Holocence palaeoclimate and sea level fluctuation recorded from the coastal Barker Swamp, Rottnest Island, south-western Western Australia

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dc.contributor.authorGouramanis, Cen_AU
dc.contributor.authorDodson, JRen_AU
dc.contributor.authorWilkins, Den_AU
dc.contributor.authorDe Deckker, Pen_AU
dc.contributor.authorChase, BMen_AU
dc.date.accessioned2014-05-07T06:10:21Zen_AU
dc.date.available2014-05-07T06:10:21Zen_AU
dc.date.issued2012-10-26en_AU
dc.date.statistics2014-05-07en_AU
dc.description.abstractThe Holocene palaeoclimatic history of south-western Western Australia (SWWA) has received little attention compared to south-eastern Australia, and this has resulted in conflicting views over the impact of climate variability in the region. We present here a well-dated, high-resolution record from two overlapping sediment cores obtained from the centre of Barker Swamp, Rottnest Island, offshore Perth. The records span the last 8.7 ka, with the main lacustrine phase occurring after 7.4 ka. This site preserves both pollen and several ostracod taxa. The pollen record suggests a long-term shift from the early-mid Holocene to the late Holocene to drier conditions with less shrubland and more low-ground cover and less fire activity. A salinity transfer function was developed from ostracod faunal assemblage data and trace metal ratios (Mg/Ca, Sr/Ca and Na/Ca) and stable isotopes (delta O-18 and delta C-13) analysed on selected ostracod valves. These provide a detailed history of evaporation/precipitation (E/P) differences that clearly shows that the SWWA region was subjected to significant climatic shifts over the last 7.4 ka, with a broad shift towards increased aridity after 5 ka. The swamp ranged from fresh to saline as recorded in the ostracod valve chemistry and the independently-derived salinity transfer function. The ostracod record also indicates that a sea-level highstand occurred between ca. 4.5 and 4.3 ka, with probable step-wise increases at 6.75, 6.2, and 5.6 ka, with the last vestiges of salt water intrusion at ca. 1 ka. After about 2.3 ka, the fresh, groundwater lens that underlies the western portion of the island intersected the swamp depression, influencing the hydrology of the swamp. The broad climatic changes recorded in Barker Swamp are also compared with data from southern South Africa, and it is suggested that the Southern Annular Mode appears to have been the dominant driver in the climate of these regions and that the Indian Ocean Dipole is of little importance in the southern regions of the south-western Cape of Africa and south-western Western Australia. © 2012, Elsevier Ltd.en_AU
dc.identifier.citationGouramanis, C., Dodson, J., Wilkins, D., De Deckker, P., & Chase, B. M. (2012). Holocence palaeoclimate and sea level fluctuation recorded from the coastal Barker Swamp, Rottnest Island, south-western Western Australia [Special Issue]. Quaternary Science Reviews, 54, 40-57. doi:10.1016/j.quascirev.2012.05.007en_AU
dc.identifier.govdoc4672en_AU
dc.identifier.issn0277-3791en_AU
dc.identifier.journaltitleQuaternary Science Reviewsen_AU
dc.identifier.pagination40-57en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2012.05.007en_AU
dc.identifier.urihttp://apo.ansto.gov.au/dspace/handle/10238/5545en_AU
dc.identifier.volume54en_AU
dc.language.isoenen_AU
dc.publisherPergamon-Elsevier Science Ltden_AU
dc.subjectQuaternary perioden_AU
dc.subjectSwampsen_AU
dc.subjectSea levelen_AU
dc.subjectPollenen_AU
dc.subjectCoastal regionsen_AU
dc.subjectAustraliaen_AU
dc.titleHolocence palaeoclimate and sea level fluctuation recorded from the coastal Barker Swamp, Rottnest Island, south-western Western Australiaen_AU
dc.typeJournal Articleen_AU
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