Age and paleoclimatic significance of late Holocene lakes in the Carson Sink, NV, USA

New dating in the Carson Sink at the termini of the Humboldt and Carson rivers in the Great Basin of the western United States indicates that lakes reached elevations of 1204 and 1198 m between 915 and 652 and between 1519 and 1308 cal yr B.P., respectively. These dates confirm Morrison's original interpretation (Lake Lahontan: Geology of the Southern Carson Desert, Professional Paper 40, U.S. Geol. Survey, 1964) that these shorelines are late Holocene features, rather than late Pleistocene as interpreted by later researchers. Paleohydrologic modeling suggests that discharge into the Carson Sink must have been increased by a factor of about four, and maintained for decades, to account for the 1204-m lake stand. The hydrologic effects of diversions of the Walker River to the Carson Sink were probably not sufficient, by themselves, to account for the late Holocene lake-level rises. The decadal-long period of increased runoff represented by the 1204-m lake is also reflected in other lake records and in tree ring records from the western United States.     

Holocene Climate in the Northern Great Plains Inferred from Sediment Stratigraphy, Stable Isotopes, Carbonate Geochemistry, Diatoms, and Pollen at Moon Lake, North Dakota

Seismic stratigraphy, sedimentary facies, pollen stratigraphy, diatom-inferred salinity, stable isotope (δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C), and chemical composition (Sr/Ca and Mg/Ca) of authigenic carbonates from Moon Lake cores provide a congruent Holocene record of effective moisture for the eastern Northern Great Plains. Between 11,700 and 9500¹⁴C yr B.P., the climate was cool and moist. A gradual decrease in effective moisture occurred between 9500 and 7100¹⁴C yr B.P. A change at about 7100¹⁴C yr B.P. inaugurated the most arid period during the Holocene. Between 7100 and 4000¹⁴C yr B.P., three arid phases occurred at 6600–6200¹⁴C yr B.P., 5400–5200¹⁴C yr B.P., and 4800–4600¹⁴C yr B.P. Effective moisture generally increased after 4000¹⁴C yr B.P., but periods of low effective moisture occurred between 2900–2800¹⁴C yr B.P. and 1200–800¹⁴C yr B.P. The data also suggest high climatic variability during the last few centuries. Despite the overall congruence, the biological (diatom), sedimentological, isotopic, and chemical proxies were occassionally out of phase. At these times the evaporative process was not the only control of lake-water chemical and isotopic composition.     

Loess record of the Pleistocene–Holocene transition on the northern and central Great Plains, USA

Various lines of evidence support conflicting interpretations of the timing, abruptness, and nature of climate change in the Great Plains during the Pleistocene–Holocene transition. Loess deposits and paleosols on both the central and northern Great Plains provide a valuable record that can help address these issues. A synthesis of new and previously reported optical and radiocarbon ages indicates that the Brady Soil, which marks the boundary between late Pleistocene Peoria Loess and Holocene Bignell Loess, began forming after a reduction in the rate of Peoria Loess accumulation that most likely occurred between 13.5 and 15 cal ka. Brady Soil formation spanned all or part of the Bølling-Allerød episode (approximately 14.7–12.9 cal ka) and all of the Younger Dryas episode (12.9–11.5 cal ka) and extended at least 1000 years beyond the end of the Younger Dryas. The Brady Soil was buried by Bignell Loess sedimentation beginning around 10.5–9 cal ka, and continuing episodically through the Holocene. Evidence for a brief increase in loess influx during the Younger Dryas is noteworthy but very limited. Most late Quaternary loess accumulation in the central Great Plains was nonglacigenic and was under relatively direct climatic control. Thus, Brady Soil formation records climatic conditions that minimized eolian activity and allowed effective pedogenesis, probably through relatively high effective moisture.Optical dating of loess in North Dakota supports correlation of the Leonard Paleosol on the northern Great Plains with the Brady Soil. Thick loess in North Dakota was primarily derived from the Missouri River floodplain; thus, its stratigraphy may in part reflect glacial influence on the Missouri River. Nonetheless, the persistence of minimal loess accumulation and soil formation until 10 cal ka at our North Dakota study site is best explained by a prolonged interval of high effective moisture correlative with the conditions that favored Brady Soil formation. Burial of both the Brady Soil and the Leonard Paleosol by renewed loess influx probably represents eolian system response that occurred when gradual change toward a drier climate eventually crossed the threshold for eolian activity. Overall, the loess–paleosol sequences of the central and northern Great Plains record a broad peak of high effective moisture across the late Pleistocene to Holocene boundary, rather than well-defined climatic episodes corresponding to the Bølling-Allerød and Younger Dryas episodes in the North Atlantic region.     

Human Responses to Middle Holocene (Altithermal) Climates on the North American Great Plains

The climate of the Great Plains during the middle Holocene varied considerably, but overall it was marked by a north–south gradient of increasingly warmer and drier conditions, with a reduction in effective moisture, surface water, and resource abundance, and an increase in resource patchiness, sediment weathering, erosion, and aeolian activity. Pronounced drought conditions were most evident on the Southern High Plains. Understanding the human responses to middle Holocene climates is complicated by a lack of archaeological data, which is partly a result of geomorphic processes that removed or deeply buried sites of this age, and by the varying adaptive responses of hunter-gatherers during this period. On the Southern High Plains, where drought was most severe, surface and groundwater sources dried and bison populations were diminished, prompting substantial adaptive changes, including local abandonment, well-digging to tap underground water, and a widening of the diet breadth to incorporate higher-cost, lower-return seed and plant resources. Sites of this age on the Central and Northern Plains also show a possible increase in diet breadth (with the incorporation of plant foods in the diet), and perhaps changes in settlement mobility (including possible shift into higher elevation areas, or mapping-on to extant rivers and springs). But linking those changes to middle Holocene drought is less straightforward.     

Episodic Late Holocene dune movements on the sand-sheet area, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, San Luis Valley, Colorado, USA

The Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve (GSDNPP) in the San Luis Valley, Colorado, contains a variety of eolian landforms that reflect Holocene drought variability. The most spectacular is a dune mass banked against the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, which is fronted by an extensive sand sheet with stabilized parabolic dunes. Stratigraphic exposures of parabolic dunes and associated luminescence dating of quartz grains by single-aliquot regeneration (SAR) protocols indicate eolian deposition of unknown magnitude occurred ca. 1290-940, 715 ± 80, 320 ± 30, and 200-120 yr ago and in the 20th century. There are 11 drought intervals inferred from the tree-ring record in the past 1300 yr at GSDNPP potentially associated with dune movement, though only five eolian depositional events are currently recognized in the stratigraphic record. There is evidence for eolian transport associated with dune movement in the 13th century, which may coincide with the “Great Drought”, a 26-yr-long dry interval identified in the tree ring record, and associated with migration of Anasazi people from the Four Corners areas to wetter areas in southern New Mexico. This nascent chronology indicates that the transport of eolian sand across San Luis Valley was episodic in the late Holocene with appreciable dune migration in the 8th, 10-13th, and 19th centuries, which ultimately nourished the dune mass against the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.     

黄土高原南部白水河流域全新世中期植被特征及气候意义

基于黄土高原南部白水河流域下河、南山头、西山、马坡等4处遗址共计2270块木炭记录,结合高精度的AMS ¹⁴C测年,恢复了研究区5.53~4.12 cal.ka B.P.时期木本植被特征和古气候变迁。共存生态因子分析结果和植被组合特征表明该时期的气候整体较今更加暖湿,但在百年尺度上仍存在气候变迁：5.05 cal.ka B.P.以后植被组合中亚热带种属数量及占比的增加表明气候较前一阶段更加暖湿;4.35~4.12 cal.ka B.P.时期的植被组合中耐旱种属比例增多,表明研究区的气候至少在4.35 cal.ka B.P.之前已经转干。研究区气候的变化对文化的发展产生了重要影响,适宜的气候可以促进文化的繁荣与发展;当气候恶化时,农业的发展可在一定程度上延缓文化的衰落,但持续上百年的气候恶化最终会导致文化的衰退甚至消亡。

     

大兴安岭阿尔山天池湖泊沉积物记录的全新世气候突变

阿尔山天池是大兴安岭中部一个封闭的火山口湖,地处东亚夏季风尾闾区,是研究区域气候快速变化的良好载体。通过对阿尔山天池岩芯（深度243~100 cm,年代10.0~1.3 cal.ka B.P.）开展连续、高分辨率的XRF元素扫描和粒度分析,选取岩芯中12种含量较高且环境指示意义明确的地球化学元素开展相关分析及因子分析发现：全新世时段阿尔山天池湖泊沉积物中Sr、Rb、Zr、Fe、Ca、K、Ti、Si、S、Mn、Cl等元素变化一致且均与Cr元素变化趋势相反,其中Sr、Rb、Zr、Fe、Ca、K、Ti、Si等8个迁移积累型元素之间相关性较高,且为湖泊元素变化的主控因子,说明阿尔山天池湖泊沉积物中元素来源主要受外源碎屑物质的影响,湖泊沉积物元素变化主要决定于区域气候的干湿状况。基于精确的年代框架,通过阿尔山天池沉积物Ca/Ti,Cr/Ti,Fe/Mn,Rb/Sr和Fe/Ti元素比值、粒度数据,与同一地区的月亮湖TOC和乔木花粉百分比记录对比分析表明：大兴安岭中部地区全新世以来气候-环境和湖泊水位经历了温暖偏干-低湖水位期（10.0~7.3 cal.ka B.P.）、温凉湿润-高湖水位期（7.3~6.1 cal.ka B.P.）、温暖湿润-低湖水位期（6.1~4.3 cal.ka B.P.）、温凉湿润-高湖水位期（4.3~3.0 cal.ka B.P.）、温暖湿润-较高湖水位期（3.0~1.4 cal.ka B.P.）等5个阶段的演变;元素记录15次显著快速干旱气候事件,其中发生在7.8cal.ka B.P.、7.3cal.ka B.P.、6.9cal.ka B.P.、6.5cal.ka B.P.、6.3cal.ka B.P.、6.1cal.ka B.P.、5.5 cal.ka B.P.、4.2 cal.ka B.P.、3.8 cal.ka B.P.、3.6 cal.ka B.P.、3.0 cal.ka B.P.、2.6 cal.ka B.P.及1.8 cal.ka B.P.的13次干旱事件与已有大兴安岭地区其他钻孔记录均有较好的对应。此外,阿尔山天池湖泊记录中Fe/Ti元素比值与粉砂和粘土含量变化趋势基本一致,表明在东北封闭湖泊中Fe/Ti可作为湖泊细颗粒组分的良好代用指标。本研究表明湖泊沉积物高分辨率的XRF元素扫描分析在气候快速变化研究方面具有很大的潜力。

     

浙江湘湖地区全新世孢粉记录及其古气候意义

依据钱塘江南岸跨湖桥全新世地层剖面的孢粉分析,结合14C测年以及沉积物岩性岩相特征,将浙江湘湖地区全新世早、中期(10～2.9kaB.P.)划分为3个古气候发展阶段。概述了孢粉组合、植被类型以及气候冷暖、干湿的交替、演化规律,并指出第Ⅱ气候阶段(7.7～5.0kaB.P.)相当于与全球变化相一致的全新世气候最适宜期,跨湖桥文化就是在这样的气候背景中孕育和发展的。本区全新世早期的气候变化与中国南方的深圳湾地区有很好的可比性。     

A Holocene pollen record of persistent droughts from Pyramid Lake, Nevada, USA

Pollen and algae microfossils preserved in sediments from Pyramid Lake, Nevada, provide evidence for periods of persistent drought during the Holocene age. We analyzed one hundred nineteen 1-cm-thick samples for pollen and algae from a set of cores that span the past 7630 years. The early middle Holocene, 7600 to 6300 cal yr B.P., was found to be the driest period, although it included one short but intense wet phase. We suggest that Lake Tahoe was below its rim for most of this period, greatly reducing the volume and depth of Pyramid Lake. Middle Holocene aridity eased between 5000 and 3500 cal yr B.P. and climate became variable with distinct wet and dry phases. Lake Tahoe probably spilled intermittently during this time. No core was recovered that represented the period between 3500 and 2600 cal yr B.P. The past 2500 years appear to have had recurrent persistent droughts. The timing and magnitude of droughts identified in the pollen record compares favorably with previously published δ¹⁸O data from Pyramid Lake. The timing of these droughts also agrees with the ages of submerged rooted stumps in the Eastern Sierra Nevada and woodrat midden data from central Nevada. Prolonged drought episodes appear to correspond with the timing of ice drift minima (solar maxima) identified from North Atlantic marine sediments, suggesting that changes in solar irradiance may be a possible mechanism influencing century-scale drought in the western Great Basin.     

大兴安岭阿尔山天池沉积物中正构烷烃记录揭示的全新世古气候变化

我国东北地区地处东亚季风北缘,在高、低纬过程的共同影响下,区域气候和环境变化较为复杂。文章选取大兴安岭中段的阿尔山天池长2.5m的全新世以来的湖泊沉积岩芯（ACL17C）作为研究对象,对源于植物叶蜡的正构烷烃及相关代用指标进行分析,结果表明阿尔山天池自10.0cal. ka B.P.以来,正构烷烃浓度所代表的湖泊及流域的生产力逐渐增强,并在5.0~3.0cal. ka B.P.期间达到峰值,结合其他指标推测该阶段湖泊水位较高,有机物输入稳定,沉积速率较慢,气候温暖湿润,可能是全新世气候适宜期;2.3~1.5cal. ka B.P.期间,正构烷烃浓度下降,沉积物颗粒变粗,指示湖泊水位突降,藻类含量上升,植被状况较差,可能发生了区域性的气候变干事件;1.5cal. ka B.P.之后,相关指标显示植被状况转好,湖泊水位上升。通过对比大、小兴安岭及附近区域的植被及气候演化结果,表明该区域全新世气候适宜期可能发生在中、晚全新世,与其他地区记录的早、中全新世适宜期存在显著差异。

     

珠江三角洲GZ-2孔全新统孢粉特征及古环境意义*

根据珠江三角洲GZ-2孔测年结果、岩相特征和孢粉地层信息推断,该地区全新统约在6.0 ka BP开始沉积, 全新统孢粉组合特征与更新统相比有明显的区别,表明全新世与更新世的气候相比有明显变化。孢粉与沉积信息揭示,全新世本区气候基本以暖湿为主,气候波动不大,在5.0～2.4 ka BP表现最为热湿,在2.4～1.9 ka BP相对偏凉干,随后恢复暖湿。在这些相对较明显的波动中还包含有次一级的微弱波动。除了反映气候变化,孢粉信息也指示了一定的沉积环境变迁以及人类活动信息。该区在中全新世经历了一次明显的海侵过程,进入晚全新世后人类活动对三角洲植被和环境的影响加剧, 期间水深逐渐变浅,沉积环境由河口湾、浅海、滨海潮滩逐渐演变为三角洲平原,区域气候的变化与海平面变化趋势基本一致。     

Holocene storage of siliciclastic sediment around islands on the middle shelf of the Great Barrier Reef Platform, north-east Australia

Thick sequences of sediment surround the Whitsunday Islands on the middle shelf of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) Platform. Much of this sediment is siliciclastic material deposited since the sea‐level highstand at around 6·5 ka. This raises a mass balance dilemma because modern terrigenous discharge to the GBR Platform is restricted to the inner shelf. Shallow seismic profiles and sediment samples were collected over 450 km² around the Whitsunday Islands to quantify the mass of siliciclastic sediment for a dynamic model of the shelf. The sea floor and pre‐Holocene surfaces were mapped using 4584 stations along the seismic profiles and a graphical computer program. The total volume of sediment between these two surfaces is 3·67 ± 0·45 × 10⁹ m³. This volume is composed of buried reefs (0·13 ± 0·01 × 10⁹ m³), medium‐ (0·70 ± 0·30 × 10⁹ m³) and fine‐grained shoals (2·84 ± 0·35 × 10⁹ m³). The volume estimates combined with measurements of carbonate concentration, density and porosity indicate that 1850 ± 380 Mt of Holocene siliciclastic sediment surround the Whitsunday Islands in medium‐ (510 ± 225 Mt) and fine‐grained shoals (1340 ± 155 Mt). The total mass of siliciclastic material is 1·7–2·6 times that stored in Cleveland Bay, a similar sized repository on the inner shelf. A simple numerical model has been constructed to explain this large quantity of Holocene siliciclastic sediment. The model results in the appropriate siliciclastic mass next to the Whitsunday Islands by integrating regional shelf processes over time. Unlike the present day, rivers discharged sediment to the middle shelf during the early Holocene. This material was subsequently focused by northward transport into the vicinity of the islands, a geomorphologically complex region that serves as a sediment trap. Although direct riverine inputs to the middle shelf have stopped during the present sea‐level highstand, previously deposited siliciclastic sediment is continually being winnowed from the middle shelf and redeposited next to the Whitsunday Islands. The transport and distribution of siliciclastic sediment on the GBR Platform is thus influenced significantly by storage around islands on the middle shelf.     

A late Holocene paleoclimatic history of Lake Tanganyika, East Africa

A nearshore core (LT03-05) from the north basin of Lake Tanganyika provides diatom, pollen, and sedimentary time series covering the last ca. 3800 yr at 15-36 yr resolution. A chronology supported by 21 AMS dates on terrestrial and lacustrine materials allows us to account for ancient carbon effects on ¹⁴C ages and to propose refinements of the region's climatic history. Conditions drier than those of today were followed after ca. 3.30 ka by an overall wetting trend. Several century-scale climate variations were superimposed upon that trend, with exceptionally rainy conditions occurring 1.70-1.40 ka, 1.15-0.90 ka, 0.70-0.55 ka, and 0.35-0.20 ka. Around 0.55-0.35 ka, during the Spörer sunspot minimum, drier conditions developed in the northern Tanganyika basin while more humid conditions were registered at Lakes Victoria and Naivasha. This indicates significant variability in the nature and distribution of near-equatorial rainfall anomalies during much of the Little Ice Age.     

福州马尾全新世孢粉组合及其地质意义

选择福州马尾青州ZK32钻孔岩芯,作为该地区全新世沉积地层的代表,进行系统的孢粉研究,得出六个孢粉组合,恢复了福州马尾全新世古植被、古气候,探讨了福州马尾全新世地层的划分以及气候与海面变化关系。     

Groundwater recharge and chemical evolution in the southern High Plains of Texas, USA

The unconfined High Plains (Ogallala) aquifer is the largest aquifer in the USA and the primary water supply for the semiarid southern High Plains of Texas and New Mexico. Analyses of water and soils northeast of Amarillo, Texas, together with data from other regional studies, indicate that processes during recharge control the composition of unconfined groundwater in the northern half of the southern High Plains. Solute and isotopic data are consistent with a sequence of episodic precipitation, concentration of solutes in upland soils by evapotranspiration, runoff, and infiltration beneath playas and ditches (modified locally by return flow of wastewater and irrigation tailwater). Plausible reactions during recharge include oxidation of organic matter, dissolution and exsolution of CO₂, dissolution of CaCO₃, silicate weathering, and cation exchange. Si and ¹⁴C data suggest leakage from perched aquifers to the High Plains aquifer. Plausible mass-balance models for the High Plains aquifer include scenarios of flow with leakage but not reactions, flow with reactions but not leakage, and flow with neither reactions nor leakage. Mechanisms of recharge and chemical evolution delineated in this study agree with those noted for other aquifers in the south-central and southwestern USA. Electronic Publication     

A multi-proxy paleolimnological reconstruction of Holocene climate conditions in the Great Basin, United States

A sediment core spanning  7000 cal yr BP recovered from Stella Lake, a small sub-alpine lake located in Great Basin National Park, Nevada, was analyzed for subfossil chironomids (non-biting midges), diatoms, and organic content (estimated by loss-on-ignition (LOI)). Subfossil chironomid analysis indicates that Stella Lake was characterized by a warm, middle Holocene, followed by a cool “Neoglacial” period, with the last two millennia characterized by a return to warmer conditions. Throughout the majority of the core the Stella Lake diatom-community composition is dominated by small, periphytic taxa which are suggestive of shallow, cool, alkaline, oligotrophic waters with extensive seasonal ice cover. A reconstruction of mean July air temperature (MJAT) was developed by applying a midge-based inference model for MJAT (two-component WA-PLS) consisting of 79 lakes and 54 midge taxa (r_jack² = 0.55, RMSEP = 0.9°C). Comparison of the chironomid-inferred temperature record to existing regional paleoclimate reconstructions suggests that the midge-inferred temperatures correspond well to regional patterns. This multi-proxy record provides valuable insight into regional Holocene climate and environmental conditions by providing a quantitative reconstruction of peak Holocene warmth and aquatic ecosystem response to these changes in the Great Basin, a region projected to experience increased aridity and higher temperatures.     

Holocene vegetation, fire and climate history of the Sawtooth Range, central Idaho, USA

The paucity of low- and middle-elevation paleoecologic records in the Northern Rocky Mountains limits our ability to assess current environmental change in light of past conditions. A 10,500-yr-long vegetation, fire and climate history from Lower Decker Lake in the Sawtooth Range provides information from a new region. Initial forests dominated by pine and Douglas-fir were replaced by open Douglas-fir forest at 8420 cal yr BP, marking the onset of warmer conditions than present. Presence of closed Douglas-fir forest between 6000 and 2650 cal yr BP suggests heightened summer drought in the middle Holocene. Closed lodgepole pine forest developed at 2650 cal yr BP and fires became more frequent after 1450 cal yr BP. This shift from Douglas-fir to lodgepole pine forest was probably facilitated by a combination of cooler summers, cold winters, and more severe fires than before. Five drought episodes, including those at 8200 cal yr BP and during the Medieval Climate Anomaly, were registered by brief intervals of lodgepole pine decline, an increase in fire activity, and mistletoe infestation. The importance of a Holocene perspective when assessing the historical range of variability is illustrated by the striking difference between the modern forest and that which existed 3000 yr ago.     

Episodes of late Holocene aridity recorded by stalagmites from Devil's Icebox Cave, central Missouri, USA

Two stalagmites from Devil's Icebox Cave, central Missouri, display similar δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O values and trends during the late Holocene. Positive δ¹³C excursions at 3.5-2.6 ka and 1.2-0.9 ka are interpreted to reflect drier conditions. These elevated stalagmite δ¹³C values could have plausibly been driven by increasing C₄ plant abundances over the cave or an increased contribution of bedrock carbon, both of which could reflect decreased effective moisture. A lack of corresponding oxygen isotopic anomalies during these intervals suggests that neither mean annual temperature nor the seasonality of precipitation changed concomitantly with dryness. Both of the δ¹³C excursions identified in our stalagmite record are roughly coincident with dry intervals from a number of sites located across the Great Plains.     

Holocene millennial to centennial carbonate cyclicity recorded in slope sediments of the Great Bahama Bank and its climatic implications

A 38 m long sediment core (MD992201) retrieved from a water depth of 290 m from the leeward margin of the Great Bahama Bank (GBB; 25°53·49′N, 79°16·34′W) has been investigated for changes in aragonite content. The core covers the Mid to Late Holocene (the past 7230 yr). Sediment lightness (L*-values) was used as a proxy for aragonite content, based on a high linear correlation (R = 0·93) between the X-ray diffraction derived aragonite content and L*-values. The resulting time resolution of the L*-values derived aragonite content ranges from 1 yr at the base of the core to 4 yr at the top. Detailed time series analysis using Monte Carlo Singular Spectrum Analysis and spectral analysis (Lomb–Scargle Fourier transform) identifies the presence of seven signals with varying amplitudes and wavelengths that could be traced throughout the past 5500 yr. During the first ∼1600 yr of sedimentation the aragonite record is dominated by the initial flooding of the flat-topped GBB. Superimposed on a multimillennial signal, related to Holocene sea-level changes, a millennial-scale fluctuation and five quasi-periodic oscillations were detected (∼1·3–2 kyr, ∼500–600 yr, ∼380 yr, ∼260 yr, ∼200 yr and ∼100 yr period). Comparisons with other proxies (e.g. tree ring-Δ¹⁴C, ¹⁰Be and δ¹⁸O in ice cores) provides information on the origin and dynamics of the individual signals. The analysis shows that the ∼200 yr and ∼100 yr signals can be attributed to solar forcing. The ∼260 yr, ∼380 yr and the ∼500–600 yr quasi-periodic signals are found to be of climatic origin, whereas the millennial scale fluctuations remain enigmatic, although solar forcing mechanisms seem likely. The data show that variability of solar output as well as past oceanographic and atmospheric changes have modulated the Mid to Late Holocene climate, which in turn controlled sediment input variations found in the Holocene wedge leeward of the GBB. Although these periplatform sediments have a rather uniform appearance, they still contain a large variety of subtle sedimentary variations.