A 400-year record of black carbon flux in the Xisha archipelago, South China Sea and its implication

► Source and distribution of BC in ornithogenic sediments were identified. ► A 400-year record of BC deposition flux in Xisha Islands was reconstructed. ► BC flux remained low level before ∼1900 AD, and peaked around the 1970s. ► Recent BC flux decrease may be due to energy structure change and pollution control. ► The Xisha Islands were not significantly influenced by anthropogenic BC.