Geochemical proxies evidence of environmental and hydroclimatic variability in a Central Peruvian Andean peatland since the Late Glacial

High-elevation Andean peatlands play an important role in regional carbon dynamics and preserve sensitive records of past environmental change, yet continuous peatland-based hydroclimatic reconstructions remain scarce in the Central Andes. Here, we peat development and hydroclimatic variability at Minas Corral Andean peatland (4,320 m a.s.l.) over the last ~14,750 cal yr BP. Core stratigraphy and radiocarbon chronology were integrated with X-ray fluorescence elemental scanning and bulk organic geochemical proxies (total organic carbon and nitrogen, C/N, and δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N). The 4-m MIN01 core provides the first continuous record from a high-elevation Andean peatland spanning the Late Glacial to the present and documents four main intervals distinguished by organic matter accumulation and preservation, minerogenic input, and redox conditions. From ~14,750 to 11,000 cal yr BP, alternating hydroclimatic conditions during deglaciation produced marked shifts between organic accumulation and catchment-derived mineral input. From 11,000 to 7,000 cal yr BP, sustained peat accumulation and comparatively stable geochemical signatures under relatively humid and stable hydroclimatic conditions. Between 7,000 and 3,000 cal yr BP, reduced organic matter preservation and greater minerogenic input point to drier regional conditions and enhanced catchment erosion, interrupted by brief humid episodes. Since 3,000 cal yr BP, rapid oscillations between organic accumulation and mineral input reveal greater hydroclimatic variability. Comparison with regional records suggests that Minas Corral responded to large-scale Andean climate forcing, while local ecohydrological buffering modulated the magnitude and expression of these changes. This record demonstrates that high-elevation peatlands preserve coupled signals of carbon accumulation, catchment processes, and long-term hydroclimate, supporting their value for paleoenvironmental reconstruction and for understanding the vulnerability of Andean carbon stores to ongoing climate change.