A QUANTITATIVE METHOD OF PALAEOLAKE-LEVEL RECONSTRUCTION USING OSTRACOD ASSEMBLAGES - AN EXAMPLE FROM THE BOLIVIAN ALTIPLANO

This paper provides quantitative information concerning the response o f ostracods to environmental variability in order to reconstruct past environments. Ostracod faunas from modern sediments of Bolivian lakes and swamps were studied. Ostracod distribution is controlled by severa l ecological characteristics such as lake-level and water chemistry. S tatistical results indicate that three transfer functions (on water de pth, Total dissolved Salts and water in Mg/Ca ratio) can be developed, from ostracod species frequencies in lacustrine sediments, with some restrictions for the two last ones.