Seasonal variability in Arctic temperatures during early Eocene time

As a deep time analog for todayʹs rapidly warming Arctic region, early Eocene (52–53 Ma) rock on Ellesmere Island in Canadaʹs High Arctic (∼ 79°N.) preserves evidence of lush swamp forests inhabited by turtles, alligators, primates, tapirs, and hippo-like Coryphodon. Although the rich flora and fauna of the early Eocene Arctic imply warmer, wetter conditions than at present, the quantification of Eocene Arctic climate has been more elusive. By analyzing oxygen isotope ratios of biogenic phosphate from mammal, fish, and turtle fossils from a single locality on central Ellesmere Island, we infer early Eocene Arctic temperatures, including mean annual temperature (MAT) of ∼ 8 °C, mean annual range in temperature of ∼ 16.5–19 °C, warm month mean temperature of 19–20 °C, and cold month mean temperature of 0–3.5 °C. Our seasonal range in temperature is similar to the range in estimated MAT obtained using different proxies. In particular, relatively high estimates of early Eocene Arctic MAT and SST by others that are based upon the distribution of branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT) membrane lipids in terrestrial soil bacteria and isoprenoid tetraether lipids in marine Crenarchaeota fall close to our warm month temperature, suggesting a bias towards summer values. From a paleontologic perspective, our temperature estimates verify that alligators and tortoises, by way of nearest living relative-based climatic inference, are viable paleoclimate proxies for mild, above-freezing year-round temperatures. Although for both of these reptilian groups, past temperature tolerances probably were greater than in living descendants.