Pleistocene paleogeography and sea levels on the Cayman Islands,British West Indies

The sea level high, 120 000 to 130 000 years ago, did not lead to the complete inundation of Grand Cayman. Deposition associated with that highstand, which produced the limestones of the Ironshore Formation, occurred in small embayments on the south, east, and north coasts and in a large lagoon that covered the central and western parts of Grand Cayman. Limestones in the western part of that lagoon contain tidal (?) channels and large scour surfaces which resulted from storm activity. Overlying the lagoonal deposits are limestones that were deposited on a high-energy, prograding beach. These successions occur 2 to 7 m above present day sea level. Evidence obtained from wave-cut notches and the sedimentology of the Ironshore Formation on each of the Cayman Islands indicates that the late Pleistocene highstand was about 6 m above present day sea level. By comparing the present day elevations of the features used to determine this position, it is evident that Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman have not undergone independent vertical movement over the last 125 000 years.