Fluvial dynamics in a deltaic environment under Little Ice Age intense climatic forcing (Bras de Fer, Rhône delta, France)
Abstract This study reconstructs the fluvial dynamics of the Bras de Fer distributary in the Rhône Delta (France) during the Little Ice Age (LIA) in response to short-term climatic forcing. A multiproxy approach combining historical cartography, sedimentology, geochemistry, magnetic susceptibility, and hydrological archives reveals accelerated meander migration and extensive overbank accretion between the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries CE. Increased flood frequency, coinciding with positive phases of the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO+), promoted rapid lateral channel shifts and the formation of crevasse splay complexes along the outside bank of the Grande Ponche meander. The results demonstrate that, despite stable relative sea levels, deltaic morphology remained highly sensitive to decadal-scale climatic variability, highlighting the dominant role of hydrological extremes in shaping fluvial-deltaic environments of Rhône delta during the late LIA.
Authors
- Marta Garcia (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9702-8912)
- Kazuyo Tachikawa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9522-8600)
- G. E. Hemery (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0839-9293)
- Olivier Bellier (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3213-7306)
- Doriane Delanghe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6050-4823)
- Y. Quesnel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9633-5080)
- François Demory (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7526-9886)
- Ghislain Gassier (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2873-0251)
- Jules Fleury (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8332-2237)
- Véronique Rinalducci
- Minoru Uehara (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6284-846X)
- Kharlanova Anna (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0883-6879)
- Edouard Bard
- Claude Vella
- Philippe Rigaud
Institutions
- International Union for Conservation of Nature (Bangladesh) (BD)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Aix-Marseille Université (FR)
- Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (FR)
- Centre de Recherche et d’Enseignement de Géosciences de l’Environnement (FR)
- Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (FR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Quaternary Research
- Published
- 2025-10-02
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1017/qua.2025.10031
- Primary Topic
- Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00