Hydrochemistry from Sr and Mg contents of ostracodes in Pleistocene lacustrine deposits, Baza Basin (SE Spain)

Abstract

A reconstruction of the early Pleistocene paleohydrochemistry based on the Mg, Sr and Ca content of the Cyprideis valves is presented for shallow lacustrine sequences of the Baza basin. A large number of environmental changes in this marginal area has been recorded by the recurrent alternation of two fossil assemblages which differ in their salinity requirements. Measurements of the Sr/Ca and Mg/Ca ratios of individual calcite shells of Cyprideis show that the water in the higher saline stages (with thalassic organisms indicating marine-like conditions) was of non-marine origin. The Sr/Ca values of Cyprideis valves from sands deposited during a saline water phase show lower values than those from an overlying carbonate sequence which was formed under lower salinity conditions. These unexpected values are assumed to be the result of major changes in the chemical composition of the water in shallow, littoral ponded areas of a hydrologically complex lake. In the sequences that originated in these areas, Sr/Ca values may be used only as salinity indicators within each portion of the sequence formed in a single, continuous evolution. In more open areas, the wide fluctuations of Sr/Ca and Mg/Ca recorded in ostracodes from individual layers of rippled ostracode-shell sands probably reflect the mixing of valves from changing short-term environmental conditions.Key wordspaleohydrochemistryostracode shellsmagnesiumstrontiumsalinity