For the first time, a coupled general circulation model with interactive and dynamical atmospheric, oceanic, and sea-ice components, is used to simulate an Eocene (∼50 Ma) “greenhouse”climate. We introduce efficient ocean spin-up methods for coupled paleoclimate modeling. Sea surface temperatures (SSTs) and salinities evolve unconstrained, producing the first proxy data-independent estimates fo...

[1] Near the Eocene's close ($34 million years ago), the climate system underwent one of the largest shifts in Earth's history: Antarctic terrestrial ice sheets suddenly grew and ocean productivity patterns changed. Previous studies conjectured that poleward penetration of warm, subtropical currents, the East Australian Current (EAC) in particular, caused Eocene Antarctic warmth. Late Eocene op...

[1] Abundant and well-preserved marine macrofossils on Seymour Island, Antarctica, provide a valuable resource to establish paleoenvironmental conditions at high southern latitudes during the warm Paleogene. Stable isotope, minor element, and Sr/Sr compositions have been measured for the aragonite bivalve Cucullaea from the Eocene La Meseta Formation. The Sr/Sr stratigraphy suggests an early to...

Note: MAT—mean annual temperature; CMM—cold month mean temperature; NLR—nearest living relative analogy; CLAMP—climate–leaf analysis multivariate program. ABSTRACT The exquisite preservation of fossilized Metasequoia trees that grew near 808N latitude during the middle Eocene (ca. 45 Ma) in Nunavut, Canada, allowed for dD and d18O analyses of cellulose, techniques previously restricted to wood ...

[1] The tidally driven vertical diffusivity in the abyssal ocean during the early Eocene (55 Ma) is investigated using an established tidal model. A weak tide is predicted in the Eocene ocean, except in the Pacific. Consequently, the integrated global tidal dissipation rate is a mere 1.44TW, of which 40% dissipate in the Pacific. However, due to a stronger abyssal vertical stratification the pr...

Introduction.-Since the description' of a skull of Amynodontopsis bodei and of a lower jaw referred to this species from the uppermost Eocene, further dental parts have become available for study from localities in the Sespe. These furnish additional characters of value in recognizing the species represented in western Eocene deposits. Now also available is a fragment of skull with cheek-teeth ...

The evolution of ecological processes on coral reefs was examined based on Eocene fossil fishes from Monte Bolca, Italy and extant species from the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Using ecologically relevant morphological metrics, we investigated the evolution of herbivory in surgeonfishes (Acanthuridae) and rabbitfishes (Siganidae). Eocene and Recent surgeonfishes showed remarkable similarities...

The Cenozoic planktonic foraminifera (PF) (calcareous zooplankton) have arguably the most detailed fossil record of any group. The quality of this record allows models of environmental controls on macroecology, developed for Recent assemblages, to be tested on intervals with profoundly different climatic conditions. These analyses shed light on the role of long-term global cooling in establishi...

Upper abyssal to lower bathyal benthic foraminifers from ODP Sites 689 (present water depth 2080 m) and 690 (present water depth 2941 m) on Maud Rise (eastern Weddell Sea, Antarctica) are reliable indicators of Maestrichtian through Neogene changes in the deep-water characteristics at high southern latitudes. Benthic foraminiferal faunas were divided into eight assemblages, with periods of faun...

The diversity of modern herbivorous insects and their pressure on plant hosts generally increase with decreasing latitude. These observations imply that the diversity and intensity of herbivory should increase with rising temperatures at constant latitude. Insect damage on fossil leaves found in southwestern Wyoming, from the late Paleocene-early Eocene global warming interval, demonstrates thi...