Paleolimnology of Lake Tanganyika, East Africa, over the past 100 kyr

New sediment core data from a unique slow-sedimentation rate site in Lake Tanganyika contain a much longer and continuous record of limnological response to climate change than have been previously observed in equatorial regions of central Africa. The new core site was first located through an extensive seismic reflection survey over the Kavala Island Ridge (KIR), a sedimented basement high that separates the Kigoma and Kalemie Basins in Lake Tanganyika.Proxy analyses of paleoclimate response carried out on core T97-52V include paleomagnetic and index properties, TOC and isotopic analyses of organic carbon, and diatom and biogenic silica analyses. A robust age model based on 11 radiocarbon (AMS) dates indicates a linear, continuous sedimentation rate nearly an order of magnitude slower here compared to other core sites around the lake. This age model indicates continuous sedimentation over the past 79 k yr, and a basal age in excess of 100 k yr.The results of the proxy analyses for the past 20 k yr are comparable to previous studies focused on that interval in Lake Tanganyika, and show that the lake was about 350 m lower than present at the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Repetitive peaks in TOC and corresponding drops in ¹³C over the past 79 k yr indicate periods of high productivity and mixing above the T97-52V core site, probably due to cooler and perhaps windier conditions. From 80 through 58 k yr the ¹³C values are relatively negative (–26 to –28 l) suggesting predominance of algal contributions to bottom sediments at this site during this time. Following this interval there is a shift to higher values of ¹³C, indicating a possible shift to C-4 pathway-dominated grassland-type vegetation in the catchment, and indicating cooler, dryer conditions from 55 k yr through the LGM. Two seismic sequence boundaries are observed at shallow stratigraphic levels in the seismic reflection data, and the upper boundary correlates to a major discontinuity near the base of T97-52V. We interpret these discontinuities to reflect major, prolonged drops in lake level below the core site (393 m), with the lower boundary correlating to marine oxygen isotope Stage 6. This suggests that the previous glacial period was considerably cooler and more arid in the equatorial tropics than was the last glacial period.     

Subfossil Chironomidae from Lake Tanganyika, East Africa 1. Tanypodinae and Orthocladiinae

Analysis of subfossil remains of larval Chironomidae in 38 surface-sediment samples from between 53 and 189 m depth in Lake Tanganyika (East Africa) yielded 77 different morphotypes, including 7 Tanypodinae, 19 Orthocladiinae, and 51 Chironominae. Character-state differences between these morphotypes resemble differences at the species level in the better-known Holarctic fauna, hence we consider most of our Lake Tanganyika morphotypes equivalent to morphological species. Individual morphotypes were identified to species, genus, or tribe level depending on current alpha-taxonomic knowledge on the larvae of the group concerned, and the taxonomic resolution of preserved diagnostic features. This paper presents taxon diagnoses and an illustrated key to the Tanypodinae and Orthocladiinae in this Lake Tanganyika collection, with the aim to promote consistency of identification in studies using African Chironomidae as biological indicators of natural and anthropogenic environmental change in lacustrine ecosystems.     

Late Holocene linkages between decade–century scale climate variability and productivity at Lake Tanganyika, Africa

Microlaminated sediment cores from the Kalya slope region of Lake Tanganyika provide a near-annually resolved paleoclimate record between ∼∼2,840 and 1,420 cal. yr B.P. demonstrating strong linkages between climate variability and lacustrine productivity. Laminae couplets comprise dark, terrigenous-dominated half couplets, interpreted as low density underflows deposited from riverine sources during the rainy season, alternating with light, planktonic diatomaceous ooze, with little terrigenous component, interpreted as windy/dry season deposits. Laminated portions of the studied cores consist of conspicuous dark and light colored bundles of laminae couplets. Light and dark bundles alternate at decadal time scales. Within dark bundles, both light and dark half couplets are significantly thinner than within light bundles, implying slower sediment accumulation rates during both seasons over those intervals.Time series analyses of laminae thickness patterns demonstrate significant periodicities at interannual–centennial time scales. Longer time scale periodicities (multidecadal to centennial scale) of light and dark half couplet thicknesses are coherent and in some cases are similar to solar cycle periods on these time scales. Although laminae thickness cycles do not strongly covary with the actual Δ¹⁴C record for this same time period, two large Δ¹⁴C anomalies are associated with substantial decreases in both light and dark laminae thickness. In contrast to the multidecadal– centennial time scale, significant annual to decadal periodicities, which are broadly consistent with ENSO/PDO forcing and their impact on East African climate, are not coherent between light and dark half couplets. The coherency of light–dark couplets at decadal–centennial time scales, but not at shorter time scales, is consistent with a model of a long-term relationship between precipitation (recorded in wet season dark laminae thickness) and productivity (light laminae thickness), which is not manifest at shorter time scales. We hypothesize that this coupling results from long-term recharging of internal nutrient loading during wet periods (higher erosion of soil P) and reduced loading during drought intervals. The relationship is not expressed on short time scales during which the dominant control on productivity is wind-driven, dry season upwelling, which is uncorrelated with wet-season precipitation. Our record greatly extends the temporal record of this quasi-periodic behavior throughout the late Holocene and provides the first evidence linking decade- to century-scale episodes of enhanced productivity to enhanced precipitation levels and nutrient recharge in a productive tropical lake.     

Subfossil Chironomidae from Lake Tanganyika, East Africa. 2. Chironominae (Chironomini and Tanytarsini)

Analysis of subfossil remains of larval Chironomidae in 38 surface-sediment samples from between 53 and 189 meter depth in Lake Tanganyika (East Africa) yielded 77 morphotypes, among which 7 Tanypodinae, 19 Orthocladiinae, and 51 Chironominae. Character-state differences between these morphotypes resemble differences at the species level in the better-known Holarctic fauna, hence we consider most of our Lake Tanganyika morphotypes equivalent to morphological species. Individual morphotypes were identified to species, genus, or tribe level depending on current alpha-taxonomic knowledge on the larvae of the group concerned, and the taxonomic resolution of preserved diagnostic features. This paper presents taxon diagnoses and an illustrated key to the Chironominae (Chironomini and Tanytarsini) in this collection. As the living chironomid fauna of Lake Tanganyika has never been comprehensively studied, we also briefly discuss faunistic aspects, and the ecology of the recovered species and genera in relation to benthic habitat diversity in Lake Tanganyika.     

Ostracode stratigraphy and paleoecology from surficial sediments of Lake Tanganyika, Africa

We report here on the first detailed ostracode stratigraphic record to be obtained from late Holocene sediments of Lake Tanganyika. We analyzed four cores, three from the northern lake region and a fourth from a more southern lake locality, that collectively record ostracode assemblages under a variety of disturbance regimes. These cores provide a stratigraphic record of ostracode abundance and diversity, as well as depositional changes over time periods of decades to millennia. We have investigated the fossil ostracodes in these cores by looking at temporal changes of species diversity and population structure for the species present. All four cores provided distinct patterns of ostracode diversity and abundance. BUR-1, a northern lake core obtained close to the Ruisizi River delta, yielded a sparse ostracode record. Karonge #3, another northern core from a site that is closely adjacent to a river delta with high sediment loading, yielded almost no ostracodes. The third core 86-DG-14, taken from a somewhat less disturbed area of the lake, suggests that there have been recent changes in ostracode populations. Through most of the lower portion of this core, ostracode abundance is low and species richness is relatively constant. Above 7 cm there is a marked increase in ostracode abundance and a corresponding decrease in species richness, probably signaling the onset of a major community disturbance, perhaps due to human activities. The southernmost core, 86-DG-32, is from a site that is well removed from influent rivers. Ostracode abundance varies erratically throughout the core, whereas species richness is relatively constant and high throughout the core. The temporal variation evident in ostracode community makeup both within and between the studied cores may be a result of naturally patchy distributions among ostracodes, coupled with local extinctions and recolonizations, or it may reflect inadequate sampling of these high diversity assemblages. In either case, these cores illustrate the potential to obtain high resolution ostracode records from the rich, endemic fauna of Lake Tanganyika that can be used to address questions about the history of community structure and human impacts in this lake.     

非洲坦噶尼喀湖流域资源开发利用与环境管理研究

坦噶尼喀湖(Lake Tanganyika)位于非洲东部大裂谷地区,是世界第二深水湖。坦湖流域涉及坦桑尼亚、布隆迪、赞比亚和刚果(金)4个主权国家,是典型的跨界流域,对流域进行有效管理必需经沿岸四国共同协调开展,尤其在流域资源利用和环境保护方面。坦噶尼喀湖目前水环境质量良好,但受气候变化、外来生物入侵、水土流失加剧以及沿岸城市人口增长过快、城市建设无序发展带来的点源和面源污染等自然和社会经济因素的多重影响。沿岸四国由于历史原因,在渔业资源分配和环境管理标准等方面存在较多矛盾和不统一,2008年成立的坦噶尼喀湖流域管理局受四国政府和UNEP等国际组织的支持作为该湖国际性事务的管理机构,主要发挥协调作用推动坦湖流域各国资源利用与环境管理的一体化。在梳理和分析坦噶尼喀湖流域水资源状况及渔业资源状况的基础上,提出该流域当前资源开发利用与利益冲突的问题,阐述了流域管理合作的发展以及流域管理机构的主要特点和结构,并讨论总结了有关经验和结论。     

Paleolimnological investigations of anthropogenic environmental change in Lake Tanganyika: IX. Summary of paleorecords of environmental change and catchment deforestation at Lake Tanganyika and impacts on the Lake Tanganyika ecosystem

Paleorecords from multiple indicators of environmental change provide evidence for the interactions between climate, human alteration of watersheds and lake ecosystem processes at Lake Tanganyika, Africa, a lake renowned for its extraordinary biodiversity, endemism and fisheries. This paper synthesizes geochronology, sedimentology, paleoecology, geochemistry and hydrology studies comparing the history of deltaic deposits from watersheds of various sizes and deforestation disturbance levels along the eastern coast of the lake in Tanzania and Burundi. Intersite differences are related to climate change, differences in the histories of forested vs. deforested watersheds, differences related to regional patterns of deforestation, and differences related to interactions of deforestation and climate effects. Climate change is linked to variations in sediment accumulation rates, charcoal accumulation, lake level and water chemistry, especially during the arid-humid fluctuations of the latter part of the Little Ice Age. Differences between forested and deforested watersheds are manifested by major increases in sediment accumulation rates in the latter (outside the range of climatically driven variability and for the last 40 years unprecedented in comparison with other records from the lake in the late Holocene), differences in eroded sediment and watershed stream composition, and compositional or diversity trends in lake faunal communities related to sediment inundation. Variability in regional patterns of deforestation is illustrated by the timing of transitions from numerous sedimentologic, paleoecologic and geochemical indicators. These data suggest that extensive watershed deforestation occurred as early as the late-18th to the early-19th centuries in the northern part of the Lake Tanganyika catchment, in the late-19th to early-20th centuries in the northern parts of modern-day Tanzania, and in the mid-20th century in central Tanzania. Rapid increases in sediment and charcoal accumulation rates, palynological and lake faunal changes occurred in the early-1960s. We interpret this to be the result of greatly enhanced flushing of sediments in previously deforested watersheds triggered by extraordinary rainfall in 1961/62. Regional differences in deforestation histories can be understood in light of the very different cultural and demographic histories of the northern and central parts of the lake shoreline. Incursion of slaving and ivory caravans from the Indian Ocean to the central coast of Lake Tanganyika by the early-19th century, with their attendant diseases, reduced human and elephant populations and therefore maintained forest cover in this region through the late-19th to early-20th centuries. In contrast, the northeastern portion of the lakeshore did not experience the effects of the caravan trades and consequently experienced high human population densities and widespread deforestation much earlier. These studies demonstrate the importance of paleolimnological data for making informed risk assessments of the potential effects of watershed deforestation on long-term lake ecosystem response in the Lake Tanganyika catchment. Differences in sediment yield and lake floor distribution of that yield, linked to factors such as watershed size, slope, and sediment retention, must be accounted for in management plans for both human occupation of currently forested watersheds and the development of future underwater reserves.     

青海湖第四纪晚期沉积地震地层特征分析

青海湖是我国最大的内陆湖泊,目前的水域面积约4400 km2,流域面积约29660 km2。通过在湖内进行高分辨率浅层剖面探测(GeoPulse),发现不同发育阶段的沉积特征在地震剖面上得到很好的反映。Geopulse高分辨率浅层剖面穿透深度约60 m(分辨率为0.5 m),沉积层序在湖盆中央近水平展布,揭示沉积环境相对稳定,但也有局部的扰动或错断。尤其在南部近岸部位,上表层沉积出现弯曲,说明第四纪的晚近期,青海湖有过新的构造运动。     

Paleolimnological investigations of anthropogenic environmental change in Lake Tanganyika: IV. Lacustrine paleoecology

Fossil invertebrates from cores collected in Lake Tanganyika provide a record of probable nearshore ecological response to recent watershed deforestation and sediment erosion in several East African watersheds. We compared paleoecological profiles (primarily from ostracodes) from watersheds spanning a range of sizes and present-day deforestation disturbance levels to understand the timing and magnitude of faunal changes, and their relationship in time to terrestrially-derived disturbance indicators. Profiles from the Lubulungu and Nyasanga/Kahama Rivers (Tanzania) provide a record of faunal variability in watersheds that are currently undisturbed with respect to deforestation. These records indicate continuous faunal turnover through time. However, this pattern of turnover is accompanied by relatively high levels of diversity throughout the record, with no wholesale extinction events. Ostracode taphonomic data and other fossil abundance data from the Lubulungu area provide strong evidence in support of at least two episodes of lower lake levels, associated with episodes of Late Holocene aridity. Records from deltas of disturbed watersheds at the Kabesi River (Tanzania) and those of Northern Burundi all show a combination of profound and abrupt faunal turnover, in some cases accompanied by local extinction and establishment of a few dominant taxa. At the Mwamgongo River delta, fed from a very small, disturbed watershed, species turnover was subtler. In disturbed watershed cores showing abrupt faunal changes the transitions mostly occurred in the late 19th to early 20th centuries, predating the major mid-20th century increase in sediment mass accumulation rates, with the latter only correlated with changing fossil abundance and flux. However, the earlier faunal community changes are contemporaneous with both palynological and geochemical changes in the core profiles indicative of changing land-use patterns. This suggests that lacustrine ecosystem response to deforestation was a two-stage process, with an earlier phase of response to changing quality of sediments or dissolved matter being discharged from the watershed, and a subsequent phase responding to increased quantity of sediment.     

Seismic stratigraphy of Lago Puyehue (Chilean Lake District): new views on its deglacial and Holocene evolution

Prior to the collection of a series of sediment cores, a high- and very-high-resolution reflection seismic survey was carried out on Lago Puyehue, Lake District, South-Central Chile. The data reveal a complex bathymetry and basin structure, with three sub-basins separated by bathymetric ridges, bedrock islands and interconnected channels. The sedimentary infill reaches a thickness of >200 m. It can be sub-divided into five seismic-stratigraphic units, which are interpreted as: moraine, ice-contact or outwash deposits (Unit I), glacio-lacustrine sediments rapidly deposited in a proglacial or subglacial lake at the onset of deglaciation (Unit II), lacustrine fan deposits fed by sediment-laden meltwater streams in a proglacial lake (Unit III), distal deposits of fluvially derived sediment in an open, post-glacial lake (Unit IV) and authigenic lacustrine sediments, predominantly of biogenic origin, that accumulated in an open, post-glacial lake (Unit V). This facies succession is very similar to that observed in other glacial lakes, and minor differences are attributed to an overall higher depositional energy and higher terrigenous input caused by the strong seismic and volcanic activity in the region combined with heavy precipitation. A long sediment core (PU-II core) penetrates part of Unit V and its base is dated as 17,915 cal. yr. BP. Extrapolation of average sedimentation rates yields an age of ca. 24,750 cal. yr. BP for the base of Unit V, and of ca. 28,000 cal. yr. BP for the base of Unit IV or for the onset of open-water conditions. This is in contrast with previous glacial-history reconstructions based on terrestrial records, which date the complete deglaciation of the basin as ca. 14,600 cal. yr. BP. This discrepancy cannot be easily explained and highlights the need for more lacustrine records from this region. This is the second in a series of eight papers published in this special issue dedicated to the 17,900 year multi-proxy lacustrine record of Lago Puyehue, Chilean Lake District. The papers in this special issue were collected by M. De Batist, N. Fagel, M.-F. Loutre and E. Chapron.     

Paleolimnological investigations of anthropogenic environmental change in Lake Tanganyika: VI. Geochemical indicators

Geochemical signals of bulk sedimentary organic matter from three cores from Lake Tanganyika provided information about both internal processes and terrestrial inputs to the lake. Indications of land use change were detected in the geochemical records of the watersheds, and the timing of these changes was consistent with historical records of population demographics. While C:N ratios suggested that the distance from shore might be important in influencing the relative amount of allochthonous vs. autochthonous material, all cores were dominated by autochthonous organic matter. In general, nitrogen isotopes were more positive at disturbed sites, indicating inputs of enriched soil nitrate that was subsequently taken up by phytoplankton. In contrast, carbon isotopes did not reflect land use patterns, and a post-1950s decline in carbon isotope ratios found in all cores may indicate a lake-wide decrease in productivity. These interpretations were consistent with pollen and climate records.     

Paleolimnological investigations of anthropogenic environmental change in Lake Tanganyika: III. Physical stratigraphy and charcoal analysis

Documenting the history of catchment deforestation using paleolimnological data involves understanding both the timing and magnitude of change in the input of erosional products to the downstream lake. These products include both physically-eroded soil and the byproducts of burning, primarily charcoal, which arise from both intentional and climatically-induced changes in fire frequency. As a part of the Lake Tanganyika Biodiversity Projects special study on sedimentation, we have investigated the sedimentological composition of seven dated cores from six deltas or delta complexes along the east coast of Lake Tanganyika: the Lubulungu River delta, the Kabesi River delta, the Nyasanga/Kahama River delta, and the Mwamgongo River delta in Tanzania, and the Nyamusenyi River delta and Karonge/Kirasa River delta in Burundi. Changes in sediment mass accumulation rates, composition, and charcoal flux in the littoral and sublittoral zones of the lake that can be linked to watershed disturbance factors in the deltas were examined. Total organic carbon accumulation rates, in particular, are strongly linked to higher sediment mass accumulation from terrestrial sources, and show striking mid-20th century increases at disturbed watershed deltas that may indicate a connection between increased watershed erosion and increased nearshore productivity. However, changes in sedimentation patterns are not solely correlated with the 20th century period of increasing human population in the basin. Fire activity, as recorded by charcoal accumulation rates, was also elevated during arid intervals of the 13th–early 19th centuries. Some differences between northern and southern sedimentation histories appear to be correlated with different histories of human population in central Tanzania in contrast with northern Tanzania and Burundi.     

Sedimentation history of the Selenga Delta, Lake Baikal: simulation and interpretation

The computer simulation of a Lake Baikal seismic profile located in the Selenga River Delta area resulted in a lake level record of the last 600 kyr. This curve demonstrates several low-magnitude episodes and both a dramatic 300 m fall and a more than 150 m increase of the lake level relative to present situation. The greatest change in paleo-lake depth at 300 ka corresponds in time with the major glaciation in the Eastern Siberia and is probably the response of the lake to this climatic phenomenon. The results of this study conform with existing hypotheses on the regional tectonic history and climatic events.     

Paleolimnological investigations of anthropogenic environmental change in Lake Tanganyika: I. An introduction to the project

We investigated paleolimnological records from a series of river deltas around the northeastern rim of Lake Tanganyika, East Africa (Tanzania and Burundi) in order to understand the history of anthropogenic activity in the lakes catchment over the last several centuries, and to determine the impact of these activities on the biodiversity of littoral and sublittoral lake communities. Sediment pollution caused by increased rates of soil erosion in deforested watersheds has caused significant changes in aquatic communities along much of the lakes shoreline. We analyzed the effects of sediment discharge on biodiversity around six deltas or delta complexes on the east coast of Lake Tanganyika: the Lubulungu River delta, Kabesi River delta, Nyasanga/Kahama River deltas, and Mwamgongo River delta in Tanzania; and the Nyamuseni River delta and Karonge/Kirasa River deltas in Burundi. Collectively, these deltas and their associated rivers were chosen to represent a spectrum of drainage-basin sizes and disturbance levels. By comparing deltas that are similar in watershed attributes (other than disturbance levels), our goal was to explore a series of historical experiments at the watershed scale, with which we could more clearly evaluate hypotheses of land use or other effects on nearshore ecosystems. Here we discuss these deltas, their geologic and physiographic characteristics, and the field procedures used for coring and sampling the deltas, and various indicators of anthropogenic impact.     

Paleolimnological investigations of anthropogenic environmental change in Lake Tanganyika: V. Palynological evidence for deforestation and increased erosion

Pollen spectra from seven short cores taken from deltaic sites in the central and northern parts of Lake Tanganyika provide information about vegetation changes around the lake during the last 5000 years. Pollen analysis was undertaken to understand the history and timing of catchment deforestation and its causal linkage to excess sedimentation and ecosystem change in Lake Tanganyika. The spectra are dominated by grass pollen at all levels in every core. Grass pollen percentage values range between 40 and 80%. Low values of arboreal pollen taxa (1–20%) were documented from most cores except core LT-98-2M. Core LT-98-2M represents the longest duration vegetation record of this study (close to 5000 years BP), and records the onset of increasingly arid conditions in the Late Holocene, especially after 500 A.D., with the probable replacement of forest by open grassland in the Mahale Mountains region. The pollen/spore content for other cores showed a consistent trend of a decrease in grass pollen and an increase in pteridophyte and forest indicator pollen taxa during the last few centuries, contemporaneous with other indications of increased watershed disturbance from forest clearing (especially isotopes and lake faunal change). The timing or strength of this trend is not tied to specific levels of watershed disturbance. However, increasing fern spore abundance does occur progressively later towards the south, where modern human population densities are lower. Although increasing fern spore abundance is consistent with a land-clearing hypothesis, the rising arboreal pollen percentages are seemingly counterintuitive. One possible explanation is that increasing arboreal pollen proportions reflects the recycling of abundant pollen of this type from rapidly eroding soils. Another likely explanation for this finding is that land clearing involved the replacement of miombo woodland, with its mixture of trees producing little pollen and understory grasses producing large amounts of pollen, by the present day cassava, banana, and legume agricultural systems, all of which are poor pollen producers. This shift in catchment vegetation would increase the relative contribution of Afromontane pollen transported long distances from the surrounding highland regions. This hypothesis is consistent with both the lack of correlation of palynological history with specific watershed deforestation attributes, as well as the broader historical record of human habitation in the Lake Tanganyika region. This study also highlights the need for both modern pollen transect data from the region and comparative cores from low elevation swamps or ponds (wetlands) in the region with smaller catchment areas.     

Late Pleistocene and Holocene history of Lake Terrasovoje,Amery Oasis,East Antarctica,and its climatic and environmental implications

A 5.52 m long sediment sequence was recovered from Lake Terrasovoje, Amery Oasis, East Antarctica, in order to reconstruct the regional environmental history. The basal sediments, which are dominated by glacial and glaciofluvial clastic sediments, attest to a Late Pleistocene deglaciation of the lake basin. These sediments are overlain by 2.70 m of laminated algal and microbial mats and a few interspersed moss layers. Radiocarbon dating, conducted on bulk organic carbon of 12 samples throughout the organic sequence, provides a reliable chronology since the onset of biogenic accumulation at c. 12,400 cal. year BP. Successful diatom colonization, however, was probably hampered by extensive ice and snow cover on the lake and restricted input of nutrients until 10,200 cal. year BP. A subsequent increase of nutrient supply culminated between 8600 and 8200 cal. year BP and is related to warm summer temperatures and reduced albedo in the catchment. Warm conditions lasted until 6700 cal. year BP, supporting the establishment of a diatom community. Colder temperatures from 6700 cal. year BP culminated in several periods between 6200 and 3700 cal. year BP, when high amounts of sulphur and low abundances of diatoms were deposited due to a perennial ice and snow cover on the lake. During the late Holocene, relatively warm conditions between 3200 and 2300 cal. year BP and between 1500 to 1000 cal. year BP, respectively, indicated by high accumulation of organic matter and reducing bottom water conditions, were interrupted and followed by colder periods.     

The impact of taphonomic processes on interpreting paleoecologic changes in large lake ecosystems: ostracodes in Lakes Tanganyika and Malawi

Nonmarine ostracodes are often used as proxy indicators for the biotic response to climate as well as anthropogenic changes in large lakes. Their large numbers, small size and sensitivities to environmental conditions make them ideal for assessing how organisms respond to environmental perturbations. However, little is known about the various taphonomic processes related to preserving these organisms in the lacustrine fossil record. Without understanding the amount of time averaging associated with these assemblages, any interpretation of their biodiversity and paleoecology may be problematic.To address these issues, we conducted actualistic experiments to determine transport, time-averaging, and the amount of taphonomic bias in ostracode sub-fossil assemblages. Sand transport experiments revealed significant mixing at all sites at shallower depths and significant mixing on rocky substrates but not sandy ones. Comparisons with ostracode material collected along the experimental transects support this model and demonstrate time averaging in both the sandy and rocky substrates. Preservational models were derived from the experimental data and applied to interpreting the paleobiologic record of ostracodes from piston cores in both Lake Tanganyika and Malawi. The core record reveals assemblages that have undergone significant time-averaging, and in the case of Lake Malawi, preservational degradation. In the core examined from Tanganyika, most assemblages resemble the time-averaged experimental model with respect to species richness, percentage of articulated shells and heavy bias towards adult dead individuals. In the Malawi cores, most of the valves were preserved only as internal molds. The taphonomic signature of these samples resemble the time-averaged assemblages of Tanganyika cores, even though carapaces are not often present.Both the experimental and live/dead valve data suggest significant time-averaging and transport, smearing seasonal-yearly data in some environments involved in using ostracodes to assess biotic changes as a result of climate and or anthropogenically-induced environmental change. Ostracode species richness estimates were impacted by time averaging because transport of dead valve material occurs at high percentages in the shallow depths and on the rocky substrates, suggesting that the ostracode death assemblages in these areas will not reflect living populations. In addition, ecologic models based only upon death assemblages will be less resolved than those based upon live assemblages. A time averaging index was derived using the % dead juveniles ratio, as well as sedimentation rate and information on the population dynamics, if known.     

Paleolimnological investigations of anthropogenic environmental change in Lake Tanganyika: VII. Carbonate isotope geochemistry as a record of riverine runoff

Evaporation dominates the removal of water from Lake Tanganyika, and therefore the oxygen isotope composition of lake water has become very positive in comparison to the waters entering the lake. The surface water in Lake Tanganyika has remained relatively unchanged over the last 30 years with a seasonal range of +3.2 to +3.5 VSMOW. Water from small rivers entering the lake seems to have a ¹⁸O value between –3.5 and –4.0, based on scattered measurements. The two largest catchments emptying into the lake deliver water that has a ¹⁸O value between these two extremes. This large contrast is the basis of a model presented here that attempts to reconstruct the history of runoff intensity based on the ¹⁸O of carbonate shells from Lake Tanganyika cores. In order to use biogenic carbonates to monitor changes in the ¹⁸O of mixing-zone water, however, the oxygen isotope fractionation between water and shell carbonate must be well understood. The relatively invariant environmental conditions of the lake allow us to constrain the fractionation of both oxygen and carbon isotope ratios. Although molluskan aragonitic shell ¹⁸O values are in agreement with published mineral-water fractionations, ostracode calcite is 1.2 more positive than that of inorganic calcite precipitated under similar conditions. Ostracode shell ¹⁸O data from two cores from central Lake Tanganyika suggest that runoff decreased in the first half of this millennium and has increased in the last century. This conclusion is poorly constrained, however, and much more work needs to be done on stable isotope variation in both the waters and carbonates of Lake Tanganyika. We also compared the ¹³C of shells against predicted values based solely on the ¹³C of lake water dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC). The ostracode Mecynocypria opaca is the only ostracode or mollusk that falls within the predicted range. This suggests that M. opaca has potential for reconstructing the carbon isotope ratio of DIC in Lake Tanganyika, and may be a useful tool in the study of the history of the lakes productivity and carbon cycle.     

黄土高原晚更新世的植被与气候环境

通过对黄土高原上陕西洛川、富县省等黄土剖面的地质调查、采样和孢粉分析 ,在曾被人们认为孢粉贫乏的黄土中分析出了大量孢粉 ,作出了黄土地层的孢粉浓度图式。结合其他地区数个剖面上孢粉组合的变化 ,阐明了晚更新世的植被与气候在时间上演变与空间上分布的规律 ,证明了各地植被在时间上的演变韵律十分相似 ,说明它们同受全球气候变化的控制 ;但在同一时期各地植被不尽相同 ,则是局部自然环境差异所致。     

Quaternary features beneath Lake Simcoe,Ontario, Canada: drumlins,tunnel channels,and records of proglacial to postglacial closed and overflowing lakes

Lake Simcoe is a large lake 45 km across and in places over 30 m deep, located between Lake Huron and Lake Ontario, in the glaciated terrain of southern Ontario, Canada. Seismostratigraphic analysis of high-resolution seismic reflection profiles, together with lakebed sediment sampling and pollen study, revealed distinctive sequences in the sediments beneath Lake Simcoe, Ontario. A surface unit (Blue Sequence) of soft Holocene mud (low-amplitude surface reflection, discontinuous parallel internal reflections) lies in the deeper basins of the lake. The underlying unit (Green Sequence) is characterized by high-amplitude parallel internal reflections; basal sediments of this sequence consist of clay rhythmites with dropstones. The Green Sequence was deposited by lacustrine sedimentation in proglacial Lake Algonquin; sedimentation persisted until the basin was isolated from other glacial lakes at about 10 ¹⁴C ka at the Penetang post-Algonquin phase. Subsequent erosion of the uppermost portion of the Green Sequence is attributed to wave action in a low-level early Holocene lake, possibly closed hydrologically and coeval with closed lowstands in the Huron and Georgian Bay basins. Two sequences with high-amplitude surface reflections and chaotic internal reflections (Purple and Red Sequences) lie below the Green Sequence. Northeast-southwest trending ridges, tens of metres in height, on the Red Sequence (the lowermost of these two units) are interpreted to be drumlins. An erosion surface descends into narrow valleys 50–80 m deep beneath the lake in bays to the west and south of the main lake basin. These depressions are interpreted as subglacial tunnel channels cut by rapid flows of meltwater. The sediments of Purple Sequence are interpreted as channel-fill sediments rapidly deposited during waning stages of the meltwater drainage. The Red Sequence is correlated with the Newmarket Till of the last glacial maximum identified beneath the Oak Ridges Moraine to the south.