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On the relationship between coral δ 13 C and Caribbean climate
Author(s) -
Winter Amos,
Jury Mark,
Sammarco Paul W.,
Zanchettin Davide
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
international journal of climatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.58
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-0088
pISSN - 0899-8418
DOI - 10.1002/joc.5772
Subject(s) - coral , sea surface temperature , climatology , oceanography , environmental science , cloud cover , anticyclone , geology , geography , cloud computing , computer science , operating system
A coral ( Orbicella faveolata ) δ 13 C isotope ratio record off the southwest coast of Puerto Rico is used to indicate regional ocean–atmosphere conditions over the 20th century. The coral δ 13 C record is correlated positively with North Atlantic sea surface temperature (SST) and local evaporation. Spatial correlation maps show a broad area of influence by SST, sea‐level pressure and evaporation to the northeast of Puerto Rico. The composite maps reflect a strengthening of the North Atlantic anticyclone and east Pacific counter‐currents during years of enhanced coral growth. The coral δ 13 C record presented here corresponds with a local cloud cover increase of ~10% in parallel with a 0.5 °C rise of local SST since 1900. Environmental conditions tend to lead coral growth in a knock‐on effect as seen in local SST, cloud cover and evaporation data. The coral community may thus be a sentinel of both multi‐year fluctuations and centennial trends in Central Caribbean climate.