Seychelles Coral Bleaching 20 Year Stable Isotope Data Levy, O.; Rosenfeld, M.; Yam, R.; Shemesh, A. Levy, O. Rosenfeld, M. Yam, R. Shemesh, A. PAGES 2k Network PAGES Ocean 2k earth science/paleoclimate/corals and sclerosponges (age,null,null,year Common Era,null,corals and sclerosponges,null,null,N,null) earth science/paleoclimate/corals and sclerosponges (delta 13C,Porites sp.,null,per mil VPDB,null,corals and sclerosponges,interpolated,isotope ratio mass spectrometry,N,null) earth science/paleoclimate/corals and sclerosponges (delta 18O,Porites sp.,null,per mil VPDB,null,corals and sclerosponges,interpolated,isotope ratio mass spectrometry,N,null) earth science/paleoclimate/corals and sclerosponges earth science/paleoclimate/corals and sclerosponges (Alphonse Atoll>LATITUDE -7>LONGITUDE 52.75) The vulnerability of coral reefs to climate change, such as regional warming, became fully evident during the strong 1997-1998 El Nino event. This El Nino episode was associated with elevated sea-surface temperatures and caused mass mortality throughout many of the world's coral reefs. We analyzed the isotopic manifestation of this event in six Porites sp. coral skeletons from different localities in a small atoll (Alphonse) at the Seychelles Island. The aim was to validate the use of coral stable isotope compositions as recorders of such events in the past. The coupling between local-scale environment and global warming was weaker then expected, with regional warming being evident only when data from five colonies were averaged. Local conditions had a large effect on the isotopic compositions of coral skeletons. We conclude that future paleoclimate reconstructions, especially those attempts to identify past El Nino events, must be based on more than a single coral record. Moreover, the strong effect of local habitat on the isotopic composition of Porites sp. has to be considered when interpreting d13C and d18O records. STUDY NOTES: Coral stable isotope (d18O and d13C) data at monthly resolution from 6 corals collected near Alphonse Atoll, Seychelles, Indian Ocean. Data span the 1998 bleaching event. NCDC-Paleoclimatology https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/data-access/paleoclimatology-data - Bauer Bruce Investigator : Levy, O. Investigator : Rosenfeld, M. Investigator : Yam, R. Investigator : Shemesh, A. 2012-03-27 ONLINE Files online, ASCII https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/study/12884 https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/coral/indian_ocean/seychelles2006.xls https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/coral/indian_ocean/seychelles2006.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/coral/indian_ocean/seychelles2006.xls https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/coral/indian_ocean/seychelles2006.txt English https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/study/12884 https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/coral/indian_ocean/seychelles2006.xls https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/coral/indian_ocean/seychelles2006.txt Levy, O., M. Rosenfeld, R. Yam, and A. Shemesh. 2006. Heterogeneity of coral skeletons isotopic compositions during the 1998 bleaching event. Limnology and Oceanography, Vol. 51(2), pp. 1142-1148. DOI: 10.4319/lo.2006.51.2.1142 START YEAR: 1982 AD * END YEAR: 2002 AD 52.75 -7 52.75 -7