Amino acid racemisation and uranium-series dating of a last interglacial raised beach, Kingscote, Kangaroo Island, southern Australia

Abstract

ABSTRACT The extent to which scleractinian coral inhabited southern Australia during the warm intervals of the Quaternary is poorly understood because identifiable corals from interglacial sedimentary records are scarce. Here we document the presence of a sub-tropical coral, Goniopora lobata, recovered together with warm water mollusc species from a raised cobble and boulder beach conglomerate at Kingscote, Kangaroo Island, dated by uranium-series and amino acid racemisation methods respectively to the last interglacial (MIS 5e). The presence of this assemblage preserved within the Glanville Formation at Kingscote suggests a 2–3° C higher than present last interglacial coastal water temperature for northern Kangaroo Island. The height of the last interglacial shoreline deposit was measured by theodolite, and points to a mean last interglacial sea level 3.1 ± 0.4 m higher than present.