Biogenic and terrigeneous components in ODP Leg 108 holes

Five Ocean Drilling Program sites (657-661), which form a north-south transect off the western periphery of the Sahara, were selected to measure the long-term history of Saharan/Sahelian dust flux and fluvial sediment discharge and the fluxes of marine CaCO3 and opal over the last 8 m.y. Sites 658 and 659 served for high-resolution studies, and Sites 657, 660, and 661 for insights into the spatial patterns of dust flux. The nearshore mean flux of opal off Cap Blanc (21 °N) showed an abrupt increase about 3 Ma that appears to reflect the main onset of coastal upwelling fertility and enhanced trade winds. At the same time, the input of river-borne clay strongly decreased, suggesting a dry up of the central Saharan rivers. Later, marked short-lived spikes of clay and opal may indicate ongoing ephemeral pulses of fluvial runoff linked to peak interglacial stages. Given the zonal dust discharge centered near 18 °N at Site 659, the aridification of the south Sahara and Sahel increased in several steps: at 4.6, 4.3, and especially at 4.0, 3.6, and 2.1 Ma, and again, at 0.8 Ma. The late Miocene and earliest Pliocene were humid. Although the central and north Saharan climate appears to be linked to the glaciation history of the Northern Hemisphere, the long-term aridification further south followed a different schedule. The spatial distribution of quartz accumulation suggests that the dust outbreaks linked to the Intertropical Convergence Zone during summer did not shift in latitude back to 4.0 Ma, at least. The short-term variations of dust output over the last 0.5 m.y. followed orbital scale pulses with a strong precessional signal, showing a link of Sahelian humidity changes to the variation of sea-surface temperature and evaporation in the tropical Atlantic.

Sedimentological and geochemical characteristics of upper Cretaceous and lower Tertiary sediments of ODP Hole 108-661A

Based on sedimentological and geochemical data, the Upper Cretaceous and Tertiary sequence at Ocean Drilling Program Site 661 was subdivided into four intervals: Interval I (Campanian age) is characterized by sediments deposited below the calcite compensation depth (CCD) inside a high-productivity area and well-oxygenated bottom waters, indicated by the absence of carbonate, the major occurrence of zeolites and opal-CT, and intense bioturbation. Very fine-grained siliciclastic sediments and the lack of any erosional features suggest a low-energy environment. The terrigenous fraction was probably supplied by winds from the nontropical areas in South Africa. Interval II (Maestrichtian age) is characterized by high-amplitude variations in the carbonate content indicative of a deposition above the CCD, superimposed by (climate-controlled) short-term fluctuations of the CCD. The absence of both zeolites and opal-CT imply a position of Site 661 outside high-productivity areas. The first occurrence of higher amounts of kaolinite (especially during the middle Maestrichtian) suggests the onset of a terrigenous sediment supply from tropical areas. Interval III (between uppermost Cretaceous to early Tertiary) is characterized by the absence of carbonate and zeolites, interpreted as deposition below the CCD and outside an oceanic high-productivity belt. The kaolinite-over-illite dominance suggests a terrigenous sediment supply from tropical areas. Interval IV (between early Tertiary and Miocene age) is characterized by the occurrence of black manganeserich layers, major nodules/pebbles, and erosional surfaces, indicating phases of extremely reduced sediment accumulation and bottom-current activities. In the lower part of this interval (?Eocene age), higher amounts of zeolites occur, which suggest a higher oceanic productivity caused by equatorial upwelling. The source area of the terrigenous sediment fraction at Site 661 was the tropical region of northwest Africa, as suggested by the kaolinite-over-illite dominance.

Calcareous nannofossil biostratigraphy of ODP Leg 108 sediments

Calcareous nannofossils were examined from the 400 cores recovered at 12 sites during Ocean Drilling Program Leg 108 in the eastern equatorial Atlantic Ocean and along the northwest African margin, representing a transect spanning 24° of latitude. Thirty calcareous nannofossil biohorizons were recognized in the Neogene and Quaternary sequences; only Site 661, located in water depths of 3500 m, contains a fossiliferous record older than the Oligocene. At Site 661, a 200-m-thick sequence of Upper Cretaceous sediments yielded Maestrichtian and uppermost Campanian nannofossils, yet a continuous Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary was not recovered. Widespread sediment slumps and turbidites deposited at many sites interrupted the pelagic sedimentation. A careful study of calcareous nannofossil and foraminifer assemblages correlated to paleomagnetic records suggests that "slumped" units at most sites were added as extra sediments to rapidly deposited pelagic sediments, with minor disturbance of the surrounding layers. Nannofossils are generally common to abundant and moderately preserved at all sites except for those located in two upwelling areas, where placoliths are etched and discoasters overgrown. Typical low-latitudinal zonal markers were used during this study, yet some of them were considered to be of little biostratigraphic value because of their inconsistent stratigraphic ranges and low abundances. This is especially apparent for the intervals representing the Miocene/Pliocene and Oligocene/Miocene boundaries. Characteristic nannofossils of cool-water conditions and low discoaster abundances occur at the coastal African upwelling and along the south equatorial divergence sites, signifying a stronger advection of cold waters toward the equator within the Canary and Benguela eastern boundary currents.