380000-YEAR LONG STABLE-ISOTOPE AND FAUNAL RECORDS FROM THE RED-SEA -INFLUENCE OF GLOBAL SEA-LEVEL CHANGE ON HYDROGRAPHY

Stable isotope and faunal records from the central Red Sea show high-a mplitude oscillations for the past 380,000 years. Positive delta(18)O anomalies indicate periods of significant salt buildup during periods of lowered sea level when water mass exchange with the Arabian Sea was reduced due to a reduced geometry of the Bab el Mandeb Strait. Salini ties as high as 53 parts per thousand and 55 parts per thousand are in ferred from pteropod and benthic foraminifera delta(18)O, respectively , for the last glacial maximum. During this period all planktonic fora minifera vanished from this part of the Red Sea. Environmental conditi ons improved rapidly after 13 ka as salinities decreased due to rising sea level. The foraminiferal fauna started to reappear and was fully reestablished between 9 ka and 8 ka. Spectral analysis of the plankton ic delta(18)O record documents highest variance in the orbital eccentr icity, obliquity, and precession bands, indicating a dominant influenc e of climatically - driven sea level change on environmental condition s in the Red Sea. Variance in the precession band is enhanced compared to the global mean marine climate record (SPECMAP), suggesting an add itional influence of the Indian monsoon system on Red Sea climates.