Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Terrestrial n-alkane signatures in the middle Okinawa Trough during the post-glacial transgression: control by sea level and paleovegetation confounded by offshore transport

  • Original
  • Published:
Geo-Marine Letters Aims and scope Submit manuscript

    We’re sorry, something doesn't seem to be working properly.

    Please try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, please contact support so we can address the problem.

Abstract

We report records of land plant-derived long-chain n-alkanes since 37 ka b.p. from a sediment core in the middle Okinawa Trough, East China Sea. The data show the content and carbon preference index (CPI; degree of freshness) of n-alkanes generally decreasing as sea level rose, which could be explained by coastline retreat resulting in an increased transport route of n-alkanes toward the study site. The n-alkane CPI returned to higher values during the Holocene highstand, however, suggesting sea-level rise was not the only cause for the decline of freshness of n-alkanes. Paleovegetation changes in terms of C3 vs. C4 contributions inferred from n-alkane δ13C are overall consistent with published marine and terrestrial records during two distinct intervals: from 37.0 to 15.2 ka b.p., and from 7.6 ka b.p. to the present. However, n-alkane δ13C excursions from 15.2 to 7.6 ka b.p. are difficult to reconcile with terrestrial signatures. This disagreement, along with other possible causes for the decline of freshness of n-alkanes, and the higher-energy sedimentary environment inferred from increased mean grain sizes and silt/clay ratios during this time period, is consistent with existing knowledge of offshore transport of materials previously stored on the extensive continental shelf during the post-glacial transgression. We therefore suggest that n-alkane records from the Okinawa Trough should be used only cautiously to infer deglacial vegetation and sea-level changes.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bahng HK, Lee CW, Oh JK (1994) Origin and characteristics of sand ridges in the western continental shelf of Korean Peninsula. J Korean Soc Oceanogr 29:217–227

    Google Scholar 

  • Chen XQ, Yan YX, Fu RS, Dou XP, Zhang EF (2008) Sediment transport from the Yangtze River, China, into the sea over the post-three Gorge dam period: a discussion. Quat Int 186:55–64

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Collatz GJ, Berry JA, Clark JS (1998) Effects of climate and atmospheric CO2 partial pressure on the global distribution of C4 grasses: present, past, and future. Oecologia 114:441–454

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Collister JW, Rieley G, Stern B, Eglinton G, Fry B (1994) Compound-specific δ13C analysis of leaf lipids from plants with differing carbon dioxide metabolism. Org Geochem 21:619–627

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cosford J, Qing H, Mattey D, Eglington B, Zhang ML (2009) Climatic and local effects on stalagmite δ13C values at Lianhua Cave, China. Palaeogeogr Palaeoclimatol Palaeoecol 280:235–244

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cranwell PA (1973) Chain-length distribution of n-alkanes from lake sediments in relation to post-glacial environmental change. Freshw Biol 3:259–265

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cui JW (2008) Carbon isotope of long chain n-alkanes of the stalagmite and their paleovegetation significance in Qingjiang, Hubei Province. MSc Thesis, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China

  • Deng Y, Zheng Z, Suc JP, Berné S (2005) Pollen assemblages of the last glacial maximum in Okinawa Trough and their implication on paleoenvironment. Earth Sci J China Univ Geosci 30:597–603

    Google Scholar 

  • Deng B, Zhang J, Wu Y (2006) Recent sediment accumulation and carbon burial in the East China Sea. Global Biogeochem Cycles 20, GB3014. doi:10.1029/2005GB002559

  • Diekmann B, Hofmann J, Henrich R, Fütterer DK, Röhl U, Wei KY (2008) Detrital sediment supply in the southern Okinawa Trough and its relation to sea-level and Kuroshio dynamics during the late quaternary. Mar Geol 255:83–95

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Folk RL, Ward WC (1957) Brazos River Bar: a study in the significance of grain size parameters. J Sediment Petrol 27:3–26

    Google Scholar 

  • Holzkämper S, Holmgren K, Lee-Thorp J, Talma S, Mangini A, Partridge T (2009) Late pleistocene stalagmite growth in Wolkberg cave, South Africa. Earth Planet Sci Lett 282:212–221

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hu JF, Peng PA, Fang DY, Jia GD, Jian ZM, Wang PX (2003) No aridity in Sunda Land during the last glaciation: evidence from molecular-isotopic stratigraphy of long-chain n-alkanes. Palaeogeogr Palaeoclimatol Palaeoecol 201:269–281

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hu C, Henderson GM, Huang J, Xie S, Sun Y, Johnson KR (2008) Quantification of Holocene Asian monsoon rainfall from spatially separated cave records. Earth Planet Sci Lett 266:221–232

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hung JJ, Lin CS, Hung GW, Chung YC (1999) Lateral transport of lithogenic particles from the continental margin of the southern East China Sea. Estuar Coastal Shelf Sci 49:483–499

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jeng WL, Huh CA (2008) A comparison of sedimentary aliphatic hydrocarbon distribution between East China Sea and southern Okinawa Trough. Cont Shelf Res 28:582–592

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jin BF, Lin XT, Zhang YJ, Lin ZH (2006) Property and source of the sediments in the middle Okinawa Trough since the last 40 ka (in Chinese with English abstract). Mar Sci Bull 25:49–56

    Google Scholar 

  • Kao SJ, Lin FJ, Liu KK (2003) Organic carbon and nitrogen contents and their isotopic compositions in surficial sediments from the East China Sea shelf and the southern Okinawa Trough. Deep-Sea Res Part II Top Stud Oceanogr 50:1203–1217

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kao SJ, Dai MH, Wei KY, Blair NE, Lyons WB (2008) Enhanced supply of fossil organic carbon to the Okinawa Trough since the last deglaciation. Paleoceanography 23:PA2207

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kawahata H, Ohshima H (2004) Vegetation and environmental record in the northern East China Sea during the late Pleistocene. Global Planet Change 41:251–273

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kienast M, Hanebuth TJJ, Pelejero C, Steinke S (2003) Synchroneity of meltwater pulse 1a and the Bølling warming: new evidence from the South China Sea. Geology 31:67–70

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kong XG, Wang YJ, Wu JY, Cheng H, Edwards RL, Wang XF (2005) Complicated responses of stalagmite δ13C to climate change during the last glaciation from Hulu Cave, Nanjing, China. Sci China Ser D Earth Sci 48:2174–2181

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krishnamurthy RV, Machavaram M, Baskaran M, Brooks JM, Champ MA (2001) Organic carbon flow in the Ob, Yenisey Rivers and Kara Sea of the Arctic region. Mar Pollut Bull 42:726–732

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kvenvolden KA (1966) Molecular distributions of normal fatty acids and paraffins in some lower Cretaceous sediments. Nature 209:573–577

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li YH (1995) Material exchange between the East China Sea and the Kuroshio current. Terr Atmos Oceanic Sci 5:625–631

    Google Scholar 

  • Liu ZX, Xia DX, Berné S, Wang KY, Marsset T, Tang YX, Bourillet JF (1998) Tidal deposition systems of China’s continental shelf, with special reference to the eastern Bohai Sea. Mar Geol 145:225–253

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu JP, Milliman JD, Gao S, Cheng P (2004) Holocene development of the yellow river’s subaqueous delta, North Yellow Sea. Mar Geol 209:45–67

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu JP, Xu KH, Li AC, Milliman JD, Velozzi DM, Xiao SB, Yang ZS (2007) Flux and fate of Yangtze river sediment delivered to the East China Sea. Geomorphology 85:208–224

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McDermott F (2004) Palaeo-climate reconstruction from stable isotope variations in speleothems: a review. Quat Sci Rev 23:901–918

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Milliman JD, Qhen HT, Yang ZS, Meade RH (1985) Transport and deposition of river sediment in the Changjiang estuary and adjacent continental shelf. Cont Shelf Res 4:37–45

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oguri K, Matsumoto E, Saito Y, Honda MC, Harada N, Kusakabe M (2000) Evidence for the offshore transport of terrestrial organic matter due to the rise of sea level: the case of the East China Sea continental shelf. Geophys Res Lett 27:3893–3896

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pelejero C (2003) Terrigenous n-alkane input in the South China Sea: high-resolution records and surface sediments. Chem Geol 200:89–103

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Peng TH, Hung JJ, Wanninkhof R, Millero FJ (1999) Carbon budget in the East China Sea in spring. Tellus Ser B 51:531–540

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rao ZG, Jia GD, Zhu ZY, Wu Y, Zhang JW (2008) Comparison of the carbon isotope composition of total organic carbon and long-chain n-alkanes from surface soils in eastern China and their significance. Chinese Sci Bull 53:3921–3927

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rieley G, Collier RJ, Jones DM, Eglinton G, Eakin PA, Fallick AE (1991) Sources of sedimentary lipids deduced from stable carbon isotopic analyses of individual compounds. Nature 352:425–427

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rieley G, Collister JW, Stern B, Eglinton G (1993) Gas chromatography/isotope ratio mass spectrometry of leaf wax n-alkanes from plants of differing carbon dioxide metabolisms. Rapid Commun Mass Spectr 7:488–491

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rommerskirchen F, Eglinton G, Dupont L, Rullkötter J (2006) Glacial/interglacial changes in southern Africa: compound specific δ13C land plant biomarker and pollen records from Southeast Atlantic continental margin sediments. Geochem Geophys Geosys 7:Q08010. doi:10.1029/2005GC001223

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schefuß E, Ratmeyer V, Stuut J-BW, Jansen JHF, Sinninghe Damsté JS (2003) Carbon isotope analyses of n-alkanes in dust from the lower atmosphere over the Central Eastern Atlantic. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 67:1757–1767

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sun YB, Gao S, Li J (2003) Preliminary analysis of grain-size populations with environmentally sensitive terrigenous components in marginal sea setting. Chinese Sci Bull 48:184–187

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ternois Y, Kawamura K, Keigwin L, Ohkouchi N, Nakatsuka T (2001) A biomarker approach for assessing marine and terrigenous inputs to the sediments of Sea of Okhotsk for the last 27, 000 years. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 65:791–802

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Uehara K, Saito Y (2003) Late quaternary evolution of the Yellow/East China Sea tidal regime and its impacts on sediments dispersal and seafloor morphology. Sediment Geol 162:25–38

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Uehara K, Saito Y, Hori K (2002) Paleotidal regime in the Changjiang (Yangtze) Estuary, the East China Sea, and the Yellow Sea at 6 ka and 10 ka estimated from a numerical model. Mar Geol 183:179–192

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ujiié H, Hatakeyama Y, Gu XX, Yamamoto S, Ishiwatar R, Maeda L (2001) Upward decrease of organic C/N ratios in the Okinawa Trough cores: proxy for tracing the post-glacial retreat of the continental shore line. Palaeogeogr Palaeoclimatol Palaeoecol 165:129–140

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang PX (1999) Response of Western Pacific marginal seas to glacial cycles: paleoceanographic and sedimentological features. Mar Geol 156:5–39

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang KF, Zhang YL, Jiang H (1989) Algal, spores and pollen assemblages from late Pleistocene in the east part of the China Sea and their paleoenvironments. Sci China Ser B 32:850–858

    Google Scholar 

  • Wang SM, Yang XD, Ma Y, Pan HX, Tong GB, Wu XH (1996) Environmental change of Gucheng Lake of Jiangsu in the past 15 ka and its relation to palaeomonsoon. Sci China Ser D Earth Sci 39:144–151

    Google Scholar 

  • Wang YJ, Cheng H, Edwards RL, An ZS, Wu JY, Shen CC, Dorale JA (2001) A high-resolution absolute-dated late Pleistocene monsoon record from Hulu Cave, China. Science 294:2345–2348

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xiao SB, Li AC, Jiang FQ, Li TG, Wan SM, Huang P (2004) The history of the Yangtze River entering sea since the Last Glacial Maximum: a review and look forward. J Coastal Res 20:599–604

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xu XD, Oda M (1999) Surface-water evolution of the eastern East China Sea during the last 36, 000 years. Mar Geol 156:285–304

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xu ZK, Lim D, Choi J, Yang SY, Jung H (2009) Rare earth elements in bottom sediments of major rivers around the Yellow Sea: implications for sediment provenance. Geo-Mar Lett (in press). doi:10.1007/s00367-009-0142-x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yanagi T, Takahashi S, Hoshika A, Tanimoto T (1996) Seasonal variation in the transport of suspended matter in the East China Sea. J Oceanogr 52:539–552

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yu H, Xiong YQ, Liu ZX, Berné S, Huang C-Y, Jia GD (2008) Evidence for the 8,200 a b.p. cooling event in the middle Okinawa Trough. Geo-Mar Lett 28(3):131–136

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yu H, Liu ZX, Berné S, Jia GD, Xiong YQ, Dickens GR, Wei GJ, Shi XF, Liu JP, Chen FJ (2009) Variations in temperature and salinity of the surface water above the middle Okinawa Trough during the past 37 kyr. Palaeogeogr Palaeoclimatol Palaeoecol 281:154–164

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang ZH, Zhao MX, Lu HY, Faiia AM (2003) Lower temperature as the main cause of C4 plant declines during the glacial periods on the Chinese Loess Plateau. Earth Planet Sci Lett 214:467–481

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhao P, Chen LX, Zhou XJ, Gong YF, Han Y (2003) Modeling the East Asian climate during the last glacial maximum. Sci China Ser D Earth Sci 46:1060–1068

    Google Scholar 

  • Zhu C, Xue B, Pan JM, Zhang HS, Wagner T, Pancost RD (2008) The dispersal of sedimentary terrestrial organic matter in the East China Sea (ECS) as revealed by biomarkers and hydro-chemical characteristics. Org Geochem 39:952–957

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. CAS Key Laboratory of Marginal Sea Geology, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 511 Kehua St., Tianhe District, Guangzhou, 510640, China

    Jie Zhang, Guodong Jia & Fajin Chen

  2. The First Institute of Oceanography, SOA, Qingdao, 266061, China

    Hua Yu & Zhenxia Liu

  3. Graduate School of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100039, China

    Jie Zhang

Authors
  1. Jie Zhang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Hua Yu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Guodong Jia
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Fajin Chen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Zhenxia Liu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Guodong Jia.

Electronic supplementary material

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Zhang, J., Yu, H., Jia, G. et al. Terrestrial n-alkane signatures in the middle Okinawa Trough during the post-glacial transgression: control by sea level and paleovegetation confounded by offshore transport. Geo-Mar Lett 30, 143–150 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00367-009-0173-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00367-009-0173-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation