The La Celle calcareous tufa formation, located in the Seine valley (Paris Basin, France) provides an exceptional stratigraphic record (9 m thick), yielding a wide variety of palaeontological remains (molluscs, leaf prints, ostracods, mammals) as well as geochemical data allowing a detailed reconstruction of the environmental and climatic dynamics during the Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 11c interglacial. The chronological assignment of the site is particularly well constrained by a number of methods (U-series, electron spin resonance, thermoluminescence). This review synthesises previously published data as well as new research on the formation of the deposit (stratigraphy, micromorphology), amino-acid geochronology, palaeobotany, and compares these results with those of European palynological references. Several important markers of the continental environments during MIS 11c are identified. The malacological succession is of particular importance for reconstructing the vegetation dynamics, reflecting the expansion of forest biotopes and their subsequent degradation and is closely linked to geochemical analyses, providing a reliable framework for the associated climatic conditions. The La Celle sequence yields the only complete record for the development of the “ Lyrodiscus fauna”, a characteristic biostratigraphic signature of MIS 11c in NW Europe. The long molluscan succession of La Celle is the relevant reference for the integration of shorter regional malacological series into the environmental dynamics of the interglacial. The occurrence of several Mediterranean trees, and mammal remains of Hippopotamus and Macaca are registered during the climatic optimum revealed by geochemistry. Together with isotopic data this set of thermophilic bioproxies indicates the warmest and wettest conditions ever recorded for late Middle Pleistocene interglacials in the region. Comparison of the reconstructed palaeoenvironmental and climatic succession with the nearest long pollen series demonstrates that the La Celle tufa deposit records almost the entire interglacial. Therefore, the “La Celle Interglacial” is proposed as a major reference for understanding the evolution of the MIS 11c continental landscapes and biodiversity in northwestern Europe.
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)