Paleoenvironmental Records Influenced by Sea Level Variations During the Holocene in the Vitória Bay Region, Espírito Santo State, Brazil

Abstract

Vitória Bay is located in the south-central part of the State of Espírito Santo (SES). Multiproxy analyses were performed on samples from a 490-cm-long sediment core collected at the coordinates 40°18′23′′W and 20°14′48′′S. The objective of this study was to identify and integrate the multiproxy data to determine the environmental dynamics during the Holocene. The material was subsampled every 10 m and submitted to standard methodological processing. The sediment core was dated to two depths: the oldest age was between 9396 and 9520 cal yr BP at a 480-cm depth, and the youngest age was from 7423 to 7511 cal yr BP at a 304-cm depth. The integrated analysis revealed evidence of three major environmental changes in Vitória Bay. The first phase had a fluvial influence (depth of 490–480 cm; 9396–9520 cal yr BP). This was followed by a transitional period (depth of 480–290 cm; 7423–7511 cal yr BP) with a salt influence due to the Last Marine Transgression (LMT). Later, the environmental stability was similar to that of today (290 cm to the core top). This was a reflection of the Last Marine Regression (LMR) in the Holocene.

Dinocysts as a Tool for Palaeoenvironmental Reconstruction in Vitória Bay, Brazil

“…A higher accumulation of Pseudoschizaea (incertae sedis) was found throughout the three analyzed sediment cores. This fact, together with the sandy mud lithology and low TOC value may indicate a fluvial influence (Freitas et al 2017). Scott (1992) points out that this incertae sedis (Pseudoschizaea) is characteristic of wetland environments.…”