What was done
Sixteen sediment cores from Western Lake, Florida (30°19'31"N, 86°09'12"W) were analyzed to produce a proxy record for intense hurricane strikes for this region of the Gulf of Mexico over the past 7000 years.

What was learned
Twelve major hurricanes of category 4 or 5 intensity were found to have struck the Western Lake region over the entire length of record.  Nearly all of these events were centered around a 2400-year period between 1000 and 3400 years ago, when 11 of the 12 events were recorded.  In contrast, between 0 to 1000 and 3400 to 7000 years ago, only one and zero major hurricane strikes were recorded, respectively.  According to the authors, a probable explanation for the "remarkable increase in hurricane frequency and intensity" affecting the Florida Panhandle and the Gulf Coast after 3400 is the result of a continental-scale shift in circulation patterns causing the jet stream to shift south and the Bermuda High southwest of their earlier Holocene positions.

What it means
No catastrophic hurricane of category 4 or 5 intensity has made landfall in the Western Lake region of Florida during the observational period of the past 130 years, yet proxy data reveal that 12 such hurricanes directly impacted this area during the past 3400 years.  Such long-term studies shed important light on natural variability, demonstrating that "paleohurricane records from the past century or even the past millennium are not long enough to capture the full range of variability of catastrophic hurricane activities inherent in the Holocene climatic regime."

Consequently, the next time a major hurricane makes landfall somewhere in the world, don't give in to the climate alarmist hoopla and immediately point the finger of blame at global warming.  Such occurrences may well fall within the range of millennial-scale climate variability.  And remember, also, that from 3400 to 7000 years ago, the earth was experiencing what is known as the Holocene Maximum, the warmest period of the current interglacial.  And that 3600-year period saw zero category 4 or 5 intensity hurricanes in the Western Lake region of Florida.