The El Abra stadlal in the Eastern Cordillera of Colombia (South America)

Abstract

The El Abra stadial is a climatic cooling event defined in the Eastern Cordillera of Colombia, which corresponds both in timing and intensity to the Younger Dryas climatic oscillation of the northern North Atlantic region. The stadial was preceded by the relatively warm Guantiva interstadial and followed by the warm Holocene. Colder climatic conditions during the El Abra stadial caused a 400 m lowering of the upper Andean forest limit below its altitudinal location during the preceding Guantiva interstadial. Translated in temperature change, this represents a drop in mean annual temperature of approximately 2 to 3°C. The lowering of the upper forest limit and inferred temperature change for the El Abra stadial, compared to Late Holocene conditions, are in the order of 600 m and 4°C, respectively. The transition of the Guantiva interstadial to the El Abra stadial has been radiocarbon dated at 11,210 ± 90 BP and 10,820 ± 60 BP. Climatic warming may have started shortly after 10,380 ± 90 BP, and near present-day temperatures were reached at least as early as 8920 ± 100 BP. Maximum cooling was probably attained between 10,800 BP and 10,300 BP. Further (AMS) radiocarbon dating is planned to establish more exactly the timing of the El Abra stadial. A glacial advance of El Abra age, the Bocatoma stade, has been recognized in the highest part of the Colombian Eastern Cordillera, the Sierra Nevada del Cocuy. During this advance, glaciers extended some 700 m lower than at present. A climatic cooling event of El Abra age, associated with shifts of the upper Andean forest limit and glacial advances, has also been recognized in other parts of Andean Colombia, including the Central Cordillera and the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta.