Transgressive Events since the Late Pleistocene in the Yellow River Delta: Grain-size Distribution and Palynological Results

This study deals with the relationship between sea-level changes and paleoclimatic fluctuations based on the analysis of stratigraphy, grain sizes, palynology, and radiometric dating of the Yellow River delta since the Late Pleistocene. Evidence from the sedimentary record, grain sizes, and pollen provides a paleoenvironmental history of the Late Pleistocene from the boreholes of the delta. Based on a combination of grain-size analysis with lithological studies, marine deposit units contain the intervals of 13.85–16.9, 18.5–19.69, 27.9–34.8, 36.4–37.2, 48.4–51.6, and 54.1–55.9 m, and transitional facies units contain the intervals of 10.25–13.85, 16.9–18.5, 19.69–27.9, 34.8–36.4, 37.2–48.4, 51.6–54.1, and 55.9–60 m, compared with fluvial(terrestrial facies) deposit units(3.36–10.25 m). Based on pollen analysis and pollen assemblages, there were three warm-wet periods from 9.1–0.16 ka BP, 16.1–60 ka BP, and 90.1–94.6 ka BP From the top to the bottom of the borehole, the paleoclimate has an evident fluctuation: warm and moist(Holocene Optimum) —cool and dry(Younger Dryas Event)—mild semi cool—cool and dry—warm and moist. There were three warm-wet periods from 9.1–0.16 ka BP, 16.1–60 ka BP, and 90.1–94.6 ka BP, corresponding to the Holocene Optimum stage, MIS 3, and MIS 5, respectively. The warm period allowed monsoonal evergreen and broadleaved deciduous forests that corresponded to Holocene hypsithermal climatic conditions and the Late Pleistocene climatic Optimum. Three warm-wet periods occurred in marine deposit units from 9.1–0.16 ka BP, 60.1–16.1 ka BP, and 94.6–90.1 ka BP. These periods correspond to the Cangzhou transgression, Xianxian transgression, and Huanghua transgression, respectively. From 90.1–60.1 ka BP, 17.5–9.1 ka BP, and 0. 16 ka BP–1855 AD, three dry and cold phases are recognized. The phases indicate the fluvial(flood plain) sedimentary environment, corresponding to cooler and mild dry periods based on palynological results and grain-size distribution.     

Climate and environment in southwest Sweden 15.5–11.3 cal. ka BP

Lake sedimentary records that allow documentation of the distinct climatic and environmental shifts during the early part of the Last Termination are scarce for northern Europe. This multi‐proxy study of the sediments of Atteköpsmosse, southwest Sweden, therefore fills an important gap and provides detailed information regarding past hydroclimatic conditions and local environmental responses to climatic shifts. Lake infilling started c. 15.5 cal. ka BP, but low aquatic productivity, cold summer lake water temperatures, unstable catchments, and scarce herb and shrub vegetation prevailed until c. 14.7–14.5 cal. ka BP. Inflow of warmer air masses and higher July air temperatures favoured a rise in aquatic productivity and lake water summer temperatures, and the establishment of a diverse herb, shrub and dwarf shrub vegetation, which also included tree birch c. 14.5 cal. ka BP. Freshening of the moisture source region c. 13.7–13.6 cal. ka BP does not seem to have had a large impact on the ancient lake and its catchment, as lake aquatic productivity increased further and lake water summer temperatures and minimum mean July air temperatures remained around 12–14 °C. In contrast, further freshening of the moisture source region c. 13 cal. ka BP triggered a decrease in lake productivity, drier conditions and lower lake water summer temperatures. Macroscopic finds of tree Betula and Pinus sylvestris at 13–12.8 cal. ka BP demonstrate the presence of these trees in the lake's catchment. The transition into the Holocene (11.6–11.5 cal. ka BP) is marked by a change in chironomid assemblages and by a rise in lake water summer temperatures and aquatic productivity. These changes were followed by the re‐establishment of a diverse aquatic and terrestrial vegetation, including tree birch and Pinus sylvestris at 11.4 cal. ka BP.     

The palaeoenvironmental significance of δ13C of stalagmite BW‐1 from Beijing,China during Younger Dryas intervals inferred from the grey level profile

High‐resolution records of carbon isotope composition and grey level were analysed from a stalagmite, BW‐1, from Beijing, China, deposited between c. 14 and 10.5 ka BP, the δ¹⁸O profile of which has been used to discuss the timing and structure of the Younger Dryas (YD) event in north China. The high grey level and low δ¹³C match the milk‐white coloured locations on the polished stalagmite surface and coincide with enhanced luminescent bands within which the concentration of both impurities and the total organic carbon (TOC) are high. Additionally, the fluorescence of speleothems was derived from organic acids that have been flushed onto the stalagmite surface along with impurities from the overlying soil by heavy summer rain and co‐precipitated with the speleothem calcite. Thus, predominantly low δ¹³C and high grey level values indicate increased summer precipitation that supports abundant vegetation and robust biological productivity. Consequently, three distinct time intervals are defined by the palaeoenvironmental conditions expressed in the δ¹³C and grey level records of stalagmite BW‐1: (i) a warm‐humid stage (Pre‐YD, 13.97 to 12.85 ka BP, including a hiatus from 12.99 to 13.21 ka BP reported before); (ii) a cool‐arid stage (YD, 12.85 to 11.56 ka BP); and (iii) a warm‐humid stage (Post‐YD, 11.56 to 10.39 ka BP). The inferences based on our research are generally consistent with other regional vegetation and climatic records.     

The Lateglacial and Holocene in Central Europe: a multi‐proxy environmental record from the Bohemian Forest,Czech Republic

The Hercynian mountain ranges were islands of mountain glaciation and alpine tundra in a Central European ice‐free corridor during the Late Pleistocene. Today they are notable areas of glacial landforms, alpine‐forest free areas, peatlands and woodlands. However, our knowledge of the Lateglacial and early Holocene environmental changes in this region is limited. We present a new multi‐proxy reconstruction of a mid‐altitude environment in the Bohemian Forest spanning this period. A core (5.2 m length) in the ?erné Lake cirque (1028 m a.s.l.) was subjected to lithological, geochemical, pollen and macrofossil analysis supplemented by two optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and 10 AMS radiocarbon dates. We determined the impact of regional and supraregional climate changes on the environment. The two most significant changes in sedimentation during the Lateglacial (17.6 and 15.8–15.5 cal. ka BP) were synchronous with regional glacial chronostratigraphy. Unlike Central European mountain ranges, in the Bohemian Forest the Younger Dryas was not coincident with glacier re‐advance, but was a dry, cold episode with low lake levels, which prevailed until the early Preboreal. Plant macrofossils indicate local establishment of Betula nana and Betula pendula/pubescens at 15.4–13.4 cal. ka BP. Comparison with Holocene records from Central Europe shows a similar immigration history of vegetation at mid and higher altitudes. The tree line exceeded an altitude of ~1000 m a.s.l. around 10.5 cal. ka BP and coincided with rapid geochemical changes in the sediment. The 8.2 ka BP event did not have any response in the sedimentary record, but corresponded to stabilization of the Picea abies population and expansion of Fagus. Fagus colonized the Bohemian Forest earlier than other Hercynian mid‐mountains, but never predominated in the composition of the forest at higher elevations. Abies alba was the last tree species that immigrated to the study area.     

Late Quaternary (Marine Isotope Stage 3 to Recent) sedimentary evolution of the Basque shelf (southern Bay of Biscay)

Late Quaternary (MIS 3 to Recent) oceanographic evolution of the Basque shelf has been analysed for the first time based on the sedimentological analysis of three cores obtained from the middle and outer shelves. The cores are located in two interfluves separated by the San Sebastian canyon. The variability of the percentage of the planktonic foraminifera species Neogloboquadrina pachyderma sin. and of δ¹⁸O_bull allowed us to identify the influence of colder and warmer waters in the Basque shelf during the late Quaternary. From ～56 cal. ka BP to the end of the Last Glacial Maximum (19 cal. ka BP) the sedimentary record shows a decreasing trend in the mean grain size that correlates with the eustatic sea‐level fall. The last Deglaciation (19–11.5 cal. ka BP) is characterized by a sea‐level rise that produced an important hiatus in the western outer shelf. During the Holocene, the middle and outer shelves present different behaviours. From 11.5 to 6.7 cal. ka BP, in the outer shelf the sea‐level rise that started during the Deglaciation produced a hiatus, whereas in the middle shelf the sedimentary succession records the presence of warm to temperate waters. Between 6.7–4.9 cal. ka BP, the entrance of cold surface water‐masses that only affected the middle shelf has been identified, and temperate to warm waters occurred in the outer shelf. The cold surface water‐masses retreated during 4.9–4.3 cal. ka BP in the middle shelf. Finally, from 4.3 cal. ka BP to Recent, the middle shelf registers a hiatus due to sea‐level stabilization after a generalized transgression, synchronous to a decrease in the energy of the water‐masses in the outer shelf. In conclusion, the environmental changes detected in the Basque shelf are attributed to both regional and eustatic sea‐level changes.     

Hässeldala – a key site for Last Termination climate events in northern Europe

The Last Termination (19 000–11 000 a BP) with its rapid and distinct climate shifts provides a perfect laboratory to study the nature and regional impact of climate variability. The sedimentary succession from the ancient lake at Hässeldala Port in southern Sweden with its distinct Lateglacial/early Holocene stratigraphy (>14.1–9.5 cal. ka BP) is one of the few chronologically well‐constrained, multi‐proxy sites in Europe that capture a variety of local and regional climatic and environmental signals. Here we present Hässeldala's multi‐proxy records (lithology, geochemistry, pollen, diatoms, chironomids, biomarkers, hydrogen isotopes) in a refined age model and place the observed changes in lake status, catchment vegetation, summer temperatures and hydroclimate in a wider regional context. Reconstructed mean July temperatures increased between c. 14.1 and c. 13.1 cal. ka BP and subsequently declined. This latter cooling coincided with drier hydroclimatic conditions that were probably associated with a freshening of the Nordic Seas and started a few hundred years before the onset of Greenland Stadial 1 (c. 12.9 cal. ka BP). Our proxies suggest a further shift towards colder and drier conditions as late as c. 12.7 cal. ka BP, which was followed by the establishment of a stadial climate regime (c. 12.5–11.8 cal. ka BP). The onset of warmer and wetter conditions preceded the Holocene warming over Greenland by c. 200 years. Hässeldala's proxies thus highlight the complexity of environmental and hydrological responses across abrupt climate transitions in northern Europe.     

末次盛冰期以来青藏高原东北部共和盆地气候与环境变化研究进展

青藏高原东北部共和盆地气候与环境变化文献分析认为:末次盛冰期(14 C年龄14ka BP或16cal ka BP之前)地层沉积主要为风成砂和黄土,冰缘地貌发育,气候寒冷干燥,植被可能为干旱荒漠或荒漠草原;末次冰消期(14 C年龄14ka BP或16 cal ka BP-Younger Dryas,缩写YD事件)地层发育古土壤,湖泊水位明显上升,并显著的捕捉到冷暖事件(Blling-Allerd,缩写B/A、YD)的信息,气候趋于温暖湿润,对应植被为荒漠草原;全新世8.5ka BP(14 C年龄)之前区域温度和湿度不同程度增加,湖泊水位较高,地层发育古土壤,植被为荒漠草原或干草原;8.5～7.0ka BP(14 C年龄)风成砂出现,古土壤发育中断,气候寒冷干燥,为全新世新冰期第一期;7.0～3.0ka BP(14 C年龄)古土壤显著发育,高水位湖面出现,水热组合达到全新世最佳,植被向干草原方向演化,但期间也存在千–百年尺度的冷事件(全新世新冰期第二期);3.0ka BP(14 C年龄)以来气候向温凉(寒冷)干燥方向发展.太阳辐射等外部因素变化并触发地球系统内部各个圈层之间相互作用是区域气候、环境变化的主要驱动力.同时,对研究现状进一步剖析,阐明其存在的问题,并提出气候、环境变化研究的发展方向.     

A millennial‐scale Late Pleistocene–Holocene palaeoclimatic record from the western Chihuahua Desert,Mexico

We present elemental concentrations and magnetic susceptibility data from a new 270‐cm‐long sediment core collected from the western part of palaeolake Babicora and infer millennial‐scale hydrological variations over the last 27 cal. ka in the western Chihuahua Desert. Variations in the available water content at the sediment–air interface of the watershed, lake salinity and lake productivity are inferred from values of the chemical index of alteration (CIA), CaCO ₃ and C_org, respectively. An abrupt increase in runoff at c. 24 cal. ka BP appears correlative with the Heinrich 2 (H2) event. Except for this event, diminished runoff between c. 27 and 19 cal. ka BP indicates lower annual precipitation (weak summer rainfall) during the Last Glacial Maximum. The deposition of chemically altered sediments between c. 25 and 22 cal. ka BP results from the higher sediment–water interaction in the watershed owing to lower evaporation, cooler conditions and higher precipitation during the H2 event. Since 19 cal. ka BP the runoff has been characterized by high‐amplitude fluctuations with intervals of reduced precipitation identified at c. 19, 18, 17.5, 13–14, 11.5, 10, 7.5 and 3 cal. ka BP.     

Cenozoic Environmental Changes in the Northern Qaidam Basin Inferred from n-alkane Records

Cenozoic climatic and environmental changes in the arid Asian interior, and their possible relations with global climatic changes and the Tibetan Plateau uplift, have been intensively investigated and debated over past decades. Here we present 40-Myr （million years）-long n-alkane records from a continuous Cenozoic sediment sequence in the Dahonggou Section, Qaidam Basin, northern Tibetan Plateau, to infer environmental changes in the northern basin. A set of n-alkane indexes, including ACL, CPI and Paq, vary substantially and consistently throughout the records, which are interpreted to reflect relative contributions from terrestrial vascular plants vs. aquatic macrophytes, and thus indicate depositional environments. ACL values vary between 21 and 30; CP1 values range from 1.0 to 8.0; and Paq values change from 〈0.1 to 0.8 over the past 40-Myr. We have roughly identified two periods, at 25.8-21.0 Ma （million years ago） and 13.0-17.5 Ma, with higher ACL and CPI and lower Paq values indicating predominant lacustrine environments. Lower ACL and CPI values, together with higher Paq values, occurred at 〉25.8 Ma, 17.5-21.0 Ma, and 〈13.0 Ma, corresponding to alluvial fan/river deltaic deposits and shallow lacustrine settings, consistent with the observed features in sedimentological facies. The inferred Cenozoic environmental changes in the northern Qaidam Basin appear to correspond to global climatic changes.     

Lacustrine sedimentation in active volcanic settings: the Late Quaternary depositional evolution of Lake Chungará (northern Chile)

Lake Chungará (18°15′S, 69°09′W, 4520 m above sea‐level) is the largest (22·5 km²) and deepest (40 m) lacustrine ecosystem in the Chilean Altiplano and its location in an active volcanic setting, provides an opportunity to evaluate environmental (volcanic vs. climatic) controls on lacustrine sedimentation. The Late Quaternary depositional history of the lake is reconstructed by means of a multiproxy study of 15 Kullenberg cores and seismic data. The chronological framework is supported by 10 ¹⁴C AMS dates and one ²³⁰Th/²³⁴U dates. Lake Chungará was formed prior to 12·8 cal kyr bp as a result of the partial collapse of the Parinacota volcano that impounded the Lauca river. The sedimentary architecture of the lacustrine succession has been controlled by (i) the strong inherited palaeo‐relief and (ii) changes in the accommodation space, caused by lake‐level fluctuations and tectonic subsidence. The first factor determined the location of the depocentre in the NW of the central plain. The second factor caused the area of deposition to extend towards the eastern and southern basin margins with accumulation of high‐stand sediments on the elevated marginal platforms. Synsedimentary normal faulting also increased accommodation and increased the rate of sedimentation in the northern part of the basin. Six sedimentary units were identified and correlated in the basin mainly using tephra keybeds. Unit 1 (Late Pleistocene–Early Holocene) is made up of laminated diatomite with some carbonate‐rich (calcite and aragonite) laminae. Unit 2 (Mid‐Holocene–Recent) is composed of massive to bedded diatomite with abundant tephra (lapilli and ash) layers. Some carbonate‐rich layers (calcite and aragonite) occur. Unit 3 consists of macrophyte‐rich diatomite deposited in nearshore environments. Unit 4 is composed of littoral sediments dominated by alternating charophyte‐rich and other aquatic macrophyte‐rich facies. Littoral carbonate productivity peaked when suitable shallow platforms were available for charophyte colonization. Clastic deposits in the lake are restricted to lake margins (Units 5 and 6). Diatom productivity peaked during a lowstand period (Unit 1 and subunit 2a), and was probably favoured by photic conditions affecting larger areas of the lake bottom. Offshore carbonate precipitation reached its maximum during the Early to Mid‐Holocene (ca 7·8 and 6·4 cal kyr bp ). This may have been favoured by increases in lake solute concentrations resulting from evaporation and calcium input because of the compositional changes in pyroclastic supply. Diatom and pollen data from offshore cores suggest a number of lake‐level fluctuations: a Late Pleistocene deepening episode (ca 12·6 cal kyr BP), four shallowing episodes during the Early to Mid‐Holocene (ca 10·5, 9·8, 7·8 and 6·7 cal kyr BP) and higher lake levels since the Mid‐Holocene (ca 5·7 cal kyr BP) until the present. Explosive activity at Parinacota volcano was very limited between c. >12·8 and 7·8 cal kyr bp . Mafic‐rich explosive eruptions from the Ajata satellite cones increased after ca 5·7 cal kyr bp until the present.     

青藏高原秋里南木湖盐类沉积韵律

盐类沉积韵律对研究湖泊环境及气候变迁有重要意义。对青藏高原秋里南木湖发现的芒硝、粘土和原生硼砂的韵律沉积进行了沉积速率和沉积韵律的分析。从物质来源、地貌和气候变化3个方面讨论了韵律形成的机制。在此基础上，利用矿物组成、年代、孢粉资料讨论了沉积物所反映的气候环境变化。结果表明，充足的物源和封闭的地貌环境是沉积韵律形成的物质条件，气候变化是主要外部动力。沉积韵律所反映的气候环境变化为：20.6~20.5 ka BP无芒硝，植被发育，气候相对温暖湿润；20.5~11.4 ka BP芒硝层很厚，植被类型过渡至以蒿为主的荒漠草原，气候干冷。其中，20.5~17.5 ka BP气候极端干旱寒冷，17.5~17.1 ka BP，15.9~15.2 ka BP和14.1~13.4 ka BP气温回升；11.4~10.1 ka BP芒硝层很薄，植物种类丰富，气候显著变暖；10.1~7.5 ka BP芒硝层厚度增加，木本植物花粉进一步降低，盘星藻消失，气候变冷；7.5~4.97 ka BP芒硝层厚度减小，但厚薄不一，植被过渡到以蒿为主的典型草原，气候相对暖湿，但冷暖交替频繁，其中7.0~6.2 ka BP蒿含量下降，湿生植物含量增加，气候冷湿，6.2~5.2 ka BP耐干旱、盐碱植物增加，禾本科消失，湖水盐度增加，气候冷干。     

冰后期以来长江水下三角洲层序地层特征及沉积环境演化*

长江水下三角洲层序地层学研究有助于全面了解长江三角洲地层特征和沉积环境演化模式。通过对长江水下三角洲下切河谷区YD0901和YD0903孔岩心的详细沉积物粒度、特征元素比值(Cl/Ti和Zr/Rb)、沉积相对比分析,恢复了冰后期以来长江水下三角洲层序地层格架。研究区冰后期以来自下而上依次出现河流相、潮汐河流相、河口湾相、浅海相和三角洲相的沉积相序。末次冰期海平面下降,古长江形成下切河谷,古河间地发育硬黏土层,构成五级Ⅰ型层序界面。之后海平面回升,分别于15 cal ka BP和8.0 cal ka BP形成最大海退和最大海侵界面,水下三角洲区域最大海侵发生时间略滞后于平原区,约为7.5 cal ka BP。据此3个层序界面将冰后期地层划分为低位体系域、海侵体系域和高位体系域。钻孔岩心记录揭示了14.8 cal ka BP海侵到达研究区;14.8~13 cal ka BP期间,受MWP-1A冰融水事件影响海平面快速上升,海岸线向陆推进速率可达71.9,km/ka;海退期间各钻孔沉积速率较低,直至2 cal ka BP开始,沉积速率明显增加。     

n-Alkane evidence for the onset of wetter conditions in the Sierra Nevada,California (USA) at the mid-late Holocene transition, ~ 3.0 ka

n-Alkane biomarker distributions in sediments from Swamp Lake (SL), in the central Sierra Nevada of California (USA), provide evidence for an increase in mean lake level ~ 3000 yr ago, in conjunction with widespread climatic change inferred from marine and continental records in the eastern North Pacific region. Length distributions of n-alkane chains in modern plants growing at SL were determined and compared to sedimentary distributions in a core spanning the last 13 ka. As a group, submerged and floating aquatic plants contained high proportions of short chain lengths (< nC₂₅) compared to emergent, riparian and upland terrestrial species, for which chain lengths > nC₂₇ were dominant. Changes in the sedimentary n-alkane distribution over time were driven by variable inputs from plant sources in response to changing lake level, sedimentation and plant community composition. A shift toward shorter chain lengths (nC_21, nC₂₃) occurred between 3.1 and 2.9 ka and is best explained by an increase in the abundance of aquatic plants and the availability of shallow-water habitat in response to rising lake level. The late Holocene expansion of SL following a dry mid-Holocene is consistent with previous evidence for increased effective moisture and the onset of wetter conditions in the Sierra Nevada between 4.0 and 3.0 ka.     

西藏玛旁雍错沉积揭示的晚冰期以来环境变化

玛旁雍错位于青藏高原西南部,是研究印度季风演化的理想地区之一。利用活塞采样器在玛旁雍错75 m水深处获取了一根4.69 m长岩芯,利用^210Pb和AMS^14C测年确定了岩芯的年代,根据元素含量(XRF扫描)、总有机碳(TOC)、总无机碳(TIC)和总氮(TN)等代用指标,重建了该地区14 cal.ka B.P.以来气候环境变化。结果显示,冰消期(14~12 cal.ka B.P.),TOC和TIC含量变化显示了湖区环境整体上较为暖湿;12.0~11.4 cal.ka B.P.,径流明显减弱,可能是新仙女木事件的反映;早中全新世(11.4~3.4 cal.ka B.P.),湖区环境整体上以暖湿为主,气候有所波动,出现了两次冷事件(10.2~9.8 cal.ka B.P.和8.2 cal.ka B.P.左右),7.4~6.6 cal.ka B.P.,出现了一个暖时期;晚全新世(3.4~0 cal.ka B.P.),湖区环境整体上趋向于干旱化,并伴有两次相对湿润时期(2.6~2.0 cal.ka B.P.和1.4~1.0 cal.ka B.P.)。玛旁雍错环境变化表明,晚冰期以来(14.0~3.4 cal.ka B.P.),受到太阳辐射的影响,印度季风带来的降水以及冰川融水较多,湖区环境较为湿润,整体上有利于内源生物的生存;晚全新世(3.4~0 cal.ka B.P.),北半球夏季太阳辐射量减少,印度季风减弱,径流减弱,湖区环境朝干旱化方向发展。     

Holocene relative shore-level changes and development of the Ģipka lagoon in the western Gulf of Riga

Holocene relative shore-level changes and development of the Ģipka palaeolagoon in the western Gulf of Riga are reconstructed using multiproxy analyses by combining litho-, biostratigraphical and chronological data with remote sensing and geophysical data. The results show the development of the Ģipka basin from the Ancylus Lake/Initial Litorina Sea coastal zone (before c. 9.1 cal. ka BP) to coastal fen (c. 9.1 to 8.4 cal. ka BP) and gradual development of the Litorina Sea lagoon (c. 8.4 to 4.8 cal. ka BP) and its transition to a freshwater coastal lake (c. 4.8 to 4.6 cal. ka BP), fen (c. 4.6 to 4.2 cal. ka BP), and river floodplain (since c. 4.2 cal. ka BP). The highest shorelines of the Ancylus Lake and Litorina Sea were mapped at an elevation of 12–11 and 9 m a.s.l., respectively. A new relative shore level (RSL) curve for the western Gulf of Riga was constructed based on RSL data from the Ģipka area and from nearby Ruhnu Island studied earlier. The reconstruction shows that the beginning of the last marine transgression in the western Gulf of Riga started at c. 8.4 cal. ka BP, and concurred with the 1.9 m RSL rise event recorded from the North Sea basin. Diatom analysis results indicate the existence of the Ģipka lagoon between c. 7.7 and 4.8 cal. ka BP, with the highest salinity c. 6.1 cal. ka BP. During the existence of the brackish lagoon, settlement sites of the Neolithic hunter–gatherer groups existed on the shores of the lagoon in the period c. 6.0 to 5.0 cal. ka BP.     

Late‐glacial and early Holocene changes in vegetation and lake‐level at Hauterive/Rouges‐Terres,Lake Neuchâtel (Switzerland)

Palynological and sedimentological analyses of a sedimentary sequence sampled at Hauterive/Rouges‐Terres, Lake Neuchâtel (Switzerland) provide documentation of changes in vegetation and lake‐level during the Bølling, Younger Dryas and Preboreal pollen zones, and have allowed a comparison with sequences covering the same period from other sites located in the western part of the Swiss Plateau. The Juniperus–Hippophaë zone (regional pollen assemblage zone (RPAZ) CHb‐2, first part of the Bølling, ca. 14 650–14 450 cal. yr BP) was characterised by a generally low lake‐level. A weak rise occurred during this zone. The Juniperus–Hippophaë to Betula zone transition coincided with a lake‐level lowering, interrupted by a short‐lived but marked phase of higher lake‐level recorded at the neighbouring site of Hauterive‐Champréveyres, but not present at Hauterive/Rouges‐Terres owing to an erosion surface. Shortly after the beginning of the Betula zone (RPAZ CHb‐3, second part of the Bølling, ca 14 450–14 000 cal. yr BP), a marked rise in lake‐level occurred. It was composed of two successive periods of higher level, coinciding with high values of Betula, separated by a short episode of relatively lower lake‐level associated with raised values in Artemisia and other non‐arboreal pollen. The last part of RPAZ CHb‐3 saw a fall in lake‐level. The lower lake‐levels during RPAZ CHb‐2 to early RPAZ CHb‐3 can be correlated with the abrupt warming at the beginning of the Greenland Interstadial (GI) 1e thermal maximum. The successive episodes of higher lake‐level punctuating the GI 1e might be linked to the so‐called Intra‐Bølling Cold Oscillations identified from several palaeoclimatic records in the North Atlantic area, and also documented in oxygen‐isotope data sets from Swiss Plateau lakes. The Hauterive/Rouges‐Terres lake‐level record provides evidence for marked climatic drying through the second part of the Younger Dryas event (GS1), during the GS1–Preboreal (RPAZ CHb‐4b–4c) transition (except for a rise at ca. 11 450–11 400 cal. yr BP), and at the RPAZ CHb‐4c–5 (Preboreal–Boreal) transition, following the Preboreal Oscillation (after 11 150 cal. yr BP). The Preboreal Oscillation coincided with higher lake‐levels, its end being followed by a rapid expansion of Corylus, Quercus, Ulmus and Tilia. The Hauterive/Rouges‐Terres lake‐level record suggests that radiocarbon plateau at 12 600, 10 000 and 9500 ¹⁴C yr BP corresponded to periods of generally lower lake‐level. This suggests that an increase in solar activity may have contributed to both climatic dryness and a decrease in atmospheric radiocarbon content. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Early to mid‐Holocene climate change at Lago dell'Accesa (central Italy): climate signal or anthropogenic bias?

Despite the high potential of pollen records for climate reconstruction, pollen–climate relationships may be biased due to past and present human activities on the landscape. We use (i) transfer functions based on modern pollen–climate relationships to infer seasonal temperature and summer precipitation for the period 11 500–4500 cal. a BP and (ii) lake‐level change records based on different sedimentary proxies in multiple cores that are mainly indicative for summer hydrology at Lago dell'Accesa (central Italy). Quantitative reconstructions indicate lowest summer precipitation during two phases (8500–7700 cal. a BP and after 6000 cal. a BP) and a gradual winter temperature increase from 11 500 to ca. 8000 cal. a BP. Lowest summer precipitation was reconstructed during these phases characterised by vegetation shifts from open forests dominated by summergreen oaks (Quercus) to forests dominated by evergreen oaks (Quercus ilex), which are at present most abundant where summer drought is stronger. Similarly, the lake‐level record indicates two long‐lasting low summer precipitation phases (8800–7700 and 6400–4400 cal. a BP) that were interrupted by short‐term high summer precipitation events. Based on the broad agreement between the pollen‐inferred summer precipitation and the low‐frequency lake‐level changes, we suggest that the duration of the high summer precipitation events may have been too short to maintain drought‐sensitive trees, which may have been affected by high mortality rates when summer dry conditions returned. Although past and modern pollen–climate relationships may very likely have been affected by human activities since the Neolithic (i.e. when exploitation of the landscape started), we reject the hypothesis of a significant anthropogenic bias in the pollen‐based climate reconstruction. In addition, we suggest that pollen‐based and lake‐level reconstructions may have different inherent abilities of capturing high‐ and low‐frequency precipitation signals. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Vegetation and climate c. 12 300–9000 cal. yr BP at Andøya,NW Norway

Owing to proximity of the North Atlantic Stream and the shelf, the Andøya biota are assumed to have responded rapidly to climatic changes taking place after the Weichselian glaciation. Palynological, macrofossil, loss‐on‐ignition, tephra and ¹⁴C data from three sites at the northern part of the island of Andøya were studied. The period 12 300–11 950 cal. yr BP was characterized by polar desert vegetation, and 11 950–11 050 cal. yr BP by a moisture‐demanding predominantly low‐arctic Oxyria vegetation. During the period 11 050–10 650 cal. yr BP, there was a climatic amelioration towards a sub‐arctic climate and heaths dominated by Empetrum. After 10 650 cal. yr BP the Oxyria vegetation disappeared. As early as about 10 800 cal. yr BP the bryozoan Cristatella mucedo indicated a climate sufficient for Betula woodland. However, tree birch did not establish until 10 420–10 250 cal. yr BP, indicating a time‐lag for the formation of Betula ecotypes adapted to the oceanic climate of Andøya. From about 10 150 to 9400 cal. yr BP the summers were dry and warm. There was a change towards moister, though comparatively warm, climatic conditions about 9400 cal. yr BP. The present data are compared with evidence from marine sediments and the deglaciation history in the region. It is suggested that during most of the period 11 500–10 250 cal. yr BP a similar situation as in present southern Greenland existed, with birch woodland in the inner fjords near the ice sheet and low‐arctic heath vegetation along the outer coast.     

A multi‐proxy palaeoenvironmental and geochronological reconstruction of the Saalian‐Eemian‐Weichselian succession at Klein Klütz Höved,NE Germany

Here we present a multi‐proxy investigation of the Klein Klütz Höved (KKH) coastal cliff section in northeastern Germany, involving lithofacies analysis, micromorphology, micropalaeontology, palynology and luminescence dating of quartz and feldspar. We subdivide the local stratigraphy into three depositional phases. (i) Following a Saalian advance (MIS 6) of the Scandinavian Ice Sheet, the penultimate deglaciation (Termination II) at the site occurred between c. 139 and 134 ka, leading to the establishment of a braided river system and lacustrine basins under arctic‐subarctic climate conditions. (ii) In the initial phase of the Eemian interglacial lacustrine deposits were formed, containing warm‐water ostracods and a pollen spectrum indicating gradual expansion of woodlands eventually containing thermophile deciduous forest elements. A correlation of the local pollen assemblages with Eemian reference records from central Europe suggests that fewer than 750 years of the last interglacial period are preserved at KKH. The occurrence of brackish ostracods dates the onset of the Eemian marine transgression at the section at c. 300–750 years after the beginning of the last interglacial period. (iii) Directly above the Eemian record a ~10‐m‐thick sedimentary succession of MIS 2 age was deposited, implying a significant hiatus of c. 90 ka encompassing the time from middle and upper MIS 5e to late MIS 3. During the Late Weichselian, KKH featured a depositional shift from (glacio‐)lacustrine to subglacial to recessional terminoglacial facies, with the first documented Weichselian ice advance post‐dating 20±2 ka. Overall, the KKH section represents an exceptional sedimentary archive for palaeoenvironmental reconstructions, covering the period from the Saalian glaciation and subsequent Termination II to the early Eemian and Late Weichselian. The results refine the existing palaeogeographical and geochronological models of the late Quaternary history in the southwestern Baltic Sea area and allow correlations with other reference records in a wider area.