The aim of this study is to investigate human-climate-environment interactions in a small Mediterranean island. Comparison between palynological and palaeoentomological data from the Greco pond ...(Cavallo Island, southern Corsica) reveals that the island was first covered by a more-or-less open Erica arborea pasture-woodland from ca. 7000 to 6100cal.yrB.P. Grazing animals from 7000 to 6200cal.yrB.P., followed by a spreading of Ficus carica (marked by the bark beetle Hypoborus ficus) from ca. 6100 to 5750cal.yrB.P., suggest that human activities could be implicated in the E. arborea forest opening. From ca. 5500cal.yrB.P., a regional expansion of Q. ilex was recorded, but an open landscape with thermophilous and drought-tolerant plants locally took place from ca. 4700cal.yrB.P. onward. Pastoral and agricultural biomarkers (pollen, NPP and insect) together with archaeological evidence indicate that human activities were involved in the installation of a lasting open vegetation. Simultaneously, the effects of the Holocene relative sea-level rise on the coastal wetland are recorded: (1) freshwater conditions prevailed in the Greco pond since 7000cal.yrB.P. at least, (2) the first evidence of salt marsh development dates back to ca. 4500cal.yrB.P., (3) a strong increase of salinity with marine intrusions were recorded at ca. 3700cal.yrB.P. while a decline in aquatic insect diversity occurred and (4) a phase of sand dune formation was recorded from ca. 2000cal.yrB.P. onward. Our results suggest that if large-scale climatic trend such as the Holocene relative sea-level rise could affect coastal ecosystem, effects of human activities could play the leading role in vegetation and terrestrial beetle assemblage changes in a small island context.
•Landscape evolution of a small island is investigated from fossil beetles and pollen.•An Erica arborea pasture-woodland initially covered Cavallo Island.•Human activities were involved in the vegetation opening from 4700calB.P, onwards.•Holocene relative sea-level rise has deeply affected the coastal wetland diversity.
Climate evolution of the Mediterranean region during the Holocene exhibits strong spatial and temporal variability, which is notoriously difficult for models to reproduce. We propose here a new ...proxy-based climate synthesis synthesis and its comparison – at a regional (∼ 100 km) level – with a regional climate model to examine (i) opposing northern and southern precipitation regimes and (ii) an east-to-west precipitation dipole during the Holocene across the Mediterranean basin. Using precipitation estimates inferred from marine and terrestrial pollen archives, we focus on the early to mid-Holocene (8000 to 6000 cal yr BP) and the late Holocene (4000 to 2000 cal yr BP), to test these hypotheses on a Mediterranean-wide scale. Special attention was given to the reconstruction of season-specific climate information, notably summer and winter precipitation. The reconstructed climatic trends corroborate the north–south partition of precipitation regimes during the Holocene. During the early Holocene, relatively wet conditions occurred in the south–central and eastern Mediterranean regions, while drier conditions prevailed from 45° N northwards. These patterns then reverse during the late Holocene. With regard to the existence of a west–east precipitation dipole during the Holocene, our results show that the strength of this dipole is strongly linked to the reconstructed seasonal parameter; early-Holocene summers show a clear east–west division, with summer precipitation having been highest in Greece and the eastern Mediterranean and lowest over Italy and the western Mediterranean. Summer precipitation in the east remained above modern values, even during the late-Holocene interval. In contrast, winter precipitation signals are less spatially coherent during the early Holocene but low precipitation is evidenced during the late Holocene. A general drying trend occurred from the early to late Holocene, particularly in the central and eastern Mediterranean. For the same time intervals, pollen-inferred precipitation estimates were compared with model outputs, based on a regional-scale downscaling (HadRM3) of a set of global climate-model simulations (HadAM3). The high-resolution detail achieved through the downscaling is intended to enable a better comparison between site-based paleo-reconstructions and gridded model data in the complex terrain of the Mediterranean; the model outputs and pollen-inferred precipitation estimates show some overall correspondence, though modeled changes are small and at the absolute margins of statistical significance. There are suggestions that the eastern Mediterranean experienced wetter summer conditions than present during the early and late Holocene; the drying trend in winter from the early to the late Holocene also appears to be simulated. The use of this high-resolution regional climate model highlights how the inherently patchy nature of climate signals and paleo-records in the Mediterranean basin may lead to local signals that are much stronger than the large-scale pattern would suggest. Nevertheless, the east-to-west division in summer precipitation seems more marked in the pollen reconstruction than in the model outputs. The footprint of the anomalies (like today, or dry winters and wet summers) has some similarities to modern analogue atmospheric circulation patterns associated with a strong westerly circulation in winter (positive Arctic Oscillation–North Atlantic Oscillation (AO–NAO)) and a weak westerly circulation in summer associated with anticyclonic blocking; however, there also remain important differences between the paleo-simulations and these analogues. The regional climate model, consistent with other global models, does not suggest an extension of the African summer monsoon into the Mediterranean. Therefore, the extent to which summer monsoonal precipitation may have existed in the southern and eastern Mediterranean during the mid-Holocene remains an outstanding question.
Palaeoenvironmental studies allow the assessment of long-term human–climate–environmental interactions, and furnish valuable tools for the sustainable management of lacustrine ecosystems. A good ...example is the multi-proxy study of Lake Aydat's 19m sedimentary core. Previous research revealed the role of climate and human activities on lake sedimentation, and identified two sedimentary units (6700±200 to 3180±90 and 1770±60cal. yr BP to present) separated by an erosive mass-wasting deposit (Lavrieux et al., 2013a). Pollen, non-pollen palynomorphs (e.g. fungal and algal spores, rotifer resting eggs), and diatom-based trophic reconstructions have been used to track the impacts of past land use on landscape evolution, vegetal biodiversity and water quality. Palaeoenvironmental data were also compared with local archaeo-historical datasets which allowed refined landscape reconstructions, especially for late Antiquity. The results obtained demonstrate that even Neolithic and Bronze Age human activities (between ca. 4600 and 4300cal. yr BP and between ca. 3900 and 3500cal. yr BP) had a discernible influence on catchment vegetation and lacustrine trophic dynamics of Lake Aydat, underlining the vulnerability of the ecosystem. Recurrent and complex models of past vegetation changes, phases of water nutrient over-enrichment and lake resilience were identified and related to grazing activities, but also to land use practises, which have been overlooked in Auvergne, such as mountain agriculture and hemp retting.
•Past human-induced environmental disturbances are studied in the Lake Aydat area.•Human actions shaped the cultural landscape and increased the floristic diversity.•1500years of human impact drove Lake Aydat trophic states towards meso-eutrophy.•1500years of diversified human actions explain a loss of resilience of the lake.•Rotifer resting eggs are assessed as indicator of lacustrine past trophic states.
Postglacial expansion of deciduous oak woodlands of the Zagros—Anti-Taurus Mountains, a major biome of the Near East, was delayed until the middle Holocene at ~6300 cal. yr BP. The current hypotheses ...explain this delay as a consequence of a regional aridity during the early Holocene, slow migration rates of forest trees, and/or a long history of land use and agro-pastoralism in this region. In the present paper, support is given to a hypothesis that suggests different precipitation seasonalities during the early Holocene compared with the late Holocene. The oak species of the Zagros—Anti-Taurus Mts, particularly Quercus brantii Lindl., are strongly dependent on spring precipitation for regeneration and are sensitive to a long dry season. Detailed analysis of modern atmospheric circulation patterns in SW Asia during the late spring suggests that the Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) intensification can modify the amount of late spring and/or early summer rainfall in western/northwestern Iran and eastern Anatolia, which could in turn have controlled the development of the Zagros—Anti-Taurus deciduous oak woodlands. During the early Holocene, the northwestward shift of the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) could have displaced the subtropical anticyclonic belt or associated high pressure ridges to the northwest. The latter could, in turn, have prevented the southeastward penetration of low pressure systems originating from the North Atlantic and Black Sea regions. Such atmospheric configuration could have reduced or eliminated the spring precipitation creating a typical Mediterranean continental climate characterized by winter-dominated precipitation. This scenario highlights the complexity of biome response to climate system interactions in transitional climatic and biogeographical regions.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
We reconstructed the paleohydrologic and climatic history of the Lake Neor region, NW Iran, from the end of the late glacial to the middle Holocene (15,500–7500 cal yr BP). Subfossil chironomid and ...pollen assemblages in a sediment core from a peatland located south of Lake Neor enabled identification of four main hydrologic phases. The period 15,500–12,700 cal yr BP was characterized by a relatively dry climate with an open landscape, suggested by the abundance of Irano-Turanian steppe plants (e.g. Amaranthaceae,
Artemisia
and
Cousinia
). Dominance of several shallow-water and semi-terrestrial chironomid taxa (e.g.
Pseudosmittia
,
Smittia/Parasmittia
and
Paraphaenocladius/Parametriocnemus
) during this period is indicative of lower water tables in the wetland. Between 12,700 and 11,300 cal yr BP, chironomid taxa indicate higher wetland water tables, as suggested by the presence of
Zavrelia
,
Chironomus anthracinus/plumosus
-type and
Micropsectra
, which are inhabitants of open-water, lacustrine areas. The open-steppe vegetation remained dominant in the watershed during this time. Increasing wetland moisture could be explained by: (1) cool summers that reduced the evaporation rate; and/or (2) a decrease in duration of the summer dry season. The period 11,300–8700 cal yr BP was characterized by lower wetland moisture, contemporaneous with a delay in the expansion of deciduous forest, suggesting persistent dry climate conditions throughout the beginning of the Holocene, which may have been related to the intensified seasonality of precipitation. Around 8700 cal yr BP, higher wetland water levels, inferred from chironomids, occurred simultaneously with the onset of regional deciduous forest expansion, probably caused by a shortening of the summer dry period. We concluded that chironomids are appropriate paleoecological proxies to investigate global and local hydrologic variability in the Middle East.
Cereals are a central resource for the human diet and are traditionally assumed to have evolved from wild grasses at the onset of the Neolithic under the pressure of agriculture. Here we demonstrate ...that cereals may have a significantly longer and more diverse lineage, based on the study of a 0-2.3 Ma, 601 m long sedimentary core from Lake Acıgöl (South-West Anatolia). Pollen characteristic of cereals is abundant throughout the sedimentary sequence. The presence of large lakes within this arid bioclimatic zone led to the concentration of large herbivore herds, as indicated by the continuous occurrence of coprophilous fungi spores in the record. Our hypothesis is that the effects of overgrazing on soils and herbaceous stratum, during this long period, led to genetic modifications of the Poaceae taxa and to the appearance of proto-cereals. The simultaneous presence of hominins is attested as early as about 1.4 Ma in the lake vicinity, and 1.8 Ma in Georgia and Levant. These ancient hominins probably benefited from the availability of these proto-cereals, rich in nutrients, as well as various other edible plants, opening the way, in this region of the Middle East, to a process of domestication, which reached its full development during the Neolithic.
The aim of this study is to describe the environmental and climate changes that occurred in the mountains of Aubrac at the transition between the Lateglacial and the Holocene, from a comparative ...analysis of fossil Coleoptera and pollen, and a series of 23 14C dates. The changes affecting the ecological categories of Coleoptera lead to a division of the sequence into 5 beetle assemblage zones (BAZ): the lowermost BAZ A is characterized by extremely poor assemblages (periglacial environment); BAZ B (Oldest Dryas and Lateglacial Interstadial) is marked by regular occurrences of taxa associated with open environments, aquatic taxa associated with running and highly oxygenated water, and cold adapted taxa with relatively low numbers; BAZ C (Younger Dryas) corresponds to two important events: a particular abundance of cold adapted taxa and a marked decrease of running water taxa, beetles associated with herbaceous vegetation and open environments are also well represented; BAZ D (Early Holocene) corresponds to the total disappearance of cold adapted taxa; the transition BAZ C/BAZ D is marked also by a dramatic peak of running water taxa; the uppermost BAZ E (Early/Mid Holocene) is marked by a total absence of running water taxa which are replaced by standing water or taxa tolerant of a range of water conditions, a particular abundance of wetland taxa, and taxa associated with herbaceous vegetation and open environments. Beetle and pollen data suggest that the harsh climatic conditions prevailing in the Aubrac mountains did not allow warm dependent fauna and trees to establish during the Lateglacial Interstadial, at least in the Roustières region, and that wide open landscapes occupied the plateau at that time. The Older Dryas, a cold spell previously recorded at La Taphanel (Cantal), is not visible in the Roustières record, probably because of the higher altitude at Roustières, whereas the Younger Dryas is strongly expressed. During the Holocene, concordant beetles and pollen data enable to reconstruct the rapid recolonization of the plateau by mesophilous trees (Ulmus, Quercus), suggesting the possible presence of refugia to the southern slopes of the Aubrac plateau. Insect/pollen comparisons provide evidence for hydrological changes in the former lake of Roustières and suggest that lacustrine water level changes often used as indicator of precipitation regime changes should be taken with caution.
•A join Coleoptera and pollen analysis is carried out in the Aubrac mountains.•Lateglacial/Holocene environmental and climate changes are reconstructed.•High altitude blurs the Late glacial interstadial warming signal.•The Younger Dryas very cold episode is strongly expressed.•Early Holocene snow melting lead to a rise of lake water level.
•Downcore brGDGTs in Lake St Front sediments have a mixed origin.•ΣIIIa/ΣIIa ratio in the past can be used to reveal brGDGT source changes.•A gradual shift in brGDGT sources occurred during the ...Holocene in Lake St Front.•Shift in brGDGT sources results from changes in erosive dynamics of the catchment.•brGDGT distribution is impacted by vegetation changes and human activities.
The distribution of branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (brGDGTs) has been shown to correlate with mean annual air temperature and is increasingly used for paleoclimate reconstructions, in particular in lakes. Numerous studies have reported in situ production of brGDGTs in lakes. These brGDGTs have different distributions compared with those produced in soils and their mixing hampers paleoclimate reconstructions. Very few tools exist to determine brGDGT sources in the present and to trace their changes in the past linked with environmental changes of climatic or anthropogenic origin. While human activities are known to affect both soil and aquatic ecosystems, particularly bacterial communities, the specific impacts on brGDGT distributions are poorly investigated. High resolution analyses of brGDGTs were carried out on Holocene sediments and catchment soils of Lake St Front (Massif Central, France) in association with sedimentological, palynological, and geochemical analyses. Comparison of brGDGT distributions in sediments and soils revealed their mixed origin. For the first time, we tested the reliability of the ΣIIIa/ΣIIa ratio in lakes which indicated a gradual shift from aquatic to terrigenous brGDGT sources over the Holocene. This shift was supported by sedimentological and geochemical indices. Three events with a high proportion of terrigenous brGDGTs (6–5.5, 2.8–2.5, and 2–0.2 kyr cal BP) coincide with changes in vegetation in the catchment area, driven by climate and/or human activities. This suggests that vegetation modifications in the watershed impact brGDGT distributions and may thus bias brGDGT-based paleoclimatic reconstructions.
Abstract
The onset of the Acheulean, marked by the emergence of large cutting tools (LCTs), is considered a major technological advance in the Early Stone Age and a key turning point in human ...evolution. The Acheulean originated in East Africa at ~ 1.8–1.6 Ma and is reported in South Africa between ~ 1.6 and > 1.0 Ma. The timing of its appearance and development in North Africa have been poorly known due to the near-absence of well-dated sites in reliable contexts. The ~ 1 Ma stone artefacts of Tighennif (Algeria) and Thomas Quarry I-Unit L (ThI-L) at Casablanca (Morocco) are thus far regarded as documenting the oldest Acheulean in North Africa but whatever the precision of their stratigraphical position, both deserve a better chronology. Here we provide a chronology for ThI
-
L, based on new magnetostratigraphic and geochemical data. Added to the existing lithostratigraphy of the Casablanca sequence, these results provide the first robust chronostratigraphic framework for the early North African Acheulean and firmly establish its emergence in this part of the continent back at least to ~ 1.3 Ma.
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