Planktonic foraminifera as recorders of sea surface hydrography in the Eastern Tropical North Pacific (Gulf of Tehuantepec, MX)

The Gulf of Tehuanetpec (GoT) (14°-16°N and 92°-96°W) is located in the Eastern Tropical North Pacific, a region that is sensitive to changes in both Atlantic-Pacific water vapor transport as well as changes in ENSO. Within the ETNP, the GoT is unique in that it experiences significant changes in temperature (ΔT = 8-10°C) and salinity (ΔS = 3) associated with seasonal variations in precipitation and wind-driven upwelling. Establishing robust relationships between δ¹⁸O and Mg/Ca of foraminiferal calcite to sea surface temperature (SST) and sea surface salinity (SSS) in this region can then be used to study past changes in Atl-Pac water vapor transport and ENSO and how these relate to regional and global climate change. We present here a six year (2006-2012), weekly to biweekly resolved record of paired ^δ18O-Mg/Ca analyses of the planktonic foraminfer Globigerina bulloides, collected from a sediment trap mooring in the GoT (15° 38.826N, 95° 16.905 W).

The G. bulloides δ¹⁸O values ranges from -0.14‰ to – 3.98‰, equivalent to ~16°C temperature, or nearly twice the observed instrumental change in SST. To help constrain the temperature influence on the δ¹⁸O_calcite signal, Mg/Ca values were converted to temperature using previously published equations for G. bulloides. In addition, we calculated new equations using the Mg/Ca and satellite SST data. Depending on the calibration equation used, G. bulloides from the GoT show a ~5-8% change in Mg/Ca with temperature, and show generally good agreement with SST, particularly in winter upwelling months. The agreement between SST and Mg/Ca-based temperatures is less robust during the winter months of 2009, when a moderate El Niño year resulted in warmer and fresher surface conditions in the GoT than pervious and following years, indicating a deeper habitat depth for G. bulloides and perhaps reduced upwelling during El Niño conditions.