Late Turonian climate variability in the Bohemian Cretaceous Basin – A sclerochronological study of Inoceramus hercules shells from the Úpohlavy quarry (Czech Republic)

Abstract The δ18O record of well-preserved shells of the inoceramid Inoceramus hercules from the Upohlavy working quarry (Czech Republic) provides an insight into the climate variability in the late Turonian benthic environment of the Bohemian Cretaceous Basin. Similar to modern bivalves, this inoceramid species built its shell near equilibrium with the oxygen isotope value of the ambient water. Due to the nearly year-round shell growth, sequentially sampled δ18O values allowed to estimate the narrowest sub-annual temperatures fluctuations that prevailed during lifetime of the organisms. In accordance with previous studies, reconstructed temperatures suggest colder water conditions (19.0 ± …