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Late Holocene higher sea-level indicators from the South China coast
Marine Geology 171 (2000) 1–5 www.elsevier.nl/locate/margeo
Letter section
Late Holocene higher sea-level indicators from the South China coast A.M. Davis a,*, J.C. Aitchison a, P.G. Flood a,b, B.S. Morton c, R.G.V. Baker d, R.J. Haworth d b
a Department of Earth Sciences, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, SAR, People’s Republic of China School of Physical Sciences and Engineering Earth Sciences, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia c The Swire Institute of Marine Science (SWIMS), University of Hong Kong, Cape d’Aguilar, Shek O, Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China d School of Human and Environmental Studies, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia
Received 4 July 2000; accepted 19 September 2000
Abstract Dating of a relict shell horizon (Saccostrea cucullata) on Hong Kong Island located approximately 1.7 m above present day high tide level constrains the timing of a late Holocene higher sea-level. At 5140 ^ 50 yr BP sea-level in the South China area was 4–5 m higher with respect to the Principal Datum (2.7 m below high tide mark) than at present. 䉷 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Hong Kong; South China; Holocene; Sea-level; Biological markers
1. Introduction Holocene sea-level history is contentious. Some researchers favour a gradual and steady decline from a 6000 yr BP high stand whereas others suggest available evidence that indicates a more complex history (Fairbridge, 1961). Much research is contradictory, having been carried out in areas potentially unsuited to such studies or may have utilised unsuitable data. Post-glacial isostatic rebound affects some areas and elsewhere proximity to plate boundaries is problematic. Hong Kong’s location on the South China coast provides an area of relative tectonic stability and should be ideal for investigations of sea-level history (Davis, 1999). Despite this published * Corresponding author. Fax: ⫹852-2517-6912. E-mail address: [email protected] (A.M. Davis).
Holocene sea-level curves from Hong Kong and surrounding coastal areas of Guangdong Province in South China show a variety of patterns (Pirazzoli, 1991). In some studies the use of evidence of dubious quality that cannot be explained with a unique solution has complicated interpretation of the Holocene sea-level record. Several curves were developed using biological indicators including corals, oysters or wood as proxies for relative sea-levels (Huang et al., 1986, 1987b; Li et al., 1991). These studies make assumptions as to growth levels without reference to uncertainty ranges or consideration of tidal ranges (Pirazzoli, 1991). Many of the biological indicator proxies used in the construction of a sea-level history are organisms that do not have a fixed mode of life or may have been reworked into other environments. The use of “fixed biological indicators” (FBIs) such as sessile inter-tidal organisms with an encrusting or
0025-3227/00/$ - see front matter 䉷 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PII: S0025-322 7(00)00113-4
2
A.M. Davis et al. / Marine Geology 171 (2000) 1–5
situ, emergent, horizon of Saccostrea fossils in growth position occurs 1.7 m above the present day high tide levels at Big Wave Bay on Hong Kong Island (Figs. 1 and 2). Today the highest living growth position of isolated individuals of Saccostrea at this locality is 1.9 m below the fossil shell bed. Denser accumulations of this taxon should occur at lower levels in the eulittoral zone (Morton and Morton, 1983).
2. Site description
Fig. 1. Map of the Big Wave Bay, Hong Kong Island Saccostrea cucullata fossil sample location.
fixed mode of life potentially can provide a series of unequivocal data points (Baker and Haworth, 1997, 2000a,b; Delibrias and Laborel, 1971; Flood and Frankel, 1989; Pirazzoli, 1991) for reconstruction of sea-level history. These organisms include barnacles, bivalves and worms with calcareous tubes that occupy narrow constrained levels on sheltered rocky shorelines within inter-tidal zones and are highly sensitive to long term changes in water depth. Relict accumulations of these organisms can be compared to their modern day growth position and have potential to provide accurate datable evidence for past sea-level stands. Accuracy has been shown to be as high as 0.1 m in the case of certain species (Laborel and Laborel-Deguen, 1994). Use of FBIs in regions of tectonic and isostatic stability offers potential for development of a high resolution global sea-level curve. The FBI method of investigation allows us to quantify, for the first time, unequivocal evidence of midHolocene higher sea-levels from Hong Kong. An in
Big Wave Bay is located on the southeastern side of Hong Kong Island. The emergent fossil oyster (Saccostrea cucullata) bed is preserved in a low lying cliff section on the southern side of the beach. The fossils are encrusted as a thick accumulation of shell material accreted in growth position onto an outcrop of rhyolite and protected from weathering by an overhanging slab. The present day environment at the fossil locality is a moderately exposed rocky shoreline affected by reduced salinity and sand scouring. Saccostrea cucullata presently lives in the eulittoral zone where it is regularly covered and uncovered by tides (Morton and Morton, 1983). Unlike the fossil oyster bed present day specimens of Saccostrea cucullata occur as individuals encrusting rock surfaces and do not form thick accumulations. Other elements present in the rocky shoreline fauna include the gastropods Nodilittorina trochoides and Nodilittorina millegrana and the barnacle Chthamalus malayensis in the littoral fringe and barnacles Chthamalus malayensis, Pollicipes mitella and Tetraclita squamosa, gastropods Cellana toreuma and the bivalve Septifer virgatus in the eulittoral zone. Fig. 2 shows the vertical zonation of the present day rocky shoreline with respect to the location of the fossil Saccostrea cucullata horizon.
3. Radiocarbon dates The samples were washed in distilled water, finely crushed and clay impurities decanted. Samples were checked using X-ray diffraction to establish that all material present was calcite. The crushed oyster shell was then submitted for AMS dating using pre-treatment acid etching at BETA Analytical Inc., Miami,
A.M. Davis et al. / Marine Geology 171 (2000) 1–5
3
Fig. 2. Photograph of the Saccostrea cucullata fossil sample location on the southern side of Big Wave Bay, Hong Kong Island at very low tide. The fossil oysters come from a 20 cm thick horizon located in the shadow underneath the prominent overhanging slab. The approximate zonation of the present day rocky shoreline ecology is indicated. The highest living specimens of Saccostrea cucullata are located within the eulittoral zone.
The wave-cut benches themselves cannot be dated but biological evidence associated with development of geomorphic features is datable if preserved. Most studies of sea-level changes from Hong Kong waters have concentrated on abundant data available from borehole investigations (Yim, 1984, 1999) and on high-resolution seismic analysis (Fyfe et al., 1997). Sea-level histories derived from such studies have not discovered any evidence of higher sea-level stands during the Holocene as these studies have concentrated on offshore sediments and their resolution may be insufficient for such studies. Dismissing the earlier work of Berry (1961), Meacham and Yim (1983) and Yim (1984, 1999) suggest that there is no evidence from Hong Kong waters for oscillating
Florida. Results of the radiocarbon analysis indicate an uncorrected age of 5140 ^ 50 BP (Table 1).
4. Discussion Numerous elements of coastal geomorphology around Hong Kong and in the South China area can be interpreted as having developed in response to different sea-level stands. Berry (1961) presented abundant evidence of higher sea-level stands in the vicinity of Hong Kong in the form of emerged beaches, and wave-cut benches. The difficulty to present has been calibration of the timing and duration of various sea-level stands indicated by these features. Table 1 Results of AMS dating of Big Wave Bay fossil oyster shell sample HKU#
BETA Analytical #
d C 13
Result
HK1
145816
0.5%
4720 ^ 40 yr BP measured radiocarbon age 5140 ^ 40 yr BP convential radiocarbon age 5580 5440 yr BP 2s calibration
4
A.M. Davis et al. / Marine Geology 171 (2000) 1–5
Holocene sea-level curves or for higher late Holocene sea-levels. Yim (1999) regards the present day sealevel as having been attained approximately 6000 yr BP and remained static at this level since then. This interpretation notwithstanding the geomorphic features recognised by Berry (1961) clearly exist although their recognition is becoming more difficult with time as urban and industrial development of Hong Kong exploits them. In many areas a wave-cut platform exists at a few metres above present day sealevel (supra-tidal platforms of Owen (1995)) and this feature can be correlated with emerged beaches. Berry (1961) documented emerged beaches 5–6 m above the Principal Datum (PD). The PD of Hong Kong lies 2.7 m below high tide mark; thus these features likely correspond to the fossil Saccostrea cucullata horizon we report at 1.7 m above present high tide level. Owen (1995) recognised two sets of wave-cut platform in the vicinity of Hong Kong. He proposed that a supra-tidal platform had an origin related to chemical weathering of volcanic rocks whereas an identical platform in the sub-tidal environment is wave-cut. We suggest that a single mechanism is responsible for both these features and their development at different levels is related to changes in sealevel. Historical Chinese records indicate that sea-level in the Pearl River (Zhujiang) estuary lay close to the present day location of the city of Guangzhou (Canton) 6000 yr BP (Huang et al., 1987a) and most researchers accept a relative high stand at that time. This high stand may explain development of geomorphic features such as emerged beaches and wave-cut platforms. Given our present data we suggest that this sea-level remained occupied at around 5000 yr BP with enhancement of the associated geomorphic features. Coastal geomorphology in the South China region indicates that sea-level remained static over periods sufficient for features such as beaches, wave-cut platforms, sea caves and arches to develop. Any eustatic variations must have been rapid as these features are well preserved and were little modified during changes in sea-level. Given the data presented herein and the abundance of geomorphic evidence, Late Holocene relative sealevel history in the South China region is clearly more complex than that suggested by Yim (1984, 1999). Indeed the more complex curves of others (shown in
Pirazzoli (1991)) may be a better representation of reality. If, as indicated, sea-level has fluctuated throughout the late Holocene then interpretations of a simple and rapid progradation of the Pearl River Delta through the Holocene (Huang et al., 1984) may be over-simplified. More research using criteria such as FBIs is required in order to quantify the magnitude and duration of sea-level fluctuations in this region.
Acknowledgements We gratefully acknowledge the financial assistance of the HKU CRCG towards our investigations of paleoclimatological change.
References Baker, R.G.V., Haworth, R.J., 1997. Further evidence from relic shellcrust sequences for a late Holocene higher sea-level for eastern Australia. Mar. Geol. 141, 1–9. Baker, R.G.V., Haworth, R.J., 2000a. Smooth or oscillating late Holocene sea-level curve? Evidence from cross-regional statistical regressions of fixed biological indicators. Mar. Geol. 163, 353–365. Baker, R.G.V., Haworth, R.J., 2000b. Smooth or oscillating late Holocene sea-level curve? Evidence from the palaeo-zoology of fixed biological indicators in east Australia and beyond. Mar. Geol. 163, 367–386. Berry, L., 1961. Erosion surfaces and emerged beaches in Hong Kong. Geol. Soc. Am. Bull. 72, 1383–1394. Davis, A.M., 1999. Quaternary stratigraphy of Hong Kong coastal sediments. J. Asian Earth Sci. 17 (4), 521–531. Delibrias, C., Laborel, J., 1971. Recent variation of the sea-level along the Brazilian coast. Quaternaria 14, 45–49. Fairbridge, R.W., 1961. Eustatic changes in sea-level. Phys. Chem. Earth 5, 99–185. Flood, P.G., Frankel, E., 1989. Late Holocene higher sea-level indicators from eastern Australia. Mar. Geol. 90, 193–195. Fyfe, J.A., Selby, I.C., Shaw, R., James, J.W.C., Evans, C.D.R., 1997. Quaternary sea-level change on the continental shelf of Hong Kong. J. Geol. Soc. Lond. 154, 1031–1038. Huang, Y., Xia, F., Huang, D., Lin, H., 1984. Holocene sea-level changes and recent crustal movements along the northern coasts of the South China Sea. In: Whyte, R.O. (Ed.). Geology and Palaeoclimatology. The Evolution of the East Asian Environment, vol. 1. Centre of Asian Studies, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, pp. 271–287. Huang, Z., Li, P., Zhang, Z., Zong, Y., 1986. Changes of sea-level in the late Pleistocene in South Sea coasts. China Sea-level Changes. China Ocean Press, Beijing (pp. 178–194). Huang, Z., Li, P., Zhang, Z., Li, K., 1987. The geomorphological
A.M. Davis et al. / Marine Geology 171 (2000) 1–5 evolution of the Zhujiang Delta. In: Gardiner, V. (Ed.), Proceedings of the First International Conference on Geomorphology, pp. 989–997. Huang, Z., Li, P., Zhang, Z., Zong, Y., 1987b. Sea-level changes along the coastal area of South China since Pleistocene. In: Qin, Y., Zhao, S. (Eds.). Late Quaternary Sea-level Changes. China Ocean Press, Beijing, pp. 142–154. Laborel, J., Laborel-Deguen, F., 1994. Biological indicators of relative sea-level variations and of co-seismic displacements in the Mediterranean region. J. Coast. Res. 10, 395–415. Li, P., Qiao, P., Zheng, H., Fang, G., Huang, G., 1991. The Environmental Evolution of the Pearl River Delta in the last 10,000 Years. China Ocean Press, Beijing (154pp.). Meacham, W., Yim, W.W.-S., 1983. Coastal sand bar deposits at Pui O. In: Yim, W.W.-S., Burnett, A.D. (Eds.). Geology of Surficial Deposits in Hong Kong. Geological Society of Hong
5
Kong/Department of Geology and Geography, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, pp. 44–47. Morton, B., Morton, J., 1983. The Sea Shore Ecology of Hong Kong. Hong Kong University Press, Hong Kong (350pp.). Owen, R.B., 1995. Hong Kong landform series No. 1 shore platforms — characteristics and origins. Hong Kong Geol. 1, 43–45. Pirazzoli, P.A., 1991. World Atlas of Holocene Sea-level Changes. Elsevier, Amsterdam (300pp.). 1984. Evidence for Quaternary environmental changes from seafloor sediments in Hong Kong. In: Yim, W.W.-S. (Ed.). The Evolution of the East Asian Environment, vol. 1. Centre for Asian Studies, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, pp. 137–155. Yim, W.W.-S., 1999. Radiocarbon dating and the reconstruction of late Quaternary sea-level changes in Hong Kong. Quatern. Int. 55, 77–91.
Letter section
Late Holocene higher sea-level indicators from the South China coast A.M. Davis a,*, J.C. Aitchison a, P.G. Flood a,b, B.S. Morton c, R.G.V. Baker d, R.J. Haworth d b
a Department of Earth Sciences, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, SAR, People’s Republic of China School of Physical Sciences and Engineering Earth Sciences, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia c The Swire Institute of Marine Science (SWIMS), University of Hong Kong, Cape d’Aguilar, Shek O, Hong Kong SAR, People’s Republic of China d School of Human and Environmental Studies, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia
Received 4 July 2000; accepted 19 September 2000
Abstract Dating of a relict shell horizon (Saccostrea cucullata) on Hong Kong Island located approximately 1.7 m above present day high tide level constrains the timing of a late Holocene higher sea-level. At 5140 ^ 50 yr BP sea-level in the South China area was 4–5 m higher with respect to the Principal Datum (2.7 m below high tide mark) than at present. 䉷 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Hong Kong; South China; Holocene; Sea-level; Biological markers
1. Introduction Holocene sea-level history is contentious. Some researchers favour a gradual and steady decline from a 6000 yr BP high stand whereas others suggest available evidence that indicates a more complex history (Fairbridge, 1961). Much research is contradictory, having been carried out in areas potentially unsuited to such studies or may have utilised unsuitable data. Post-glacial isostatic rebound affects some areas and elsewhere proximity to plate boundaries is problematic. Hong Kong’s location on the South China coast provides an area of relative tectonic stability and should be ideal for investigations of sea-level history (Davis, 1999). Despite this published * Corresponding author. Fax: ⫹852-2517-6912. E-mail address: [email protected] (A.M. Davis).
Holocene sea-level curves from Hong Kong and surrounding coastal areas of Guangdong Province in South China show a variety of patterns (Pirazzoli, 1991). In some studies the use of evidence of dubious quality that cannot be explained with a unique solution has complicated interpretation of the Holocene sea-level record. Several curves were developed using biological indicators including corals, oysters or wood as proxies for relative sea-levels (Huang et al., 1986, 1987b; Li et al., 1991). These studies make assumptions as to growth levels without reference to uncertainty ranges or consideration of tidal ranges (Pirazzoli, 1991). Many of the biological indicator proxies used in the construction of a sea-level history are organisms that do not have a fixed mode of life or may have been reworked into other environments. The use of “fixed biological indicators” (FBIs) such as sessile inter-tidal organisms with an encrusting or
0025-3227/00/$ - see front matter 䉷 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PII: S0025-322 7(00)00113-4
2
A.M. Davis et al. / Marine Geology 171 (2000) 1–5
situ, emergent, horizon of Saccostrea fossils in growth position occurs 1.7 m above the present day high tide levels at Big Wave Bay on Hong Kong Island (Figs. 1 and 2). Today the highest living growth position of isolated individuals of Saccostrea at this locality is 1.9 m below the fossil shell bed. Denser accumulations of this taxon should occur at lower levels in the eulittoral zone (Morton and Morton, 1983).
2. Site description
Fig. 1. Map of the Big Wave Bay, Hong Kong Island Saccostrea cucullata fossil sample location.
fixed mode of life potentially can provide a series of unequivocal data points (Baker and Haworth, 1997, 2000a,b; Delibrias and Laborel, 1971; Flood and Frankel, 1989; Pirazzoli, 1991) for reconstruction of sea-level history. These organisms include barnacles, bivalves and worms with calcareous tubes that occupy narrow constrained levels on sheltered rocky shorelines within inter-tidal zones and are highly sensitive to long term changes in water depth. Relict accumulations of these organisms can be compared to their modern day growth position and have potential to provide accurate datable evidence for past sea-level stands. Accuracy has been shown to be as high as 0.1 m in the case of certain species (Laborel and Laborel-Deguen, 1994). Use of FBIs in regions of tectonic and isostatic stability offers potential for development of a high resolution global sea-level curve. The FBI method of investigation allows us to quantify, for the first time, unequivocal evidence of midHolocene higher sea-levels from Hong Kong. An in
Big Wave Bay is located on the southeastern side of Hong Kong Island. The emergent fossil oyster (Saccostrea cucullata) bed is preserved in a low lying cliff section on the southern side of the beach. The fossils are encrusted as a thick accumulation of shell material accreted in growth position onto an outcrop of rhyolite and protected from weathering by an overhanging slab. The present day environment at the fossil locality is a moderately exposed rocky shoreline affected by reduced salinity and sand scouring. Saccostrea cucullata presently lives in the eulittoral zone where it is regularly covered and uncovered by tides (Morton and Morton, 1983). Unlike the fossil oyster bed present day specimens of Saccostrea cucullata occur as individuals encrusting rock surfaces and do not form thick accumulations. Other elements present in the rocky shoreline fauna include the gastropods Nodilittorina trochoides and Nodilittorina millegrana and the barnacle Chthamalus malayensis in the littoral fringe and barnacles Chthamalus malayensis, Pollicipes mitella and Tetraclita squamosa, gastropods Cellana toreuma and the bivalve Septifer virgatus in the eulittoral zone. Fig. 2 shows the vertical zonation of the present day rocky shoreline with respect to the location of the fossil Saccostrea cucullata horizon.
3. Radiocarbon dates The samples were washed in distilled water, finely crushed and clay impurities decanted. Samples were checked using X-ray diffraction to establish that all material present was calcite. The crushed oyster shell was then submitted for AMS dating using pre-treatment acid etching at BETA Analytical Inc., Miami,
A.M. Davis et al. / Marine Geology 171 (2000) 1–5
3
Fig. 2. Photograph of the Saccostrea cucullata fossil sample location on the southern side of Big Wave Bay, Hong Kong Island at very low tide. The fossil oysters come from a 20 cm thick horizon located in the shadow underneath the prominent overhanging slab. The approximate zonation of the present day rocky shoreline ecology is indicated. The highest living specimens of Saccostrea cucullata are located within the eulittoral zone.
The wave-cut benches themselves cannot be dated but biological evidence associated with development of geomorphic features is datable if preserved. Most studies of sea-level changes from Hong Kong waters have concentrated on abundant data available from borehole investigations (Yim, 1984, 1999) and on high-resolution seismic analysis (Fyfe et al., 1997). Sea-level histories derived from such studies have not discovered any evidence of higher sea-level stands during the Holocene as these studies have concentrated on offshore sediments and their resolution may be insufficient for such studies. Dismissing the earlier work of Berry (1961), Meacham and Yim (1983) and Yim (1984, 1999) suggest that there is no evidence from Hong Kong waters for oscillating
Florida. Results of the radiocarbon analysis indicate an uncorrected age of 5140 ^ 50 BP (Table 1).
4. Discussion Numerous elements of coastal geomorphology around Hong Kong and in the South China area can be interpreted as having developed in response to different sea-level stands. Berry (1961) presented abundant evidence of higher sea-level stands in the vicinity of Hong Kong in the form of emerged beaches, and wave-cut benches. The difficulty to present has been calibration of the timing and duration of various sea-level stands indicated by these features. Table 1 Results of AMS dating of Big Wave Bay fossil oyster shell sample HKU#
BETA Analytical #
d C 13
Result
HK1
145816
0.5%
4720 ^ 40 yr BP measured radiocarbon age 5140 ^ 40 yr BP convential radiocarbon age 5580 5440 yr BP 2s calibration
4
A.M. Davis et al. / Marine Geology 171 (2000) 1–5
Holocene sea-level curves or for higher late Holocene sea-levels. Yim (1999) regards the present day sealevel as having been attained approximately 6000 yr BP and remained static at this level since then. This interpretation notwithstanding the geomorphic features recognised by Berry (1961) clearly exist although their recognition is becoming more difficult with time as urban and industrial development of Hong Kong exploits them. In many areas a wave-cut platform exists at a few metres above present day sealevel (supra-tidal platforms of Owen (1995)) and this feature can be correlated with emerged beaches. Berry (1961) documented emerged beaches 5–6 m above the Principal Datum (PD). The PD of Hong Kong lies 2.7 m below high tide mark; thus these features likely correspond to the fossil Saccostrea cucullata horizon we report at 1.7 m above present high tide level. Owen (1995) recognised two sets of wave-cut platform in the vicinity of Hong Kong. He proposed that a supra-tidal platform had an origin related to chemical weathering of volcanic rocks whereas an identical platform in the sub-tidal environment is wave-cut. We suggest that a single mechanism is responsible for both these features and their development at different levels is related to changes in sealevel. Historical Chinese records indicate that sea-level in the Pearl River (Zhujiang) estuary lay close to the present day location of the city of Guangzhou (Canton) 6000 yr BP (Huang et al., 1987a) and most researchers accept a relative high stand at that time. This high stand may explain development of geomorphic features such as emerged beaches and wave-cut platforms. Given our present data we suggest that this sea-level remained occupied at around 5000 yr BP with enhancement of the associated geomorphic features. Coastal geomorphology in the South China region indicates that sea-level remained static over periods sufficient for features such as beaches, wave-cut platforms, sea caves and arches to develop. Any eustatic variations must have been rapid as these features are well preserved and were little modified during changes in sea-level. Given the data presented herein and the abundance of geomorphic evidence, Late Holocene relative sealevel history in the South China region is clearly more complex than that suggested by Yim (1984, 1999). Indeed the more complex curves of others (shown in
Pirazzoli (1991)) may be a better representation of reality. If, as indicated, sea-level has fluctuated throughout the late Holocene then interpretations of a simple and rapid progradation of the Pearl River Delta through the Holocene (Huang et al., 1984) may be over-simplified. More research using criteria such as FBIs is required in order to quantify the magnitude and duration of sea-level fluctuations in this region.
Acknowledgements We gratefully acknowledge the financial assistance of the HKU CRCG towards our investigations of paleoclimatological change.
References Baker, R.G.V., Haworth, R.J., 1997. Further evidence from relic shellcrust sequences for a late Holocene higher sea-level for eastern Australia. Mar. Geol. 141, 1–9. Baker, R.G.V., Haworth, R.J., 2000a. Smooth or oscillating late Holocene sea-level curve? Evidence from cross-regional statistical regressions of fixed biological indicators. Mar. Geol. 163, 353–365. Baker, R.G.V., Haworth, R.J., 2000b. Smooth or oscillating late Holocene sea-level curve? Evidence from the palaeo-zoology of fixed biological indicators in east Australia and beyond. Mar. Geol. 163, 367–386. Berry, L., 1961. Erosion surfaces and emerged beaches in Hong Kong. Geol. Soc. Am. Bull. 72, 1383–1394. Davis, A.M., 1999. Quaternary stratigraphy of Hong Kong coastal sediments. J. Asian Earth Sci. 17 (4), 521–531. Delibrias, C., Laborel, J., 1971. Recent variation of the sea-level along the Brazilian coast. Quaternaria 14, 45–49. Fairbridge, R.W., 1961. Eustatic changes in sea-level. Phys. Chem. Earth 5, 99–185. Flood, P.G., Frankel, E., 1989. Late Holocene higher sea-level indicators from eastern Australia. Mar. Geol. 90, 193–195. Fyfe, J.A., Selby, I.C., Shaw, R., James, J.W.C., Evans, C.D.R., 1997. Quaternary sea-level change on the continental shelf of Hong Kong. J. Geol. Soc. Lond. 154, 1031–1038. Huang, Y., Xia, F., Huang, D., Lin, H., 1984. Holocene sea-level changes and recent crustal movements along the northern coasts of the South China Sea. In: Whyte, R.O. (Ed.). Geology and Palaeoclimatology. The Evolution of the East Asian Environment, vol. 1. Centre of Asian Studies, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, pp. 271–287. Huang, Z., Li, P., Zhang, Z., Zong, Y., 1986. Changes of sea-level in the late Pleistocene in South Sea coasts. China Sea-level Changes. China Ocean Press, Beijing (pp. 178–194). Huang, Z., Li, P., Zhang, Z., Li, K., 1987. The geomorphological
A.M. Davis et al. / Marine Geology 171 (2000) 1–5 evolution of the Zhujiang Delta. In: Gardiner, V. (Ed.), Proceedings of the First International Conference on Geomorphology, pp. 989–997. Huang, Z., Li, P., Zhang, Z., Zong, Y., 1987b. Sea-level changes along the coastal area of South China since Pleistocene. In: Qin, Y., Zhao, S. (Eds.). Late Quaternary Sea-level Changes. China Ocean Press, Beijing, pp. 142–154. Laborel, J., Laborel-Deguen, F., 1994. Biological indicators of relative sea-level variations and of co-seismic displacements in the Mediterranean region. J. Coast. Res. 10, 395–415. Li, P., Qiao, P., Zheng, H., Fang, G., Huang, G., 1991. The Environmental Evolution of the Pearl River Delta in the last 10,000 Years. China Ocean Press, Beijing (154pp.). Meacham, W., Yim, W.W.-S., 1983. Coastal sand bar deposits at Pui O. In: Yim, W.W.-S., Burnett, A.D. (Eds.). Geology of Surficial Deposits in Hong Kong. Geological Society of Hong
5
Kong/Department of Geology and Geography, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, pp. 44–47. Morton, B., Morton, J., 1983. The Sea Shore Ecology of Hong Kong. Hong Kong University Press, Hong Kong (350pp.). Owen, R.B., 1995. Hong Kong landform series No. 1 shore platforms — characteristics and origins. Hong Kong Geol. 1, 43–45. Pirazzoli, P.A., 1991. World Atlas of Holocene Sea-level Changes. Elsevier, Amsterdam (300pp.). 1984. Evidence for Quaternary environmental changes from seafloor sediments in Hong Kong. In: Yim, W.W.-S. (Ed.). The Evolution of the East Asian Environment, vol. 1. Centre for Asian Studies, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, pp. 137–155. Yim, W.W.-S., 1999. Radiocarbon dating and the reconstruction of late Quaternary sea-level changes in Hong Kong. Quatern. Int. 55, 77–91.