LATE QUATERNARY CENTRAL MEDITERRANEAN BIOCHRONOLOGY

A high-resolution biochronology is presented for the Late Quaternary o f the central Mediterranean. In the Late Pleistocene-Holocene successi ons three assemblage zones are distinguished on the basis of frequency patterns of planktic foraminifera. The age of these zones is determin ed by Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) C-14 dating. The zonal bound aries are dated at 12,700 yr B.P. (the end of Termination Ia) and 9600 yr B.P. (the start of Termination Ib), respectively. The AMS dates sh ow that major changes in the planktic and benthic realms occurred sync hronously over wide areas, although records of individual species may show important regional differences. In the studied areas, resedimenta tion processes revealed by anomalous successions of C-14 dates, play a far more important role than indicated by the sedimentological and mi cropaleontological data. Possibly these processes contribute to the ve ry high accumulation rates in the glacial Zone III. Although the AMS t echnique has increased the accuracy of C-14-measurements, admixture of older carbonate may still lead to substantial age differences between areas with different sedimentary regimes.