Whiting–related sediment export along the Middle Miocene carbonate ramp of Great Bahama Bank.

Modern aragonite needles are present all along the modern leeward margin of Great Bahama Bank (ODP Leg 166), while Middle Miocene sediments contain needles only in more distal areas (Sites 1006 and 1007). In contrast to the rimmed, flat-topped platform topography during the Plio-Pleistocene, the Miocene Great Bahama Bank morphology is a carbonate ramp profile. This might imply a different location and precipitation type for Miocene aragonite needles. In this study, aragonite needles in Miocene sediments were isolated using a granulometric separation method. Furthermore, the isolation of the various carbonate components enables the identification of primary versus diagenetic components. The Miocene aragonite needles are concentrated in the finest granulometric sediment fractions (<12 μm). The fraction-specific geochemical analyses (δ