Environmental processes derived from peatland geochemistry since the last deglaciation in Dajiuhu,Shennongjia, central China

The Dajiuhu mire deposit is a sensitive archive of palaeoenvironmental evolution in the East Asian monsoon region. The aim of this study of the elemental geochemistry of a sediment core from Dajiuhu was to improve our understanding of the geochemical behaviour of elements in peat deposits, as well as the environmental and climatic history of the East Asian monsoon region since the Late Pleistocene. We conducted a principal components analysis (PCA) on inorganic geochemical data obtained by ICP‐MS and XRFS from a sediment core spanning the last 16 ka. In addition, spectral analysis was applied to the PC1 score profile to test periodicities. The PCA results suggest that variations in elemental concentrations in the Dajiuhu core are controlled by three main factors: input of inorganic mineral matter, effect of biological processes and a combination of changes in redox conditions and biological processes. Interpretation of the data suggests that monsoon precipitation increased, albeit with significant volatility, during the last deglaciation (16.0–11.3 cal. ka BP). The early Holocene (11.3–9.4 cal. ka BP) was a humid period, and was followed by monsoon deterioration in the early stages of the middle Holocene. A warm and wet climate dominated between 7.0 and 4.2 cal. ka BP, correlating with the Holocene Climatic Optimum. After a two‐step decrease in monsoon precipitation, beginning at 4.2 cal. ka BP, the climate became more arid until 0.9 cal. ka BP, after which humidity once again increased. The spectral analysis revealed statistically significant periodicities of approximately 1480, 360, 316, 204 and 188 years, indicating solar forcing for the East Asian monsoon evolution over millennial to centennial time scales and a link between the East Asian monsoon and North Atlantic climate.