title: The bivalve Glycymeris pilosa as a multidecadal environmental archive for the Adriatic and Mediterranean Seas.
abstract: We evaluated the potential of Glycymeris pilosa as an environmental indicator for the Mediterranean region by applying sclerochronological techniques on a sample set collected from Pašman Channel in the middle Adriatic Sea. Maximal longevity of analyzed shells was 69 years. Growth increments in acetate peels of the hinge region had clear boundaries, and there was a strongly synchronous signal in growth-increment width among individuals. The final, replicated chronology spanned 1969 to 2013. Shell growth negatively correlated with local summer sea temperatures and positively with November precipitation. High correlation between shell growth and circulation patterns in the northern Ionian was also observed, with slower growth occurring during cyclonic regimes. Given its broad distribution in the region and the ability to crossdate, generate annually-resolved chronologies, and of a length that substantially overlaps with observational records, G. pilosa has considerable potential to test hypotheses relating to environmental variability and biological response in the Mediterranean.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries, Šetalište Ivana Meštrovića 63, 21000 Split, Croatia; Marine Science Institute, University of Texas at Austin, 750 Channel View Drive, Port Aransas, TX 78373, USA. Electronic address: melita@izor.hr.
authors.forename: Melita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Peharda
authors.affiliation: Marine Science Institute, University of Texas at Austin, 750 Channel View Drive, Port Aransas, TX 78373, USA. Electronic address: bryan.black@utexas.edu.
authors.forename: Bryan A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Black
authors.affiliation: Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries, Šetalište Ivana Meštrovića 63, 21000 Split, Croatia. Electronic address: purroy@izor.hr.
authors.forename: Ariadna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Purroy
authors.affiliation: Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries, Šetalište Ivana Meštrovića 63, 21000 Split, Croatia. Electronic address: hrvoje.mihanovic@izor.hr.
authors.forename: Hrvoje
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mihanović
mesh_terms: D060105:Animal Shells / Q000737:chemistry*; D000818:Animals; D001109:Archives; D049872:Bivalvia / Q000737:chemistry*; D002980:Climate; D017753:Ecosystem; D004777:Environment; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D019083:Mediterranean Region; D008522:Mediterranean Sea
keywords: Adriatic; Bivalve; Chronology; Climate; Coastal; Growth; Marine ecology; Mediterranean; Palaeoecology