Speleothem Architectural Analysis: Integrated approach for stalagmite-based paleoclimate research

Integration of Geological, Mineralogical and Geochemical Methods in the Characterization of El Nitro and Las Alsacias Caves, Zapatoca (Colombia)

“…The rate of annual vertical growth of stalagmites is recorded in changes of calcite fabric, annual fluxes of fluorescent organic matter or annual variations in trace element composition (e.g., Mariethoz et al, 2012). However, according to Duan et al (2012), stalagmite laminae can be related to (1) fluorescent laminae formed by annual variations in organic matter flux (e.g., Proctor et al, 2000;Borsato et al, 2007;Hartland et al, 2014), (2) petrographic laminae formed by annual variations in calcite texture (e.g., Polyak and Asmerom, 2001;Martín-Chivelet et al, 2017), (3) calcite-aragonite couplets (e.g., Denniston et al, 2000), (4) traceelement laminae (e.g., Fairchild and Treble, 2009), and (5) aragonite laminae formed by the alternation of thin brown and thicker clear aragonite sub-layers (e.g., Yadava et al, 2004;Duan et al, 2010).…”

“…Polished sections were used to study the mineral composition and structure (textural and microstructural characteristics) of the stalagmite laminae by stereomicroscopy. Subsequently, the speleothem architectural analysis (SAA) was carried out according to Martín-Chivelet et al (2017) as a stratigraphic procedure, through the analysis of architectural elements and sequential stratigraphy, used by geoscientists to categorize stratigraphic heterogeneities in sedimentary deposits. A microscopic analysis of the mineral composition, and textural and microstructural characteristics of the polished surfaces of stalagmites was performed using a FEI QUANTA 650 field emission gum environmental scanning electron microscope (FEG-ESEM), under the following analytical conditions: magnification = 100-20000x, WD = 9.0-11.0 mm, HV = 20 kV, signal = BSE in ZCONT mode, detector = BSED, EDS Detector EDAX APOLO X with resolution of 126.1 eV (in.…”

“…According to Martín-Chivelet et al (2017), the Speleothem Architectural Analysis (SAA) is based on the analysis of architectural elements and the stratigraphy of sequence. The SAA incorporates any petrographic or stratigraphic classification, being a useful, systematic and versatile method to unravel the complexities of the growth of speleothems and, therefore, to interpret genetically stalagmites on a multi-temporal scale.…”

“…Stalagmites, in particular are of great importance in paleoclimatic studies (e.g., Turgeon and Lundberg, 2001;Jones et al, 2018;Guo and Zhou, 2019) since they preserve an isotopic record of great importance to reconstruct the recent paleoclimatic history since they constitute a valuable archive on how the rain patterns have changed during the quaternary. They grow in protected enviroments that have often escaped to the radical alterations of the surface resulting from events such as glaciation, these interesting calcareous formations have become one of the most reliable archives for the understanding of past terrestrial climatic conditions due to their absolute chronologies, their continuous or semi-continuous deposition and their wide global distribution (e.g., Bradley 1999;Fairchild and Baker, 2012;Wong and Breecker, 2015;Denniston and Luetscher, 2017;Martín-Chivelet et al, 2017). They are amongst the most intensively explored archives of past climate change in continental settings, and the processes determining the internal structure of speleothems, such as mineralogy and crystal fabrics, are seldom used when interpreting speleothem geochemical proxies (e.g., Fairchild and Baker, 2012).…”

Speleothem Records of the Hydroclimate Variability throughout the Last Glacial Cycle from Manita peć Cave (Velebit Mountain, Croatia)

“…δ 13 C variations can be discussed in relation to the speleothem fabrics and growth mode alteration, since the carbonate production, which is controlled by ecological factors and depends on the water chemistry and water supply, determines speleothem geometry [82].…”