Abstract

ENCINAS, Alfonso et al. Finding of a Holocene marine layer in Algarrobo (33°22'S), central Chile: Implications for coastal uplift. Rev. geol. Chile [online]. 2006, vol.33, n.2, pp. 339-345. ISSN 0716-0208.  doi: 10.4067/S0716-02082006000200007.

A buried Holocene marine bed was discovered upon drilling a water well in Algarrobo (33°22'S), located on the coast of central Chile. Radiocarbon dating of a wood fragment found within the deposit indicates an age of 6450 cal yr BP. The top of this bed, 0.25 m-thick, was reached at an elevation of 3.8 m above mean sea level. This bed contains abundant monospecific faunas of foraminifers (Ammonia tepida) and ostracodes (Cyprideis beaconensis), indicative of deposition in a very shallow, transitional marine environment. Palynologic analysis reveals a Chenopodiaceae-dominated (~70%) assemblage, indicating a relatively arid and warm climate

Keywords : Mid-Holocene; Marine transgression; Algarrobo; Central Chile.