Late Weichselian sea level changes at Sotra, Hordaland, western Norway

Sediments from twenty‐eight basins were surveyed; ten of these basins with a representative lithostrati‐gfaphy wee studied to determine their isolation from the sea during Late Weichselian. Diatom analysis was used to determine salinity changes, which were dated by pollen analysis and the radiocarbon method. The area was deglaciated in the early Boiling, and a regression of about 5 m followed. A transgression of more than 10 m started in late Boiling and terminated in middle Younger Dryas, with a transgression maximum between 38.2 and 40 m above present sea level. All the investigated basins were finally isolated in late Younger Dryas/early Preboreal, during a rapid regression. Repeated cycles of chinophilous/ chinophobous plant communities in the area reflect climatic changes in the period. No evidence of an Older Dryas ice readvance was found.