ELEMENTAL AND ISOTOPIC PROXIES OF PALEOTEMPERATURE AND PALEOSALINITY - CLIMATE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE MARGINAL NORTHEAST PACIFIC CA 80 KA

Isotope (delta(18)O) and minor element (Mi/Ca, Sr/Ca) analyses of a fo ssil shell of the marine mussel Mytilus trossulus (Could) from the Whi sky Run terrace at Coquille Point, Bandon, Oregon, enable reconstructi on of a paleoclimatic profile for the temperate northeastern Pacific c a. 80-85 ka. The Whisky Run terrace is correlative with marine oxygen isotope (delta(18)O) substage 5a, the final sea-level highstand of the last interglacial complex. Herein we provide sea-surface temperature estimates and report on a new technique that allows estimates to be ma de of delta(18)O of seawater and riverine discharge from the skeletal chemistry of a single mussel shell. Estimates of mean annual temperatu re from Mg/Ca ratios are lower than those suggested by the accompanyin g fossil fauna, and significantly lower than present-day conditions. T he data also suggest a decrease in the range of seasonal temperature e xtremes at 80 ka compared to today. Estimates of the fresh-water and s eawater delta(18)O end members, -4.5 parts per thousand and +0.5 parts per thousand, respectively, are slightly greater than modern values.