Formation and early history of Lakes Pepin and St. Croix of the upper Mississippi River

Study of Lake Pepin and Lake St. Croix began more than a century ago, but new information has permitted a closer look at the geologic history of these two riverine lakes located on the upper Mississippi River system. Drainages from large proglacial lakes Agassiz and Duluth at the end of the last glaciation helped shape the current valleys. As high-discharge outlet waters receded, tributary streams deposited fans of sediment in the incised river valleys. These tributary fans dammed the main river, forming riverine lakes. Lake Pepin was previously thought to be a single long continuous lake, extending for 80 km from its dam at the Chippewa River fan all the way up to St. Paul, with an arm extending up the St. Croix valley. Recent borings taken at bridge and dam locations show more than a single section of lake sediments, indicating a more complex history. The Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers did not always follow their current paths. Valleys cut into bedrock but now buried by glacial sediment indicate former river courses, with the most recent of these from the last interglacial period marked at the surface by chains of lakes. The morphology of the Mississippi valley bottom, and thus the morphology of Lake Pepin as it filled the valley, is reflect in part by the existence of these old valleys but also by the presence of glacial outwash terraces and the alluvial fans of tributary streams. A sediment core taken in Lake Pepin near Lake City had a piece of wood in gravels just below lake sediments that dated to 10.3 ka cal. BP, indicating that the lake formed as the Chippewa River fan grew shortly after the floodwaters of Lakes Agassiz and Duluth receded. Data from new borings indicate small lakes were dammed behind several tributary fans in the Mississippi River valley between the modern Lake Pepin and St. Paul. One tributary lake, here called Early Lake Vermillion, may have hydraulically dammed the St. Croix River, creating an incipient Lake St. Croix. The tributary fans from the Vermillion River, the Cannon River, and the Chippewa River all served to segment the main river valley into a series of riverine lakes. Later the growth of the Chippewa fan surpassed that of the Vermillion and Cannon fans to create a single large lake, here called late Lake Pepin, which extended upstream to St. Paul. Sediment cores taken from Lake Pepin did not have significant organic matter to develop a chronology from radiocarbon dating. Rather, magnetic features were matched with those from a Lake St. Croix core, which did have a known radiocarbon chronology. The Pepin delta migration rate was then estimated by projecting the elevations of the top of the buried lake sediments to the dated Lake Pepin core, using an estimated slope of 10 cm/km, the current slope of Lake Pepin sediment surface. By these approximations, the Lake Pepin delta prograded past Hastings 6.0 ka cal BP and Red Wing 1.4 ka cal BP. This is one of eight papers dedicated to the “Recent Environmental History of the Upper Mississippi River” published in this special issue of the Journal of Paleolimnology. D. R. Engstrom served as guest editor of the special issue.     

A sediment record of trace metal loadings in the Upper Mississippi River

Sediment cores from Lake Pepin, a natural lake on the Upper Mississippi River, reveal the historical trends in trace metal use and discharge in the watershed. Lead-210 dated concentration profiles of trace metals (Ag, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Pb, V, Zn) in sediment cores from throughout the lake generally showed low and stable concentrations prior to settlement (circa 1830), peak concentrations between 1940 and 1975, and substantial decreases thereafter. Whole-lake sediment accumulation rates increased greatly over the period of record, from 79,000 metric tons year⁻¹ prior to 1830, to 876,000 metric tons year⁻¹ during the 1990s. Whole-lake accumulation rates of most trace metals peaked in the 1960s but decreased sharply after that. Sediment and trace metal accumulation rates decreased in the downstream direction, and approximately two-thirds of the sediment and trace metal mass accumulated in Lake Pepin since 1800 was deposited in the upper 30% (by area) of the lake. The dramatic declines in trace metal concentrations and accumulation rates in Lake Pepin sediments since 1970 coincide with increased pollution control and prevention efforts throughout the watershed, including the implementation of secondary treatment at a large municipal wastewater treatment plant upstream. This is one of eight papers dedicated to the “Recent Environmental History of the Upper Mississippi River” published in this special issue of the Journal of Paleolimnology. D.R. Engstrom served as guest editor of the special issue.     

Historical changes in sediment and phosphorus loading to the upper Mississippi River: mass-balance reconstructions from the sediments of Lake Pepin

Long-term changes in sediment and phosphorus loading to the upper Mississippi River were quantified from an array of 25 sediment cores from Lake Pepin, a large natural impoundment downstream of the Minneapolis-St Paul metropolitan area. Cores were dated and stratigraphically correlated using ²¹⁰Pb, ¹³⁷Cs, ¹⁴C, magnetic susceptibility, pollen analysis, and loss-on-ignition. All cores show a dramatic increase in sediment accumulation beginning with European settlement in 1830. Accumulation rates are highest and show the greatest post-settlement increases in the upper end of the lake. Present-day sediment-phosphorus concentrations are roughly twice those of pre-settlement times, and the Fe/Al-bound fraction makes up a greater portion of the total. Diatom assemblages record a marked increase in nutrient availability over the last 200 years, changing from clear-water benthic forms and mesotrophic planktonic taxa in pre-settlement times to exclusively planktonic assemblages characteristic of highly eutrophic conditions today. Lake-water total-phosphorus concentrations, estimated by weighted averaging regression and calibration, increased from 50 to 200 μg l⁻¹ during this period. Sediment loading to Lake Pepin from the Mississippi River has increased by an order of magnitude since 1830. Modern fluxes are about 900,000 metric tons annually, and are more than 80% detrital mineral matter. About 17% of the lake’s volume in 1830 has been replaced by sediment, and at current accumulation rates the remainder will be filled in another 340 years. Phosphorus accumulation in Lake Pepin sediments has increased 15-fold since 1830, rising from 60 to 900 metric tons annually. This rise represents a sevenfold increase in phosphorus loading from the Mississippi River coupled with more efficient retention of phosphorus inflows by bottom sediments. More efficient trapping of phosphorus in Lake Pepin over the last century resulted from higher rates of sediment burial. The most dramatic changes in nutrient and sediment inputs to Lake Pepin have occurred since 1940, although gradual increases began shortly following European settlement. Sediment accumulation rates rose sharply between 1940 and 1970 and then leveled off, while phosphorus inflows record their largest increases after 1970. This is one of eight papers dedicated to the “Recent Environmental History of the Upper Mississippi River” published in this special issue of the Journal of Paleolimnology. D. R. Engstrom served as guest editor of the special issue.     

Historical trends affecting accumulation of sediment and phosphorus in Lake Pepin,upper Mississippi River,USA

This study was conducted to collect historical land use information that would help explain the historical patterns in accumulation of sediment and phosphorus in Lake Pepin documented by Engstrom et al. (J Paleolimnol, this issue). A wide range of historical factors including cropping systems, phosphorus applications from fertilizer and manure, human and animal populations, river flows and phosphorus discharges from waste water treatment plants were studied using statistical methods. Results showed that sediment losses from the Minnesota River basin are significantly correlated with historical increases in river flows, row crop production acreage and basin population. Total phosphorus accumulations in the sediments of Lake Pepin are significantly correlated with increased phosphorus discharges from metropolitan area wastewater treatment plants, and increases in row crop acreage and river flows. Total phosphorus inflows to Lake Pepin are significantly correlated with increases in river flows, row crop acreage and phosphorus fertilizer applied to agricultural lands. This is one of eight papers dedicated to the “Recent Environmental History of the Upper Mississippi River” published in this special issue of the Journal of Paleolimnology. D. R. Engstrom served as guest editor of the special issue.     

Historical trace metal loading to a large river recorded in the sediments of Lake St. Croix,USA

The global cycling of anthropogenic trace metals intensified during the twentieth century, impacting aquatic systems throughout the world. There are, however, few quantitative records showing the history of this contamination in large rivers. Here we present a well-dated sedimentary record of trace metal accumulation in Lake St. Croix, a natural riverine lake on the St. Croix River (Minnesota and Wisconsin, USA), revealing the history of heavy metal inputs to the river over the past 200 years. Concentrations of Hg, Pb, Ag, Cd, Cr and Zn and stable Pb isotopes were measured in eight ²¹⁰Pb-dated sediment cores collected from profundal depositional areas throughout the lake. Time trends of trace metal concentrations and accumulation rates differed greatly between the upper lake (above Valley Creek) and the lower lake, reflecting contrasting sediment sources along the flow axis of the lake. For most of the study period (1800–2000 AD), sediment deposited throughout the lake derived almost exclusively from the suspended sediment load carried by the main-stem river into the lake. From 1910 through 1970, however, large inputs of eroded soils and stream channel sediments from side-valley tributaries resulted in greatly increased sediment and trace metal accumulation in the lower lake. Anthropogenic accumulation rates of Hg, Pb, Cd, Zn, and Ag in the upper lake correlate well with those from Square Lake, a small, relatively undisturbed nearby lake that has received trace metal inputs almost exclusively via atmospheric deposition. The similarity of these records suggests that atmospheric deposition was primarily responsible for trace metal accumulation trends in upper Lake St. Croix. Trace metal accumulation in the lower lake was also strongly influenced by atmospherically derived inputs, but metal contributions from native soils were important, as well, during the period of elevated sediment inputs from side-valley tributaries. Concentrations and accumulation rates of trace metals in both upper and lower lake sediments have decreased substantially since the 1970s due to decreased atmospheric inputs and sediment loadings, but accumulation rates remain well above pre-settlement values. Metal inputs to Lake St. Croix have been far lower than those to nearby Lake Pepin, located on the Mississippi River downstream of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area, but there nevertheless remains a clear record of anthropogenic impact on the relatively pristine St. Croix River.     

A novel repeat-coring approach to reconstruct recent sediment, phosphorus, and mercury loading from the upper Mississippi River to Lake Pepin, USA

It can be advantageous to revisit coring locations in lakes years after an initial paleolimnological study is completed, to assess environmental changes in the intervening time interval. We revisited sediment core sites in Lake Pepin (Minnesota, Wisconsin) more than a decade after an original set of 10 cores was collected, dated radiometrically, and studied in 1996. Prominent magnetic susceptibility features were used to align the new core set with the older set, such that traditional radiometric dating was not necessary to obtain a chronology for the new cores. The procedure used to align the two core sets accounted for compaction of former surface sediments by burial with new sediment. The amount of new sediment, mercury, and phosphorus accumulated at each core site was determined and extrapolated to the depositional area of the lake to estimate recent (1996–2008) whole-basin loads. Recent sediment accumulation in Lake Pepin compared well (within 3%) with monitored inflow data from a gauging station on the upper Mississippi River just before it enters the lake. Bulk sediment accumulation rate remained very high (772,000 t/year) for the recent period (1996–2008), down slightly from the peak in 1990–1996 (876,000 t/year), and almost an order of magnitude above pre-settlement rates. Total phosphorus deposition remained constant since a peak in the 1960s, but was also well above pre-settlement rates. Mercury continued its precipitous decline since peaking in the 1960s.     

Geochemical reconstruction of late Holocene drainage and mixing in Kluane Lake,Yukon Territory

The level of Kluane Lake in southwest Yukon Territory, Canada, has fluctuated tens of metres during the late Holocene. Contributions of sediment from different watersheds in the basin over the past 5,000 years were inferred from the elemental geochemistry of Kluane Lake sediment cores. Elements associated with organic material and oxyhydroxides were used to reconstruct redox fluctuations in the hypolimnion of the lake. The data reveal complex relationships between climate and river discharge during the late Holocene. A period of influx of Duke River sediment coincides with a relatively warm climate around 1,300 years BP. Discharge of Slims River into Kluane Lake occurred when Kaskawulsh Glacier advanced to the present drainage divide separating flow to the Pacific Ocean via Kaskawulsh and Alsek rivers from flow to Bering Sea via tributaries of Yukon River. During periods when neither Duke nor Slims river discharged into Kluane Lake, the level of the lake was low and stable thermal stratification developed, with anoxic and eventually euxinic conditions in the hypolimnion.     

The effect of the Changjiang River on water regimes of its tributary Lake East Dongting

The blocking or reversing effect of the downstream trunk river on its tributary lakes is an essential aspect of river-lake hydraulics. To measure how and the extent to which a trunk river can influence its tributary lakes, we made a case study in Changjiang River and one of its tributary lakes, Lake East Dongting (Lake ED) during a 35-year study period (1980–2014). Specifically, we investigated Lake ED’s discharge ability into Changjiang River using stage-discharge relationship curves, and hence the changes of the lake discharge ability under different hydrologic conditions of the Changjiang River. The results show that (1) the Changjiang River does exert a huge impact on the water regimes of Lake ED. And this impact varies seasonally. A variation of 3000 m³/s in Changjiang River’s runoff would change the lake water level by about 1.1 m in dry seasons, by 0.4 m in wet seasons, and by 0.6 m during severe summer floods. (2) Changes in the Changjiang River runoff triggered by the Three Gorges Dam since 2003 have led to dramatic water regime variations in Lake ED. Other factors, including reduction of lake inflow and the lake bed erosion, also exacerbated the water regime variations in Lake ED.     

Recent water quality trends and a comparison to sediment-core records for two riverine lakes of the Upper Mississippi River basin: Lake St. Croix and Lake Pepin

Long-term water quality monitoring data from two riverine lakes in the Upper Mississippi River basin, Lakes St. Croix and Pepin, were analyzed to compare the long-term average water quality conditions and land use distributions, water quality trends and loads at lake inlets and outlets, trends from long-term versus short-term monitoring records, and the ability of paleolimnological cores to accurately infer lake water quality conditions. During the 1976–2004 period, the long-term average concentrations of nutrients, suspended solids, and chlorophyll-a were consistently lower at the Lake St. Croix inlet versus the Lake Pepin inlet, which drains a greater proportion of urban and agricultural runoff. Despite these differences, nutrient trends were similar at the inlets to both lakes; reductions in total phosphorus and ammonium concentrations were attributed to improvements in point source technologies, whereas increasing nitrate concentrations were attributed to both point source changes and nonpoint source increases. Despite improvements in several water quality variables, nitrate concentrations are increasing in both lakes, sediment trends indicate persistent nonpoint source inputs to Lake Pepin, and current total phosphorus concentrations remain well above pre-1950s levels in both lakes. Since urban development and agriculture are increasing in the Lake St. Croix and Lake Pepin Watersheds, continued point source regulation and additional nonpoint source control efforts will be needed to further improve water quality in these lakes. The 1976–2004 trends for most water quality variables were similar at inlet versus outlet sites on Lake St. Croix. Trends at Lake Pepin inlet versus outlet sites were less similar, but data availability limited the comparison to the 1993–2003 period. While the truncated data record highlighted short-term trends in both lakes, the full data record was most useful for exploring general patterns in water quality. Length of monitoring record affected our ability to detect trends at the inlets to both lakes, and altered the magnitude of detected trends. During the two decades of the 1980s and 1990s, paleolimnological estimates of retained phosphorus loads were similar to those estimated from recent water quality monitoring. These similarities support the use of paleolimnological approaches to infer past water quality conditions in Lakes St. Croix and Pepin. This is one of eight papers dedicated to the “Recent Environmental History of the Upper Mississippi River” published in this special issue of the Journal of Paleolimnology. D. R. Engstrom served as guest editor of the special issue.     

Evaluating sedimentary geochemical lake-level tracers in Walker Lake, Nevada, over the last 200 years

Walker Lake, a hydrologically closed, saline, alkaline lake located along the western margin of the Great Basin of western United States, has experienced a 77% reduction in volume and commitment drop in lake level as a result of anthropogenic perturbations and climatic fluctuations over the last century. The history of lake-level change in Walker Lake has been recorded instrumentally since 1860. A high-resolution multi-proxy sediment core record from Walker Lake has been generated through analysis of total inorganic carbon (TIC), total organic carbon (TOC), and oxygen and carbon isotope ratios (δ¹⁸O and δ¹³ C) of both downcore bulk TIC and ostracods over the last 200 yr. This allows us to examine how these sediment indices respond to actual changes in this lake’s hydrologic balance at interannual to decadal timescales. In Walker Lake sediments, changes in %TIC, %TOC, and δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O of TIC and ostracods are all associated to varying degrees with changes in the lake’s hydrologic balance, with δ¹⁸O of the TIC fraction (δ¹⁸O_TIC) being the most highly correlated and the most effective hydrologic indicator in this closed-basin lake. The δ¹⁸O_TIC record from Walker Lake nearly parallels the instrumental lake-level record back to 1860. However, comparison with sporadic lake-water δ¹⁸O and dissolved inorganic carbon δ¹³C (δ¹³C_DIC) results spanning the last several decades suggests that the isotopic values of downcore carbonate sediments may not be readily translated into absolute or even relative values of corresponding lake-water δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C_DIC. Changes in the lake’s hydrologic balance usually lead to changes in isotopic composition of lake waters and downcore sediments, but not all the variations in downcore isotopic composition are necessarily caused by hydrologic changes.     

Evidence for high water levels in the Erie basin during the Younger Dryas chronozone

A high water phase in the Lake Erie basin is identified from a variety of evidence for the period 11.0 ka to 10.5 ka. It is believed to correspond to the first Agassiz inflow to the upper Great Lakes (Main Lake Algonquin phase) when Agassiz waters discharged in both catastrophic and equilibrium modes to Lake Superior. After allowing for differential isostatic rebound, a computational model is used to estimate the lake levels in the Erie basin needed to generate Agassiz-equivalent discharges out of the basin into Lake Ontario. Computations suggest that Lake Tonawanda spillways would be re-activated by the high lake levels needed to sustain Agassiz-equivalent discharges. Existing published evidence from the Erie basin, Niagara River, and western New York (including ¹⁴C dates), is consistent with this interpretation. Additional evidence from the Niagara Peninsula (pollen spectra and geomorphology) supports the inference that extensive flooding of the southern Niagara Peninsula (Lake Wainfleet) occurred due to high water levels in the Erie basin. In the Niagara Peninsula, very shallow washover spillways would only operate when standard hydrologic variations of lake level in the Erie basin coincided with short term high levels driven by catastrophic inflows to the Great Lakes from Lake Agassiz. We support the view of Lewis & Anderson (1992) that a meltwater flux from Agassiz inflows reached Lake Erie.     

Biological and Geochemical Record of Anthropogenic Impacts in Recent Sediments from Lake Pupuke, Auckland City, New Zealand

Frozen sediment cores from Lake Pupuke in Auckland City, New Zealand, contain a high resolution decadal to annual scale record of changing lake paleoenvironments and geochemistry that reflects changing landuse and hydrology in the catchment over the past c. 190 years. A reliable chronology is available from AMS ¹⁴C and ²¹⁰Pb dating of the sediments, with the timing of the older part of the record supported by the first appearance of pollen of introduced Pinus and Plantago lanceolata associated with European settlement of Auckland in the early 1840s. Diatom stratigraphy, sediment elemental and carbon isotope geochemistry reflect changes in sediment sources and lake conditions commensurate with European development of the Lake Pupuke catchment, in particular enhanced algal productivity controlled by the influx of nutrients after c. 1920 AD. Attempts to prevent nuisance algal blooms in 1933, 1934 and 1939 using CuSO₄ addition produced Cu spikes in the sediment that allowed confirmation of the accuracy of the ²¹⁰Pb chronology. Hence, the elemental and isotopic composition of the Lake Pupuke sediments reflect the timing of significant anthropogenic activities, rather than climatic variations, that have occurred within the watershed over the past c. 190 years. The comparison of records of land use change in the catchment with the multi-proxy record of changes in the sediments usually allowed unambiguous identification of the signatures of change and their causes.     

Late Holocene paleohydrology of Kluane Lake, Yukon Territory, Canada

We have gained new insight into the dynamic late Holocene paleohydrology and paleolimnology of Kluane Lake by reconstructing lakewater δ¹⁸O using sediment cellulose as an oxygen-isotope archive. Our data suggest that the lake was regularly open hydrologically between 5000 and 1000 cal year BP, although with substantially lower water levels and with greater evaporative loss in relation to inflow than under contemporary conditions. During part of this period the lake was meromictic and may have undergone intermittent hydrologic closure, but southward drainage to the Pacific Ocean via the Alsek River system was generally maintained. Isotopic evidence confirms that Kluane Lake underwent complete hydrologic closure 430–300 cal year BP (AD 1520–1650) after a major advance of Kaskawulsh Glacier blocked southward drainage. Closure persisted as the lake overtopped the Duke River fan, initiating northward drainage to the Bering Sea via the Yukon River system. Although incision of the new outlet channel led to a rapid decline in lake level, northward discharge via the Kluane River has been maintained for the past three centuries because of abundant inflow from the Slims River. Substantial quantities of glacial meltwater and seasonal runoff continue to drain via the Slims River from Kaskawulsh Glacier and its catchment in the St. Elias Mountains. During this period Kluane River has also become an important route for migrating anadromous salmon. The modern isotope hydrology of Kluane Lake confirms that its current positive water balance is highly dependent on discharge from Slims River. Declining glacial meltwater contributions to Slims River will likely lead to lower water levels in Kluane Lake over the coming decades and possible re-establishment of intermittent or perennial hydrologic closure.     

气候变化和人类活动对鄱阳湖流域入湖输沙量影响的定量估算

采用HydroTrend水文模型,以鄱阳湖流域的赣江、抚河、信江、饶河和修水为研究对象,基于1956-2010年鄱阳湖流域气候数据、水沙数据及其他相关资料,分别模拟了5个子流域的入湖水沙通量变化。在此基础上,探讨了气候变化、植被覆盖变化和水库修建活动对输沙量变化的影响,并定量估算了上述因子对流域输沙量变化的贡献。结果表明：① 1956-2010年,气候、植被和水库三种因子影响下的流域年均输沙量分别为15.5 Mt、20.8 Mt、8.5 Mt,而三种因子共同影响下的流域年均输沙量达到12.6 Mt。② 1956-2010年,植被覆盖变化使流域年均输沙量增加4.2 Mt,而水库拦截造成流域年均输沙量减少8.2 Mt,两者分别占实际年均输沙量的32.4%和63.2%。③ 1956-1989年,植被覆盖变化导致的输沙增加量和水库修建拦截导致的输沙减少量均为5.1 Mt/a,两者对流域输沙量贡献持平;1990-2010年,水土流失加重导致的输沙增加量和水库拦截导致的输沙减少量分别为2.7 Mt/a和13.3 Mt/a,水库对入湖输沙量的影响效应是植被覆盖变化的5倍左右。     

Limnological and Climatic Environments at Upper Klamath Lake, Oregon during the past 45 000 years

Upper Klamath Lake, in south-central Oregon, contains long sediment records with well-preserved diatoms and lithological variations that reflect climate-induced limnological changes. These sediment archives complement and extend high resolution terrestrial records along a north–south transect that includes areas influenced by the Aleutian Low and Subtropical High, which control both marine and continental climates in the western United States. The longest and oldest core collected in this study came from the southwest margin of the lake at Caledonia Marsh, and was dated by radiocarbon and tephrochronology to an age of about 45 ka. Paleolimnological interpretations of this core, based upon geochemical and diatom analyses, have been augmented by data from a short core collected from open water environments at nearby Howards Bay and from a 9-m core extending to 15 ka raised from the center of the northwestern part of Upper Klamath Lake. Pre- and full-glacial intervals of the Caledonia Marsh core are characterized and dominated by lithic detrital material. Planktic diatom taxa characteristic of cold-water habitats (Aulacoseira subarctica and A. islandica) alternate with warm-water planktic diatoms (A. ambigua) between 45 and 23 ka, documenting climate changes at millennial scales during oxygen isotope stage (OIS) 3. The full-glacial interval contains mostly cold-water planktic, benthic, and reworked Pliocene lacustrine diatoms (from the surrounding Yonna Formation) that document shallow water conditions in a cold, windy environment. After 15 ka, diatom productivity increased. Organic carbon and biogenic silica became significant sediment components and diatoms that live in the lake today, indicative of warm, eutrophic water, became prominent. Lake levels fell during the mid-Holocene and marsh environments extended over the core site. This interval is characterized by high levels of organic carbon from emergent aquatic vegetation (Scirpus) and by the Mazama ash (7.55 ka), generated by the eruption that created nearby Crater Lake. For a brief time the ash increased the salinity of Upper Klamath Lake. High concentrations of molybdenum, arsenic, and vanadium indicate that Caledonia Marsh was anoxic from about 7 to 5 ka. After the mid-Holocene, shallow, but open-water environments returned to the core site. The sediments became dominated (>80%) by biogenic silica. The open-water cores show analogous but less extreme limnological and climatic changes more typical of mid-lake environments. Millennial-scale lake and climate changes during OIS 3 at Upper Klamath Lake contrast with a similar record of variation at Owens Lake, about 750 km south. When Upper Klamath Lake experienced cold-climate episodes during OIS 3, Owens Lake had warm but wet episodes; the reverse occurred during warmer intervals at Upper Klamath Lake. Such climatic alternations apparently reflect the variable position and strength of the Aleutian Low during the mid-Wisconsin.     

Holocene lake-level fluctuations and beach-ridge development along the northern shore of Lake Michigan, USA

Geomorphology of a beach-ridge complex and adjacent lake basins along the northern shore of Lake Michigan records fluctuations in the level of Lake Michigan for the last 8000 to 10 000 ¹⁴C yr B.P. (radiocarbon years Before Present). A storm berm at 204.7–206 m (671.6–675.9 ft) exposed in a sandpit provides evidence of a pre-Chippewa Low lake level that is correlated with dropping water levels of Glacial Lake Algonquin (c. 10 300–10 100 ¹⁴C yr B.P.). Radiocarbon dates from organic material exposed in a river cutbank and basal sediments from Elbow Lake, Mackinac Co., Michigan, indicate a maximum age of a highstand of Lake Michigan at 6900 ¹⁴C yr B.P., which reached as high as 196.7 m (645 ft), during the early-Nipissing transgression of Lake Michigan. Basal radiocarbon dates from beach swales and a second lake site (Beaverhouse Lake, Mackinac Co.) provide geomorphic evidence for a subsequent highstand which reached 192.6 m (632 ft) at 5390±70 ¹⁴C yr B.P.Basal radiocarbon dates from a transect of sediment cores, along with tree-ring data, and General Land Office Surveyor notes of a shipwreck, c. A.D. 1846, reveal a late-Holocene rate for isostatic rebound of 22.6 cm/100 radiocarbon years (0.74 ft/100 radiocarbon years) for the northern shore of Lake Michigan, relative to the Lake Michigan-Lake Huron outlet at Port Huron, Michigan. Changes in sediment stratigraphy, inter-ridge distance, and sediment accumulation rates document a mid- to late-Holocene retreat of the shoreline due to isostatic rebound. This regression sequence was punctuated by brief, periodic highstands, resulting in progressive development over the past 5400 ¹⁴C yr of 75 pairs of dune ridges and swales each formed over an interval of approximately 72 years. Times of lake-level fluctuation were identified at 3900, 3200, and 1000 ¹⁴C yr B.P. based on changes in inter-ridge spacing, shifts in the course of Millecoquins River, and reorientation of beach-ridge lineation. Soil type, dune development, and selected pollen data provide supporting evidence for this chronology. Late-Holocene beach-ridge development and lake-level fluctuations are related to a retreat of the dominant Pacific airmass and the convergence of the Arctic and Tropical airmasses resulting in predominantly meridional rather than zonal air flow across the Great Lakes region.This is the 13th in a series of papers published in this special AMQUA issue. These papers were presented at the 1994 meeting of the American Quaternary Association held 19–22 June, 1994, at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Dr Linda C. K. Shane served as guest editor for these papers.     

Ostracode δ18O and δ13C evidence of Holocene environmental changes in the sediments of two Minnesota lakes

Stable oxygen and carbon isotope geochemistry of ostracode valves, abundance and assemblages of ostracode species, and sedimentological parameters from cores taken in Williams and Shingobee Lakes in north-central Minnesota show changes in climatic and hydrologic history during the Holocene. Isotopic records are consistent with the following scenario:Before 9800 yr B.P. the two lakes were connected. Increasing evaporation through the jack/red pine period (9800-7700 yr B.P.) led to lower lake levels, leaving small separated basins. The prairie period (7700-4000 yr B.P.) reflects high aridity, and lake levels reached low stands shortly before 6500 yr B.P. Low lake levels are associated with groundwater discharge between 6500 and 6000 yr B.P. The hardwood period (4000-3200 yr B.P.) corresponds to long cold winters and warm to cool summers with lower evaporation rates and slower sedimentation. During the white pine period (<3200 yr B.P.) evaporation increased and/or precipitation shifted to the summer months.These changes can be related to shifting atmospheric circulation patterns. Zonal flow was probably dominant during the early Holocene until the end of the prairie period (c. 4000 yr B.P.). During the hardwood period a combination of zonal and meridional flow patterns caused long and cold winters and wetter summers. During the white pine period wintners were shorter and the meridional flow pattern more significant. Today meridional flow dominates the circulation pattern.This is the 6th in a series of papers published in this special AMQUA issue. These papers were presented at the 1994 meeting of the American Quaternary Association held 19–22 June, 1994, at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Dr Linda C. K. Shane served as guest editor for these papers.     

猪野泽中全新世干旱事件时空范围和机制

以亚洲季风边缘区石羊河流域终端湖猪野泽为例,结合最新的沉积物年代、岩性、指标及古湖泊岸堤研究结果,从时间和空间尺度上探讨了猪野泽中全新世干旱事件时空范围和机制。从空间上对比了猪野泽中全新世地貌及沉积物岩性和指标,并配合石羊河中、上游地区的中全新世沉积剖面进行研究。在时间尺度上分析了猪野泽和石羊河流域近百个全新世测年结果,最终得出猪野泽地区在8.0~7.0 cal ka B.P.期间存在百年尺度的干旱事件,而不是以前研究提出的距今7000~5000日历年期间2000 a尺度的干旱事件,并且这次极端干旱事件影响范围主要在石羊河中、下游地区,对石羊河上游地区影响较小。根据时空尺度分析对猪野泽中全新世干旱事件机制进行讨论,结果表明这次干旱事件主要是由流域气候条件特征和水热配比改变所引起的,而不是以前研究提出的亚洲夏季风减弱导致。     

共和盆地末次冰消期以来的植被和环境演变

在青藏高原共和盆地中的内陆湖泊--达连海获取40.92 m长的湖泊岩芯(DLH钻孔),选用植物残体作为测年材料,利用AMS14C测年技术建立可靠的地层年代序列,对岩芯进行孢粉分析,重建该地末次冰消期以来的古植被和古环境。末次冰消期以来达连海周围山地在14.8～12.9Cal ka BP和9.4～3.9 Cal ka BP时段曾发育森林,气候较湿润,达连海附近盆地发育的荒漠草原盖度增加或演化为草原;在15.8～14.8 Cal ka BP、12.9～9.4 Cal ka BP 和3.9～1.4 Cal ka BP 时段该地气候比较干旱,依据干旱的程度周围山地森林退化或消失,盆地内发育盖度较低的荒漠草原或草原化荒漠。1.4 Cal ka BP以来湿度有所增加,发育草原植被类型。依据植被的演替历史推断该地气候的变化历程是15.8～14.8 Cal ka BP 干旱,14.8～12.9 Cal ka BP 湿润,12.9～9.4 Cal ka BP干旱,9.4～3.9 Cal ka BP湿润,3.9～1.4 Cal ka BP干旱,1.4～0 Cal ka BP湿润。达连海的孢粉记录与附近青海湖的孢粉结果对比,发现两地植被发育基本一致。末次冰消期Bølling-Allerød 时期,山地森林发育;新仙女木事件发生时森林萎缩;全新世中期两地针叶林发育达到鼎盛,之后逐渐减少至消失。早全新世达连海森林扩张的时间滞后于青海湖,主要与两地森林树种的不同和植被演替的时间差异有关。该区森林发育的全盛时期在中全新世,这与石笋记录到的亚洲季风强盛时期在早全新世不相一致,可能与植被复杂的响应机制有关。     

Natural and anthropogenic aquatic environmental changes reconstructed by paleolimnological analyses in Lake Kitaura,central Japan

In order to assess the recent anthropogenic environmental changes in Lake Kitaura, central Japan, changes during the past few centuries were reconstructed from results of radiometric and tephrochlonological age determination, magnetic susceptibility measurements, total organic carbon analyses, total nitrogen analyses and fossil diatom analyses on a sediment core from the lake. A total of six major and sub-zones are recognized according to the diatom fossil assemblages, and we discuss aquatic environmental change in Lake Kitaura mainly based on these diatom assemblage change. Zone Ia and Zone Ib (older than AD 1707) are marine to brackish. In Zone IIa (AD␣1707–AD 1836), most of the brackish diatoms disappeared, and were replaced by freshwater species indicating a decrease in salinity. We interpret the salinity decrease in Zone I–IIa as a sea-level fall during the Little Ice Age. The salinity of the lake decreased to near freshwater conditions in Zone IIb (AD 1836–AD 1970), which could arise from alteration in River Tone or development of a sandspit in the mouth of River Tone in addition to sea-level change. In Zone IIIa (AD 1970–AD 1987), the diatom assemblage indicates a freshwater environment, and sedimentation rates increase rapidly. These changes reflect sedimentary environment change and an ecosystem transition due to the construction of the tide gate. In Zone IIIb (AD 1987–AD 2002), the diatom flux (valves cm⁻² y⁻¹) increased and species composition changed. The changes in Zone IIIb show a good agreement with limnological monitoring data gathered from the lake. These paleolimnological data suggest that the recent human-induced changes of the aquatic environment of the lake after the 1970s exceed rates during the period concerned in this study.