Evidence of palaeoclimatic changes through marine macrofaunas from the Pleistocene of South-eastern Sicily

Mediterranean ecosystems and species are drastically affected by today's climate change. To predict future changes, it is useful to know their history in the geological past through the fossil record and other geohistorical archives. The abrupt climatic changes of Quaternary glacial-interglacial cycles are well demonstrated by marine benthic fossil assemblages that underwent rapid changes with relatively small resolution on a scale of a few hundred thousand years. For this reason, knowing how their biodiversity and composition varies can help in interpreting what is happening today and predicting future changes. Case studies from Pleistocene outcrops of south-eastern Sicily are described, including invertebrate benthic associations (mainly bivalve molluscs and gastropods, bryozoans, barnacles, serpulids), some of which include thermophilic species alternating to other ones having cold climatic significance and boreal Guests. Species with Atlantic affinity also co-occur, together with taxa characterized by an increase in size due to metabolic slowdown.