Article: Quaternary dinoflagellate cyst biostratigraphy of the North Sea

The dinoflagellate cyst biostratigraphy of Quaternary sediments in the North Sea is described. The data accumulated demonstrate the recognition of glacial, interstadial, and interglacial periods but do not necessarily date the relevant sediments. Certain major events such as the distinctive change from the Early Pleistocene to Middle and Late Pleistocene conditions are particularly noted, as is the onset of the modern oceanographic situation, all of which have distinctive signals in the dinoflagellate cyst record. The potential for using dinoflagellate cysts in correlating shelf, slope, and ocean sediments is stressed.