Dinoflagellate cyst assemblages in recent sediments of Visakhapatnam harbour,east coast of India: Influence of environmental characteristics

The distribution and abundance of dinoflagellate cysts in recent sediments from Visakhapatnam harbour, east coast of India was investigated and compared with sediment characteristics and physico-chemical variables of the overlying water column. The cyst abundance varied from 11 to 1218 cysts g^–1 dry sediment. Changes in the cyst assemblages from phototrophic to heterotrophic forms were observed from inner to outer harbour stations, and related to changes in environmental characteristics. Enhanced cyst production of potentially harmful dinoflagellate Protoceratium reticulatum was recorded in the inner harbour stations with higher nutrient concentrations. Protoperidinium cysts were the most diversified group, and were dominant in the outer harbour stations having improved water conditions and circulation. This study points out the potential use of dinoflagellate cyst populations in providing information on environmental conditions.     

Runoff from soils under different management and simulated rainfall regimes in southern Brazil

Abstract

Surface runoff and drainage were evaluated for southern Brazilian soils subjected to different rainfall intensities and management practices. Soils received up to four applications of simulated rainfall in sequences with one application per day. Seven lysimeters, each of 1 m³ volume, were used to measure drainage volume, with measurement of initial and final water content, times at which surface runoff and lysimeter drainage began, and the volume rates of flow. At the end of the second test, soils were subjected to two levels of disturbance (denoted by low and high soil movement) by opening furrows. These cultivation treatments altered the times at which lysimeter surface runoff and drainage were initiated, the rates of surface runoff, the final infiltration and internal drainage, and the components of the water balance throughout the series of trials. Mean times at which surface runoff was initiated in lysimeters subjected to greater soil disturbance were longer than those with little soil disturbance. Final infiltration rates were greater in lysimeters with little soil disturbance. It was also found that lysimeter surface runoff generation was influenced by the state of development of maize grown in the lysimeter.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Associate editor G. Mahé     

Weakening climatic signal since mid-20th century in European larch tree-ring chronologies at different altitudes from the Adamello-Presanella Massif (Italian Alps)

Tree rings from temperature-limited environments are highly sensitive climate proxies, widely used to reconstruct past climate parameters for periods prior to the availability of instrumental data and to analyse the effect of recent global warming on tree growth. An analysis of the climatic signal in five high-elevation tree-ring width chronologies of European larch (Larix decidua Mill.) from the tops of five different glacial valleys in the Italian Central Alps revealed that they contain a strong summer-temperature signal and that tree-ring growth is especially influenced by June temperatures. However, a moving correlation function analysis revealed a recent loss of the June temperature signal in the tree-ring chronologies. This signal reduction primarily involves the two lowest-altitude chronologies. It is probable that the observed increasing importance of late-summer temperature for tree-ring growth over the past 50 yr is an effect of the lengthening growing season and of the variations in the climate/tree-ring relationship over time. All the chronologies considered, especially those at the highest altitudes, show an increasing negative influence of June precipitation on tree-ring growth. The climatic signal recorded in tree-ring chronologies from the Italian Central Alps varies over time and is also differentially influenced by climatic parameters according to site elevation.     

Geochemical evidence of the 8.2 ka event and other Holocene environmental changes recorded in paleolagoon sediments,southeastern Brazil

The paleoclimatic record of Juréia Paleolagoon, coastal southeastern Brazil, includes cyclic and gradual changes with different intensities and frequencies through geological time, and it is controlled by astronomical, geophysical, and geological phenomena. These variations are not due to one single cause, but they result from the interaction of several factors, which act at different temporal and spatial scales. Here, we describe paleoenvironmental evidence regarding climatic and sea level changes from the last 9400 cal yr BP at the Juréia Paleolagoon — one of the main groups of protected South Atlantic ecosystems. Geochemical evidences were used to identify anomalies from multi-proxy analyses of a paleolagoon sediment core. The anomalies of centennial scale were correlated to climate and transgression–regression cycles from the Holocene period. Decadal scale anomalous oscillations in the Quaternary paleolagoon sediments occur between 9400 and 7500 cal yr BP, correlated with long- and short-term natural events, which generated high sedimentation rates, mainly between 8385 and 8375 cal yr BP (10 cm/yr). Our results suggest that a modern-day short-duration North Atlantic climatic event, such as the 8.2 ka event, could affect the environmental equilibrium in South America and intensify the South American Summer Monsoon.     

The Significance of Intestinal Parasite Remains in Pollen Samples from Medieval Pits in the Piazza Garibaldi of Parma,Emilia Romagna,Northern Italy

This paper presents the study of parasite remains recovered in pollen samples collected from archaeological layers. Laboratory treatment enabled us to obtain very high concentrations of both pollen and parasite eggs from the same samples. The case study of the site of Piazza Garibaldi in Parma, a town in the Po plain, is reported. The site was a sacred area in Roman times and a market square in Medieval times (10th–11th century A.D.). Pollen, seeds, and fruits from the latter phase were collected from four Medieval pits and one cesspit. After a palynological treatment including sieving, floating, and light acetolysis, abundant quantities of parasite eggs were extracted. Human and animal parasite eggs belonging to Trichuris, Ascaris, Taenia/Echinococcus, Capillaria, Dicrocoelium, and Diphyllobothrium were found. The analyses of animal and plant remains identified in the same samples suggested that the pit infillings consisted of waste, human and animal excrements, deteriorated plant food, and refuse of grapes. Therefore, parasite remains help the interpretation of archaeobotanical data in identifying human behaviors and site functions.     

Buried and Submerged Greek Archaeological Coastal Structures and Artifacts as Gauges to Measure Late Holocene Seafloor Subsidence off Calabria,Italy

This synthesis integrates recently acquired archaeological and geological data with earlier documented observations to shed light on the subsidence of ancient Greek coastal facilities in southern Italy. These are now positioned between former shorelines and inner shelf sectors at five Calabrian margin localities. Submergence of coastal to inner shelf facilities has resulted in part from sea‐level rise by about 2 m associated with glacio‐hydro‐isostatic factors since archaic to classic Greek time. This phenomenon alone, however, does not explain the wide variation of measured subsidence rates from site‐to‐site. The marked lowering of coastal site substrates by seismo‐tectonic activity (including extensional fault motion), stratal readjustments at depth, and compaction of underlying sediment sequences is significant. Four of the subsided facilities are positioned near emerged Calabrian areas where prevailing Holocene average annual land uplift rates range to ˜1.0 mm/yr; at the fifth, near Hipponion, terrains have risen by nearly 2 mm/yr. In marked contrast, submerged and/or buried structures record the following late Holocene long‐term average rates of coastal margin subsidence: Sybaris‐Thuri on the Taranto Gulf margin (˜0.5–1.0 mm/yr); Hipponion‐Vibo Valentia along the Tyrrhenian coast (˜0.8 to ˜3.2 mm/yr); and Locri‐Epizefiri, Kaulonia, and Capo Colonna on Calabria's Ionian margin (˜1.6, ˜1.6–2.4, and ˜4.0 mm/yr, respectively). © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Chemical and structural study of 1M- and 2M 1-phlogopites coexisting in the same Kasenyi kamafugitic rock (SW Uganda)

In the present work, crystal chemical variations between 1M and 2M ₁ phlogopites coexisting in the same rock sample from kamafugite of Kasenyi (southwest Uganda, west branch of the East African Rift) were explored by electron probe microanalyses, single crystal X-ray diffraction and M?ssbauer spectroscopy. Chemical analyses revealed close similarity both within and between the two polytypic arrangements as well as high TiO₂ (~4.9?wt%) and Al₂O₃ (~12.9?wt%), and low Cr₂O₃ (~0.8?wt%), F (~0.3?wt%) and BaO (~0.2?wt%) contents. Room temperature ⁵⁷Fe M?ssbauer investigation proved that the studied mica is a tetraferriphlogopite with: ^IVFe³⁺?=?19(1)?%, ^VIFe²⁺?=?58(1)?%, ^VIFe³⁺?=?23(1)?%. Single crystal refinement showed that both polytypes have narrow range of variation in terms of some relevant unit cell parameters and similar values in terms of mean bond lengths, mean atomic numbers and distortion parameters. Similar substitutions were active in the structure of the 1M and 2M ₁ studied phlogopites. However, in 2M ₁ polytypes the oxy-type substitutions were found to occur to a greater extent. Comparison of unit layer of 1M mica (in the 2M ₁ setting) with that of the 2M ₁ ones showed that the 2M ₁ polytypes are affected to different extent by relative shifts of the upper and lower triads of octahedral oxygens along the ±b directions. This effect did not cause any symmetry lowering in the T-O-T layer of the studied samples.     

Magnetic behavior of trioctahedral micas with different octahedral Fe ordering

This contribution is finalized at the discussion of the magnetic structure of two samples, belonging to phlogopite–annite [sample TK, chemical composition ^IV(Si_2.76Al_1.24) ^VI(Al_0.64Mg_0.72 $ {\text{Fe}}_{1.45}^{2 + } $ Mn_0.03Ti_0.15) (K_0.96Na_0.05) O_10.67 (OH)_1.31 Cl_0.02] and polylithionite–siderophyllite joints [sample PPB, chemical composition ^IV(Si_3.14Al_0.86)^VI(Al_0.75Mg_0.01 $ {\text{Fe}}_{1.03}^{2 + } $ $ {\text{Fe}}_{1.03}^{3 + } $ Mn_0.01Ti_0.01Li_1.09) (K_0.99Na_0.01) O_10.00 (OH)_0.65F_1.35]. Samples differ for Fe ordering in octahedral sites, Fe²⁺/(Fe²⁺?+?Fe³⁺) ratio, octahedral composition, defining a different environment around Fe cations, and layer symmetry. Spin-glass behavior was detected for both samples, as evidenced by the dependency of the temperature giving the peak in the susceptibility curve from the frequency of the applied alternating current magnetic field. The crystal chemical features are associated to the different temperature at which the maximum in magnetic susceptibility is observed: 6?K in TK, where Fe is disordered in all octahedral sites, and 8?K in PPB sample, showing a smaller and more regular coordination polyhedron for Fe, which is ordered in the trans-site and in one of the two cis-sites.     

It starts at home? Climate policies targeting household consumption and behavioral decisions are key to low-carbon futures

Through their consumption behavior, households are responsible for 72% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Thus, they are key actors in reaching the 1.5 °C goal under the Paris Agreement. However, the possible contribution and position of households in climate policies is neither well understood, nor do households receive sufficiently high priority in current climate policy strategies. This paper investigates how behavioral change can achieve a substantial reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in European high-income countries. It uses theoretical thinking and some core results from the HOPE research project, which investigated household preferences for reducing emissions in four European cities in France, Germany, Norway and Sweden. The paper makes five major points: First, car and plane mobility, meat and dairy consumption, as well as heating are the most dominant components of household footprints. Second, household living situations (demographics, size of home) greatly influence the household potential to reduce their footprint, even more than country or city location. Third, household decisions can be sequential and temporally dynamic, shifting through different phases such as childhood, adulthood, and illness. Fourth, short term voluntary efforts will not be sufficient by themselves to reach the drastic reductions needed to achieve the 1.5 °C goal; instead, households need a regulatory framework supporting their behavioral changes. Fifth, there is a mismatch between the roles and responsibilities conveyed by current climate policies and household perceptions of responsibility. We then conclude with further recommendations for research and policy.     

Integrated provenance analysis of a convergent retroarc foreland system: U–Pb ages,heavy minerals,Nd isotopes,and sandstone compositions of the Middle Magdalena Valley basin,northern Andes,Colombia

Sediment provenance analysis remains a powerful method for testing hypotheses on the temporal and spatial evolution of uplifted source regions, but issues such as recycling, nonunique sources, and pre- and post-depositional modifications may complicate interpretation of results from individual provenance techniques. Convergent retroarc systems commonly contain sediment sources that are sufficiently diverse (continental magmatic arc, fold–thrust belt, and stable craton) to enable explicit provenance assessments. In this paper, we combine detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology, heavy mineral identification, Nd isotopic analyses, conventional sandstone petrography, and paleocurrent measurements to reconstruct the clastic provenance history of a long-lived sedimentary basin now exposed in an intermontane zone of the northern Andean hinterland of Colombia. The Middle Magdalena Valley basin, situated between the Central Cordillera and Eastern Cordillera, contains a 5–10 km-thick succession of Upper Cretaceous to Quaternary fill. The integrated techniques show a pronounced change in provenance during the Paleocene transition from the lower to upper Lisama Formation. We interpret this as a shift from an eastern cratonic source to a western Andean source composed of magmatic-arc rocks uplifted during initial shortening of the Central Cordillera. The appearance of detrital chloritoid and a shift to more negative ε_Nd(t=0) values in middle Eocene strata of the middle La Paz Formation are attributed to shortening-related exhumation of a continental basement block (La Cira–Infantas paleohigh), now buried, along the axis of the Magdalena Valley. The diverse provenance proxies also show distinct changes during middle to late Eocene deposition of the Esmeraldas Formation that likely reflect initial rock uplift and exhumation of the fold–thrust belt defining the Eastern Cordillera. Upsection, detrital zircon U–Pb ages and heavy mineral assemblages for Oligocene and younger clastic deposits indicate that the Mesozoic sedimentary cover of the Eastern Cordillera was recycled during continued Cenozoic shortening. Our multidisciplinary provenance study refines the tectonic history of the Colombian Andes and demonstrates that uncertainties related to sediment recycling, nonunique sources, source heterogeneity, and climate in interpreting provenance data can be minimized via an integrated approach.