Modern and archaeological catfish otoliths (Carlarius spp.) and bivalve shells (Senilia senilis) from a large paleo-estuary east of the Banc d'Arguin, Mauritania, NW Africa, were assessed to obtain information on paleoenvironmental conditions and the NW African hydroclimate during the mid- to late Holocene (ca. 3.0 - 5.3 ka BP). High-resolution (sub-seasonally resolved) ontogenetic stable oxygen isotope (δ18O) records and bulk 87Sr/86Sr analyses indicate monsoonal discharge to the Banc d'Arguin between 5.0 to 5.3 ka BP. Carbonate clumped isotope thermometry was used to test archaeological samples for potential pre-depositional alteration due to prehistoric cooking treatments.

Supplement to: Höpker, Sebastian N; Wu, Henry C; Müller, Peter; Barusseau, Jean-Paul; Vernet, Robert; Lucassen, Friedrich; Kasemann, Simone A; Westphal, Hildegard (2019): Pronounced Northwest African Monsoon Discharge During the Mid- to Late Holocene. Frontiers in Earth Science, 7