Seismic images of a collision zone offshore NW Sabah/Borneo

Multichannel reflection seismic data from the southern South China Sea, refraction and gravity modelling were used to investigate the compressional sedimentary structures of the collision-prone continental margin off NW Borneo. An elongated imbricate deepwater fan, the toe Thrust Zone bounds the Northwest Borneo Trough to the southeast. The faults separating the individual imbricates cut through post-Early Miocene sediments and curve down to a carbonate platform at the top of the subsiding continental Dangerous Grounds platform that forms the major detachment surface. The age of deformation migrates outward toward the front of the wedge. We propose crustal shortening mechanisms as the main reason for the formation of the imbricate fan. At the location of the in the past defined Lower Tertiary Thrust Sheet tectonostratigraphic province a high velocity body was found but with a much smaller extend than the previously defined structure. The high velocity structure may be interpreted either as carbonates that limit the transfer of seismic energy into the sedimentary layers beneath or as Paleogene Crocker sediments dissected by remnants of a proto-South China Sea oceanic crust that were overthrust onto a southward migrating attenuated continental block of the Dangerous Grounds during plate convergence.     

Reprint of: Nature and significance of the West Baram and Tinjar Lines,NW Borneo

A key consideration in tectonic models for SE Asia and opening of the South China Sea is the role that the West Baram and Tinjar Lines of NW Borneo may have played in accommodating the motion of crustal blocks displaced from Asia following India's collision. There are few studies that focus on these “lines”. Using onshore geological studies and offshore seismic data to address the origin and tectonic significance of these, this paper concludes that rather than a major transform boundary between Luconia and the Dangerous Grounds, the West Baram Line marks the boundary between domains of continental crust that underwent differential extension in the Eocene. The Baram Basin is underlain by hyperextended continental crust on the NE side of the Baram Line. The strong contrast in the geological features across the Tinjar and West Baram Lines likely reflects ancient differences in crustal rheology with Luconia being the more rigid block. Although lack of significant strike slip faulting along the West Baram Line poses problems for tectonic models in which a wide proto-South China Sea is subducted beneath NW Borneo, intra-plate deformation, such as partial inversion of the Dangerous Grounds rift, offers a potential mechanism to mass balance blocks displaced from Asia with the reduced strike slip motion along the West Baram Line.     

Nature and significance of the West Baram and Tinjar Lines,NW Borneo

A key consideration in tectonic models for SE Asia and opening of the South China Sea is the role that the West Baram and Tinjar Lines of NW Borneo may have played in accommodating the motion of crustal blocks displaced from Asia following India's collision. There are few studies that focus on these “lines”. Using onshore geological studies and offshore seismic data to address the origin and tectonic significance of these, this paper concludes that rather than a major transform boundary between Luconia and the Dangerous Grounds, the West Baram Line marks the boundary between domains of continental crust that underwent differential extension in the Eocene. The Baram Basin is underlain by hyperextended continental crust on the NE side of the Baram Line. The strong contrast in the geological features across the Tinjar and West Baram Lines likely reflects ancient differences in crustal rheology with Luconia being the more rigid block. Although lack of significant strike slip faulting along the West Baram Line poses problems for tectonic models in which a wide proto-South China Sea is subducted beneath NW Borneo, intra-plate deformation, such as partial inversion of the Dangerous Grounds rift, offers a potential mechanism to mass balance blocks displaced from Asia with the reduced strike slip motion along the West Baram Line.     

珠江三角洲的活动断裂与区域稳定性分析

珠江三角洲的活动断裂主要为弱活动断裂,分别属于NW,NE和EW向三组断裂,活动断裂是控制该三角洲断块运动和地震活动的关键。珠江三角洲主要为区域稳定性中等地区。     

The Brunei slide: A giant submarine landslide on the North West Borneo Margin revealed by 3D seismic data

Three dimensional seismic data, offshore Brunei, provide evidence for a giant landslide with a volume of 1200 km³, an area of ∼ 5300 km² and an average thickness of ∼ 240 m. It extends for over 120 km from the Baram Canyon in ∼ 200 m water depth to the deep basin floor of the North West Borneo Trough. The landslide is a unique example of a major submarine landslide located on a steep, tectonically active margin adjacent to a large river and canyon system. The landslide is mappable using 3D seismic data, which allow detailed imaging of internal flow structures, erosional headwall and the basal sliding surface. The landslide is a complex deposit, involving a chaotic debris flow matrix, with flow structures and blocks 500 to 1000 m wide and up to 250 m thick. Imaging of the basal sliding surface reveals large striations ∼ 30-120 km long, ∼ 100-600 m wide, and ∼ 10-30 m deep that show significant amounts of basal erosion. In the landslide source area we describe fluid escape structures, gas buildups and bottom simulating reflectors, which may provide a mechanism for weakening and triggering slope failure. We also report older landslides, buried several hundred meters beneath the basin floor that indicate giant landsliding is a recurrent process in the NW Borneo Trough.     

Growth history of fault-related folds and interaction with seabed channels in the toe-thrust region of the deep-water Niger delta

The deep-water fold and thrust belt of the southern Niger Delta has prominent thrusts and folds oriented perpendicular to the regional slope that formed as a result of the thin-skinned gravitational collapse of the delta above overpressured shale. The thrust-related folds have grown in the last 12.8 Ma and many of the thrusts are still actively growing and influencing the pathways of modern seabed channels. We use 3D seismic reflection data to constrain and analyse the spatial and temporal variation in shortening of four thrusts and folds having seabed relief in a study area of 2600 km² size in 2200–3800 m water depth. Using these shortening measurements, we have quantified the variation in strain rates through time for both fault-propagation and detachment folds in the area, and we relate this to submarine channel response. The total amount of shortening on the individual structures investigated ranges from 1 to 4 km, giving a time-averaged maximum shortening rate of between 90 ± 10 and 350 ± 50 m/Myr (0.1 and 0.4 mm/yr). Fold shortening varies both spatially and temporally: The maximum interval shortening rate occurred between 9.5 Ma and 3.7 Ma, and has reduced significantly in the last 3.7 Ma. We suggest that the reduction in the Pliocene-Recent fold shortening rate is a response to the slow-down in extension observed in the up-dip extensional domain of the Niger Delta gravitational system in the same time interval. In the area dominated by the fault-propagation folds, the channels are able to cross the structures, but the detachment fold is a more significant barrier and has caused a channel to divert for 25 km parallel to the fold axis. The two sets of structures have positive bathymetric expressions, with an associated present day uphill slope of between 1.5° and 2°. However, the shorter uphill slopes of the fault-propagation folds and increased sediment blanketing allow channels to cross these structures. Channels that develop coevally with structural growth and that cross structures, do so in positions of recent strain minima and at interval strain rates that are generally less than −0.02 Ma⁻¹ (−1 × 10⁻¹⁶ s⁻¹). However, the broad detachment fold has caused channel diversion at an even lower strain rate of c. −0.002 Ma⁻¹ (−7 × 10⁻¹⁷ s⁻¹).     

The basins of Sundaland (SE Asia): Evolution and boundary conditions

Most of the basins developed in the continental core of SE Asia (Sundaland) evolved since the Late Cretaceous in a manner that may be correlated to the conditions of the subduction in the Sunda Trench. By the end of Mesozoic times Sundaland was an elevated area composed of granite and metamorphic basement on the rims; which suffered collapse and incipient extension, whereas the central part was stable. This promontory was surrounded by a large subduction zone, except in the north and was a free boundary in the Early Cenozoic. Starting from the Palaeogene and following fractures initiated during the India Eurasia collision, rifting began along large faults (mostly N–S and NNW–SSE strike-slip), which crosscut the whole region. The basins remained in a continental fluvio-lacustrine or shallow marine environment for a long time and some are marked by extremely stretched crust (Phu Khanh, Natuna, N. Makassar) or even reached the ocean floor spreading stage (Celebes, Flores). Western Sundaland was a combination of basin opening and strike-slip transpressional deformation. The configuration suggests a free boundary particularly to the east (trench pull associated with the Proto-South China Sea subduction; Java–Sulawesi trench subduction rollback). In the Early Miocene, Australian blocks reached the Sunda subduction zone and imposed local shortening in the south and southeast, whereas the western part was free from compression after the Indian continent had moved away to the north. This suggests an important coupling of the Sunda Plate with the Indo-Australian Plate both to SE and NW, possibly further west rollback had ceased in the Java–Sumatra subduction zone, and compressional stress was being transferred northwards across the plate boundary. The internal compression is expressed to the south by shortening which is transmitted as far as the Malay basin. In the Late Miocene, most of the Sunda Plate was under compression, except the tectonically isolated Andaman Sea and the Damar basins. In the Pliocene, collision north of Australia propagated toward the north and west causing subduction reversal and compression in the short-lived Damar Basin. Docking of the Philippine Plate confined the eastern side of Sundaland and created local compression and uplift such as in NW Borneo, Palawan and Taiwan. Transpressional deformation created extensive folding, strike-slip faulting and uplift of the Central Basin and Arakan Yoma in Myanmar. Minor inversion affected many Thailand rift basins. All the other basins record subsidence. The uplift is responsible for gravity tectonics where thick sediments were accumulated (Sarawak, NE Luconia, Bangladesh wedge).     

Quantitative bathymetric analyses of selected deepwater siliciclastic margins: receiving basin configurations for deepwater fan systems

Comparative bathymetric analyses of four siliciclastic continental margins reveal important distinguishing characteristics in deepwater receiving basin configurations. These characteristics have potential impact on deepwater sedimentation patterns and associated fan development. Present-day bathymetry was analysed quantitatively, using advanced software and digital bathymetry data. Various physical attributes of dip, basin geometry, and accommodation were quantified and mapped in 3D. Results show significant differences in receiving basin configurations between salt-based and shale-based continental margins in the Gulf of Mexico, Angola, Nigeria, and NW Borneo, especially in the type, amount, and distribution of accommodation. Salt-based systems have more ponded accommodation than shale-based systems; however, all the margins have a relatively small percentage of ponded to total accommodation. Two exceptions to this are the central portion of the Northwest Gulf of Mexico where ponded accommodation constitutes 55% of the total accommodation and the Kwanza Basin of Offshore Angola with 39% ponded accommodation. Shale-based systems may be more prone to bypass on the upper to mid slope than salt-based systems. Evidence for this is found in the linear grade trend analyses where large below-grade areas (sinks) are pervasive on the upper and mid slope of salt-based systems for deepwater sediment to accumulate, while shale-based systems show extensive above-grade highs across the entire slope. Ponded accommodation trends and drainage analyses also demonstrate that shale-based systems are more susceptible to extensive bypass than salt-based systems. The tectonically active margin of NW Borneo has steeper slope profiles than the passive margins, with areally small ponded accommodation largely restricted between active toe-thrusts on the lower slope and locally distributed on the shelf. These and other quantitative analyses suggest that the type of substrate and overall tectonic setting are important factors to consider for receiving basin configuration and its potential impact on deepwater sedimentation patterns.     

The importance of missing strain in Deep Water Fold and Thrust Belts

Deep water fold and thrust belts (DWFTBs) are sedimentary wedges that accommodate plate-scale deformation on both active and passive continental margins. Internally, these wedges consist of individual structures that strongly influence sediment dispersal, bathymetry and fluid migration. Most DWFTB studies investigate basin- and intra-wedge- scale processes using seismic reflection profiles, yet are inherently limited by seismic resolution. Of critical importance is strain distribution and its accommodation on discrete faults compared to distributed deformation. Recent studies have considered strain distribution by investigating regional reflection DWFTBs profiles within coupled systems, which contain down-dip compression and up-dip extension. There is broad agreement of a mis-balance in compression versus extension, with ∼5% excess in the latter associated with horizontal compaction, yet this remains unproven.Using two exceptionally well exposed outcrops in the Spanish Pyrenees we consider deformation of DWFTB at a scale comparable to, and beyond, seismic resolution for the first time. By coupling outcrop observations (decametre to hectometre scale) with a re-evaluation of seismic profiles from the Orange Basin, South Africa, which contains one of the best imaged DWFTBs globally, we provide a unique insight into the deformation from metre to margin scale. Our observations reveal hitherto unrecognised second order structures that account for the majority of the previously recognised missing strain. This re-evaluation implies that ∼5% missing strain should be accounted for in all DWFTBs, therefore existing studies using restorations of the sediment wedge will have underestimated crustal shortening in active margins, or sedimentary shortening in gravity driven systems by this amount. In contrast to previous studies, our observations imply that the majority of this strain is accommodated on discrete fault surfaces and this can explain the occurrence and location of a range of intra-wedge processes that are intimately linked to structures including sediment dispersal, fluid migration pathways and reservoir compartmentalisation.     

CONTROLLING PROCESSES OF FAULTS OVER THE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF ZHUJIANG DELTA

This paper discusses the origin and development of the Zhujiang Delta on the basis of the analyses of the fault systems, lithofacies, depositional thickness, ancient coastline and 14C dating. We consider that the delta is a multi-faulting block, whose external form, internal structure and configuration of its ancient coastline are all strictly controlled by three active sets of the NE, NW and WE faults.     

Growth faults above shale – Seismic-scale outcrop analogues from the Makran foreland,SW Pakistan

The southern Makran fold-thrust belt, Pakistan, displays unique outcrop examples of well-exposed, kilometre-scale, listric growth faults that displace Miocene-age deltaic growth strata by several hundreds of metres to kilometers. The largest growth faults are counter-regional (landward-dipping), bounding major clastic depocentres exposed over areas > 1000 km². Stratal offset along these faults can exceed 1.5 km. Fault-zone thicknesses range between ca. 100 and 400 m, and average fault thickness-displacement ratios are around 1:10. High-resolution satellite data show in unprecedented detail the faults and the stratigraphic architecture of associated growth sequences, which comprise kilometre-scale progradational clinoforms, thick mudstone units and basinwards wedging sandstone-shale deposits. The true vertical thickness of the syn-kinematic record is, in places, up to 8 km, making the outcrop examples equivalent to major growth faulted successions known from seismic data of large deltas, and at least an order of magnitude larger than other outcrop examples. A comparison of the Makran outcrops with seismic-reflection examples offshore NW Borneo reveals distinct similarities in the gross depocentre geometries and internal architecture. The key control for growth faulting is interpreted to result from sedimentary loading, with rapid sedimentary progradation causing the development of rollover synclines by differential compaction and fluid expulsion, and counter-regional growth faults preferentially forming on the basinward side of these synclines. The data and interpretations presented can be used to assess the key parameters that contribute to the development of growth faults and growth successions above shale, reinforcing structural and stratigraphic observations from seismic interpretation and modelling studies in demonstrating their occurrence in exposure.     

Sea-level changes,shoreline journeys,and the seismic stratigraphy of Central Luconia,Miocene-present,offshore Sarawak,NW Borneo

Central Luconia is a geological province of the Sarawak Basin, offshore NW Borneo, characterised by extensive development of Miocene to Recent carbonate build-ups. In the subsurface, many of these build-ups are reservoirs for hydrocarbons. This study focuses on shelf-wide stratigraphic architecture, from which implications are drawn for the stratigraphic-sealing potential of the deltaic clastics. A stratigraphic model is proposed whereby clastic sediments surrounding the carbonate build-ups are interpreted as stacked low-relief deltas deposited in response to high-frequency oscillation of the sea level. The deltas are shown to have frequently prograded beyond carbonate build-ups. As a result of interaction between eustacy and deposition, deltaic topsets are juxtaposed against carbonate build-ups, providing migration routes for hydrocarbons. Most of the carbonate reservoirs are consequently underfilled, with hydrocarbon columns limited to the youngest onlapping stratigraphic sequence.     

Refining the model of South China Sea’s tectonic evolution: evidence from Yinggehai-Song Hong and Qiongdongnan Basins

The Cenozoic Yinggehai-Song Hong and Qiongdongnan Basins together form one of the largest Cenozoic sedimentary basins in SE Asia. Detail studying on the newly released regional seismic data, we observed their basin structure and stratigraphy are clearly different. The structure of the NW–SE elongation of the Yinggehai-Song Hong Basin is strongly controlled by the strike–slip faulting of steep Red River Fault. And the basement is covered by heavy sediments from the Red River. However, structures closely related with rifting are imagined on the seismic data from the Qiongdongnan Basin. This rifting and thinning on the northern continental margin of the South China Sea is necessary to be explained by the subduction of a Proto-South China Sea oceanic crust toward the NW Borneo block during the Eocene–Early Miocene. To test how the strike–slip faulting in the Yinggehai-Song Hong Basin and rifting in the Qiongdongnan Basin develop together in the northwest corner of the South China Sea, we reconstructed the tectonics of the northwest corner of the South China Sea and test the model with software of MSC MARC. The numerical model results indicate the South China Sea and its surrounding area can be divided into a collision-extrusion tectonic province and a Proto-South China Sea slab pull tectonic province as suggested in previous works. We suggested that offshore Red River Fault in the Yinggehai-Song Hong Basin is confirmed as a very important tectonic boundary between these two tectonic provinces.     

Seismic anisotropy surrounding South China Sea and its geodynamic implications

Several mechanisms have been proposed for the opening of the South China Sea. Here, we use SKS splitting analysis to investigate the mantle flow surrounding the South China Sea. We use a total of 23 seismic stations and 87 events. We applied spectral analysis and cluster analysis to find a stable splitting solution for each event. The main conclusions are: (1) In northern Vietnam, the NW–SE fast direction is parallel to the absolute plate motion as well as GPS observations with splitting times larger than 1 s, indicating a coupled lithosphere and mantle. In contrast, in southern Vietnam, the NE–SW fast direction suggests that the lithosphere and asthenosphere are decoupled. (2) The fast directions beneath the South China Block and central Taiwan are NE–SW and NS respectively, both parallel to surface deformations with splitting times greater than 1 s, indicating that mantle flow and surface deformation are related. (3) The observed NW–SE fast directions beneath Hainan Island reflect the India–Eurasia collision, and show no signatures of an upwelling mantle plume directly underneath Hainan Island. This implies that Hainan Island is tectonically closely related to the Red River Fault, not the South China Block. (4) In Borneo, the observed NE-SW direction is parallel to the Palawan Trench, consistent with flow associated with the inactive proto-South China Sea subduction system. The SKS splitting observations surrounding South China Sea cannot be explained by a single geologic process, with either the collision-driven extrusion model or the slab pull model fitting the data presented here.     

Detrital zircon U-Pb age perspective on the sediment provenance and its geological significance of sandstones in the Lamandau region,SW Borneo,Indonesia

The Southwest Borneo(SW Borneo)block belongs to Sundaland and is the oldest continental fragment of Borneo that is believed to derive from the Gondwana land.The...     

Population structure and life history of Hemimysis lamornae mediterranea (Malacostraca: Mysida) in the Ebro Delta (NW Mediterranean)

Hemimysis lamornae mediterranea Bacescu, 1936 has been recently reported in the Ebro Delta (Spain, NW Mediterranean). Little is known about the biology and ecology of this mysid and we provide the first information about its population biology. H. l. mediterranea were collected from Sant Carles de la Ràpita harbor from June 2010 to March 2012 at night. The H. l. mediterranea population was composed of two main individual size categories: larger-sized winter/spring individuals and smaller-sized spring/summer individuals. The overall sex ratio is highly skewed; mature females are 2.5 times more abundant than mature males. Reproductive activity was higher during late winter and spring but was almost continuous throughout the year. The intra-marsupial development and growth of juveniles has been studied in the laboratory. The mean duration of incubation period (intra-marsupial stages) in laboratory conditions was 11 days (20 °C) and the age at first maturity ranged from14 to 20 days. The growth rate was faster in early juveniles and declined with age, showing a maximum of 0.152 mm d^− 1. The laboratory results and demographic data suggest that H. l. mediterranea will produce several generations per year in the Ebro Delta. H. l. mediterranea was characterized by a combination of early maturation of individuals (short juvenile period), rapid growth, small adult size, a continuous reproduction all year round, iteroparous females, a relatively high fecundity and a high number of generations per year.     

Sedimentology, stratigraphic occurrence and origin of linked debrites in the West Crocker Formation (Oligo-Miocene), Sabah, NW Borneo

The West Crocker Formation (Oligocene–Early Miocene), NW Borneo, consists of a large (>20 000 km²) submarine fan deposited as part of an accretionary complex. A range of gravity-flow deposits are observed, the most significant of which are mud-poor, massive sandstones interpreted as turbidites and clast-rich, muddy sandstones and sandy mudstones interpreted as debrites. An upward transition from turbidite to debrite is commonly observed, with the contact being either gradational and planar, or sharp and highly erosive. Based on their repeated vertical relationship and the nature of the contact between them, these intervals are interpreted as being deposited from one flow event which consisted of two distinct flow phases: fully turbulent turbidity current and weakly turbulent to laminar debris flow. The associated bed is called a co-genetic turbidite–debrite, with the upper debrite interval termed a linked debrite. Linked debrites are best developed in the non-channellised parts of the fan system, and are absent to poorly-developed in the proximal channel-levee and distal basin floor environments. Due to outcrop limitations, the genesis of linked debrites within the West Crocker Formation is unclear. Based on clast size and type, it seems likely that a weakly turbulent to laminar debris-flow flow phase was present when the flow event entered the basin. A change in flow behaviour may have led to deposition of a sand-rich unit with ‘turbidite’ characteristics, which was subsequently overlain by a mud-rich unit with ‘debrite’ characteristics. Flow transformation may have been enhanced by the disintegration and incorporation into the flow of muddy clasts derived from the upstream channel floor, channel mouth or from channel-levee collapse. Lack of preservation of this debrite in proximal areas may indicate either bypass of this flow phase or that the available outcrops fail to capture the debris flow entry point. Establishing robust sedimentological criteria from a variety of datasets may lead to the increasing recognition of co-genetic turbidite-debrite beds, and an increased appreciation of the importance of bipartite flows in the transport and deposition of sediments in deepwater environments.     

Oligocene–Miocene carbonates and their role for constraining the rifting and collision history of the Dangerous Grounds,South China Sea

The attenuated continental crust of the Dangerous Grounds is located in the southeastern part of the South China Sea. It was affected by unconformities as identified by several authors (Cullen et al., 2010, Hinz and Schlüter, 1985, Hutchison, 2010, Hutchison and Vijayan, 2010). In the northeastern Dangerous Grounds, a prominent reflector in seismic data is associated with the top of a widespread Oligocene to Early Miocene (18–20 Ma) carbonate platform. This reflector and the underlying carbonates can be used to constrain the timing of the unconformities and the rifting history of the Dangerous Grounds. By carefully interpreting seismic reflection lines we trace the platform carbonates based upon their appearance in the seismic image. This platform is continuous in the Palawan–Borneo trough and gets patchy toward the Dangerous Grounds. In the Dangerous Grounds the image of this key reflector changes and here it merely forms the top of a clastic layer. Carbonates remain abundant but mainly as isolated reefs that grew on top of tilted fault blocks. In the southwestern Dangerous Grounds the prominent unconformity sealing the tectonic activity is known as the Middle Miocene Unconformity. This in fact is an Early Miocene unconformity, which represents a sequence boundary in the Borneo–Palawan trough and in various parts of the Dangerous Grounds, while in other parts of the Dangerous Grounds, it represents a major angular unconformity.The unconformity characteristics supplemented with tentative ages indicate that Luconia and the southern Dangerous Grounds were sub-aerial during the Early Miocene, while the Reed Bank, the northern Dangerous Grounds and parts of the central Dangerous Grounds were mostly submerged except for some islands concentrated on the western edge of the Borneo–Palawan trough. This trough is interpreted as a foreland basin where the flexural forebulge provided shallow marine conditions that promoted reef growth. As the carbonate deposition migrated from the Borneo–Palawan trough toward the Dangerous Grounds we suggest that the flexural forebulge provided shallow water conditions for further reef growth on the eastern Dangerous Grounds.     

冬季婆罗洲岛西北沿岸上升流的时空特征及机理研究

Winter coastal upwelling off northwest Borneo in the South China Sea(SCS) is investigated by using satellite data, climatological temperature and salinity fields and reanalysis data. The upwelling forms in December, matures in January, starts to decay in February and almost disappears in March. Both Ekman transport induced by the alongshore winter monsoon and Ekman pumping due to orographic wind stress curl are favorable for the upwelling. Transport estimates demonstrate that the month-to-month variability of Ekman transport and Ekman pumping are both consistent with that of winter coastal upwelling, but Ekman transport is two times larger than Ekman pumping in January and February. Under the influence of El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation(ENSO), the upwelling shows remarkable interannual variability: during winter of El Ni?o(La Ni?a) years, an anticyclonic(a cyclonic) wind anomaly is established in the SCS, which behaves a northeasterly(southwesterly) anomaly and a positive(negative) wind stress curl anomaly off the northwest Borneo coast, enhancing(reducing) the upwelling and causing anomalous surface cooling(warming) and higher(lower) chlorophyll concentration. The sea surface temperature anomaly(SSTA) associated with ENSO off the northwest Borneo coast has an opposite phase to that off southeast Vietnam, resulting in a SSTA seesaw pattern in the southern SCS in winter.