Abstract
Explanations of the Classic Maya civilization demise on the Yucatán Peninsula during the Terminal Classic Period (TCP; ~CE 750–1050) are controversial. Multiyear droughts are one likely cause, but the role of the Caribbean Sea, the dominant moisture source for Mesoamerica, remains largely unknown. Here we present bimonthly-resolved snapshots of reconstructed sea surface temperature (SST) and salinity (SSS) variability in the southern Caribbean from precisely dated fossil corals. The results indicate pronounced interannual to decadal SST and SSS variability during the TCP, which may be temporally coherent to precipitation anomalies on the Yucatán. Our results are best explained by changed Caribbean SST gradients affecting the Caribbean low-level atmospheric jet with consequences for Mesoamerican precipitation, which are possibly linked to changes in Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation strength. Our findings provide a new perspective on the anomalous hydrological changes during the TCP that complement the oft-suggested southward displacement of the Intertropical Convergence Zone. We advocate for a strong role of Caribbean SST and SSS condition changes and related ocean-atmosphere interactions that notably influenced the propagation and transport of precipitation to the Yucatán Peninsula during the TCP.
Highlights
Numerous Classic Maya population centres and political systems on the Yucatán Peninsula disintegrated during the Terminal Classic Period (TCP; CE 750–1050)[1,2]
Palaeoceanographic records resolving interannual to decadal sea surface conditions in the Caribbean Sea during the TCP are essential to enhance our understanding of the underlying mechanisms that resulted in the hydrological changes over Yucatán Peninsula during this key time period in human history
Our most striking find is that the Bonaire coral records indicate a stronger interannual to decadal variability of sea surface temperature (SST) and especially sea surface salinity (SSS) in the southern Caribbean Sea during the TCP compared to the modern baseline (Figs 3 and 4)
Summary
Numerous Classic Maya population centres and political systems on the Yucatán Peninsula disintegrated during the Terminal Classic Period (TCP; CE 750–1050)[1,2]. Understanding the changes in Caribbean sea surface conditions during the TCP on these timescales of relevance to the Maya collapse is important because it is the main atmospheric moisture supply of Central America[15]. Palaeoceanographic records resolving interannual to decadal sea surface conditions in the Caribbean Sea during the TCP are essential to enhance our understanding of the underlying mechanisms that resulted in the hydrological changes over Yucatán Peninsula during this key time period in human history. Our results derived from fossil corals of Bonaire can be used to discuss the crucial role of large-scale ocean circulation and Caribbean Sea ocean-atmospheric interaction processes in modulating moisture transport and hydrological cycle changes of Mesoamerica during the TCP. As evidence indicating dry conditions on the Maya Lowlands of Mesoamerica continues to build, ocean circulation and ocean-atmospheric interaction processes have often been overlooked that likely complement the often-suggested southward displacement of the ITCZ2,5
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