Deglacial reservoir age and implications, Foxe Peninsula, Baffin Island
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| Authors: | Vickers, KJ; Ward, BC; Utting, DJ; Telka, AM |
| Year: | 2010 |
| Journal: | J. Quat. Sci. 25: 1338-1346 Article Link (DOI) |
| Title: | Deglacial reservoir age and implications, Foxe Peninsula, Baffin Island |
| Abstract: | Marine reservoir age is reported for Foxe Basin, Canada, during deglaciation of the Laurentide Ice Sheet. Radiocarbon (C-14) measurements were made on pairs of contemporaneous molluscs and Salix (willow) macrofossils, yielding a mean marine reservoir age of 985 +/- 10 C-14 a. Mean regional Delta R is calculated to be 615 +/- 20 C-14 a relative to a mean global reservoir age of ca. 400 C-14 a. Previous studies in the Canadian Arctic that have been conducted on modern pre-bomb molluscs give Delta R values of ca. 100-300 C-14 a. The difference between modern and deglacial reservoir ages indicates that Delta R in Foxe Basin has changed over time, which has implications for the reconstruction of past events based on marine C-14 dates. We recalculate the timing of deglaciation of Hudson Strait with this new reservoir age and relate this to the 8.2 cal. ka event. We recommend that local Delta R be determined for the time period being examined whenever possible, and that in cases where this is impossible a Delta R value of 615 C-14 a be applied when calibrating marine samples from Foxe Basin and vicinity during deglaciation. Copyright (C) 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |
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