Multiple proxy data were investigated from a lake and several mangrove systems on the north coast of central Cuba to document Holocene environmental changes, identify their causes, and provide an environmental basis to interpret the rich archaeological record of the region. Sediments were investigated for pollen, benthic foraminifera, ostracodes, gastropods, charophytes, O, C, and Sr isotopes, and elemental geochemistry.

The results show that an oligohaline (~1 ppt) pond was present at Laguna de la Leche from ~7000 to 5800 C-14 yr B.P. From ~5800 to 4800 C-14 yr B.P., a freshening of the pond, concurrent with a shift from an oak- to a pine-dominated system throughout the southeastern U.S., suggests that precipitation increased, possibly due to a change in atmospheric circulation. From ~4800 to 1700 C-14 yr B.P., relative sea level (RSL) rise caused salinity and water depth to increase, transforming Laguna de la Leche into an open, mesohaline (~10 ppt) lagoon. Since 1700 C-14 yr B.P., mangrove expansion isolated Laguna de la Leche from the sea.

Pollen records from three mangrove systems provide information on the processes that influenced mangrove succession during the late Holocene. Northwest of Laguna de la Leche, local changes in drainage caused centennial-scale fluctuations in the distribution of Rhizophora (red mangrove) and Avicennia (black mangrove). Another core, taken west of Laguna de la Leche, provides evidence for a landward migration of mangrove zones due to RSL rise. Allochotonous sedimentation and bioturbation may have been important within a chenier plain system. These results indicate that the potential response of mangroves to global warming-induced RSL rise will be complex and difficult to predict at a local scale.

Finally, a RSL curve shows that sea level was ~7 m below present level at ~7000 C-14 yr B.P. (~7800 cal yr B.P.) and then rose in a linear manner to its present position. There is no evidence for a Holocene highstand. The data support a prediction from the ICE-5G (VM2) geophysical model that north-central Cuba lies within the region of proglacial forebulge collapse. The RSL curve also indicates that the Los Buchillones site, a presently submerged Taino village, was inundated prior to its construction at ~AD 1220. This information has important implications for understanding Taino settlement and subsistence patterns, as virtually all previously discovered coastal Taino settlements were constructed on dry beaches.

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