14C Wiggle-Match Dating in High-Resolution Sea-Level Research

Comparison of two sets of marsh-accumulation records from each of three Connecticut (USA) salt marshes, one based on individually calibrated dates and the other on wiggle-match dating of the same series of dates, shows that wiggle-match dating results in more precise and objective reconstructions of longer-term (102–103 yr) changes in accumulation rate. On (sub-)century time scales, wiggle-match dating can reveal steps in the calibrated marsh-accumulation envelope as artefacts of the calibration curve, but may also leave real short-term changes in accumulation rate undetected. Wiggle-matches are non-unique, being dependent on the number, quality and distribution of radiocarbon dates in a sequence, how a series of dates is subdivided into groups (representing intervals of uniform accumulation rate), and what is considered a “best match”. Samples from the studied salt-marsh deposits required no correction for reservoir effects prior to calibration.