The Middle–Upper Pleistocene Fronte Section (Taranto, Italy): An exceptionally preserved marine record of the Last Interglacial

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The Middle-Late Quaternary Fronte Section (Taranto, Italy): An exceptionallypreserved marine record of the Last Interglacial

Alessandro Amorosi, Fabrizio Antonioli, Adele Bertini, Stefano Mara-bini, Giuseppe Mastronuzzi, Paolo Montagna, Alessandra Negri, VeronicaRossi, Daniele Scarponi, Marco Taviani, Lorenzo Angeletti, Andrea Piva,Gian Battista Vai

PII: S0921-8181(14)00073-3DOI: doi: 10.1016/j.gloplacha.2014.04.007Reference: GLOBAL 2117

To appear in: Global and Planetary Change

Received date: 10 December 2013Revised date: 16 April 2014Accepted date: 23 April 2014

Please cite this article as: Amorosi, Alessandro, Antonioli, Fabrizio, Bertini, Adele,Marabini, Stefano, Mastronuzzi, Giuseppe, Montagna, Paolo, Negri, Alessandra, Rossi,Veronica, Scarponi, Daniele, Taviani, Marco, Angeletti, Lorenzo, Piva, Andrea, Vai, GianBattista, The Middle-Late Quaternary Fronte Section (Taranto, Italy): An exceptionallypreserved marine record of the Last Interglacial, Global and Planetary Change (2014), doi:10.1016/j.gloplacha.2014.04.007

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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2014.04.007

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2014.04.007

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ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT1

The Middle-Late Quaternary Fronte Section (Taranto, Italy): An exceptionally

preserved marine record of the Last Interglacial

Alessandro Amorosi1, Fabrizio Antonioli

2, Adele Bertini

3, Stefano Marabini

1, Giuseppe

Mastronuzzi4, Paolo Montagna

5, Alessandra Negri

6, Veronica Rossi

1, Daniele Scarponi

1, Marco

Taviani5, Lorenzo Angeletti

5, Andrea Piva

7 and Gian Battista Vai

1

1 Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali, University of Bologna, Italy. E-mail:

[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];

[email protected]

2 ENEA, UTMEA, Roma, Italy. E-mail: [email protected]

3 Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, University of Florence, Italy. E-mail: [email protected]

4 Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra e Geoambientali, University of Bari, Italy. E-mail:

[email protected]

5 Istituto di Scienze Marine ISMAR, CNR, Bologna, Italy. E-mail: [email protected];

[email protected]; [email protected]

6 Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell’Ambiente, Università Politecnica delle Marche, Ancona, Italy. E.mail:

[email protected]

7 ENI S.p.A. – E&P

Division SPES, San Donato Milanese, Milan, Italy. E.mail: [email protected]

Abstract

The Fronte Section, a well-exposed stratigraphic succession from southern Italy (Taranto area),

provides an uninterrupted marine sedimentary record of MIS 5e. At this location, a highly expanded

(8.5 m thick) stratigraphic succession, unconformably overlying Middle Pleistocene marine clay

deposits, provides evidence for sea-level fluctuations during the Last Interglacial. An integrated

study of Fronte Section, including facies analysis, detailed macrofaunal and meiofaunal

characterization, and sequence stratigraphy, is presented. The occurrence of Persististrombus latus

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(= Strombus bubonius) and other warm-water indicators (“Senegalaise” – “Senegalian” - guests of

Gignoux, 1913), together with the presence of the dinocyst Polysphaeridium zoharyi and ten U-

series dates on Cladocora caespitosa samples, permit an unequivocal MIS 5e age assignment to the

upper part of the study succession. Above a stratigraphic unconformity marked by the boring

coastal-lagoonal bivalve Pholas dactylus, the MIS 5e succession displays a first transgressive suite

of brackish to shallow-marine deposits. These latter include highly fossiliferous muds rich in C.

caespitosa, overlain by a fossil-rich calcarenite, 2 m-thick, yielding warm-water “Senegalian”

molluscs. Above this prominent stratigraphic marker (regionally called panchina), which is

interpreted to represent a short-lived phase of sea-level stillstand or gentle fall during MIS 5e,

renewed transgression took place, leading to the accumulation of middle-outer shelf muds, about 5

m thick. The maximum flooding zone is clearly identified on the basis of the turnaround from a

deepening-up to a shallowing-up trend. The upper part of Fronte Section records a second fossil-

rich, sublittoral calcarenite containing warm-water molluscs, which is interpreted to reflect the

subsequent phase of sea-level highstand, likely correlative with the MIS 5e plateau.

Keywords: Last Interglacial, MIS 5e, Quaternary, Sequence stratigraphy, Paleoecology, Taranto,

Italy

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1. Introduction

The Last Interglacial (Marine Isotope Stage 5e), being characterized by remarkable ice-sheets

retreat, entails significantly warmer conditions and higher eustatic sea level than at present (Kukla

et al., 2002; van Kolfschoten et al., 2003; Carlson et al., 2008; Clark and Huybers, 2009; Kopp et

al., 2009; Sánchez-Goñi et al., 2012). Hence, the MIS 5e interval (135-116 ky BP in Shackleton et

al., 2003) is generally regarded as a good analogue of near-future Earth developments in response

to the projected global warming (Overpeck et al., 2006; IPCC, 2007; Rohling et al., 2008; Siddal

and Valdes, 2011). Dramatic oceanographic and climatic changes related to the Last Interglacial

occurred over few millennia, and are recorded in several continental, marine and ice-core

successions of the Northern Hemisphere (Sánchez-Goñi et al., 1999; Shackleton et al., 2002, 2003;

Tzedakis et al., 2003; Martrat et al., 2004; NGRIP, 2004; Brauer et al., 2007; Couchoud et al.,

2009; Milner et al., 2013). However, different time-scale resolution, latitudinal variability and

complex proxy-environment relationships make precise land-sea correlation very difficult (e.g.,

Shackleton et al., 2002, 2003; Sánchez-Goñi, 2007).

Several, almost continuous deep-sea records exist for MIS 5e in the Mediterranean area (Cita et

al., 2005). These include ODP site 976 in the Alboran Sea (Comas et al., 1996), Core KET 80-22 in

the Tyrrhenian Sea (Tucholka et al., 1987), Core KC01B in the Ionian Sea (Castradori, 1993;

Lourens, 2004), piston core RC 9-181 in the Levantine Basin (Ryan, 1972; Vergnaud-Grazzini et al.,

1977; Cita and Ryan, 1978; Hilgen, 1991), and Core PRAD 1-2 in the Adriatic Sea (Piva et al., 2008a, b). Along

the Mediterranean coasts a variety of sea-level indicators, including tidal notches, marine terraces

and raised beaches suggest an average sea level for the Last Interglacial 7±3 m higher than modern

sea level (Lambeck et al., 2004; Ferranti et al., 2006; Antonioli, 2012). At these locations, age

assignments of Last Interglacial deposits rely on: (i) the occurrence of raised marine terraced

deposits with Persististrombus latus (= Strombus bubonius) and/or other warm-water taxa (e.g.,

Patella ferruginea, Conus ermineus, Gemophos viverratus, Cardita calyculata senegalensis, and

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Hyotissa hyotis), (ii) U/Th ages on corals, and (iii) amino acid racemization analyses on mollusc

shells. In onshore areas, however, sedimentary successions of MIS 5e age are very thin and crop out

discontinuously (see Ferranti et al., 2006, for a review). For this reason, previous work has focused

mostly on morphological and morphostratigraphic, rather than sedimentological features of MIS 5e

deposits (Zazo et al., 2003, 2013; Bardají et al., 2009; Orrù et al., 2011; Mauz et al., 2012, 2013),

with few exceptions (Dabrio et al., 2011). Thick MIS 5e successions have been reported from

beneath several modern coastal and alluvial plains of Europe (Amorosi et al., 1999, 2004;

Cleveringa et al., 2000; Törnqvist et al., 2000, 2003; Gibbard, 2003; Carboni et al., 2010; De Santis

et al., 2010). At these locations, the Last Interglacial is represented by a characteristic transgressive-

regressive cycle, the thickness of which attains ~ 25 m in the highly subsiding Po Basin (Amorosi

et al., 1999; 2004; Scarponi and Kowalewski, 2004). Finally, wide documentation of the Eemian

exists from several, well-known lacustrine successions of the Mediterranean area (e.g., Wijmstra

and Smit, 1976, Follieri et al., 1988; Tzedakis, 1994; Brauer et al., 2007). Recently, the Eemian has

also been reported from thermogene travertines of central Italy, where palynologic investigations

combined with U/TH dating have shown the possibility of extracting a paleoclimate record from a

unique terrestrial archive (Bertini et al., 2014).

In this paper, we address the potential of a well exposed, easily accessible, 8.5 m-thick marine

succession from southern Italy (Fronte Section), as an exceptionally expanded stratigraphic

succession of MIS 5e cropping out in a coastal location. Fronte section crops out along a 1.1 km-

long coastal cliff, about 7 km east of Taranto (Fig. 1), on the Southern coast of the innermost inlet

of Mar Piccolo. At Fronte section, marine deposits containing warm-water “Senegalian” fauna have

been documented, providing several U/Th uncorrected ages consistent with a MIS 5 attribution (for

a detailed synthesis, see Mastronuzzi and Sansò, 2003). We outline the value of multiproxy

reconstruction based on a variety of biological (molluscs, benthic meiofauna, planktic foraminifers,

calcareous nannofossils, palynomorphs) and sedimentological indicators.

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2. Geological setting

The Taranto area lies within the Apulia carbonate platform (Mostardini and Merlini, 1986;

Patacca and Scandone, 1989), which represents part of the Adriatic foreland of the Apenninic chain

(Fig. 2A). Throughout the Quaternary, Apulia was affected by mild brittle deformation with rare

faults, characterized by small offset (Di Bucci et al., 2011; Mastronuzzi et al., 2011). On the basis

of extensive outcrops of marine deposits ascribed to MIS 5, distinctive tectonic behaviors have been

recognized. Since the Middle Pleistocene, the Ionian coast from Taranto to Gallipoli was

characterized by uplift, decreasing from NW to SE (Bordoni and Valensise, 1998; Ferranti et al.,

2006). Uplift rates decreased to zero since the Late Pleistocene in southernmost Apulia (Gallipoli,

Leuca and Otranto area - Mastronuzzi et al., 2007). The Adriatic coastal areas underwent

homogeneous subsidence only during the Late Pleistocene (Mastronuzzi and Sansò, 2003; Lambeck

et al., 2004; Ferranti et al., 2006). In the Middle Pleistocene, the Murge region (i.e., central Apulia

platform) was uplifted, while the adjacent basinal areas were affected by subsidence (Mastronuzzi

et al., 2011).

The Gulf of Taranto and the adjoining Mar Piccolo are part of a particular geotectonic setting

between the Apenninic foredeep and the Adriatic foreland. This area was visibly attained by block-

faulting of a rapidly raising peripheral bulge (Murge and Salento peninsula), and dissected by two

main fault systems trending NW-SE and W-E (Bigi et al., 1992; Vai and Martini, 2001). The uplift

of the Apenninic front at Montalbano Jonico is post-dated by MIS 15 (Ciaranfi and D’Alessandro,

2005). Uplift intensity smoothed out toward the foreland area, which was onlapped by upper

Pleistocene marine sediments (Mastronuzzi et al., 2011).

The Apulia platform consists of a 6 km-thick succession of Mesozoic neritic limestones (Calcari

delle Murge in Ricchetti, 1980). This succession is unconformably overlain by the Pliocene to

Pleistocene marine Gravina Calcarenite (Calcarenite di Gravina, Ricchetti, 1967), the Pliocene to

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Middle Pleistocene Subapennine Clay or Blue Clay (Argille Subappennine), and by raised marine

terrace deposits of Middle to Late Pleistocene age (Ciaranfi et al., 1988; Mastronuzzi and Sansò,

2003; Fig. 2A). These latter are in the form of onlapping ramp deposits ranging from basinal muds

to littoral calcarenites and coastal sands, clearly dipping toward the sea (Fig. 2B). All along the

Ionian side of Apulia, especially around the city of Taranto, the marine terraces form a prominent

flight of scarps from about 400 m to the present sea level (Ricchetti, 1967; Ciaranfi et al., 1988),

and flat, sub-horizontal surfaces on the raised marine deposits represent the typical

geomorphological feature of the whole Taranto area.

The lowermost marine terrace is laterally extensive and forms the characteristic landscape of the

Taranto area: a quasi-flat surface between 23 and 7 m, overcut by seasonal fluvial network and by

the inlets of Mar Grande and Mar Piccolo bordered by cliffs. The related terrace deposits show a

characteristic unconformable boundary on the underlying Blue Clay, and have been assigned to the

Last Interglacial Period due to the presence of rhodalgal biocalcarenites containing warm-water

“Senegalian” fauna (e.g., Patella ferruginea, Persististrombus latus, Conus ermineus, Gemophos

viverratus, Cardita calyculata senegalensis, Hyotissa hyotis) and reefal build-ups bio-constructed

by Cladocora caespitosa Linnaeus (Hearty and Dai Prà, 1992; Belluomini et al., 2002; Peirano et

al., 2004, 2009 and references therein). This fossil content, along with an impressive set of relative

(amino acid racemization) and radiometric (U/Th) dates, indicate a tropical environment of Late

Pleistocene age between 132 and 116 ka, corresponding to MIS 5e (Mastronuzzi and Sansò, 2003;

Antonioli et al., 2009).

MIS 5e deposits are horizontal or slightly inclined (up to few degrees) toward the sea as a result

of basin-margin deposition. Locally, they are very gently climbed due to land mass movements. The

MIS 5e surface corresponds to the lowermost and largest terrace that surrounds Apulia. It is

separated from the sea by high cliffs carved on the Blue Clay at the base. MIS 5e deposits are

truncated at several locations by a fluvial network engraved mainly in the Blue Clay, but locally

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down to the Gravina Calcarenite and Murge Limestones (Mastronuzzi and Sansò 1993, 1998,

2003).

3. Methods

Reconnaissance work of distinctive facies associations was undertaken in several sections of the

Taranto area (see Fig. 2A), and Fronte Section was chosen as the best exposed of all. Sedimentary

facies analysis at Fronte Section was carried out through identification of lithology, grain size

variations, boundary types, sedimentary structures, and accessory components.

Paleoecologic mollusc-derived inferences were based on ecological assessments from

stratigraphic intervals in which molluscs remains were visible macroscopically. Sampling efforts

consisted in rapid surveys of outcropping deposits along speditive counts/censuses with vertical

spacing of 3 m or less. The latter were performed by delimitating a 20 cm high and 40 cm wide

surface on vertical outcrop exposures and noting all fossil exposed. Whenever encountered,

weathered outcrop surfaces were removed prior to census efforts. Faunal abundance data (n) were

recorded for each quadrat (800 cm2) by eye as rare/sparse (n < 4 specimens per quadrat), common

(4 ≤ n ≤ 9 specimens per quadrat), abundant (n > 9 specimens per quadrat). All specimens were

identified according to the lowest possible taxomic rank (commonly genus or species). Taxonomic

assignments are based on Appeltans et al. (2012).

Micropaleontological analyses were performed on a total of 68 samples, prepared according to

standard procedures. Samples were dried in the oven at 50°C, weighed, and subsequently washed

and sieved through a 63 m mesh and dried again at 50°C. Firstly, the semi-quantitative analyses

carried out on the microfossil content, including ostracods, planktic and benthic foraminifera, led to

the rough indication of the occurrence and abundance (rare: < 2%, scarce: 2-10%, common: 10-

30%, abundant: > 30%) of the most indicative taxa, identifying stratigraphic intervals with analogue

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composition. The benthic meiofauna was then quantitatively analysed in the size fraction > 125 μm

of 17 samples selected from the upper part of Fronte Section (MIS 5e deposits), in order to identify

even subtle paleoenvironmental changes. Along the section, paleoecologic estimates on the

microfaunistic composition and its trends were aimed at reconstructing past water-depth, oxygen

and trophic conditions at the sea floor and, tentatively, paleoclimate dynamics. Species

identification and paleoenvironmental interpretation of the benthic meiofauna relied upon original

descriptions and several key papers carried out on Mediterranean modern assemblages (Bonaduce et

al., 1975; Jorissen, 1988; Albani and Serandrei Barbero, 1990; Sgarella and Moncharmont Zei,

1993; Frezza and Carboni, 2007; Milker and Schmiedl, 2012).

For the environmental interpretation, we adopted the terminology commonly used to describe

clastic sedimentary environments: “nearshore” encompasses foreshore to lower shoreface sub-

environments, i.e., down to fair weather wave base (around 10 m). The term “inner shelf”, which

includes here the shoreface-offshore transition, was used between fair weather and storm wave base

(~40 m); “middle shelf” between ~40 and ~90 m, whereas “outer shelf” extends to the shelf break

(~140 m).

Nannofossil assemblages were analyzed in 17 smear slides, mostly (15) from the lower part of

Fronte Section (pre-MIS 5e deposits), with a polarizing light microscope, at 1250X magnification.

Preparation was kept simple and smear slides were prepared directly from sediment samples. The

total abundance of nannofossils was estimated by comparing their occurrence with those of other

biogenic particles and inorganic components. Species abundance was semiquantitatively expressed

after evaluation of their abundance in 100 fields of view.

Six samples from critical stratigraphic positions (see below) were selected for the analysis of

palynomorphs, including pollen and organic-walled dinoflagellate cysts (= dinocysts). They were

submitted to standard chemical–physical procedures, including treatments with HCl (10%), HF

(48%), KOH (10%) and ZnCl2 separation (solution density ca. 2.0).

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Finally, fragments of the thecal wall of 10 corallites of Cladocora caespitosa were selected for

Uranium-series dating. Uranium (U) and thorium (Th) were extracted and purified from coral

samples using the ion exchange chemistry recently published by Douville et al. (2010) and

solutions were measured using a Multi-Collector Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer

(ThermoScientific NeptunePlus

) at the Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l’Environnement

(Gif-sur-Yvette, France) (for more details on the analytical procedure, see Fontugne et al., 2013).

Based on the measured and corrected 234

U/238

U and 230

Th/238

U ratios, U-series ages were calculated

using the half-lives given by Cheng et al. (2000) and Jaffey et al. (1971). Non radiogenic 230

Th was

also corrected for using a detrital 230

Th/232

Th ratio of 1±1.

Overall, the initial δ234

U ratios are substantially higher than that of modern seawater

(146.8±0.1‰, Andersen et al., 2008), most likely pointing towards an open-system behavior or a

local source of U to seawater. Open system behavior is likely caused by alpha recoil mobilization of

234Th and

230Th, with a potential simultaneous increase in the initial δ

234U value and

230Th/

238U ratio

and hence over-estimation of the age relative to a closed system (Thompson et al., 2003, Frank et

al., 2006). Other processes have been proposed and discussed, such as successive uptake and

release of U. Here, we tentatively calculated open-system U-series ages using the model of

Thomson et al. (2003), highlighting a potential age difference of up to 20 ka. However, the data

shows very little variability within each location, which does thus not allow to confirm the expected

mixing slopes predicted by the Thomson et al. model. A linear fit through all data assuming coeval

growth and using a model by Scholz et al. (2003) would yield far younger ages of less than 90 ka,

which seems very unlikely, too. Therefore, none of the open system models can be approved or

rejected based on the presented data to obtain accurate U-series ages. In order to compare our data

with previously published (uncorrected) U-series ages (for a synthesis, see Mastronuzzi and Sansò,

2003), we considered the ages not corrected for the open-system (Table 1).

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4. Stratigraphy of Fronte Section

The lower part of Fronte Section includes a homogenous succession of clays, belonging to the

Blue Clay Fm. This unit is unconformably overlain by 8.5 m of MIS 5e deposits, with contrasting

lithofacies characteristics (Figs. 3 and 4; Table 2).

4.1. Pre-MIS 5e deposits (Blue Clay Fm)

4.1.1. Description

The uppermost part of the Pliocene-Pleistocene Blue Clay Fm includes a slightly coarsening-

upward succession, about 5 m-thick, of massive grey clay, with upward transition to silty clays with

silt intercalations (Fig. 3). This unit includes abundant calcareous nannofossils and foraminifera

with high plankton/benthos ratio (mainly Globigerina bulloides, Globorotalia inflata and

Globigerinoides ruber; see Table 2). The calcareous nannoplankton shows the presence of

Pseudoemiliania lacunosa, but the absence of Reticulofenestra asanoi and Gephyrocapsa omega.

Reworked specimens from older deposits are increasingly abundant upwards. The benthic

meiofauna is dominated by deep-marine, slope assemblages documenting a mesotrophic bottom

environment, which evolves upwards to meso- to oligotrophic conditions. Foraminifera display an

upward increase in the amount of infaunal benthic taxa to the detriment of the epifaunal ones.

Molluscs with subordinate echinoids and sagittal otoliths are mainly benthic and holoplanktic. This

part of the succession is characterized by sparse deep-water bivalves (e.g., Bathyspinula cf. excisa,

Yoldiella philippiana, Limopsis sp., Delectopecten vitreus, Kelliella miliaris), gastropods (e.g.,

Amphissa acutecostata), and scaphopods (e.g., Cadulus ovulum). Holoplanktic molluscs are

represented by decalcified thecosomatous pteropods, dominantly Clio pyramidata. Upwards, the

occasional occurrence of Nucula sulcata, Corbula gibba and the concomitant rarefaction of deeper-

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water taxa is noticed. Palynological analysis of one sample from the base of the section pointed out

the large occurrence of Pinus, followed by thermophilous arboreal taxa dominated by Quercus.

Tsuga, Carya and Pterocarya also occur, though in low percentages. Among the subordinate herbs,

Chenopodiaceae, Brassicaceae, Asteraceae including Artemisia, Plantago and Ephedra are present.

Dinocysts include Spiniferites spp., followed by Lingulodinium machaerophorum, Operculodinium

centrocarpum, and Nematosphaeropsis labyrinthus.

Two distinct one-cm-thick tephra layers, separated by a thin (20 cm) mud deposit, were observed

above this unit (Fig. 3). The lower one is white, almost entirely volcanoclastic, fine-grained and

massive. The upper layer is yellowish, highly weathered, coarser and with a bioclastic and

silicoclastic component. Both are interpreted to represent quite distal fall-out events.

A laminated interval above the tephra layers, about 20 cm thick (Fig. 3), shows features typical

of a sapropel (e.g., abundant siliceous plankton and benthic foraminifera tolerant to low-oxygen

conditions, like Bolivina sp.). Palynomorphs are very scanty, and especially represented by

dinocysts. Pollen grains consist almost exclusively of Pinus. The foraminiferal assemblage shows

high plankton/benthos ratio, abundant herbivorous taxa, and rare infaunal taxa. Upwards, a 0.7 m-

thick, greyish-green, muddy unit with distinctive polyhedral fractures is observed (Fig. 3). This unit

includes a varied mollusc fauna, dominated by Abra nitida, Tellina distorta, Dosinia lupinus and

Corbula gibba. In this lithofacies benthic foraminifera are dispersed in sand and shell debris

deposits, and the planktic component is rare and mainly consisting of G.bulloides and G. inflata.

The calcareous nannofossil assemblage shows the presence of Pseudoemiliania lacunosa.

4.1.2. Interpretation

The fossil content in the lower part of the study succession is consistent with outer shelf/upper

slope muddy environments in an estimated bathymetric range of about 130-400 m (e.g., La Perna,

2003). Grain size characteristics and the mollusc content suggest an overall shallowing-upward

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trend. As a whole, the microfossil assemblages testify to a gradual and progressive deterioration of

oxygenation at the sea floor, which preceded the development of the sapropel-like assemblage

clearly visible in the overlying samples. Upwards, the rapid transition to shallower environments is

witnessed by the presence of sublittoral mud-lover taxa and by the decreasing planktic/benthic

foraminifera ratio, both suggesting sedimentation in middle to inner-shelf depositional

environments.

Calcareous nannofossils from the lowermost muds include important chronostratigraphic

markers that constrain the age of this unit between about 1 Ma (Highest Occurrence of R. asanoi,

see Raffi et al., 2006) and 480 ka (Highest Occurrence of P. lacunosa, see Raffi et al., 2006). The

age of this stratigraphic interval can further be refined by the lack of Gephyrocapsa omega, a

Mediterranean marker that shows its Highest Occurrence around 577 ka (Maiorano and Marino,

2004).

Based on these biostratigraphic data, and specifically on the occurrence of P. lacunosa and the

absence of Gephyrocapsa omega, the laminated interval above the tephra layers is tentatively

correlated to sapropel S12, dated at 502 ka (Lourens, 2004). The microfossil analysis did not

provide clear evidence for the older sapropelic event (‘Sa’) detected by Lourens (2004) in the very

early phase of MIS 14, and dated to 553 ka.

The contemporaneous presence, in very low percentages, of Carya, Pterocarya and Tsuga

suggests, on the basis of stratigraphical distribution of such taxa in the southern Italian sections

(e.g., Bertini, 2010; Orain et al., 2013), an age close to 500 ka for the base of this unit (Fig. 3).

4.2. MIS 5e deposits

MIS 5e deposits consist of five vertically stacked facies associations (units 1 to 5 in Fig. 3),

which are illustrated in ascending order.

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4.2.1. Unit 1

4.2.1.1. Description

This unit consists of a very thin (25 cm) bioclastic, fine-sandy mud layer with common oyster

shells and fining-upward bioclasts in sandy matrix (Figs. 3 and 4). This fossil-rich horizon shows an

unconformable lower boundary with the underlying Blue Clay Fm, highlighted by the sparse

occurrence of the mud-boring bivalve Pholas dactylus, articulated and in physiological position

(Fig. 5A). This bivalve is embedded in the muddy sediment of the underlying Middle Pleistocene

mud, as documented by the paleontological content of the matrix. Owing to subtle lithologic

contrast with the underlying Blue Clay Fm, likely smoothed by a secondary re-hydration of

overconsolidated clay, the lower boundary of unit 1 exhibits a weak field exposure (Fig. 4). At a

closer inspection (Fig. 5A), however, the sandy mud on mud contact is clearly marked by a veneer

of molluscs (abundant Ostrea edulis and Bittium spp.; common Cerithium vulgatum; rare

Cerastoderma glaucum, Cernuella spp.). Upwards, the macrofauna includes abundant Abra alba,

Tellina distorta, Pitar rudis, Ostrea edulis and Antalis spp., among others.

4.2.1.2. Interpretation

This highly-fossiliferous horizon is characterized by a rich mollusc assemblage representing a

variety of subaerial to nearshore paleoenvironments. The presence of the diagnostic, coastal-

lagoonal Pholas dactylus at the lower bounding unconformity testifies to an indurated bottom with

prolonged break in sedimentation. A deepening-upward tendency within unit 1 is suggested by the

overall fining-upward trend, and is supported also by the peculiar macrofaunal assemblage,

suggesting admixture from different sources. In particular, mollusc shells sourced from subaerial

(Cernuella) and lagoonal (Cerastoderma) environments are overlain by nearshore to inner-shelf,

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fully-marine molluscs. Regarding the latter component, unit 1 shows high abundance of taxa

characteristic of either muddy or sandy littoral bottoms (e.g., A. alba and P. rudis, respectively).

4.2.2. Unit 2


This unit, less than 1 m thick, is made up of highly fossiliferous, homogeneous grey mud (Figs. 3

and 4). Diagnostic feature of this unit is the conspicuous, increasing-upward occurrence of in situ

colonies of scleractinian coral Cladocora caespitosa, with intracoral pelitic matrix (Fig. 5B). The

ubiquitous presence of Cladocora colonies makes unit 2 a laterally continuous and easily

identifiable stratigraphic marker across the study outcrop. The macrofauna is represented by a low-

diversity association, with sparse Arca noae, Mimachlamys varia, Dosinia lupinus, common Abra

nitida, Nucula gr. nucleus, Tellina distorta, oysters and abundant Corbula gibba.

Unit 2 is also characterized by the dominance of the euryhaline foraminiferal species Ammonia

tepida and Ammonia parkinsoniana (Fig. 6), with variable frequencies of Cribroelphidium species,

mainly belonging to the C. granosum group (C. granosum and C. lidoense) and C. poeyanum group

(C. poeyanum and C. decipiens). The ostracod fauna exhibits the overwhelming dominance of the

shallow-marine opportunistic species Palmoconcha turbida, accompanied by Palmoconcha agilis.

An increase in: (i) species richness, and (ii) the relative abundance of typical marine taxa, such as

Ammonia beccarii and Costa edwardsii, is recorded in the middle part of the unit.

Pollen is still scarce and scattered, and represented almost exclusively by Pinus. Among

dinocysts remarkable is the presence of Polysphaeridium zoharyi, the resting cyst of the toxic

marine dinoflagellate Pyrodinium bahamense. P. zoharyi is characteristic for euryhaline

tropical/subtropical coastal sites from mesotrophic environments, and has been observed to occur in

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the Mediterranean within sapropel S5 (e.g., cores BD02-GC01, SIN97-GC01 and BAN89-GC09 in

Giunta et al. 2006; Sangiorgi et al., 2006), aged 124 ka (Lourens, 2004).

Ten corallites of C. caespitosa sampled at two distinct stratigraphic levels (C1 and C2 in Fig. 3)

yielded consistent uncorrected U-series ages, ranging between about 140 and 131 ka (C1 in Table 1)

and between about 125 and 121 ka (C2 in Table 1), respectively, with just one exception (see Table

1).


The establishment of stable, shallow-marine conditions is testified by the abundance of in-situ

growing C. caespitosa colonies and by the characteristic, muddy inner-shelf shallow macrofauna

(Scarponi and Angeletti, 2008). The occurrence of intracoral pelitic matrix points to a likely baffling

effect exerted by the branching reef at the expense of pulses of muddy sediment from the coast. The

exclusive occurrence of sublittoral molluscs may be taken as an indication that the reef was thriving

at paleodepths of 10-20 m, and that muds were settling down beneath that level. The meiofauna is

composed exclusively of shallow-marine species, commonly reported in the Mediterranean Sea

from water depths lower than 20 m (Bonaduce et al., 1975; Murray, 1991; Sgarrella and

Moncharmont Zei, 1993). The dominance of the euryhaline species A. tepida and A. parkinsoniana

indicates nearshore to inner-shelf environments characterized by moderate salinity changes,

possibly induced by fluvial run-off (Jorissen, 1988). In this context, the variable frequency of

Cribroelphidium species able to tolerate conditions of labile organic matter enrichment (e.g., C.

granosum and C. poeyanum groups; Jorissen, 1988) likely reflects oscillations in river discharge

fluxes (Jorissen, 1988; Donnici and Serandrei Barbero, 2002). This interpretation is consistent with

the ostracod fauna, which is dominated by opportunistic shallow-marine species (P. turbida and P.

agilis) tolerant to ample food availability and low oxygen levels (Bodergat et al., 1998; Ruiz et al.,

2005). The subtle change in meiofauna composition in the middle part of unit 2 (Fig. 6) records the

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establishment of relatively more open marine conditions. In particular, the increase in species

poorly tolerant to salinity oscillations and intense river discharge (Murray, 1991; Athersuch et al.,

1989), such as A. beccarii and C. edwardsii, points to slightly river-influenced, upper inner-shelf

settings.

4.2.3. Unit 3


This unit forms a prominent stratigraphic marker, about 2 m thick (Figs. 3 and 4), represented by

a characteristically cemented, fossil-rich, calcarenite (regionally called panchina), yielding

abundant C. caespitosa (Figs. 5B-D). This sandy-hash skeletal facies exhibits a transitional

boundary with the underlying unit 2 (progressive upward increase in grain size), concurrently with

the increase in abundance of sessile molluscs, such as Spondylus gaederopus and Chama

gryphoides.

Unit 3 is highly macrofossiliferous and fed by skeletal allochems, mostly molluscs, mainly

bivalves (abundant Gouldia minima, Corbula gibba; common Anodontia fragilis, Venus verrucosa,

Dosinia exoleta; rare Spondylus gaederopus, Chama gryphoides, Loripes lucinalis) and gastropods

(common Gibbula fanulum, Jujubinus exasperatus, Clanculus corallinus; rare Bolma rugosa,

Bittium spp. Alvania spp., Monoplex parthenopeus), followed in abundance by coralline algae

(Lithotamnion), serpulids, and subordinate echinoids. Reworked, loose Cladocora corallites are also

common. Remarkably, the ‘panchina’ facies contains examples of the well known “Senegalian”

fauna (Figs. 5C-D and 7), in particular: Persististrombus latus, Polinices lacteus, Gemophos

viverratus and Conus ermineus (= C. testudinarius). The only clearly in situ macrofossils are

represented by articulated sparse specimens of large infaunal bivalves (Lutraria angustior and L.

oblonga).

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This facies association includes skeletal allochems that originated from a variety of adjacent

subtidal biocoenoses bracketed between the nearshore and upper inner-shelf zones, as suggested by

several in situ collected specimens of Lutraria, whose representatives thrive on sandy bottoms at

shallow depths. Reworked, loose corallites testify to the dismantling of the Cladocora reefs. The

“classic” “Senegalian” fauna heralds the typical sub-tropical conditions that characterized the

shallow marine habitats of MIS 5e, throughout its Mediterranean range, including the historical

Tyrrhenian sites and the Tyrrhenian type area (e.g., Spano, 1993; Nalin et al., 2012)

4.2.4. Unit 4


This facies association consists of a 4.5 m-thick, reddish to greenish pelite (Figs. 3 and 4). A

low-diversity mollusc fauna, with common Antalis inaequicostata, Nassarius spp., Bittium

submamillatum, Bela brachystoma, Lucinella divaricata and abundant Corbula gibba, is observed

in the sampled parts of the unit (Fig. 6). In addition, the macrofaunal samples include taxa clearly

reworked from a variety of nearshore depositional environments (e.g., Pusillina marginata, Bittium

latreillii and Hydrobiidae).

Two highly diversified deep-sea meiofauna associations are recorded within unit 4 (Fig. 6). The

lowermost and upper portions of this unit are mainly represented by the epifaunal-shallow infaunal

species Bulimina marginata and Cibicidoides pachyderma. Secondary species include Bolivina

sphatulata, Cassidulina carinata, Hyalinea balthica, Uvigerina mediterranea, Uvigerina peregrina,

and Angulogerina angulosa. Low percentages of Ammonia, Cribroelphidium and Elphidium

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species, and few poorly-preserved marine ostracods, mainly Cistacythereis turbida, Palmoconcha

and Semicytherura species, are also encountered (Fig. 6). On the other hand, the lower-middle part

of unit 4 shows scarce autochthonous ostracod fauna, mainly represented by the middle-outer shelf

species Henryhowella sarsi and Cistacythereis turbida (Bonaduce et al., 1975; Breman, 1975), and

records higher abundance of the opportunistic, shallow infaunal Uvigerina mediterranea and

Uvigerina peregrina, which become the dominant taxa along with B. marginata and C. pachyderma

(Fig. 6). A parallel decreasing trend is recorded for Bolivina sphatulata, Ammonia and

Cribroelphidium species.

The planktic foraminiferal assemblage includes Globigerinoides ruber, Orbulina universa,

Globigerina bulloides, and Globorotalia inflata. Calcareous nannofossils also show an in situ

assemblage, in which “small” gephyrocapsids (< 3 microns) dominate and reworking is limited. The

palynological assemblage, although almost devoid of pollen (rare grains of Pinus plus Olea,

Chenopodiaceae, Brassicaceae and Rosaceae) and dinocysts, contains as a scattered occurrence

Impagidinium patulum, a temperate to tropical oceanic species commonly well abundant under

oligotrophic conditions, but also present under eutrophic conditions. Sparse cysts of

Operculodinium centrocarpum, Impagidinium spp., Spiniferites ramosus and P. zoharyi are also

present.


The sedimentological features of this unit, especially the lack of sand in its lower part, suggest a

marine setting largely below mean wave base. This interpretation is strongly supported by the

microfaunal assemblages and dinocysts, both diagnostic of open-shelf environments. The benthic

faunal associations (B. marginata+C. pachyderma+U. mediterranea and U. peregrina) are

indicative of middle-outer shelf environment (< 100 m water depth), with medium/high trophic

levels and no or limited oxygen depletion at the sea floor. Mesotrophic conditions are also

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documented by the planktic foraminiferal assemblage, which additionally (G. ruber and O.

universa) indicates warm climate conditions. Within the lowermost and the uppermost portions of

unit 4, the occurrence of transported ostracod specimens records high-energy events possibly

connected to mass flows and/or deep currents. In the middle part, the increase in Uvigerina species,

paralleled by the decrease in B. spathulata, Ammonia and Cribroelphidium species, suggests slight

increase in water depth and food availability (Schmiedl et al., 2000; Fontanier et al., 2003; Pérez-

Asensio et al., 2012). Similarly, the upward decrease in Uvigerina species is suggestive of a

progressive shallowing tendency. The mollusc fauna shows high reworking in both samples. Hence,

by means of the speditive approach here adopted, it is difficult to establish if, apart from clearly

reworked taxa (e.g., hydrobiids, Pusillina marginata), other or the majority of the taxa recovered

were reworked in deeper environments. The ecologic requirements of the mollusc recovered would

imply inner to middle-shelf settings (see also Scarponi et al., 2014).

4.2.5. Unit 5


The topmost part of Fronte section is represented by another fossiliferous calcarenite, 1 m thick

(Fig. 3) and mostly covered by vegetation. Similar to unit 3, this calcarenite contains loose and

dispersed corallites of C. caespitosa. The macrofauna of this unit consists of molluscs (abundant

Gouldia minima, Bittium reticulatum; common Corbula gibba, Lucinella divaricata, Alvania

geronya, Glycymeris glycymeris Venus verrucosa; rare Acteocina knockeri, Spisula subtruncata

Cerithium sp., Callista chione), with subordinate coralline algae, serpulids, and echinoids.


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Unit 5 deposits closely resemble the sandy-hash skeletal facies observed through unit 3.

However, the rarer corallites along with the deeper ecologic requirements of some of the mollusc

recovered (i.e., G. glycymeris) point toward a more distal depositional setting than the one

reconstructed for unit 3, here interpreted to reflect an inner-middle shelf environment. The presence

of A. knockeri, a minute gastropod of tropical/subtropical affinity, suggests average water

temperature higher than today.

5. Paleoenvironmental evolution during the Last Interglacial

The vertical stacking of units 1 to 5 provides the basis for reconstructing the paleoenvironmental

evolution of the Taranto area during the Late Pleistocene (Fig. 7). Although age attribution of the

underlying Blue Clay Fm is uncertain, the presence in this unit of Pseudoemiliania lacunosa and

the concomitant absence of Gephyrocapsa omega enable a generic assignment to MIS 13 (Fig. 3).

Such attribution is supported by the contemporaneous occurrence of three arboreal taxa (Carya,

Pterocarya and Tsuga), which all together have never been recorded after MIS 13 in southern Italy

(Bertini, 2010; Orain et al., 2013).

In contrast, the overlying succession (units 1 to 5 in Figs. 3 and 7) can readily be assigned to

MIS 5e based upon four cross-checked proxies: (i) the occurrence within unit 3 of the characteristic

“Senegalian” fauna, which is traditionally taken as an indication of the Tyrrhenian sensu stricto (=

MIS 5e; Issel, 1914; Spano, 1982; Cita et al., 2005); (ii) the finding within units 2 and 4 of dinocyst

Polysphaeridium zoharyi, previously reported within Sapropel S5 from several sites of the Eastern

Mediterranean (Giunta et al., 2006; Sangiorgi et al., 2006); (iii) a new set of ten U-series ages from

unit 2 (Table 1), (iv) and its consistency with several tens of previously published U-series

uncorrected ages from the same depositional units (Mastronuzzi and Sansò, 2003; Antonioli et al.,

2009).

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The stratigraphic unconformity recorded atop Blue Clay Fm., marked by the diagnostic Pholas

dactylus horizon (Figs. 7 and 5A), records a prolonged phase of non-deposition in the study area.

Above this indurated, and probably emerged surface (during MIS 6 sea level was ca. 130 m lower

than today; Waelbroek et al., 2002), deposition of unit 1 marks the first episode of transgression of

the MIS 5e sea onto the mid-Pleistocene (Blue Clay Fm) mud. Superposition of Cladocora-rich

muds (unit 2) onto the basal, fossiliferous sandy muds (unit 1) reflects a rapid deepening-upward

trend, with transition from brackish/nearshore to inner-shelf (< 20 m deep) environments subject to

fluvial discharge fluxes.

A shallowing-upward tendency, paralleled by a progressive increase in grain size and the change

to a shallower fauna, is reconstructed from upper unit 2 and at the transition to the overlying

calcarenite body (unit 3 in Fig. 7). This prominent marker bed is interpreted to record a short-lived

episode of coastal progradation, possibly induced by a phase of sea-level stillstand. The sharp

boundary to the overlying muds (unit 4) marks an abrupt increase in paleobathymetry (Fig. 7), with

the establishment of a middle-outer shelf environment (< 100 m) characterized by mesotrophic

conditions and limited oxygen depletion at the sea floor (as testified by the co-dominance of C.

pachyderma and B. marginata). In the middle part of unit 4, the microfaunal turnover towards

slightly deeper environments, with higher nutrient concentration and oxygenation (increasing

percentages of Uvigerina species paralleled by a marked decrease of B. sphatulata), marks the MIS

5e peak transgression (Fig. 7). Increased reworking, concurrently with a slight shallowing-upward

trend, is recorded in the uppermost three meters of unit 4. The boundary with another calcarenite

body containing warm-water, inner-shelf mollusc fauna (e.g., Acteocina knockeri, Spisula

subtruncata in unit 5) is inferred to reflect, again, “normal” shoreline regression (progradation)

under conditions of sea-level stillstand (Fig. 7).

6. Sequence stratigraphic interpretation

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Owing to dramatic changes in world-ice volume, during significant parts of the Middle-Late

Quaternary sea level was lower than the elevation of modern coastal areas (Martinson et al., 1987).

As a consequence, the record of glacial/interglacial fluctuations within onshore successions is

commonly associated with important stratigraphic hiatus in which considerable part of the

depositional sequence (notably, the forced-regressive systems tract, the lowstand systems tract, and

the lower transgressive systems tract, according to the sequence-stratigraphic terminology) is

missing due to prolonged subaerial exposure. At these locations, the sequence boundary (SB) and

the initial transgressive surface (TS) commonly merge into an interfluve sequence boundary. The

glacial/interglacial stratigraphic unconformities may thus serve as prominent (sequence)

stratigraphic markers on a regional scale.

At Fronte Section, a stratigraphic break of about 400 ky, encompassing the MIS 13-MIS 5e

stratigraphic interval, is materialized at the lower boundary of MIS 5e deposits (top of Blue Clay

Fm). This remarkable hiatal surface can promptly be interpreted as the SB (Fig. 7). The vertical

stacking of units 1 to 4, as a whole, marks a distinctive deepening-upward trend, which indicates the

onset of transgressive conditions above the sequence-bounding unconformity (transgressive systems

tract or TST in Fig. 7). As a consequence, SB and TS merge at the base of unit 1. Based on the

vertical stacking of facies, sea-level rise appears to have occurred stepwise, with two major

transgressive pulsations (unit 1 and lower unit 4, respectively), separated by a period of decreased

sea-level rise, stillstand, or even gentle fall (unit 3 in Fig. 7). According to the sequence

stratigraphic terminology, the sedimentary package comprised between units 1 and 3 represents a

parasequence, while a flooding surface is identified at the boundary between units 3 and 4. The

maximum flooding zone (MFZ in Fig. 7) is recorded in the lower-middle part of unit 4, while the

upper portion of unit 4 and whole unit 5 represent a second episode of progradation under

conditions of sea-level stillstand, and for this reason are interpreted as the highstand systems tract

(HST in Fig. 7).

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7. Facies sequences, sea-level fluctuations and the Quaternary period

At onshore locations, the early post-glacial deposits formed closed to the MIS 6/5 boundary are

systematically unpreserved, and stratigraphic unconformities due to prolonged subaerial exposure

are invariably developed at the base of MIS 5e deposits (Amorosi et al., 2004). Re-investigation of

the type locality of the Eemian, at Amersfoort, The Netherlands, identified four stratigraphic

discontinuities linked with the transgression of the Eemian Sea (Cleveringa et al., 2000), and a

major discontinuity at the Saalian/Eemian boundary has been reported from the Amsterdam

Terminal borehole (Van Leeuwen et al., 2000).

A similar picture is recorded at Fronte Section, where an unconformable lower boundary

separates MIS 5e deposits (base of unit 1) from significantly older units, with no intervening early

transgressive deposits (Fig. 7). In this instance, however, above the basal unconformity, MIS 5e

deposits exhibit a thick, seemingly continuous succession of marine units. The onset of

transgressive sedimentation in the study area post-dates of several thousand years the MIS 6/5

boundary. This assumption is based on the comparison between the age of Termination II mid point

(132.4 ka BP according to Waelbroeck et al., 2002; 136 ± 2.5 ka BP, according to Drysdale et al.,

2009; 137 ka BP, according to Thomas et al., 2009) and the age of unit 2. Unit 2, as suggested by

the P. zoharyi bloom, can be dated between 127 and 121 ka BP based on the estimated 6 ky

duration of Sapropel S5 deposition (Bar-Matthews et al., 2000) and the S5 depositional interval

midpoint at 124 ka BP (Lourens, 2004). The uncorrected age ranges obtained from U-series dating

of C. caespitosa collected within Unit 2 (Table 1) are consistent with previously published ages

from Santa Teresiola section (Dai Prà and Stearns, 1977 – see Fig. 2 for location), and clearly point

to a generic MIS 5e age, but do not allow to further refine our age attributions.

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The composite sea-level model for MIS 5e reconstructed by Hearty et al. (2007) includes (also

see the oxygen isotope curve of Lisiecki and Raymo, 2005 in Fig. 7): (i) sea-level rise before 130 ka

BP, (ii) stabilization at +2-3 m above present sea level between 130-125 ka BP, (iii) a brief fall, and

(iv) a second rise up to +3-4 m at 124-122 ka BP. Around 120 ka BP the last eustatic jump brought

the sea level at +6-9 m. From a reef-crest sequence at Yucatán peninsula (Mexico), Blanchon et al.

(2009) documented the occurrence of a 2-3 m sea-level jump during the late phases of the Last

Interglacial, around 121 ka BP. Evidence of multiple MIS 5e sea-level highstands has also been

reported from several Mediterranean coastal areas (Jedoui et al., 2003; Zazo et al., 2003; Bardají et

al., 2009; Dabrio et al., 2011), even though Mauz et al. (2012) leaned towards a single +9 m

eustatic highstand during the Last Interglacial. In particular, up to three highstands have recently

been recognized and ascribed to the Last Interglacial along the Spanish coasts by combined

morphological and facies analyses (Zazo et al., 2013). The second highstand, dated around 130-120

ka BP, is considered the one that led to the highest elevation values. However, uncertainties on the

estimated ages of the Late Pleistocene marine coastal deposits prevent the reconstruction of a

detailed sea level history and the exact time estimation of sea-level highstands.

The vertical stacking of facies at Fronte Section compared with the global oxygen isotope curve

of Lisiecki and Raymo (2005) reveals consistent patterns of transgression/sea-level rise (Fig. 7).

Particularly, the two-fold history of sea-level rise reconstructed by the worldwide revision of Hearty

et al. (2007) for MIS 5e seems to be preserved in the stratigraphic record of Fronte section. At this

location, two distinct deepening episodes (i.e., the two flooding surfaces at the base of units 1 and 4,

respectively) are separated by a short-lived phase of progradation under gently falling sea-level

conditions (unit 3 in Fig. 7).

Units 1 to 3 thus appear to have been deposited during the first transgressive pulsation of MIS

5e. The presence of characteristic Tyrrhenian-stage stratigraphic markers, such as tropical mollusc

Persististrombus (= Strombus) atop the prominent panchina-bed (unit 3 in Fig. 7), reflects the

establishment of generalized warm conditions related to the Last Interglacial (for a detailed

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synthesis, see Asioli et al., 2005). This first phase of sea-level rise was coeval with the rapid

expansion of the temperate forests in the higher northern latitudes (ca. 126 ka BP), marking the

beginning of the Eemian (e.g., Zagwijn, 1961; 1996; Litt and Gibbard, 2008). Since the term

Eemian has been used originally in the Netherlands to identify the Late Pleistocene transgression

coincident with the maximum sea-level rise of the Last Interglacial, the occurrence of

Persististrombus aquires also a correlative potential with the expansion of woodlands during the

Eemian. This event, which is used as a proxy for the retreat of the Saalian ice sheets, also post-dates

the MIS 6/5 boundary of several thousand years (Fig. 7), as documented by Iberian core MD95-

2042 (Sánchez-Goñi et al., 1999; Shackleton et al., 2002, 2003; Waelbroeck et al., 2002).

The abrupt deepening recorded at the rapid transition from unit 3 to unit 4 is likely correlative

with the second rise in sea level reported by Hearty et al. (2007). During this period,

chronologically constrained between about 128 and 116 ka BP (Fig. 7), global sea level reached the

highest sea-level position during the Last Interglacial (Kukla et al., 2002; Shackleton et al., 2002,

2003), as confirmed by the identification of the maximum flooding zone within unit 4 (Fig. 7). The

slight regressive trend observed in upper unit 4 and the more pronounced shallowing tendency

documented by deposition of unit 5 thus are consistent with the hypothesis of coastal progradation

under highstand conditions. It should be noted, however, that open marine environments are poorly

sensitive to subtle changes in relative sea level, which thus might pass unnoticed in the stratigraphic

record.

Stratigraphic features very similar to those documented at Fronte Section, providing further

evidence for two separate calcarenite marker beds and two distinct transgressive peaks within MIS

5e deposits, can be identified in several sections from the surrounding Mar Piccolo area (see

Masseria Natrella, Masseria Tuglia and Fucarino in Fig. 8). At these locations, Cladocora and

“Strombus”-bearing deposits (units 2 and 3 at Fronte Section) overlain by thick packages of marine

muds (unit 4) are invariably encountered (Fig. 5E), and represent invaluable marker beds to the

basin scale (Fig. 8). At the basin margins, to the West (Sorgente Galeso in Fig. 8) and to the East

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(Casa D’Ayala in Fig. 8) the marine facies are replaced by coeval lagoonal to alluvial successions

dominated by oligotypic brackish and freshwater assemblages. The stratigraphic section at Castello

Aragonese exhibits a thick calcarenite body, with evidence of persistent, nearshore coarse-sand

bioclastic sedimentation, but no direct physical correlation is possible with the other outcrop

sections.

8. Conclusions

Fronte Section, close to Taranto (southern Italy), exhibits a seemingly continuous,

stratigraphically expanded (8.5-m thick) and well-exposed shallow-marine record of the Last

Interglacial. The presence of Persististrombus latus (= Strombus bubonius) and accompanying

warm-water species of the “Senegalian” fauna, combined with the occurrence of the dinocyst

Polysphaeridium zoharyi and ten new U-series ages on Cladocora caespitosa corals yielding

consistent MIS 5e ages, provide important chronological benchmarks for the study succession,

ensuring widespread stratigraphic correlation of early Upper Pleistocene deposits across the whole

Mediterranean area. Despite large uncertainties in U-series dating of the fossil coral specimens,

likely due to open-system behavior, detailed sedimentological, paleontological (molluscs,

nannofossils, planktic and benthic foraminifera, ostracods, palynomorphs) and sequence

stratigraphic investigations provide a robust framework of paleoenvironmental variations for the

investigated succession, which is correlated to the oxygen isotope record of MIS 5e.

Above a regional unconformity, marked by the boring coastal-lagoonal bivalve Pholas dactylus,

the MIS 5e deposits exhibit an overall deepening-upward trend, from nearshore, to inner-shelf

(Cladocora-rich) and then middle-outer shelf deposits. The observed facies changes are consistent

with the well-established evidence of sea-level rise following the MIS 6/5 transition. The prominent

“panchina”-bed, a calcarenite body (containing Persististrombus) that can be tracked all around the

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Mediterranean and that is sandwiched at Fronte Section and in the surrounding areas between two

distinct transgressive pulsations, is interpreted to reflect the short-lived episode of sea-level

stillstand (or gentle fall) that took place during the Last Interglacial around 125 ka BP. This marker

bed is overlain by open-marine clays, marking the maximum flooding zone. Another calcarenite

body atop Fronte Section, which marks renewed coastal progradation, is inferred to represent the

“normal” regression episode during the MIS 5e plateau.

Acknowledgements

This paper is dedicated to the memory of Sergio Silenzi who enthusiastically contributed to data

collection and discussion of MIS 5e deposits. The research was financially supported by Regione

Puglia 2008/09 (grant to Giuseppe Mastronuzzi) as part of the Project “Il Tarentiano a Taranto”,

and by Geo Data Service s.r.l., Taranto. This is ISMAR scientific contribution n. 1752. We are

indebted to R. De Rosa, P. Donato, L. Ferranti, B. Giaccio, J. Keller, N. Frank, M. Soligo, P.

Tuccimei and L. Vigliotti for the useful discussions. M.J. Head and P. Gibbard provided insight on

an earlier version of the manuscript. We also thank C. Pignatelli and A. Piscitelli for the continuous

logistic support. Special thanks are due to: III Regione Aerea, Italian Air Force Operational Force

Command, and especially to Colonel Serratì, for granting access to the 65° Deposito Territoriale; to

its Commanders, Lieutenant Colonels Mascali and Vella and their staff; to the Commander of

Dipartimento Marina Militare (Italian Navy) di Taranto, Admiral A. Toscano, who permitted access

to the Castello Aragonese area, and to its responsible Captain A. Strazzeri. The paper is an Italian

contribution to IGCP project 588 - International Geological Correlation Programme “Preparing for

coastal change. A detailed response process framework for coastal change at different times” by

UNESCO-IUGS (project Leaders: A.D. Switzer, Earth Observatory of Singapore (EOS), Nanyang

Technological University; C. Sloss, School of Natural resources Sciences, Queensland Univ. of

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Technology, Australia; B. Horton, Dept. of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Univ. of

Pennsylvania; Dr. Y. Zong, Dept. of Earth Sciences, Univ. of Hong Kong.

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Caption to figures

Fig. 1 – Geographic location (red dot in A, B) and outcrop view (C) of Fronte Section. Numbers

refer to the stratigraphic units of Figure 3.

Fig. 2 – Geological sketch map (A), with cross-sections (B) of the Taranto area (modified after

Mastronuzzi, 2001). A – Mesozoic carbonates; B – Gravina Calcarenite (Upper Pliocene to Lower

Pleistocene); C – Blue Clay (Upper Pliocene to Lower Pleistocene); D – Middle Pleistocene (?)

marine deposits; E – Upper Pleistocene (MIS 5) marine deposits; F – Holocene alluvial and beach

deposits; G – Reclaimed areas (XIX-XX centuries); H – Main karstic subaerial springs; I – Main

karstic underwater springs (citri); L – Stratigraphic logs in Fig. 8; M – Other outcrops with

“Senegalian” fauna; N – Cores; O – Strike and dip of strata (1, sub-horizontal; 2, <15°; 3, >15°); P

– Inferred normal fault; Q – Section trace.

Fig. 3 – Detailed lithostratigraphy and chronology of Fronte Section. MIS 5e deposits are

represented by units 1-5. C1 and C2: U-series dated horizons with Cladocora caespitosa (see Table

1).

Fig. 4 – Outcrop view of Fronte Section. The yellow dashed line marks the unconformable surface

between the Blue Clay Fm and the overlying MIS 5e deposits (units 1-4).

Fig. 5 – Paleontological features of MIS 5e deposits at Fronte Section. A. Unconformable lower

boundary onto the Blue Clay Fm, with Pholas dactylus shell in physiological position partly

embedded in the underlying muddy sediment. B. In situ colonies of Cladocora caespitosa

embedded in units 2 and 3. C. Persististrombus latus (= Strombus bubonius), the most typical

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element of the MIS 5 “Senegalian” fauna in the Mediterranean area, from the base of unit 3. D.

Very coarse-grained skeletal calcarenite with Strombus and Spondylus sp. in unit 3 (lower Panchina

layer). E. Persististrombus latus (= Strombus bubonius) from Masseria Abateresta section (for

location, see Fig. 2).

Fig. 6 – Meiofauna distribution (benthic foraminifera and ostracods) within MIS 5e deposits at

Fronte Section.

Fig. 7 – Sequence stratigraphic interpretation of MIS 5e deposits at Fronte Section, relative sea-

level variations and inferred relations with the oxygen isotope curve (Lisiecki and Raymo, 2005).

SB: Sequence Boundary, TS: Transgressive Surface, TST: Transgressive Systems Tract, MFZ:

Maximum Flooding Zone, HST: Highstand Systems Tract.

Fig. 8 – Stratigraphic correlation of Fronte Section with coeval outcrops of the Taranto area (for

location, see Fig. 2). Numbers refer to the stratigraphic units of Figure 3. The red line is the lower

boundary of MIS 5e deposits. Note the widespread occurrence of two distinct Panchina layers

(units 3 and 5). A Blue Clay Fm; B tephra; C coarse clastics; D lacustrine deposits; E massive

calcarenite; F cross-laminated sandstone; G silt; H sand; I tufa. 1 Persististrombus latus (=

Strombus bubonius); 2 disarticulated Cerastoderma valves; 3 articulated Cerastoderma valves; 4

Ostreids; 5 Cladocora caespitosa; 6 bivalves; 7 gastropods; 8 disarticulated bivalves; 9 rhodoliths;

10 Echinocardium cordatum ichnotraces.

Table 1. U-series ages of Cladocora caespitosa corallites collected within unit 2 from two distinct

stratigraphic levels (C1 and C2 in Fig. 3); lower case letters represent corallites from the same reef

complex. 234

U(0) is the initial value and is calculated by the equation: 234

U(0) = (234

Umeas)e(234t),

where t is the age in years. The concentrations of 238

U and 232

Th were determined using the enriched

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236U and

229Th isotopes, respectively. *Conventional age assuming a closed system after correction

for non-radiogenic [230

Th/232

Th] = 1±1. **Age calculated using the open-system model (Thompson

et al., 2003).

Table 2. Diagnostic micropaleontological features at Fronte Section.

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Figure 1

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Figure 2

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Figure 3

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Figure 4

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Figure 5

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Figure 6

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Figure 7

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Figure 8

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Table 1

Date Sample Name Labcode LSCE 238U (µg/g) 232Th (ng/g) 234Umeas [230Th/232Th] [230Th/238U] Age (kyr)

234U(0) Age (kyr)* Age (kyr)**

4.11.2011 FW11-C1-a -2499- 3.769 ±0.006 40.929 ±0.066 135.2 ±0.9 228 ±1 0.8111 ±0.0032 131.67 ±1.19 194.4 ±1.9 130.59 ±1.18 112.45 ±1.40

8.11.2011 FW11-C1-b -2516- 3.666 ±0.002 30.093 ±0.017 134.4 ±0.9 306 ±1 0.8231 ±0.0021 135.59 ±0.70 195.8 ±1.6 134.75 ±0.87 116.05 ±1.10

30.11.2011 FW11-C1-c -2538- 3.789 ±0.003 32.286 ±0.020 135.6 ±0.9 301 ±3 0.8401 ±0.0081 140.79 ±2.33 200.4 ±2.5 139.88 ±2.89 119.30 ±2.70

30.11.2011 FW11-C1-d -2539- 3.711 ±0.006 40.624 ±0.033 134.0 ±0.8 233 ±3 0.8336 ±0.0090 139.09 ±2.53 196.8 ±2.7 137.95 ±3.13 119.30 ±2.80

30.11.2011 FW11-C1-e -2540- 3.618 ±0.002 28.159 ±0.014 135.8 ±1.1 319 ±3 0.8134 ±0.0071 132.22 ±1.96 196.1 ±2.4 131.46 ±2.43 112.80 ±2.50

30.11.2011 FW11-C1-f -2541- 3.735 ±0.005 31.115 ±0.021 136.1 ±0.8 316 ±3 0.8612 ±0.0091 147.81 ±2.74 205.3 ±2.8 146.88 ±3.40 124.30 ±3.00

4.11.2011 FW11-C2-a -2500- 3.869 ±0.005 22.360 ±0.034 131.2 ±1.3 414 ±2 0.7827 ±0.0040 124.21 ±1.42 185.5 ±2.1 123.67 ±1.42 109.20 ±1.80

8.11.2011 FW11-C2-b -2517- 3.961 ±0.002 15.368 ±0.010 130.4 ±0.8 619 ±2 0.7864 ±0.0022 125.47 ±0.64 185.3 ±1.3 125.11 ±0.80 110.60 ±1.00

30.11.2011 FW11-C2-c -2542- 4.112 ±0.008 17.471 ±0.010 131.0 ±1.6 556 ±4 0.7725 ±0.0061 121.37 ±1.65 183.9 ±2.7 120.99 ±2.06 107.20 ±2.50

30.11.2011 FW11-C2-d -2543- 3.899 ±0.005 14.891 ±0.011 129.2 ±1.2 628 ±7 0.7847 ±0.0084 125.28 ±2.18 183.5 ±2.4 124.93 ±2.71 111.20 ±2.80

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Table 2

Fronte

Section

stratigraphy

Benthic meiofauna

(ostracods and

foraminifers)

Planktic

foraminifers

Calcareous

nannofossils Dinocysts Pollen

MIS

5e d

eposits

Unit 5 not sampled

Unit 4

Abundant Bulimina

marginata and

Cibicidoides

pachyderma. Common to

scarce Uvigerina

mediterranea and U.

peregrina. Scarce

Cassidulina carinata,

Hyalinea balthica and

Angulogerina angulosa.

Scarce to rare Bolivina

sphatulata. Few valves of

well-preserved ostracods,

mainly Henryhowella

sarsi and Cistacythereis

turbida

Abundant

Globigerinoides

ruber. Common

to scarce

Orbulina

universa and

Globigerina

bulloides.

Scarce to rare

Globorotalia

inflata

Abundant medium-

sized

Reticulofenestrids,

Coccolithus

pelagicus and

"small"

Gephyrocapsa

(including G.

ericssoni and G.

aperta). Scarce to

rare

Rhabdosphaera

claviger,

Pontosphaera spp

and

Syracosphaera

pulchra

Few dinocysts,

mainly

Impagidinium

patulum. Rare

Operculodinium

centrocarpum,

Impagidinium spp.,

Spiniferites

ramosus and

Polysphaeridium

zoharyi

Dominant Pinus.

Scanty grains of

Olea,

Chenopodiaeae,

Brassicaceae

and Rosaceae

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Unit 3 not sampled

Unit 2

Abundant Ammonia

tepida and A.

parkinsoniana. Common

to scarce Criboelphidium

granosum gr. and C.

poeyanum gr. Variable

frequencies of Ammonia

beccarii. Among

ostracods, Palmoconcha

turbida and P. agilis are

the dominant species

rare and poorly

preserved

Dominant

Polysphaeridium

zoharyi. Scattered

Pentapharsodinium

dalei and

Operculodinium

spp.

Almost

exclusively

saccate grains of

Pinaceae, mainly

Pinus.

Subordinate

Abies and Picea

Unit 1 not sampled

pre

-MIS

5e d

epo

sits

Blue Clay

Fm

Common Uvigerina

peregrina, Hyalinea

balthica, Cassidulina

carinata and Bolivina sp.

Common

Globigerina

bulloides and

Globorotalia

inflata.

Common to

scarce

Globigerinoides

ruber

Abundant medium

sized

Reticulofenestrids,

Coccolithus

pelagicus,

Pseudoemiliania

lacunosa. Scarce

to rare

Rhabdosphaera

claviger,

Abundant

Spiniferites spp.

followed by

Lingulodinium

machaerophorum,

Operculodinium

centrocarpum, O.

spp.,

Nematosphaeropsis

labyrinthus,

Abundant Pinus.

Subordinate

Quercus, Tsuga,

Carya, Ulmus,

Cedrus and

Pterocarya. Non

arboreal pollen

includes

Artemisia and

other Asteraceae,

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Pontosphaera

spp., Calcidiscus

leptoporus,

Syracosphaera

pulchra

Pentapharsodinium

dalei,

Polysphaeridium

zoharyi

Ephedra,

Brassicaceae,

Chenopodiaceae

and Plantago

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Highlights

We document an exceptionally preserved onshore record of MIS 5e deposits

Firm chronology results from the fossil record and U-series ages

Rapid sea-level fluctuations are reconstructed during the Last interglacial

A short-lived phase of sea-level stillstand preceded the MIS 5e plateau

Two calcarenite marker beds mark distinct phases of coastal progradation

Documents

The Middle–Upper Pleistocene Fronte Section (Taranto, Italy): An exceptionally preserved marine record of the Last Interglacial