Planktonic foraminiferal flux seasonality in Subantarctic sediment traps: A test for paleoclimate reconstructions

• Published in: Paleoceanography
• Main Authors: King, AL, Howard, W
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: American Geophysical Union 2003
• Subjects: Earth Sciences; Atmospheric Sciences; Climate Change Processes; Southern Ocean
• Online Access: http://www.agu.org/; https://doi.org/10.1029/2002PA000839; http://ecite.utas.edu.au/56323

Sediment trap moorings deployed during 1997 and 1998 in the Subantarctic to Polar Frontal regions of theSouthern Ocean reveal distinct seasonality in foraminiferal flux. Foraminiferal assemblages vary between eachsite, yet major species exhibit very similar patterns of seasonal succession which can be associated with changesin mixed layer depth. Enhanced foraminiferal productivity is also associated with periods of high biogenic silicaand particulate organic carbon flux. On a broader scale, foraminiferal assemblages are strongly delineated bytemperature. Temperature estimates derived from the assemblages using the modern analog technique (MAT) aremostly within 2.5 C of the satellite advanced very high resolution radiometer temperatures observed during thedeployment period. This indicates that core top sediments included in the MAT database do reflect modernobserved conditions at the sea surface, providing a robust technique for estimating past temperature change fromforaminiferal assemblages in Southern Ocean environments.