Shallow hypersaline lakes as paleoclimate archives: A case study from the Laguna Salada, Málaga province, southern Spain

Abstract Although numerous studies concerning the Holocene climate of the southern Iberian Peninsula were accomplished within the last few decades, the climate history of this region is still poorly understood. Various studies deal with a combination of proxies, which are neither easy to compare nor is their connection easy to explain, e.g., due to spatial patterns and time transgression. Within this study, the suitability of the lacustrine sediments from the Laguna Salada (Andalucia region, southern Spain) as a paleoclimate archive is investigated. The lake sediments were evaluated using a multi-proxy approach including sedimentological, mineralogical, geochemical and biological analyses. The sediments reflect the evolution of the lake from pre-Medieval times onwards and Characeae as well as Ostracod analyses give an indication of paleosalinity. Moreover does the geochemical composition provide profound information concerning changes of elemental and mineralogical composition. Nevertheless, a robust, high-resolution chronology could not be achieved owed to the scarcity of material available for radiocarbon dating and contamination problems. Furthermore, poor preservation of pollen restricted the reconstruction of vegetation history, which could have complemented important information concerning climatic changes and human activity.