibly via diatom shape and size effects. Variations in the surface water CO 2 concentration and in the isotopic composition of the source during the Holocene cannot be ruled out although they cannot explain rapid and large-amplitude d 13 C org changes. Within the limit of our investigation, our results argue against active carbon acquisition through a carbon concentration mechanism as evidenced in low-latitude upwelling systems. The bulk organic matter thus represents a mixing of diatom taxa having different fractionation affinity to aqueous CO 2. Our results confirm previous evidence which demonstrates that d 13 C org down-core records should be used with great caution to reconstruct past CO 2 content in surface waters.