Biomarker evidence for paleoenvironmental changes in the southern Yellow Sea over the last 8200 years

Previous studies have indicated that the Yellow Sea underwent significant environmental changes during the Holocene, but many questions remain concerning the timing of the establishment of the modern circulation system, which would have major implications for the Yellow Sea ecosystem and carbon cycle. In this study, marine and terrestrial biomarkers were analyzed in Core YE-2 from a muddy area in the southern Yellow Sea to reconstruct Holocene environmental and phytoplankton community change. The content of three individual marine phytoplankton biomarkers (alkenones, brassicasterol and dinosterol) all display a similar trend, and their total contents during the early Holocene (362 ng/g) were lower than those during the mid-late Holocene (991 ng/g). On the other hand, the contents of terrestrial biomarkers (C27+C29+C31n-alkanes) during the early Holocene (1 661 ng/g) were about three times higher than those during the mid-late Holocene (499 ng/g). Our biomarker results suggest that the modern circulation system of the Yellow Sea was established by 5-6 ka, and resulted in higher marine productivity and lower terrestrial organic matter inputs. Biomarker ratios were used to estimate shifts in phytoplankton community structure in response to mid-Holocene (5-6 ka) environmental changes in the Yellow Sea, revealing a transition from a dinoflagellate-diatom dominant community structure during the early Holocene to a coccolithophore-dominant community structure during the mid-late Holocene.     

ORIGIN OF CARBONATE MATERIALS IN THE NORTHERN BASIN OF LAKE BAIKAL AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO HOLOCENE PALEOCLIMATE

Fine-grained disseminated carbonate was found in Holocene sediments in a core taken from the northern basin of Lake Baikal. The core had two distinct facies. a terrigenous blue-clay overlain by a diatomaceous silt. Oxygen and carbon stable isotope analyses, combined with SEM , X-ray diffraction and .palynology, show that the carbonate in the blue-clay layer is pedogenic in origin, rather than biogenic or authigenic . The S C values in the blue clay suggest that the carbonate is derived from a single source , while the carbonate in the diatom-rich layer might be transported by winds from different sources. On the assumption that the carbonate was formed during the post-glacial age and was transported primarily by river runoff, the 18O isotopic values suggest that the annual temperature in the northern Baikal drainage area was about 3℃ warmer during the middle Holocene (8500-7000 a, B. P.) than during the early Holocene (11 000-8 500a, B.P.) when the blue clay was being deposited . This interpretation is     

STUDIES ON QUATERNARY SPORO-POLLEN ASSEMBLAGE AND PALEOCLIMATE BASED ON BOHAI SEA CORE B_(C-1)

Analysis of 13 spore-pollen assemblage zones reflecting environmental changes since the later middle Pleistocene showed the succession of paleovegetation and the paleogeographic changes in the Bohai Basin and circumjacent area. Paleoclimatic variations here can obviously be divided into 5 cold and 5 warm periods : 2 cold and 1 warm periods in 200 ,000-100, 000 a B . P. (late middle Pleistocene ) 3 cold and 3 warm periods in 100 , 000-12 , 000 a B. P. (late Pleistocene), and 1 warm period since 12 ,000 a B. P. Late Pleistocene climate tended to become colder and colder. The coldest period was in the later stage of late Pleistocene, when the study area was a periglacial zone. The mean annual temperature then was about 10℃ lower than it is now. In the middle stage of late Pleistocene, climate became warm ; the mean annual temperature then was about 3 - 4℃ higher than it is now.By applying principles of climatic stratigraphy, the authors deduced through spore-pollen analysis , that the boundary between mi     

Holocene Temperature Records from the East China Sea Mud Area Southwest of the Cheju Island Reconstructed by the U^K_37 and TEX86 Paleothermometers

As an important marginal sea under the influences of both the Changjiang River and the Kuroshio, the East China Sea （ECS） environment is sensitive to both continental and oceanic forcing. Paleoenvironmental records are essential for understanding the long-term environmental evolution of the ECS and adjacent areas. However, paleo-temperature records from the ECS shelf are currently very limited. In this study, the U^K_37 and TEX86 paleothermometers were used to reconstruct surface and subsurface temperature changes of the mud area southwest of the Cheju Island （Site F10B） in the ECS during the Holocene. The results indicate that temperature changes of F 10B during the early Holocene （11.6-6.2 kyr） are associated with global climate change. During the period of 6.2-2.5 kyr, the similar variability trends of smoothing average of AT （the difference between surface and subsurface temperature） of Site F10B and the strength of the Kuroshio suggest that the Kuroshio influence on the site started around 6.2kyr when the Kuroshio entered the Yellow Sea and continued to 2.5 kyr. During the late Holocene （2.5-1.45 kyr）, apparent decreases of U^K_37 sea surface temperature （SST） and AT imply that the direct influence of the Kuroshio was reduced while cold eddy induced by the Kuroshio gradually controlled hydrological conditions of this region around 2.5 kyr.     

The Holocene Environmental Evolution of the Inner Hangzhou Bay and Its Significance

The Holocene environmental evolution in coastal area, including deltas and estuaries, is vital to the Neolithic colonization in the eastern China. A 29-m long sediment core XL was obtained from the region between the Taihu Lake and Qiantang Estuary, and multiple analyses on the core sediments have been done to investigate the evolution history of the inner coastal zone of Hangzhou Bay during the Holocene. Six sedimentary facies are identified since the late Pleistocene, including the paleosol at the bottom, overlain by tidal-flat-channel complex(TFC), tidal-distributary-channel(TDC), inner estuarine basin(IEB), subtidal-to-intertidal-flat, and fluvial-plain facies. The TFC and TDC facies are dated to be formed before 8500 cal yr BP, featured by relatively coarse sediments, high magnetic properties and less abundant foraminifera, denoting the tide-influenced setting with large terrestrial inputs. The IEB facies characterized by the most abundant foraminifera fossils and the lowest sediment magnetic properties, is inferred to be deposited during the maximum flooding period between 8500 and 7900 cal yr BP. The branch estuary was then infilled by local sediments with a shallowing-upward subtidal-to-intertidal sequence during 7900–4300 cal yr BP. At last the fluvial plain system developed since no later than 4300 cal yr BP, favouring the rapid development of Neolithic cultures in the region.     

Sedimentary characteristics of relict deposits on the western South Yellow Sea

Integrated studies of vertical sedimentary sequences, grain sizes, and benthic foraminifera and ostracoda, in combination with AMS 14C dating, and 210Pb and 137Cs analysis were carried out in three vibracores taken from the area of relict deposits on the western South Yellow Sea. The relict sands, which are about 0.4 m thick, overlie on the Early Holocene coastal marsh or tidal flat deposits with an evident erosional interface in between. The middle and upper parts or sometimes the whole of the relict sands have been reworked under the modern dynamic environment. The sedimentation rate varies between 0.20–0.30 cm year-1. The relict sands show a bimodal grain-size distribution pattern in frequency curves, with a sharp peak in the coarse fraction between 3Φ and 4Φ and a secondary peak in the fine fraction of about 7Φ. Of the benthic foraminiferal and ostracod assemblages, the reworked relict sands are characterized by the mixing of the nearshore euryhaline shallow-water species and deeper water species. The erosional interface at the bottom of the relict sands is considered as a regional ravinement surface formed during the transgression in the Early Holocene due to shoreface retreating landwards. The relict sands were accumulated on the ravinement surface during the transgression in the deglaciation period as lag deposits after winnowing and reworking by marine dynamic processes. And the secondary peak of fine fraction in the frequency curve for the relict sands suggests the input of fine-grained sediments during the reworking process. As the conclusion, the relict sands in the study area are interpreted as a type of reworked relict sediments.     

Evolution of Palaeoenvironment of the South Yellow Sea Since the Last Deglaciation

The sediments in core YS01 recovered from the South Yellow Sea mud deposit zone contain abundant benthic foraminifera, particularly shallow continental shelf species, but rare of planktonic foraminifera. The benthic foraminifera are dominated by stenohaline cold shallow-water species and euryhaline brackish-water species. In this paper, the palaeoenvironmental changes were discussed based on the grain-size compositions and benthic foraminiferal assemblages. Six different benthic foraminiferal assemblages were discriminated by species analysis from the foraminiferal fauna. According to AMS~(14)C dating data in core YS01, we identified four main stages of marine environmental changes since the last deglaciation: a near-shore depositional stage(13.1 – 9.5 kyr B.P.), a transitional stage from near-shore deposition to shallow-sea deposition(9.5 – 5.6 kyr B.P.), a high sea level stage with shallow-sea deposition(5.6–2.9 kyr B.P.), and a stable shallow-sea depositional stage(2.9 kyr B.P. to the present).     

Major mid-late Holocene cooling in the East China Sea revealed by an alkenone sea surface temperature record

Although the mid-late Holocene cold and dry event about 4000 years ago(the 4 ka event) has been observed almost globally, it was most prominent in terrestrial climate proxies from the lower latitudes. Here we evaluate the oceanic response to this event in terms of a Holocene sea surface temperature(SST) record reconstructed using the K'37U index for Core B3 on the continental shelf of the East China Sea. The record reveals a large temperature drop of about 5℃ from the mid-Holocene(24.7℃ at 5.6 ka) to the 4 ka event(19.2℃ at 3.8 ka). This mid-late Holocene cooling period in Core B3 correlated with(i) decreases in the East Asia summer monsoon intensity and(ii) the transition period with increased El Nino/Southern Oscillation activities in the Equatorial Pacific. Our SST record provides oceanic evidence for a more global nature of the mid-late Holocene climate change, which was most likely caused by a southward migration of the Intertropical Converge Zone in response to the decreasing summer solar insolation in the Northern Hemisphere. However, the large SST drop around Core B3 indicates that the mid-late Holocene cooling was regionally amplified by the initiation/strengthening of eddy circulation/cold front which caused upwelling and resulted in additional SST decrease. Upwelling during the mid-late Holocene also enhanced with surface productivity in the East China Sea as reflected by higher alkenone content around Core B3.     

Sedimentary evolution of the Holocene subaqueous clinoform off the southern Shandong Peninsula in the Western South Yellow Sea

Based on the stratigraphic sequence formed since the last glaciation and revealed by 3000 km long high-resolution shallow seismic profiles and the core QDZ03 acquired recently off the southern Shandong Peninsula, we addressed the sedimentary characteristics of a Holocene subaqueous clinoform in this paper. Integrated analyses were made on the core QDZ03, including sedimentary facies, sediment grain sizes, clay minerals, geochemistry, micro paleontology, and AMS 14 C dating. The result indicates that there exists a Holocene subaqueous clinoform, whose bottom boundary generally lies at 15–40 m below the present sea level with its depth contours roughly parallel to the coast and getting deeper seawards. The maximum thickness of the clinoform is up to 22.5 m on the coast side, and the thickness contours generally spread in a banded way along the coastline and becomes thinner towards the sea. At the mouths of some bays along the coast, the clinoform stretches in the shape of a fan and its thickness is evidently larger than that of the surrounding sediments. This clinoform came into being in the early Holocene(about 11.2 cal kyr BP) and can be divided into the lower and upper depositional units(DU 2 and DU 1, respectively). The unit DU 2, being usually less than 3 m in thickness and formed under a low sedimentation rate, is located between the bottom boundary and the Holocene maximum flooding surface(MFS), and represents the sediment of a post-glacial transgressive systems tract; whereas the unit DU 1, the main body of the clinoform, sits on the MFS, belonging to the sediment of a highstand systems tract from middle Holocene(about 7–6 cal kyr BP) to the present. The provenance of the clinoform differs from that of the typical sediments of the Yellow River and can be considered as the results of the joint contribution from both the Yellow River and the proximal coastal sediments of the Shandong Peninsula, as evidenced by the sediment geochemistry of the core. As is controlled mainly by coactions of multiple factors such as the Holocene sea-level changes, sediment supplies and coastal dynamic conditions, the development of the clinoform is genetically related with the synchronous clinoform or subaqueous deltas around the northeastern Shandong Peninsula and in the northern South Yellow Sea in the spatial distribution and sediment provenance, as previously reported, with all of them being formed from the initial stage of the Holocene up to the present.     

Sporo-pollen Assemblage and Paleoclimate Events in Shelf Area of the Southern Yellow Sea Since 1.5 ka B.P.

Based on the authors‘ 1986 to 1994 sporo-pollen assemblage analysis in the southern Yellow Sea area, data from 3 main cores were studied in combination with ^14C, palaeomagnetic and thermoluminescence data. The evolution of the paleoclimate environments in the southern Yellow Sea since 15ka B.P. was revealed that, in deglaciation of the last glacial period, the climate of late glaciation transformed into that of postglaciation, accompanied by a series of violent climate fluctuations. These evolution events happened in a global climate background and related to the geographic changes in eastern China. We distinguished three short-term cooling events and two warming events. Among them, the sporo-pollen assemblage of subzone A1 showed some cold climate features indicating that a cooling event occurred at about 15 - 14ka. B .P. in early deglaciation. This subzone corresponds to the Oldest Dryas. In subzone A3 , many drought-enduring herbal pollens and some few pollens of cold-resistant Picea, Abies, etc. were found, which indicated that a cooling event, with cold and arid climate, occurred at about 12- 11ka. B.P. in late deglaciation. This subzone corresponds to the Younger Dryas. The sporo-pollen assemblage of zone B showed warm and arid climate features in postglaciation. Although the assemblage of subzone B2 indicated a cold and arid climate environment, the development of flora in subzone B2 climate was less cold than that in A3 . Subzone B2 indicated a cooling event which occurred at about 9ka B.P. in early Holocene. Subzone A2, with some distinct differences from subzone A1 and A3 , indicated a warming event which occurred at 14 - 13ka. B.P. and should correspond to a warming fluctuation. The sporo-pollen assemblage of zone C showed features of warm-moist flora and climate, and indicated a warming event which universally occurred along the coast of eastern China at 8 - 3ka B.P. in middle Holocene, and its duration was longer than that of any climate events mentioned above. This period was climatic optimum and belonged to an altithermal period in postglaciation.     

The Holocene warm-humid phases in the North China Plain as recorded by multi-proxy records

The grain size and palinology of sediment and the frequency of 14C dada provide an integrated reconstruction of the Holocene warm-humid phases of the North China Plain. Two clear intense and long-lasting warm-humid phases were identified by comprehensive research in this region. The first phase was dated back to the early Holocene (9 000–7 000 a BP), and the second was centered at 5 000–3 000 a BP. The warm-humid episode between 9 000 and 7 000 a BP was also recognized at other sites showing global climatic...     

A singular spectrum analysis on Holocene climatic oscillation from lake sedimentary record in Minqin Basin, China

The total organic carbon (TOC) content series from the lake sediment of Minqin Basin (100°57′–104°57′E, 37°48′–39°17′N) in northwestern China, which has a 10 000-year-long paleo-climatic proxy record, was used to analyze the Holocene climate changes in the local region. The proxy record was established in the Sanjiaocheng (SJC), Triangle Town in Chinese, Section (103°20′25″E, 39°00′38″N), which is located at the northwestern boundary of the present Asian summer monsoon in China, and is sensitive to global environmental and climate changes. Applying singular spectrum analysis (SSA) to the TOC series, principal climatic oscillations and periodical changes were studied. The results reveal 3 major patterns of climate change regulated by reconstructed components (RCs). The first pattern is natural long-term trend of climatic change in the local area (Minqin Basin), indicating a relatively wetter stage in early Holocene (starting at 9.5 kaBP), and a relatively dryer stage with a strong lake desiccation and a declined vegetation cover in mid-Holocene (during 7–6 kaBP). From 4.0 kaBP to the present, there has been a gradually decreasing trend in the third reconstructed component (RC3) showing that the local climate changed again into a dryer stage. The second pattern shows millennial-centennial scale oscillations containing cycles of 1 600 and 800 years that have been present throughout almost the entire Holocene period of the last 10 000 years. The third pattern is a millennial-centennial scale variation with a relatively smaller amplitude and unclear cycles showing a nonlinear interaction within the earth’s climate systems.     

Paleontological Records of Holocene Environmental Changes offshore,Egypt

Paleontological and sedimentological analyses were carried out in sediment core from southeastern Mediterranean Sea, offshore Egypt to reconstruct the past environmental changes in trophic state and temperature during Holocene. To achieve our goals, grain size, total organic carbon, planktic and benthic foraminifera, dinoflagellate cysts have been investigated. Few micropalaentological studies have been done in the studied area and none of them used the combined proxies of benthic foraminifera and dinoflagellate cyst. Theses combined proxies reflects more comprehensive paleoenvironmental view. Biotic and abiotic data have been analysed with multivariate technique including Redundancy Analysis(RDA). Diversity indices such as: Fisher alpha index(α) and Shannon index(H) have been applied. The foraminiferal study yields 9 planktic species and 10 benthic species. Foraminiferal assemblages have low species diversity indices especially at sapropel layer S1. Mediterranean sapropels are layers with elevated organic carbon concentrations that contrast with surrounding organic poor sediments. Sapropels occur periodically in sedimentary sequences of the last millions years, which have been the subject of extensive previous study. Redundancy Analysis(RDA) yields two groups of foraminiferal assemblages depending on the changes of total organic carbon and clay content. The dinocysts study yields 15 species, the majority of cyst types belonging to the order Gonyaulacales. The association of dinoflagellate cyst shows two depositional phases in the sediment. The sapropel layer S1, with anoxic condition and warmer temperature, is recorded at depth 28-46 cm where heterotrophic taxa dominate and the post-sapropel layer is recorded at depth 0-28 cm; where autotrophic taxa dominate.     

Asymmetric response of the South China Sea SST to El Niño and La Niña

The interannual variability of the sea surface temperature (SST) in the South China Sea (SCS) is investigated according to its relationship with El Nio/La Nia (EN/LN) using monthly products from ICOADS. The SCS SST bears two peaks associated with EN/LN and shows the asymmetric features. Coinciding with the mature phase of EN/LN, the first SST warming/cooling peaks in December(0)-February(1) (DJF(1)) and centers in the southern part. The major difference is in the amplitude associated with the strength of EN/LN. However, the SCS SST anomaly shows distinct difference after the mature phase of EN/LN. The EN SST warm-ing develops a mid-summer peak in June-August(1) (JJA(1)) and persists up to September-October(1), with the same amplitude of the first warming peak. Whereas the LN SST cooling peaks in May(1), it decays slowly until the end of the year, with amplitude much weaker. Comparing with SST and atmospheric circulations, the weak response and early termination of the second cooling is due to the failure of the cyclonic wind anomalies to develop in the northwest Pacific during JJA(1).     

Abrupt climate changes of Holocene

This paper is a review of studies of abrupt climate changes(ACCs) during the Holocene published during the past ten years.North Atlantic cold events are indicators of ACCs.As indicated by North Atlantic ice-rafted debris(IRD),there were nine confirmed cold events during the Holocene,occurring at 11.1 kyr,10.3 kyr,9.4 kyr,8.1 kyr,5.9 kyr,4.2 kyr,2.8 kyr,1.4 kyr,and 0.4 kyr respectively according to most representative results from Bond et al.(1997).However,the identification of chronology has been made with some uncertainties.Considerable climatic proxy data have shown that,during the cold events,substantial climate abnormalities have occurred widely across the globe,particularly in the areas surrounding the North Atlantic.These abnormalities were in the form of high-latitude cold in the both hemispheres,expansion of the Westerlies to low latitudes,drought in the monsoon regions,recession of summer monsoons,and intensification of the winter monsoons.Studies have indicated that the four ACCs occurring in the early Holocene may be related to freshwater pulses from ice melting in the northern part of the North Atlantic,and the other five ACCs that occurred during the middle and late Holocene may be related to the decreased solar activity.     

A STUDY ON REGULARITY OF DROUGHT AND FLOOD IN THE CHANGJIANG RIVER VALLEY DURING LAST 10 CENTURIES

According to historical records, there are 264 drought and flood years, occurred in the upper and middle reaches of the Changjiang (Yangtze) River during last 1020 years from 961 to 1980. The evolutionary law and developing trend of drought and flood years are studied. The distribution of drought and flood years are non-uniform and the dry and flood seasons in a year are concentrated. At the angle of monsoon circulation, at present the climate in the upper and middle reaches of the Changjiang River is just in the late stage of frequent drought period and the early stage of least flood period. In addition, the cycle of drought and flood and the feature of drought and flood occurred in the upper, middle and lower reaches of the Changjiang River are analyzed. It shows that the short period less than 10 years is in the majority, and the drought and flood occurred most frequently in the middle and lower reaches of the Changjiang River.     

Pollen-based reconstructions of Holocene vegetation and climatic change of Tibetan Plateau

A synthesis of Holocene pollen records from the Tibetan Plateau shows the history of vegetation and climatic changes during the Holocene. Palynological evidences from 24 cores/sections have been compiled and show that the vegetation shifted from subalpine/alpine conifer forest to subalpine/alpine evergreen sclerophyllous forest in the southeastern part of the plateau; from alpine steppe to alpine desert in the central, western and northern part; and from alpine meadow to alpine steppe in the eastern and southern plateau regions during the Holocene. These records show that increases in precipitation began about 9 ka from the southeast, and a wide ranging level of increased humidity developed over the entire of the plateau around 8-7 ka, followed by aridity from 6 ka and a continuous drying over the plateau after 4-3 ka. The changes in Holocene climates of the plateau can be interpreted qualitatively as a response to orbital forcing and its secondary effects on the Indian Monsoon which expanded northwards     

Holocene Abrupt Climate Shifts and Mid-Holocene Drought Intervals Recorded in Barkol Lake of Northern Xinjiang of China

Study results in this paper have indicated that the Holocene climate in Xinjiang, Northwestem China has been alternating between wet and dry conditions, and was punctuated with a series of abrupt climate shifts. A sediment core taken from Barkol Lake in the northern Xinjiang of Northwest China was analyzed at 1 cm interval for grain-size distribution. Abrupt climate shifts revealed by the grain-size proxy occurred at ca 1.4, 3.0, 4.3, 5.6, 8.0 cal kyr B.E, which were well correlated to both the abrupt shifts recorded in the North Atlantic Ocean （NAO） and the Holocene sea surface temperature （SST） cooling events in the Arabian Ocean. The correlation indicated that the climatic changes in the extreme arid Northwest China were associated with the NAO, probably via the North Atlantic Oscillation-affected westerly winds. The strength and position of westerly winds probably modulated the Siberian-Mongolian high- pressure system （winter monsoon）, and played an important role in climate change of Northwest China. Moreover, an evident drought interval during the middle Holocene was also revealed by grain-size proxy.     

A review of comminution age method and its potential application in the East China Sea to constrain the time scale of sediment source-to-sink process

The East China Sea(ECS) is a river-dominated epicontinental sea, linking the Asian continent to the northwestern Pacific via the large rivers originating from Tibetan Plateau. The relevant huge influx of riverine detritus has developed unique sedimentary systems in the ECS during the Quaternary, offering ideal terrestrial archives for reconstructing Quaternary paleoenvironmental changes and studying land-sea interactions. Overall, two characteristic river systems dominate the sedimentary systems and sediment source to sink transport patterns in the ECS, represented by the Changjiang(Yangtze River) and Huanghe(Yellow River) for the large river system and Taiwan rivers for the small river system. Given this, the sediments derived from both river systems bear distinct features in terms of parent rock lithology, provenance weathering and sediment transport. Previous studies mostly focus on either the ‘source' discrimination or the ‘sink' records of the sedimentary system in the ECS, while the source to sink process linking the land and sea, in particular its time scale, has been poorly understood. Here we introduce a newly-developed dating technique, the ‘comminution age' method, which offers a quantitative constraint on the time scale of sediment transfer from its ultimate source to the final depositional sink. This novel method is of great significance for improving our understanding on the earth surface processes including tectonic-climate driven weathering, and sediment recycling in relation to landscape evolution and marine environmental changes. The application of comminution age method in the ECS will provide important constraints on sediment source-to-sink process and more evidences for the construction of late Quaternary paleoenvironmental changes under these unique sedimentary systems.