Alluvial record of an early Eocene hyperthermal within the Castissent Formation, the Pyrenees, Spain
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Published:2020-02-04
Issue:1
Volume:16
Page:227-243
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ISSN:1814-9332
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Container-title:Climate of the Past
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language:en
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Short-container-title:Clim. Past
Author:
Honegger Louis, Adatte Thierry, Spangenberg Jorge E., Rugenstein Jeremy K. CavesORCID, Poyatos-Moré MiquelORCID, Puigdefàbregas Cai, Chanvry Emmanuelle, Clark Julian, Fildani Andrea, Verrechia EricORCID, Kouzmanov Kalin, Harlaux Matthieu, Castelltort SébastienORCID
Abstract
Abstract. The late Palaeocene to the middle Eocene (57.5 to 46.5 Ma)
recorded a total of 39 hyperthermals – periods of rapid global warming
documented by prominent negative carbon isotope excursions (CIEs) as well as
peaks in iron content – have been recognized in marine cores. Documenting
how the Earth system responded to rapid climatic shifts during hyperthermals
provides fundamental information to constrain climatic models. However,
while hyperthermals have been well documented in the marine sedimentary
record, only a few have been recognized and described in continental
deposits, thereby limiting our ability to understand the effect and record
of global warming on terrestrial systems. Hyperthermals in the continental
record could be a powerful correlation tool to help connect marine and
continental deposits, addressing issues of environmental signal propagation
from land to sea. In this study, we generate new stable carbon isotope data
(δ13C values) across the well-exposed and time-constrained
fluvial sedimentary succession of the early Eocene Castissent Formation in
the south central Pyrenees (Spain). The δ13C values of
pedogenic carbonate reveal – similarly to the global records – stepped
CIEs, culminating in a minimum δ13C value that we correlate
with the hyperthermal event “U” at ca. 50 Ma. This general trend towards more
negative values is most probably linked to higher primary productivity
leading to an overall higher respiration of soil organic matter during these
climatic events. The relative enrichment in immobile elements (Zr, Ti, Al)
and higher estimates of mean annual precipitation together with the
occurrence of small iron oxide and iron hydroxide nodules during the CIEs suggest
intensification of chemical weathering and/or longer exposure of soils in a
highly seasonal climate. The results show that even relatively small-scale
hyperthermals compared with their prominent counterparts, such as PETM, ETM2,
and ETM3, can leave a recognizable signature in the terrestrial stratigraphic
record, providing insights into the dynamics of the carbon cycle in
continental environments during these events.
Publisher
Copernicus GmbH
Subject
Paleontology,Stratigraphy,Global and Planetary Change
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