In two samples, the organic matter is dominated by fusinite and semifusinite and vitrinite is not present. The inertinite represents residues from forest fires, and the absence of coexisting vitrinite may indicate that an extensive charring episode occurred. Both these samples are overlain and underlain by samples that lack fusinite and semifusinite and show vitrinite reflectances similar to those of other samples. From this, it can be inferred that charring took place in the source provenance for the wood and that charring was restricted to a small time interval. Thus, the inertinite appears to represent material produced in relatively rare forest fire events.
The fusinite and semifusinite in the sample from Hole 1115A show a high mean reflectance of 3.44%, with a range from 1.38% to 5.24%. These values are unusually high for fusinite in low-rank sequences, and are high even for commercial charcoals. The fusinite and semifusinite in Hole 1118C show a lower mean reflectance of 1.00%, with a range from 0.80% to 1.30%.