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At the northern tip of the Betic realm (SE Iberian Peninsula), some troughs (synclines) and elevations (anticlines) alternate, marking the present-day coastal lobed morphology of cape-bounded bays, where subsidence and uplift conditions prevailed, respectively. In this study, we were able to establish a clear coastal evolution. To this end, we considered the sedimentological and palaeoenvironmental conditions, the palaeogeographical reconstruction, and recent tectonics until Middle Pleistocene times (MIS 5) through the interpretation of onshore cores, raised marine deposits and geophysical profiles. In this regard, as reflected by both onshore and offshore information, there seems to be a stratigraphical gap from the end of the Pliocene to MIS 15 (Middle Pleistocene). In areas under uplift conditions, linked to tardive Alpine tectonics, the deposits of ancient shorelines and raised beaches were located at different post-depositional elevations, which were dated from odd MIS 15 to MIS 5 using amino acid racemization. Only deposits aged MIS 7 and MIS 5 are roughly at the present-day sea level or some meters above. In the troughs, which remain mostly as lagoons and salt marshes, subsidence did not allow the sedimentary record to be discerned. However, many borehole cores were recovered, attesting lagoonal, marsh, sabkha, or alluvial environmental conditions, which were usually unconnected from the sea. Micropaleontological and amino acid racemization dating revealed these cores to be of MIS15 to MIS5 age. Offshore seismic research revealed five erosive-bounded deposits that are stacked accretionary prisms corresponding to highstands between odd MIS 15 and MIS 5. In contrast, even MISs can be correlated to the erosive horizons that separated the seismic units, reflecting lowstands. In this regard, some bars, at a range of distances from the present-day coastline, protected wetlands from marine influence, allowing the development of diverse sub-environments under changing paleogeographical and paleoclimatological conditions. • Deposits of ancient shorelines and raised beaches were AAR dated from odd MIS 15 to 5. • MIS 7 & MIS 5 deposits are roughly at the present-day sea level or some meters above. • Ancient bars protected wetlands from marine influence allowing some sub-environments. • Offshore erosive-bounded deposits (stacked accretionary prisms) ensued in highstands. • Subsidence and uplift prevailed during Quaternary in the Iberian Mediterranean realm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

El Niño cave, located on the south-eastern border of the Spanish Meseta, hosts a discontinuous sequence including Middle Palaeolithic and Neolithic levels, along with Upper Palaeolithic and Levantine style paintings. It is a key site for understanding human occupations of inland Iberia during the Palaeolithic and early prehistory. This paper summarises the main results of a multidisciplinary project aimed at defining the prehistoric human occupations at the site. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coastal area between the mouths of the Aguas and Antas Rivers presents a deformed system of raised marine deposits, some of which have been strongly affected by active tectonics. The use of amino acid epimerization dating of Glycymeris shells from raised coastal deposits allowed determining the age of these marine deposits, all of them linked to highstand sea levels in the Mediterranean realm, with ages between MIS 11 and MIS 1. These results allowed corroborating the age of some previously studied sites, and using new sampling sites, the general aminostratigraphy for the Quaternary raised marine deposits on the Mediterranean coast was confirmed. The main deformation event took place after MIS 11 and continued until MIS 5, and was linked to the activity of the Palomares Fault. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we conduct a palynological analysis of a high-resolution Holocene record from Cartagena Bay, southeast of the Iberian Peninsula, to establish paleoenvironmental variability of coastal areas in the western Mediterranean region at a centennial-scale over the last 7300 years. Statistical analysis of four palynozones allows reconstruction of paleotemperature and paleohumidity conditions. Pinus , steppic, xerophilous, and Mediterranean taxa persisted continuously through the record, and only during periods of increased humidity did deciduous and Mediterranean taxa expand (Zones II, subzone IIIb). Cooler and dry conditions favored the development of Cupressaceae and scrubs between 7300 and 7000 yr cal BP. The mid-Holocene (Northgrippian) mesophytic optimum took place between 6800 and 4000 yr cal BP during which time a Mediterranean climate was present and open forest developed, predominantly consisting of Mediterranean taxa and deciduous trees. The gradual rise in aridity in the Meghalayan (4000–1700 yr cal BP) led to Mediterranean forest being replaced by steppic and xerophilous vegetation, a change related mostly to a decrease in summer insolation, with superimposed centennial-scale variability in humidity. In parallel with forest degradation caused by increasing aridity, the record shows marked evidence of human influence since 4000 yr cal BP, which accelerated the progression of open landscapes from the Chalcolithic onwards, this change being especially marked during the Roman period. Significant denudation of the landscape can be attributed to the use of fire, as well as due to agriculture and grazing, with a major contributor being intense metallurgical and mining activity in the area. The Cartagena Bay record reported herein shows centennial-scale oscillations in humidity and temperature that correlate with well-known climatic events during the late Holocene in the western Mediterranean region, synchronous with variability in solar and atmospheric dynamics. The alternation of persistent North Atlantic Oscillation modes is likely to have played a key role in regulating humid–arid periods. • Pollen content allowed the paleoenvironmental reconstruction during the Holocene. • Centennial-scale oscillations in humidity & temperature correlate with climatic events. • The mid-Holocene mesophytic optimum took place between 6800 and 4000 yr cal BP. • Aridity and xerophytization occurred between 4000 and 1700 yr cal BP. • Human influence accelerated the progression of open landscapes since the Chalcolithic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]