黄土高原中部落叶栎林花粉组合对植被盖度的定量指示意义

基于黄土高原中部黄陵地区34个样点地表苔藓样品的孢粉分析和相应植被调查数据,阐述了落叶阔叶林顶级群落花粉组合特征及其对植被类型和物种组成的指示意义.结果显示:落叶阔叶林顶级群落花粉组合以栎属(42%)、桦属(16%)和松属(12%)等木本类型为主,不同群落间花粉组合差异较小.单个样点花粉组合与0～100m范围内植被组成存在一定差异,但与0～1000m较大空间范围内绝对植被盖度较为相近,表明表土花粉指示较大区域植被的综合信息,而不指示样点周围的植被组成.栎属、桦属和松属花粉含量与植被盖度相近;海棠(蔷薇科)和槭属等落叶阔叶属种花粉含量较低,但其对应的区域植被较高;因此,解释地层花粉组合时应考虑低代表性花粉类型蕴含的植被信息.根据获得的主要属种花粉-植被数量关系,尝试重建了黄土高原东北部公海湖区中全新世(距今7300～5000年)时期的区域植被组成,该时段湖区应发育以栎属为建群种的落叶阔叶林顶级群落.     

长江中游网湖百年花粉序列及其沉积动力和环境特征

本文研究长江中游网湖钻孔百年来的花粉沉积序列,分析花粉沉积近、现代过程以及其与沉积粒度、过去百年湖泊由开放水系到封闭湖泊的气候、水文动力变化的关系.研究表明,花粉浓度、类型与沉积粒度的变化特征以及聚类分析反映出网湖经历了湖泊水系通江与封闭两个重大阶段变化,其花粉序列变化与沉积粒度、区域降水以及长江流量在时间序列上也具有显著的相关性.主要孢粉类型,包括陆生松属、常绿栎/落叶栎、乔灌木花粉、湿生莎草科、水生和陆生草本花粉、以及蕨类孢子,与沉积物粒度和降水具有同步相关的年份占过去130年的27%-40%,与1960年湖泊封闭以前长江流量的同步相关达到47%-57%,反映出花粉沉积量的变化受到了沉积粒径和流域降水量的影响.花粉类型对沉积和气候具有不同的响应关系,表现出具有大于降水70百分点年份以粘土沉积为主、乔灌木花粉占优的多水年模式,和小于降水30百分点的年份以粉砂沉积为主、水生、湿生、陆生草类花粉增加的少水年模式.花粉沉积与水动力这个关系为认识湖泊碎屑和利用花粉沉积记录反演过去环境变迁、生物湖泊沉积机制提供科学依据.     

中国花粉R值特征

建立现代孢粉-植被定量关系是第四纪孢粉学研究的热点和难点. R值计算简单、表征直接,是校正现代孢粉和植被非线性关系的一种传统指标.本文基于中国1987～2021年发表的花粉R值数据,经筛选、校正和标准化等处理,建立了中国花粉R值数据集,包含了898个现代花粉采样点和2115条花粉R值数据,涵盖了152个花粉类群,分属于65科、113属.集成分析中国花粉R值特征,结果表明:(1)在宏观空间尺度上证实了基于样点尺度的传统认知,中国花粉R值整体变异性大,约2/3呈低代表性,如杉科(Taxodiaceae)、榛属(Corylus)、白刺属(Nitraria)、柽柳属(Tamarix)、莎草科(Cyperaceae)、禾本科(Poaceae)、豆科(Fabaceae), 1/3呈超代表性,如松属(Pinus)、云杉属(Picea)、桦木属(Betula)、麻黄属(Ephedra)、藜科(Chenopodiaceae)、蒿属(Artemisia),且低代表性较强,超代表性较弱;而栗属(Castanea)、栎属(Quercus)、蓼科(Polygonaceae)、菊科(Asteraceae)花粉代表...     

中国北方几种主要花粉类型与植被定量关系

为了解中国北方典型植被类型表土主要花粉类型与植被间的数量关系, 通过205个表土样品分析与植物样方植被调查结果显示: 不同生态类型植被的花粉组合差别明显, 温带落叶阔叶林中乔木花粉多大于30%; 温带草原花粉组合中草本花粉一般高于90%, 其中蒿属、藜科是最主要的花粉类型, 蒿属一般高于30%; 荒漠植被孢粉组合中藜科花粉百分比一般大于蒿属, 蕨类孢子较少出现; 亚高山或高寒草甸花粉组合中莎草科花粉百分比多大于20%. 花粉百分比与植被盖度间关系研究表明: 多数乔木花粉与植被盖度间表现出较好的相关性, 灌木花粉表现出一定的相关性, 草本花粉相关性较差. 乔木花粉中以云杉属花粉与植被盖度相关性最好; 其次为栎属和鹅耳枥属; 桦属、落叶松属、胡桃属花粉与植被盖度间也具有较好的相关性, 桦属花粉为超代表性类型, 桦林中桦属花粉高于40%; 落叶松属和胡桃属花粉为低代表性类型, 花粉含量超过10%, 可肯定当地有落叶松或胡桃林; 松属花粉与植被盖度间有一定的相关性, 为超代表性类型, 只有松花粉含量高于30%以上时, 周围才有可能有松林存在; 榆或杨属花粉与植被盖度的相关系数较 低, 当这两种植物与其他乔木混生时, 花粉不易被记录到, 但只要花粉含量超过1%, 周围存在该植物的可能性很大. 灌木花粉中, 以荆条与植被盖度关系最密切; 其次为榛属、柽柳及白刺, 这些植物不出现时, 花粉百分比一般小于1%; 锦鸡儿和绣线菊花粉与植被盖度有一定的相关性; 蔷薇科、虎耳草属花粉与植被盖度关系不明显. 草本花粉中, 莎草科花粉与植被盖度关系最密切, 当莎草科占优势时(盖度高于30%), 随盖度的增大, 花粉百分比增高, 植被盖度低于30%时, 花粉百分比多低于5%; 蒿属和藜科花粉含量主要与所在区域有关; 禾本科、豆科、菊科与植被盖度关系不明显.     

中国东北表土花粉组合特征及其在古气候重建中的意义

中国东北地区位于东亚夏季风影响范围的北界,是研究东亚夏季风强弱变化的理想区域.东北地区现代花粉数据的缺乏阻碍了该地区化石花粉记录的解译及古植被、古气候的定量重建.文章选取中国东北地区西部的森林、典型草原及草甸草原内共44个样点开展现代花粉与植被、气候关系的研究.聚类分析、指示值法和主成分分析被用于研究花粉数据的间断分布和连续变化趋势;相关分析与增强回归树分析用于确定主要的气候解释变量,而协惯量分析、冗余分析分别用于探查花粉-植被、花粉-气候的关系.研究结果表明:(1)表土花粉谱能够很好的代表植被类型.森林植被以高含量的乔木花粉(70%)为特征,桦属为优势类群(含量40%),并伴有一定数量的桤木属、落叶松属、松属等花粉;而典型草原则以草本花粉为主(80%),以蒿属、藜科花粉占优势;(2)花粉组合与年均温度、年均降水的相关性显著,表明花粉组合可用于指示东北地区温度和降水量变化;(3)蒿属/藜科比值、乔木/非乔木花粉比值在东北地区可分别作为湿度、温度的良好代用指标.     

中国新疆南部地区表土孢粉与现代植被

应用现代孢粉与其植被相关性的研究可以提高利用化石孢粉资料进行古环境重建的精度.本研究在对新疆天山以南和昆仑山以北(34°00′～43°00′N, 74°00′～94°00′E,海拔888～4530m)广大地区进行植被样方调查的基础上,共采集188个表土样品进行孢粉分析,从而对新疆南部地区表土孢粉与植被间关系进行研究,结果表明:沿海拔(3530～1124m)天山南坡地区的表土孢粉组合带从高至低依次分为山地草原带、山地荒漠草原带和山地荒漠带,其组合均以蒿属、藜科和麻黄属花粉为主;沿海拔(4530～1287m)东帕米尔高原地区的表土孢粉组合可划分为高寒草原带、山地荒漠草原带和山地荒漠带,是以蒿属、藜科和菊科花粉为主;然而,塔里木盆地南部地区(海拔3548～888m)仅有山地荒漠草原带和山地荒漠带,其孢粉组合则是以藜科和蒿属花粉为主.应用ArcGIS展示孢粉样点的地理分布,结合R值计算以及相关分析,结果表明云杉属和松属花粉因受到风、河流或冰川搬运沉积的影响,多为外来花粉,具超代表性.麻黄属和白刺属花粉主要分布在山地荒漠和山地荒漠草原植被带;藜科和蒿属花粉广泛分布于新疆南部地区,它们均属于超代表...     

湖泊沉积物粒度分析前处理过程中絮凝现象的消除方法研究

采用激光粒度仪对湖泊沉积物进行粒度分析时需要进行必要的前处理.在有效去除有机质与碳酸盐颗粒的同时,需要消除细粒泥沙质样品中絮凝现象对粒度分析结果造成的误差或错误.本文以武汉三角湖表层沉积物样品为例,采用X射线粉晶衍射(XRD)对其矿物组成和粘土矿物种属进行鉴定,并采用全自动激光粒度仪对样品进行粒度分析.X射线粉晶衍射结果表明样品中非粘土矿物主要为石英与长石,粘土矿物以伊利石、高岭石、绿泥石为主;粒度分析结果显示样品中小于30μm组分占94.5%.这些特征表明该样品易于在前处理过程中形成絮凝.本次研究采用单因素寻优法探讨了超声震荡、分散剂、洗酸对于以伊利石、高岭石、绿泥石为主、平均粒径较小的样品消除絮凝现象的最佳条件.研究结果表明,针对此类样品消除絮凝现象的最佳条件为:超声震荡时间应选择6~8 min,分散剂浓度为20 g/L左右,同时在粒度分析之前需要对样品进行洗酸.     

中国北方典型草原区花粉产量及其定量重建古植被的作用

基于中国北方典型草原区30个样点现代孢粉分析和植被调查,研究估算了常见花粉类型的相对花粉产量,并将估算结果应用于全新世以来的古植被定量重建．典型草原区现代花粉组合以蒿属、藜科、禾本科、莎草科和菊科等草本植物花粉为主,与草原区植物群落较一致．中国北方典型草原区上述五种主要花粉类型和常见花粉类型（唐松草属、鸢尾科、委陵菜属、麻黄属、十字花科和榆属）的风力传播能力强,相对花粉源1000m左右（以表土样品取样范围为沉积盆地半径,0．5m）,且基本不受风速影响．榆属、蒿属、十字花科和藜科植物花粉产量最高,唐松草属植物花粉产量较高,而菊科和鸢尾科植物花粉产量较低,禾本科、莎草科、委陵菜属和麻黄属植物花粉产量适中．相对花粉产量检验表明：多数花粉类型相对花粉产量结果可信;但菊科和鸢尾科相对花粉产量被显著低估,禾本科、藜科、麻黄属相对花粉产量被高估或低估,利用相对花粉产量定量重建古植被时应谨慎．依据花粉产量定量重建的植被演替表明,现在的中国北方典型草原区6500—5600cal．aBP之前为以禾本科、莎草科和蒿属植物为主的草甸草原,之后逐渐演变为现在的典型草原．     

两种激光粒度仪测量湖泊沉积物粒度结果的对比

湖泊沉积物粒度参数是湖泊沉积与环境演变研究中常用的环境指标,近年来激光粒度仪的发展和广泛使用更是促进了粒度指标的应用并在很大程度上提高了精度和效率.然而不同的激光粒度仪对于同一样品的测量会得到不同的结果,本文利用两种常见的激光粒度仪测量了西藏纳木错的两支岩芯,并对结果进行了对比分析.从仪器的重现性来看,Mastersizer2000型激光粒度仪要优于LS13320型激光粒度仪,而LS13320型激光粒度仪在对含量较少的细颗粒和粗颗粒的检测效果上优于Mastersizer2000型激光粒度仪;两种仪器得到的粒度参数d(0.1)和d(0.5)无论在变化趋势还是绝对数值上都较为相似,而d(0.9)的差异则较大.对比研究结果为利用湖泊沉积物粒度参数提取古环境信息研究提供了基础依据.     

南海现代花粉传播动力与途径在南北海域的差异

根据南海海底表层沉积物中所含孢子花粉数量分布格局阐明孢粉的来源.传播动力及途径,并发现南北海域存在的巨大差异.北部海域以飞翔能力强的松属花粉及飘浮能力强的蕨类孢子占优势.花粉数量的最高浓度出现在台湾海峡及巴士海峡入口处,向西南方向递减,分布格局与冬季的东北风及由它所驱动的洋流方向一致,可见冬季风及洋流为花粉传播的主要动力 花粉源区可能相当广阔,不仅包括北部海域毗临的大陆及岛屿,可能还包括东部沿海地区.另一类个体小,密度大的花粉类型,如栎属及大多数热带亚热带植物花粉,它们的数量由沿岸向深海逐渐下降,表明河流及沿岸流可能为花粉传播的主要动力.南部海域几乎所有花粉类型均由沿岸向深海递减,说明河流及沿岸流为花粉传播主要动力.花粉主要来源于南部岛屿,如加里曼丹.     

High-resolution OSL chronology of a well-preserved inland dune in the Lys valley (Sint-Martens-Latem,NW Belgium)

The inland dune “Molenberg” (Lys valley, NW Belgium) is an exceptionally well-preserved dune of more than 10 m high. To determine the phases of dune formation and identify possible levels for human occupation, this dune was sampled at closely spaced vertical intervals for Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating (every 50 cm) and grain-size analysis (intervals of 10–25 cm) over its entire depth, including the top of the underlying sediments. The resulting ages show dune formation during the late glacial period (GI-1 and GS-1), with a probable extensive deposition during the Allerød (GI-1a-c) and Younger Dryas (GS-1). Interestingly, the OSL dataset for the main body of the dune shows significant cyclical age inversions that may be caused by reworking of sediment causing incomplete bleaching of sand grains. This may further indicate the potential of high-sampling resolution OSL to contribute to the reconstruction of complex dune dynamics.     

Grain size along two gravel-bed rivers: statistical variation,spatial pattern and sedimentary links

A new set of field data facilitates a detailed analysis of variations in bed material grain size within two confluent gravel-bed rivers in northeastern British Columbia, Canada. A preliminary assessment of grain-size variability establishes a basis for examination of the spatial pattern of grain-size change. Standard ANOVA techniques are inappropriate because individual samples have unequal variances and are not normally distributed. Alternative tests for homoscedasticity and comparison of means are therefore utilized. Within-site, between-sample variability is not significant. The grain-size distributions that were obtained at individual sites are therefore representative of the depositional environments that were sampled. In both rivers mean grain size does vary significantly between sites and there is therefore a basis for examining the data for spatial patterns such as downstream fining. Textural variations along the two rivers studied here are complex and show negligible overall fining (in over 100 km). This is the consequence of a large number of tributary inputs and non-alluvial sediment sources which are the legacy of Late Pleistocene glaciation. The identification of lateral sources like these is fundamental for understanding textural changes within rivers. The sedimentary link (a channel reach between significant lateral sediment inputs) provides a means of isolating fluvial maturation processes (abrasion and sorting) from contingent lateral inputs. Strong fining trends are apparent in most links and classification of grain-size measurements according to their location within particular links greatly improves the statistical explanation of textural variation. Identification of sedimentary links provides a means of applying models of fluvial fining processes, so isolation of link networks will aid the development of basin-scale models of textural variation. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

内蒙古东乌珠穆沁旗乌拉盖高毕湖泊沉积记录的5万年来环境演变

中国北方季风边缘区的湖泊对环境的反应很敏感,乌拉盖高毕是位于内蒙古高原东北部的一个已干涸的内陆封闭湖泊.研究剖面总厚度为405 cm,根据取得的9个AMS¹⁴C及光释光测年数据,建立了51.9 ka BP以来的年代序列.结合岩性的变化、粒度组分分析、粒度参数(标准偏差、偏度、峰度等)及Rb/Sr比值特征进行了详细的分析,恢复了乌拉盖高毕湖泊沉积记录的5万年来的环境演化过程.将0~405 cm的剖面划分为4个较大的气候阶段:51.9-44.1 ka BP(405~343 cm),气候为干冷期,各环境指标显示为滨湖沉积,湖泊水位较低;44.1-28.5 ka BP(343~130 cm),气候为温湿期,湖泊逐渐扩张,湖泊水位升高;28.5-11.38 ka BP(130~35 cm),气候转冷,湖面萎缩,并在盛冰期出现砂楔,该阶段后期湖泊干涸;11.38 ka BP至今(35~0 cm),气温回升.     

蒸发和环流因素对湖泊演化的影响——河西走廊猪野泽不同位置全新世沉积物古环境意义探讨

湖泊不同位置沉积物重建的古环境变化过程往往具有差异,而这种差异可能揭示了不同的古环境信息.本文以河西走廊石羊河流域终端湖泊猪野泽为例,探讨湖泊不同位置沉积物所代表的古环境意义.位于湖盆边缘的三角城剖面可能反映了石羊河上游地区的降水及其古径流量的变化,这种变化在千年尺度上对应了北大西洋Bond事件,显示该区域通过季风环流系统与全球气候系统的联系.位于湖泊中部的QTH01、QTH02、QTL-03剖面反映了湖泊演化的信息,显示中全新世期间(约7.0-约3.5 cal ka BP)湖泊水位较高的特征,但是这种特征并不能和该流域的古径流相联系,说明该区域湖泊演化除了受千年尺度大气环流特征的影响外,湖泊表面蒸发可能也起了重要作用.该研究为中亚地区普遍存在的中全新世高湖面问题提供了研究思路.     

Sediment variability and bed material sampling in gravel-bed rivers

In a 350 m wide reach of the braided, gravel-bed Ashley River, the surface layer of the bed material was sampled in 141 areas of homogeneous graded sediment along seven cross-sections, and 30 kg bulk samples were collected at 86 randomly selected locations along the cross-sections. At one location, a single 854 kg sample composed of 28 subsamples was also collected. Analysis of the single large sample indicate that accurate determination of mean grain size D at that site requires, desirably, a sample of ～ 100 kg, but that samples in which the weight of the largest stone is less than 5 per cent of the total weight have unbiased estimates of D. Spatial variability of bulk material is such that 228 and 50 samples are needed to estimate D to ± 10 and ± 20 per cent respectively of the true value; requirements for estimating inclusive graphic standard duration are only 11 and 3 respectively. The grain-size distribution of the surface layer is only weakly related to the bulk material beneath. The results of ‘Wolman sampling’ along 12 cross-sections at two pace intervals (average 120 stones per cross-section) indicate that estimation of overall surface D to ±10 and ±20 per cent would require sampling along 64 and 14 cross-sections respectively. It is concluded that accurate characterization of bed sediment in gravel-bed rivers is very demanding of labour and resources, and that careful planning is needed to ensure efficiency and meaningful results.     

Decadal to millennial-scale periodicities in North Iceland shelf sediments over the last 12 000 cal yr: long-term North Atlantic oceanographic variability and solar forcing

Giant piston core MD99-2269 recovered 25 m of sediment in Hunáfloáall, a deep trough on the North Iceland margin fronting the Iceland Sea, and the site of a shelf sediment drift. The rate of sediment accumulation is 2 m/kyr (5 yr/cm); the core terminated in the Vedde tephra (12 cal ka). The sediment was sampled at between 5 and 50 yr/sample, including rock magnetic, grain-size, and sediment properties. Data reduction was carried out using principal component analysis. Two PC axes for the 5-yr/sample magnetic data are strongly correlated with measures of coercivity (ARM_{20 mT}/ARM) and magnetic concentrations (kARM). In turn ARM_{20 mT}/ARM is highly correlated (negatively) with grain-size and the mean size of the sortable silt fraction. Analyses of the two PC axes with MTM spectral methods indicate a series of significant (>99%) periodicities at millennial to multidecadal scales, including those at 200, 125, and 88 yr which are associated with solar variability. We also document a strong correlation between the sediment magnetic properties and the ∂¹⁸O on benthic foraminifera on the North Iceland inner shelf. We hypothesize that the links between variations in grain-size, magnetic concentrations, and solar forcing are controlled by atmospheric and oceanographic changes linked to changes in the relative advection of Atlantic and polar waters along the North Iceland margin. Today these changes are associated with variations in the deep convection in the Greenland and Iceland Seas. The precise linkages are, however, presently elusive although a combination of coarser sediments and low ∂¹⁸O values define a Holocene thermal maximum between 8 and 6 cal ka.     

Flow competence: A criticism of a classic concept

The largest grains found in samples of transported sediment are commonly used to estimate flow competence. With samples from a range of flows, a relationship between the flow and the largest mobile grain can be derived and used to estimate the critical shear stress for incipient motion of the different grain sizes in the bed sediment or, inversely, to estimate the magnitude of the flow from the largest grain found in a transport sample. Because these estimates are based on an extreme value of the transport grain-size distribution, however, they are subject to large errors and are sensitive to the effect of sample size, which tends to vary widely in sediment transport samples from natural flows. Furthermore, estimates of the critical shear stress based on the largest sampled moving grain cannot be scaled in a manner that permits reasonable comparison between fractions. The degree to which sample size and scaling problems make largest-grain estimates of fractional critical shear stress deviate from a true relationship cannot be predicted exactly, although the direction of such a deviation can be demonstrated. The large errors and unknown bias suggest that the largest sampled mobile grain is not a reliable predictor of either critical shear stress or flow magnitude. It is possible to define a single flow competence for the entire mixture, based on a central value of the transport grain-size distribution. Such a measure is relatively stable, does not require between-fraction scaling, and appears to be well supported by observation.     

Bed roughness and grain sorting-an experimental study over fine to medium sand beds

The relation between grain-size distribution of the bed and in suspension was critically examined under a uniform flow velocity of 50 cm/s over two beds: one of mainly fine sands and the other of medium sands. Two sections – one 2.85 m downstream and the other 6.35 m downstream in the experimental channel-were selected for sampling to study the grain-sorting pattern in the vertical direction along the direction of transport. The shape and type of the grain-size distribution pattern were critically studied with height above the bed. The change in the distribution pattern has been attributed to the change of local bed roughness causing scouring against the protruded relatively coarse grains on the bed. Such trends are important to predict the nature of river bed topography. The sand of Bed-1 initially exhibits a log-skew-Laplace distribution at different heights of suspension. The distribution pattern, however, changes but this changing pattern is not consistent along the upstream side. For Bed-2, which initially exhibits a log-normal distribution, the same pattern persists from the height of suspension at 5 cm up to 20 cm. Such consistency in log-normality is also observed at the downstream points of measurement. It is generally expected that the mean grain-size would reduce with increases of suspension height but the results of the experiments, in some occasions, differ significantly from the gradual fining upward trend. This result has been attributed to local changes of bed roughness arising from the protruded relatively coarse grains causing eddies, scouring, and turbulent phenomena which moves coarse particles higher in suspension adding a coarse tail to the distribution increasing the mean grain-size.     

Luminescence dating without sand lenses: An application of OSL to coarse-grained alluvial fan deposits of the Lost River Range,Idaho, USA

Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating is increasingly used to estimate the age of fluvial deposits. A significant limitation, however, has been that conventional techniques of sampling and dose rate estimation are suitable only for thick (>60 cm) layers consisting of sand size or finer grains. Application of OSL dating to deposits lacking such layers remains a significant challenge. Alluvial fans along the western front of the Lost River Range in east-central Idaho, USA are one example. Deposits are typically pebble to cobble sheetflood gravels with a sandy matrix but thin to absent sand lenses. As a result, the majority of samples for this project were collected by excavating matrix material from gravelly deposits under light-safe tarps or at night. To examine the contributions of different grain-size fractions to calculated dose-rates, multiple grain-size fractions were analyzed using ICP–MS, high resolution gamma spectrometry and XRF. Dose rates from bulk sediment samples were 0.4–40% (mean of 18%) lower than dose-rate estimates from the sand-size fractions alone, illustrating the importance of representative sampling for dose rate determination. We attribute the difference to the low dose-rate contribution from radio-nuclide poor carbonate pebbles and cobbles that occur disproportionately in clast sizes larger than sand. Where possible, dose rates were based on bulk sediment samples since they integrate the dose-rate contribution from all grain sizes. Equivalent dose distributions showed little evidence for partial bleaching. However, many samples had significant kurtosis and/or overdispersion, possibly due to grain-size related microdosimetry effects, accumulation of pedogenic carbonate or post-depositional sediment mixing. Our OSL age estimates range from 4 to 120 ka, preserve stratigraphic and geomorphic order, and show good agreement with independent ages from tephra correlation and U-series dating of pedogenic carbonate. Furthermore, multiple samples from the same deposit produced ages in good agreement. This study demonstrates that with modified sampling methods and careful consideration of the dose rate, OSL dating can be successfully applied to coarse-grained deposits of climatic and tectonic significance that may be difficult to date by other methods.     

Comparison of taxon calibrations,modern analogue techniques,and forest-stand simulation models for the quantitative reconstruction of past vegetation

We compared results of three quantitative methods for reconstructing past vegetation, including (1) calibrations of per cent dominance vs. per cent pollen for individual tree taxa; (2) coefficients of dissimilarity between fossil and modern pollen assemblages; and (3) simulation modelling of long-term forest succession. For calibration, we used 1684 modern pollen samples and 1742 forest-inventory summaries from eastern North America. We applied the calibrations at 1 000-year intervals to the 19000-year pollen record from Anderson Pond, Tennessee. Dominance values reconstructed using taxon calibrations typically paralleled the changes in percentages of arboreal pollen. Dissimilarity values between fossil and modern pollen assemblages were lowest from 19 000 yr BP to 15 000 yr BP and from 9 000 yr BP to the present, indicating good modern analogues for both full-glacial and Holocene time periods. During times of good analogue, forest composition estimated from forest inventories at the locations of best pollen analogues was similar to that reconstructed using taxon calibrations. Relatively poor modern analogues exist for late glacial and early Holocene pollen spectra from Anderson Pond. During times of poor analogues, forest composition reconstructed from taxon calibrations differed from that derived from analogue methods. FORET-model simulations of forest-stand biomass differed markedly from palaeovegetation estimates made from the other two methods. This is primarily because the FORET model is scaled to forest succession on 1/12-ha forest plots rather than forest dynamics integrated over a broad landscape mosaic. Because they are based upon fundamental relationships of pollen production and dispersal, taxon calibrations provide the best available means for reconstructing forest history both during times of good and of poor analogues.