Investigation of early Eocene water-vapor transport and paleoelevation using oxygen isotope data from geographically widespread mammal remains

The oxygen isotope composition (delta(18)O) of apatite from mammalian tooth enamel can be used to infer the delta(18)O value of ingested water, which is in turn related to that of precipitation stored in surface reservoirs. Therefore, the delta(18)O value of phosphate from fossil tooth enamel can be used to infer the delta(18)O value of these reservoirs in the past. In this paper, tooth enamel from a semiaquatic mammal taxon (Coryphodon) collected from five early Eocene localities in North America is used to construct patterns in delta(18)O values of river water for this time period. At all localities, the delta(18)O value of river water (delta(18)O(r)) is estimated to have been higher during the early Eocene relative to present-day North American rivers, although the delta(18)O vs. latitude gradient was shallower during the Eocene. Higher delta(18)O(r) values are consistent with warmer Eocene air masses being able to hold more water vapor and with an increase in the poleward transport of both moisture and latent heat. The regular decrease in delta(18)O(r) with latitude indicates that global atmospheric circulation patterns and hydrological transport were not much different from those of the present, although the shallower delta(18)O vs. latitude gradient during the Eocene may reflect regional differences in precipitation, evaporation, and river recharge. At a more regional scale, the delta(18)O value of river water can provide insight into topographic relief during the early Eocene. In the case of intermontane basins of Wyoming, differences in average delta(18)O(r) values between basins indicate that Laramide mountain relief was on the order of 475 m. It is suggested that anomalously low delta(18)O(r) values reported previously do not provide unambiguous evidence for permanent snow at higher elevations and may instead reflect brief episodes of cooler winters and/or altered atmospheric circulation patterns.