Vegetation and climate during the Weichselian Early Glacial and Pleniglacial in the Niederlausitz,eastern Germany — macrofossil and pollen evidence

Cryoturbated organic beds and channel fills, intercalated with sandy and gravelly fluvial units, have been studied in an opencast brown‐coal mine near Nochten (Niederlausitz), eastern Germany. The fluvial–aeolian sequence covers parts of the Early, Pleni‐ and Late‐glacial. The detailed chronology is based on 11 radiocarbon and 12 OSL dates, covering the period between ca. 100 kyr and 11 kyr BP. Basal peat deposits are correlated with an Early Weichselian interstadial. During this period boreal forests were present and minimum mean summer temperatures were > 13°C. Early Pleniglacial deposits are absent. The Middle and Late Pleniglacial environments were treeless and different types of tundra vegetation can be recognised. Minimum mean summer temperatures varied between 10 and 15°C. Vegetation and climate is reconstructed in detail for the periods around 34–38 kyr BP and 24–25 kyr BP. Around 34–38 ka, a mixture between a low shrub tundra and a cottongrass tussock–subshrub tundra was present. The botanical and sedimentological data suggest that from the Middle to the Late Pleniglacial, the climate became more continental, aridity and wind strength increased, and the role of a protecting winter snow cover decreased. A sedge–grass–moss tundra dominated around 24 and 25 kyr BP. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Late quaternary of the middle Caquetá River area (Colombian Amazonia)

The late Quaternary history of the middle Caquetá River area in Colombia, northwestern Amazonia is described, based on observations of river bank sections, radiocarbon dates and palynological analyses of organic layers in floodplain and low terrace sediments of the Caquetá River. It is shown that the Late Pleistocene and Holocene climatic changes that took place in the Andean Cordilleras, were related to the depositional and erosional history of the Caquetá River in the Colombian Amazonian lowlands. The low terrace sediments consist of sandy and gravelly deposits covered by clays that sometimes contain lenses of peaty material. From these organic low terrace sediments, seven finite radiocarbon dates were obtained of Middle Pleniglacial age, between 56 000 and 30 000 yr BP. The coarse textured basal deposits of the low terrace apparently stem from the early part of the Middle Pleniglaciai period, during which the effective rainfall in the Andes was relatively high and the Andean glaciers had a considerable extension. Palynological data from silty sediments with organic remains at one site, show an interval when drier and more open types of vegetation on poor soils must have covered a larger area than today, but Amazonian forest was still the dominating type of vegetation. This interval might correspond to one of the Middle Pleniglacial savanna intervals from eastern Amazonia (Carajas). No organic sediments from the Upper Pleniglacial period were found and hence radiocarbon dates were not obtained. In the Andes this period had a very cold climate with low effective rainfall and in the east Amazonian Carajas area it is characterised by the relative extension of open savanna vegetation. The river run-off and sediment transport must have been much lower than in the Middle Pleniglacial and the Caquetá River cut itself down in its own sediments. Two Late-glacial radiocarbon datings obtained at one site (ca. 12 500 yr BP) indicate the existence of a Late-glacial sedimentation phase, separated from the Holocene sequence by a minor erosional phase. Organic layers in the Holocene floodplain sediments yielded 28 radiocarbon dates between 10 000 and 355 yr BP. Holocene sedimentation started with the rapid deposition of (sandy) clay possibly in a partly permanently inundated Caquetá valley. During the major part of the Holocene (silty) clays were deposited, with a dominant seasonal inundation cycle.     

Climate control on the evolution of Late Pleistocene alluvial‐fan and aeolian sand‐sheet systems in NW Germany

The Late Pleistocene was characterized by rapid climate oscillations with alternation of warm and cold periods that lasted up to several thousand years. Although much work has been carried out on the palaeoclimate reconstruction, a direct correlation of ice‐core, marine and terrestrial records is still difficult. Here we present new data from late Middle Pleniglacial to Lateglacial alluvial‐fan and aeolian sand‐sheet deposits in northwestern Germany. Records of Late Pleniglacial alluvial fans in central Europe are very rare, and OSL dating is used to determine the timing of fan aggradation. In contrast to fluvial systems that commonly show a delay between climate change and incision/aggradation, the small alluvial‐fan systems of the Senne area responded rapidly to climatic changes and therefore act as important terrestrial climate archives for this time span. The onset of alluvial‐fan deposition correlates with the climate change from warm to cold at the end of MIS 3 (29.3±3.2 ka). Strong fan progradation started at 24.4±2.8 ka and may be related to a period of higher humidity. The vertical stacking pattern of sedimentary facies and channel styles indicate a subsequrent overall decrease in water and sediment supply, with less sustained discharges and more sporadic runoffs from the catchment area, corresponding to an increasing aridity in central Europe during the Late Pleniglacial. Major phases of channel incision and fan aggradation may have been controlled by millennial‐scale Dansgaard–Oeschger cycles. The incision of channel systems is attributed to unstable climate phases at cold–warm (dry–wet) or warm–cold (wet–dry) transitions. The alluvial‐fan deposits are bounded by an erosion surface and are overlain by aeolian sand‐sheets that were periodically affected by flash‐floods. This unconformity might be correlated with the Beuningen Gravel Bed, which is an important marker horizon in deposits of the Late Pleniglacial resulting from deflation under polar desert conditions. The deposition of aeolian sand‐sheet systems (19.6±2.1 to 13.1±1.5 ka) indicates a rapid increase in aridity at the end of the Late Pleniglacial. Intercalated flash‐floods deposits and palaeosols (Finow type) point to temporarily wet conditions during the Lateglacial. The formation of an ephemeral channel network probably marks the warm‐cold transition from the Allerød to the Younger Dryas.     

The relation of Holocene fluvial terraces to changes in climate and sediment supply,South Fork Payette River,Idaho

Well-preserved Holocene terraces along the South Fork Payette River in central Idaho provide a record of fluvial system behavior in a steep mountain watershed characterized by weathered and erodible Idaho Batholith granitic rocks. Terrace deposit ages were provided by ¹⁴C dating of charcoal fragments and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of sandy sediments. Along with pairing of many terrace tread heights, these data indicate episodic downcutting during the Holocene, with a mean incision rate of ～0.9 m/ka from ～7 ka to present. Prior to 7 ka, the river incised to within～3 m of current bankfull, but then aggraded by ～5 m over at least a ～10 km-long reach in an episode centered ～7–6 ka. Aggradation may relate to (1) increased hillslope sediment input from landslides and debris flows in steep tributary basins with abundant grussified granitic bedrock, (2) possible local landslide-damming of the channel, (3) decreased peak discharge, or (4) a combination of these factors. Middle Holocene channel aggradation ca. 7–6 ka corresponds with a period of prolonged and widespread aridity in the northern Rocky Mountains. Between ～5 and 1.3 ka, the river aggraded slightly and then remained stable, forming a prominent terrace tread at ～3 m above current bankfull. Modest aggradation to vertical stability of the South Fork Payette River at the 1.5 m terrace level ～1.0–0.7 ka corresponds with large fire-related debris flows in tributaries during Medieval droughts. Three intervals of incision (～5.5–5 ka, 1.3–1.0 ka and 0.5 ka) correspond with frequent but small fire-related sedimentation events and generally cooler, wetter conditions suggesting increased snowmelt runoff discharges. Other possible drivers of channel incision include an increase in stochastic or climate-modulated large storms and floods and a reduction in delivery of hillslope sediment to the channel. Aggradation is more confidently tied to climate through increases in hillslope sediment delivery and (or) decreased stream power, both likely related to warmer, drier conditions (including high-severity fires) that reduce snowmelt and decrease vegetation cover on steep slopes. Thus, the Holocene terraces of the South Fork Payette River do not reflect simple stepwise incision with periods of vertical stability and lateral migration, but record substantial episodes of aggradation as well. We infer that increases in hillslope erosion and mass movements combined with reduced discharges during prolonged droughts episodically reverse the post-glacial trend of downcutting, in particular during the middle Holocene. The present bedrock-dominated channel implies a strong tendency toward incision in the late Holocene.     

Terrestrial molluscan records of Weichselian Lower to Middle Pleniglacial climatic changes from the Nussloch loess series (Rhine Valley, Germany): the impact of local factors

Two malacological sequences sampled in loess sections P1 and P3 of Nussloch (Rhine Valley, Germany) provide the most complete and precise molluscan record of western Europe for the Weichselian Lower and Middle Pleniglacial from about 70 to 34 cal. kyr BP. Qualitative and statistical analyses were performed on 134 mollusc samples. In the most complete Lower Pleniglacial record (P1), malacofauna changes reflect three short phases of vegetation development and climatic improvement related to soils and probably interstadials. A steppe to herb/shrub tundra shift characterizes the Lower-Middle Pleniglacial transition and is followed in both malacological records by the same general environmental trend (decline in vegetation and humidity increase) ending with a new increase in temperature and vegetation cover at the top of P3. In the Middle Pleniglacial, the impact of each shorter climatic change on the malacofauna is less recognizable due to a higher sediment compaction and also to being differently recorded in both sequences as the local topography affects soil water resources, soil and vegetation development and malacofauna adaptation. A comparison shows that the western European biostratigraphical framework can thus be improved by coupling molluscan records from loess sections to pollen sequences.     

Late Quaternary fluvial aggradation and incision in the monsoon‐dominated Alaknanda valley,Central Himalaya,Uttrakhand, India

The present study aims to explain the spatial and temporal variability in phases of aggradation/incision in response to changes in climate and seismicity during the late Quaternary in the Alaknanda River valley (a major tributary of the river Ganges or Ganga). Geomorphology, stratigraphy and optical dating of the fluvial sediment reveal that the oldest fluvial landforms preserved in the south of the Main Central Thrust are debris flow terraces developed during the early part of pluvial Marine Isotopic Stage 3. Following this, a period of accelerated incision/erosion owing to an increase in uplift rate and more intense rainfall occurred. In the Lesser Himalaya, three phases of valley fill aggradation around 26 ± 3 ka, 18 ± 2 ka and 15 ± 1 ka and 8 ± 1 ka occurred in response to changes in monsoon intensity and sediment flux. The last phase was regionally extensive and corresponds to a strengthening of the early Holocene Indian Summer Monsoon. A gradual decline in the monsoon strength after 8 ± 1 ka resulted in reduced fluvial discharge and lower sediment transport capacity of the Alaknanda River, leading to valley fill incision and the development of terraces. The study suggests that fluvial dynamics in the Alaknanda valley were modulated by monsoon variability and the role of tectonics was subordinate, limited to providing accommodation space and post‐deposition modification of the fluvial landforms. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fluvial style changes during the last glacial-interglacial transition in the middle Tisza valley (Hungary)

The Weichselian Late Pleniglacial, Lateglacial and Holocene fluvial history of the middle Tisza valley in Hungary has been compared with other river systems in West and Central Europe, enabling us to define local and regional forcing factors in fluvial system change. Four Weichselian to Holocene floodplain generations, differing in palaeochannel characteristics and elevation, were defined by geomorphological analysis. Coring transects enabled the construction of the channel geometry and fluvial architecture. Pollen analysis of the fine-grained deposits has determined the vegetation development over time and, for the first time, a bio(chrono)stratigraphic framework for the changes in the fluvial system. Radiocarbon dating has provided an absolute chronology; however, the results are problematic due to the partly reworked character of the organic material in the loamy sediments. During the Late Pleniglacial, aggradation by a braided precursor system of the Tisza and local deflation and dune formation took place in a steppe or open coniferous forest landscape. A channel pattern change from braided to large-scale meandering and gradual incision occurred during the Late Pleniglacial or start of the Lateglacial, due to climate warming and climate-related boreal forest development, leading to lower stream power and lower sediment supply, although bank-full discharges were still high. Alternatively, this fluvial change might reflect the tectonically induced avulsion of the River Tisza into the area. The climatic deterioration of the Younger Dryas Stadial, frequently registered by fluvial system changes along the North Atlantic margin, is not reflected in the middle Tisza valley and meandering persisted. The Lateglacial to Holocene climatic warming resulted in the growth of deciduous forest and channel incision and a prominent terrace scarp developed. The Holocene floodplain was formed by laterally migrating smaller meandering channels reflecting lower bank-full discharges. Intra-Holocene river changes have not been observed.     

Sedimentation in a river dominated estuary

The Mgeni Estuary on the wave dominated east coast of South Africa occupies a narrow, bedrock confined, alluvial valley and is partially blocked at the coast by an elongate sandy barrier. Fluvial sediment extends to the barrier and marine deposition is restricted to a small flood tidal delta. Sequential aerial photography, sediment sampling and topographical surveys reveal a cyclical pattern of sedimentation that is mediated by severe fluvial floods which exceed normal energy thresholds. During severe floods (up to 10x 10³ m³ s^?1), lateral channel confinement promotes vertical erosion ofbed material. Eroded material is deposited as an ephemeral delta in the sea. After floods the river gradient is restored within a few months through rapid fluvial deposition and formation of a shallow, braided channel. Over an extended period (approximately 70 years) the estuary banks and bars are stabilised by vegetation and mud deposition. Subsequent downcutting in marginal areas transforms the channel to an anastomosing pattern which represents a stable morphology which adjusts to the normal range of hydrodynamic conditions. This cyclical pattern of deposition produces multiple fill sequences in such estuaries under conditions of stable sea level. The barrier and adjacent coastline prograde temporarily after major floods as the eroded barrier is reformed by wave action, but excess sediment is ultimately eroded as waves adjust the barrier to an equilibrium plan form morphology. Deltaic progradation is prevented by a steep nearshore slope, and rapid sediment dispersal by wave action and shelf currents. During transgression, estuarine sedimentation patterns are controlled by the balance between sedimentation rates and receiving basin volume. If fluvial sedimentation keeps pace with the volume increase of a basin an estuary may remain shallow and river dominated throughout its evolution and excess fluvial sediments pass through the estuary into the sea. Only if the rate of volume increase of the drowned river valley exceeds the volume of sediment supply are deep water environments formed. Under such conditions an estuary becomes a sediment sink and infills by deltaic progradation and lateral accretion as predicted by evolutionary models for microtidal estuaries. Bedrock valley geometry may exert an important control on this rate of volume increase independently of variations in the rate of relative sea level change. If estuarine morphology is viewed as a function of the balance of wave, tidal and fluvial processes, the Mgeni Estuary may be defined as a river dominated estuary in which deltaic progradation at the coast is limited by high wave energy. It is broadly representative of other river dominated estuaries along the Natal coast and a conceptual regional depositional model is proposed. Refinement of a globally applicable model will require further comparative studies of river dominated estuaries in this and other settings, but it is proposed that river dominated estuaries represent a distinct type of estuarine morphology.     

Sediment dynamics and hydrodynamics in the lower course of a river highly regulated by dams: the Ebro River

The lowest part of the Ebro River is a microtidal salt-wedge estuary. Penetration of the salt-wedge is largely controlled by the fluvial discharge and the morphology of the river bed, although sea level variations caused by tides and atmospheric conditions can also play significant roles. The concentration and distribution of suspended particulate matter in this part of the river and the fluvial sediment discharge are strongly influenced by the dynamics of the salt-wedge. Damming of the river has caused sediment to be trapped in reservoirs and has regulated the fluvial discharge. Intrusion of the salt wedge has thus also been regulated. At present, sediment discharge is between 1 and 1·5 × 10⁵ tons per year, which is less than 1% of the sediment that the Ebro River discharged into the sea before construction of the dams. This extreme reduction in sediment supply has allowed marine erosional processes to dominate in the delta.     

河流动力学进展

从流域产沙、床面形态及河床阻力、泥沙输移、河流形态及其演变、工程泥沙、河流模拟、泥沙测验和环境泥沙等八个主要方面评述了河流动力学研究的内容、方法和现状,分析了存在的主要问题,讨论了未来可能引起关注的若干课题.     

Ecology and fluvial dynamics of an Early Holocene medium‐sized European lowland river valley (Upper Scheldt,northern Belgium)

The fluvial environment of Early Holocene small‐ to middle‐sized lowland rivers in northwest Europe is mostly unstudied due to a lack of preserved and accessible deposits. A rescue excavation in the Scheldt valley in northern Belgium offered the opportunity to study a Boreal alluvial succession in detail. The results of palaeoecological and sedimentological analyses (diatoms, pollen, botanical macro‐remains, molluscs, grain size) characterize the biotic and physical environment in the middle reach of this medium‐sized river system. Although the Early Holocene in the Scheldt Basin has often been portrayed as a period of fluvial stability with marshy conditions and diffuse discharge, this study showed evidence of point bar formation by a small, low‐energy meandering river between ~9.5 and ~8.8 cal. ka BP. The point bar was at least temporarily vegetated and shows a shift from herbaceous riparian vegetation to an open willow‐dominated alluvial forest. This evidence points to a more open vegetation and a more energetic environment than traditionally described for rivers of this size and age. A link to the 9.3 ka BP cooling event is suggested and possible reasons for the scarcity of records of this type of deposits are discussed.     

Proterozoic fluvial styles: response to changes in accommodation space (Rivieradal sandstones, eastern North Greenland)

Fluvial styles recorded by the uppermost part of the Neoproterozoic ‘Rivieradal sandstones' succession of eastern North Greenland reflect variations in rate of generated accommodation space and possibly climatic changes. Three facies associations, arranged in two genetic sequences, are recognised within the succession. The lower sequence initially records little available accommodation space. A high degree of reworking results in sheet-like, high-energy, bed-load-dominated, braided river deposits lacking recurrent facies patterns. As accommodation space increases upwards through the sequence, reduction in reworking is recorded by the development of fining- and thickening-upward muddy fluvial cycles. Evidence of desiccation or prolonged periods of drought are absent within the deposits and climate was probably relatively humid. Channel deposits in the lower sequence reflect mixed-load, braided fluvial systems with stable channel banks and floodplains, and the gradient appears to have been low to moderate. These features are generally considered favourable for the establishment of meandering river systems, but channels, nevertheless, retained an overall braided character and their deposits show no evidence of meandering. Despite indications of a climatic setting without significant periods of drought sediments indicate that large fluctuations in discharge occurred within the mixed-load streams and this is suggested to be the main cause for the absence of meandering. The swift and rather dramatic response of the fluvial systems to changes in precipitation, probably resulted from rapid runoff rates caused by the absence of vegetation. The upper sequence shows an initial return to shallow, sandy braided river deposition recording little available accommodation space. A subsequent increase in the rate of generated accommodation space is indicated by the presence of alternating sheet sandstones and sand-streaked mudstones with abundant desiccation cracks. The sheet sandstones show evidence of high-energy, unconfined ephemeral fluvial flash-flood deposition, while the mudstones are interpreted to represent muddy floodplain deposits. The change in fluvial style, combined with the widespread evidence of desiccation, suggest an evolution towards a more semi-arid climate in the upper sequence. This climatic change could account for the reduced clastic input seen in the overlying marine succession which culminated in carbonate platform deposition. The present study suggests that even under conditions considered favourable for the formation of meandering streams, these will rarely occur in Proterozoic deposits due to the lacking influence of vegetation. Although meandering deposits cannot be ruled out as having formed in pre-vegetational times, the conditions for their formation appear to have been even more restricted than previously realised.     

Late Pleistocene fluvial dynamics in the Hochrhein Valley and in the Upper Rhine Graben: chronological frame

During the Pleistocene, the Rhine glacier system acted as a major south–north erosion and transport medium from the Swiss Alps into the Upper Rhine Graben, which has been the main sediment sink forming low angle debris fans. Only some aggradation resulted in the formation of terraces. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and radiocarbon dating have been applied to set up a more reliable chronological frame of Late Pleistocene and Holocene fluvial activity in the western Hochrhein Valley and in the southern part of the Upper Rhine Graben. The stratigraphically oldest deposits exposed, a braided-river facies, yielded OSL age estimates ranging from 59.6 ± 6.2 to 33.1 ± 3.0 ka. The data set does not enable to distinguish between a linear age increase triggered by a continuous autocyclical aggradation or two (or more) age clusters, for example around 35 ka and around 55 ka, triggered by climate change, including stadial and interstadial periods (sensu Dansgaard–Oeschger cycles). The braided river facies is discontinuously (hiatus) covered by coarse-grained gravel-rich sediments deposited most likely during a single event or short-time period of major melt water discharge postdating the Last Glacial Maximum. OSL age estimates of fluvial and aeolian sediments from the above coarse-grained sediment layer are between 16.4 ± 0.8 and 10.6 ± 0.5 ka, and make a correlation with the Late Glacial period very likely. The youngest fluvial aggradation period correlates to the beginning of the Little Ice Age, as confirmed by OSL and radiocarbon ages.     

黄土高原北缘中部末次冰期冰楔假型的发现及意义

冰楔假型是反映古气候环境的重要标志,其蕴涵的气候地层信息对地貌演化过程具有重要的指示意义。通过对黄土高原北缘中部环江T1阶地上新发现的冰楔假型群特征的研究和光释光(OSL)测年,结果显示这些发育在冲积砂砾石中的冰楔假型的充填砂体的年代为 (30.01±3.31) ka B.P.,形成环境推测当时的年平均地温比现今要低17.7 ℃。该冰楔假型的发现也为末次冰期阶段性冻土南界的位置和变迁提供了证据。另外,据冰楔与阶地冲积物的关系推测,在冰楔形成的冰冻期河流阶地的堆积缓慢甚至停滞,在(28.64±3.13) ka B.P.之后的气候温暖期河流快速下切、T1阶地形成。这为河流阶地成因机制的探讨提供了依据,反映了气候波动对阶地发育的控制。     

四川龙门山南段青衣江河流阶地形成时代及其构造地貌意义

地表调查发现,横穿龙门山南段的青衣江具有上游以发育深切峡谷为主,而中下游段阶地发育较完整的特点。采用光释光测年方法对现今青衣江低阶地进行年代学测试分析,获得了低阶地的形成年代,并结合对前人资料的对比和对青衣江河流阶地已有年代学数据的分析,基本确定青衣江中下游地区的T1~T7阶地主要形成于距今7.7~9.0ka,40~50ka,75~85ka,129ka,149ka,270~300ka,740ka。结合地表调查结果进一步推断,现今青衣江主河道在中更新世及之前已经存在。因此,现今的青衣江究竟是因断块整体倾斜式改道还是后期河流袭夺而形成需进一步研究。另外,据青衣江低阶地地貌面的年龄数据估算,龙门山南段青衣江流域不同段落的晚第四纪河流下切速率不同,中更新世以来,芦山至大岗顶段的河流下切速率明显较大,很可能是芦山地震发震构造(盲逆断层)在晚第四纪期间存在持续活动的地貌响应。     

Long-eccentricity regulated climate control on fluvial incision and aggradation in the Palaeocene of north-eastern Montana (USA)

Aggradation and fluvial incision controlled by downstream base-level changes at timescales of 10 to 500 kyr is incorporated in classic sequence stratigraphic models. However, upstream climate control on sediment supply and discharge variability causes fluvial incision and aggradation as well. Orbital forcing often regulates climate change at 10 to 500 kyr timescales while tectonic processes such as flexural (un)loading exert a dominant control at timescales longer than 500 kyr. It remains challenging to attribute fluvial incision and aggradation to upstream or downstream processes or disentangle allogenic from autogenic forcing, because time control is mostly limited in fluvial successions. The Palaeocene outcrops of the fluvial Lebo Shale Member in north-eastern Montana (Williston Basin, USA) constitute an exception. This study uses a distinctive tephra layer and two geomagnetic polarity reversals to create a 15 km long chronostratigraphic framework based on the correlation of twelve sections. Three aggradation–incision sequences are identified with durations of approximately 400 kyr, suggesting a relation with long-eccentricity. This age control further reveals that incision occurred during the approach of – or during – a 405 kyr long-eccentricity minimum. A long-term relaxation of the hydrological cycle related to such an orbital phasing potentially exerts an upstream climate control on river incision. Upstream, an expanding vegetation cover is expected because of an increasingly constant moisture supply to source areas. Entrapping by vegetation led to a significantly reduced sediment supply relative to discharge, especially at times of low evapotranspiration. Hence, high discharges resulted in incision. This study assesses the long-eccentricity regulated climate control on fluvial aggradation and incision in a new aggradation–incision sequence model.     

从端点走向连续:河流沉积模式研究进展述评

从河道类型的划分、河床演变与河型转换、河道沉积与河流砂体的建筑结构要素、河漫滩沉积、季节性河流与分支河流体系、河流沉积相模式、河流沉积学研究技术与方法等方面对国内外河流沉积模式的研究进展进行了综述,认为近十年来河流沉积学的理论和方法都发生了重要的变化。地貌学家、沉积学家和工程师认识到河道形态是连续可变的,而不是只有4~40多个端点类型。河床的演变受河床比降、流量变幅、河岸沉积物粒度构成、气候、植被以及构造沉降速率等多方面的影响。垂向剖面分析法难以对古河流类型做出正确的判断,运用建筑结构要素分析法重建河道内大型底形的地貌形态是河型判别和河流相模式重建的正确方法。河漫滩是河流沉积事件记录最为齐全的部位,对河漫滩、天然堤和泛滥平原沉积层序的研究能够揭示更多古河流沉积过程以及古环境、古气候和古生物方面的信息。对季节性河流、受季风强烈影响地区的河流、以及不同气候带河流所发育的独特沉积构造和建筑结构要素的研究不断增加。分支河流体系的概念得到越来越多的应用,但也得到不少质疑。我国学者应当注重对现代河流地貌形态和沉积过程的观察,把河床演变学的定量方法与沉积学的观点、理论和资料相结合,利用露头、三维地震资料和探地雷达技术建立河流砂体内部建筑结构信息数据库,加强对古河流河漫滩和泛滥平原的沉积过程、特征及其控制因素的研究,加强对不同构造和气候条件下河流沉积的差异性研究,不断发展河流沉积学研究技术,加强河流沉积学实验室建设和研究队伍建设,加强国际交流与合作,使我国河流沉积学为国家经济社会发展提供更加有力和有效的支撑,为推动国际河流沉积学发展做出中国人自己的贡献。     

Late Palaeozoic red beds elucidate fluvial architectures preserving large woody debris in the seasonal tropics of central Pangaea

Fluvial red beds containing anatomically preserved large woody debris shed new light on seasonally dry biomes of the Pennsylvanian–Permian transition and elucidate the concurrence of river depositional systems and vegetation. As a result, the occurrence, distribution and preservation of petrified large woody debris accumulations are considered crucial to understanding the role of arborescent vegetation in shaping fluvial environments. This study reports sizeable silicified trunks and corresponding fluvial architectures from the uppermost Pennsylvanian (upper Gzhelian) Siebigerode Formation (Kyffhäuser, central Germany). The origin, taphonomy and depositional environment of the fossil woods are elucidated by using a multidisciplinary approach including geological mapping, lithofacies analysis, sediment petrography, wood anatomical studies and microstructure analyses. Results reflect the gradual burial of a gentle basement elevation by sand-bed to gravel-bed braided rivers at the north-western margin of the perimontane Saale Basin. Facies architectures resulted from a complex interplay of syndepositional tectonics, repeated palaeorelief rejuvenation, high-frequency channel avulsion, seasonally dry climate and woody debris–sediment interactions. The alluvial influx and cut-bank erosion recruited trunks from adjacent semi-riparian slope habitats vegetated by up to 40 m tall cordaitaleans and conifers. High discharge in wide braids facilitated uncongested transport of large woody debris. Trunk entombment and initial preservation resulted from grounding on barforms, anchoring by attached roots and subsequent burial. The post-depositional two-phase silicification was influenced by hydrothermal hematite mineralization and determined a selective wood preservation pattern known as ‘pointstone’. Large woody debris-induced sedimentary structures (‘LWDISS’) are introduced as a class of sediment structures formed by the biogenic impact on terrestrial deposition.     

Late Weichselian fluvio‐aeolian sands and coversands of the type locality Grubbenvorst (southern Netherlands): sedimentary environments,climate record and age

The Weichselian Late Pleniglacial and Lateglacial aeolian stratigraphy (Older Coversand I, Beuningen Gravel Bed, Older Coversand II, Younger Coversand I, Usselo Soil, Younger Coversand II) in the southern Netherlands has been reinvestigated in its type locality (Grubbenvorst). Sedimentary environments have been reconstructed and related to their climatic evolution based on periglacial structures. In addition, 22 optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) ages have been determined that provide an absolute chronology for the climatic evolution and environmental changes of the coversand area. From this work it appears that, prior to 25 ka fluvial deposition by the Maas dominated. After 25 ka fluvial activity reduced and deposition occurred in a fluvio‐aeolian environment with continuous permafrost (Older Coversand I). This depositional phase was dated between 25.2 ± 2.0 and 17.2 ± 1.2 ka. The upward increase of aeolian activity and cryogenic structures in this unit is related to an increase of climatic aridity and a decrease in sedimentation rate during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). The Beuningen Gravel Bed, that results from deflation with polar desert conditions and that represents a stratigraphic marker in northwestern Europe, was bracketed between 17.2 ± 1.2 and 15.3 ± 1.0 ka. Based on this age result a correlation with Heinrich event H1 is suggested. Permafrost degradation occurred at the end of this period. Optical ages for the Older Coversand II unit directly overlying the Beuningen Gravel Bed range from 15.3 ± 1.0 ka at the base to 12.7 ± 0.9 ka at the top. Thus this regionally important Older Coversand II unit started at the end of the Late Pleniglacial and continued throughout the early Lateglacial. Its formation after the Late Pleniglacial (LP) maximum cold and its preservation are related to rapid climatic warming around 14.7 ka cal. BP. The Allerød age of the Usselo Soil was confirmed by the optical ages. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.