Ecological regime shift preserved in the Anthropocene stratigraphic record.

ABSTRACT: Palaeoecological data are unique historical archives that extend back far beyond the last several decades of ecological observations. However, the fossil record of continental shelves has been perceived as too coarse (with centennial-millennial resolution) and incomplete to detect processes occurring at yearly or decadal scales relevant to ecology and conservation. Here, we show that the youngest (Anthropocene) fossil record on the northern Adriatic continental shelf provides decadal-scale resolution that accurately documents an abrupt ecological change affecting benthic communities during the twentieth century. The magnitude and the duration of the twentieth century shift in body size of the bivalve Corbula gibba is unprecedented given that regional populations of this species were

SUBMITTER: Tomasovych A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7329033 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature