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Holocene environmental and climate change on the Tibetan Plateau is intensively studied and discussed with the aim to better understand the factors controlling the hydrology of individual river catchments and especially the availability of water which is of utmost significance for the communities downstream in times of rapid climate change. Thus, a late glacial and Holocene sediment record from Lake Heihai in the Kunlun-Pass region was investigated using ostracod and geochemical analyses. Cold and dry conditions were inferred between ca. 12.9 and 12.3 cal ka BP and higher temperatures before and afterwards. The cold spell probably corresponds to the Younger Dryas (YD) event in the North Atlantic region. Warmer and wetter conditions with highest lake levels and decreased lake-water salinity were recorded from ca. 10.8 to 7.0 cal ka BP when the summer monsoon was strengthened. The cold 8.2 cal ka BP event is not significantly recorded in the region probably due to the predominance of the summer monsoon over the westerlies. A declined lake level and increased lake-water salinity as the result of cold and dry conditions are inferred from ca. 7.0 to 4.5 cal ka BP when the strengthening of the mid-latitude westerly circulation probably triggered glacier advances in the catchment. An even lower lake level existed during cold conditions with glacier advances from ca. 4.5 to 1.2 cal ka BP. The level of Lake Heihai rose again after ca. 1.2 cal ka BP due to warmer conditions, causing the retreat of glaciers and higher runoff. Our record from the Kunlun Pass region provides further evidence for the catchment-specific response of hydrographical systems which are partly controlled by glaciers as major water sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evaporites were deposited in every saline lake in the western Qaidam Basin (QB) during the late Quaternary, but the role of the Quaternary glacial environment in the formation of evaporite deposits remains to be clarified. In this paper, five upper Quaternary evaporite-bearing profiles in the western QB are studied. Uranium-thorium (U–Th) dating was applied to obtain the depositional ages of these profiles, and X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) analysis was applied to identify the evaporite minerals. The U–Th dating results indicate that halite (NaCl)-dominated profile D08 and mirabilite (Na 2 SO 4 ·10H 2 O)-dominated profile MXK were deposited between 146.1 ± 53.4 ka and 171.3 ± 27.2 ka, mainly corresponding to Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 6; the bloedite (Na 2 Mg(SO 4) 2 ·4H 2 O)-dominated profiles WMX1 and WMX2 were deposited between 182.1 ± 2.5 ka and 206.7 ± 7.0 ka, mainly corresponding to the late period of MIS7; and the mirabilite and halite-dominated salt layers in profile D30 were deposited between 9.0 ± 0.7 ka and 14.3 ± 1.6 ka, with mirabilite deposit ages corresponding to MIS2 and early MIS1. The minerals in the profiles identified by XRD analyses are mirabilite, thenardite (Na 2 SO 4), bloedite, gypsum (CaSO 4 ·2H 2 O), starkeyite (MgSO 4 ·4H 2 O), hexahydrite (MgSO 4 ·6H 2 O) and halite. This study, combined with those of previously reported evaporite deposits in the western QB, indicates that MIS7, MIS6 and MIS2 were important evaporite deposition periods in the late Quaternary. Evaporite depositions in the QB during MIS6 and MIS2 were attributed to a decrease in temperature and shrinkage of the saline lake hydrosphere. The cold glacial climate during MIS6 and MIS2 was conducive to mirabilite deposition in the western QB, while the relatively warm climate of the late period MIS7 was conducive to bloedite deposition. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Northern Asia (here, the Russian Federation east of the Urals) played a key role in the spread of anatomically modern humans (AMH) across the Eurasian continent during the Upper Palaeolithic (UP). This time interval witnessed the climatically harshest and most variable part of the last glacial epoch when AMH spread to all continents, with the exception of ice-covered Antarctica, thus raising questions about how humans and environments interacted. Our review of available proxy records shows that the study region was largely dominated by productive steppe and tundra plant communities, which promoted a diverse small- to mega-scale fauna throughout the UP. While this rich fauna was an ideal food resource for AMH populations, its possible influence on the growth of woody plants through grazing is less well resolved. Another non-climatic factor that may have impacted on the spread of woody taxa are human activities (e.g. setting fires to facilitate hunting). Evidence that small populations of woody taxa were distributed in climatically favourable habitats comes from plant macroremains from sediment sequences and archaeological sites and from aDNA data. Contrary to the long-standing view of a generally colder-than-present last glacial climate, these proxy records reveal evidence that summers were warmer than today by several degrees Celsius, providing additional advantages for human activities. Another benefit for large herbivores, and thus human subsistence, were the generally low winter precipitation levels (similar to those of the modern steppe regions of Mongolia), which sustained year-round grazing grounds. These factors apparently outweighed the harsh colder-than-present winter conditions and promoted habitation of AMH in Northern Asia even during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) ca. 30‒18 cal kyr BP. While our understanding of qualitative climate trends, mainly based on fossil pollen records, has substantially improved, quantification of climate parameters is still a challenging task. For the last glacial interval in Northern Asia, plant macroremains, chironomids, diatoms and ostracods may provide suitable alternative proxies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene were time periods of significant transitions between glacial and warm climate states. In this contribution, a study of changes of diatom assemblage compositions in recurrence plots, rarefaction models, and their rank abundance distributions (Fisher's alpha) in the Southeast Baltic is presented. Three sites were studied for this purpose: Lake Kamyshovoye (Kaliningrad Region, Russia), Lake Kašučiai (W Lithuania), and Lake Petrešiūnai (NE Lithuania). The recurrence plots revealed a compositionally stable interval at the end of the Pleistocene and a subsequent continuous and directional turnover (compositional trend) of local diatom communities throughout the Early Holocene. An analysis of rank abundance distributions and rarefaction analysis revealed a persistent long-term increase in the diversity of diatoms which started after the Younger Dryas cold episode; additional data suggest possible effects of the multi-centennial scale "9.3" Ka BP cold event. The close correlation between diatom diversity changes and geographically widespread climatic trends shows strong potential for this algae group in the regional analyses of climatic perturbations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In addressing the controversial issues of the Late Pleistocene paleogeography of the Caspian basin, an important role is given to the results of the spore-pollen analysis and based on them reconstructions of climate and vegetation changes in the Northern Caspian region during the development of the Early Khvalynian transgression. In this paper we present the main results of the palynological study of deposits (chocolate clays and the overlying and underlying layers from the Srednyaya Akhtuba section) of maximum stage of the Early Khvalynian transgression; the materials are illustrated by pollen diagram with the data of spore-pollen analysis and the detailed list of palynoflora recovered from the studied Lower Khvalynian sequences, and complemented with photographs of pollen belonging to the principal autochtonous taxa and, for comparison, to some redeposited palynomorphs. Palynological materials indicate subaqual (brackish marine and freshwater) sedimentation of the sediments studied in periglacial landscapes and, for the most part, under very harsh climatic conditions. The performed climate-stratigraphic reconstructions do not contradict the data of absolute dating on the accumulation of the studied deposits during the Late Valdai (Ostashkov) late Glacial period. During this interval in the territory of the study area, plant communities of the glacial climate — tundra-steppe, periglacial forest-steppe, periglacial steppe, periglacial parklands and periglacial forests — were developed. The widespread occurrence in the composition of the periglacial vegetation cover of the studied region of the yernik formations from Betula nana and shrub communities from Betula fruticosa , B. nana , Alnaster fruticosus , Juniperus , etc. testifies to the severe climatic conditions and, possibly, the existence of sporadic permafrost in the cold stages (stadials) of the Ostashkov Late Glacial period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pollen analysis of pond and spring deposits at the Aubrey Clovis site in North Texas provides a 1300-year record of late glacial grassland vegetation from 17,200 to 15,900 cal years BP. Forty-six pollen taxa are identified in the well-preserved assemblages. The late glacial pollen record at the Aubrey site represents three environments: upland, riparian, and lacustrine-wetland. The pond-related sediments are dominated by 80% Poaceae pollen, an unusually high amount in pollen records; the spring tufa sediments are dominated by Cyperaceae. Cattail (Typha latifolia) and other wetland plants, including green algae Botryococcus, Pediastrum , and Chara were present. The riparian habitat of the wide late glacial alluvial valley had alder (Alnus), willow (Salix), cottonwood (Populus), and water elm (Planera aquatica). The upland vegetation was a treeless grassland with comparatively high amounts of Asteraceae-type pollen; it is therefore called the aster prairie. Quercus, Juniperus , Carya , Ulmus , Ambrosia , and Chenopodiaceae pollen are much less abundant than found in modern grassland pollen records. Small amounts of Artemisia , Pinus , and Picea pollen are present, a consequence of long-distance transport. Regional late glacial cool-wet climate produced moist prairie soils. The Cross Timbers oak forest that occurs near the site today had not yet formed. Dissimilarity analysis of the pollen data shows that the late glacial aster prairie has no analog with modern shortgrass, mixed-grass, or tallgrass prairies. In contrast, a favorable analog exists with fossil pollen data from a lower zone at Patschke Bog, central Texas, and Muscotah Marsh, northeastern Kansas, indicating that a grassland characterized by high amounts of Asteraceae pollen formed a unique late glacial vegetation type in the region, earlier in Texas and later in Kansas. Because of its chronology and location in the eastern Great Plains, the late glacial aster prairie may be ancestral to the modern tallgrass prairie. • The late glacial aster prairie has no analog with modern tallgrass, mixed-grass, or short grass prairies. • The treeless condition of the aster prairie is supported by the absence of bark beetles and other tree-dwelling insects. • The late glacial climate was cooler than today, based on associated insects and mollusks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The age model of the western Bering Sea core 85 KL was modified through correlation of new and earlier-measured productivity proxies with the Chinese interstadials described by δ18O records of Hulu and Sanbao caves and the relative paleointensity events in the studied core with those in the dated records. Resulted sequence of millennial scale Bering Sea Interstadials recorded by abrupt productivity risings was established during the penultimate glacial consistently with the Chinese interstadials and Antarctica isotope maxima. The pattern of the frequency and amplitude of the millennial productivity/climate variability in the Bering Sea during the penultimate glacial resembles that initially depicted in the δ18O of Chinese cave stalagmites and is quite similar to one of the Dansgaard–Oeschger cycles during last glacial, except for their terminations. Contrary to well-pronounced interstadial A.1 during termination TI, an interstadial B.1 over the TII has lower duration and therefore is weakly observed in Antarctic temperature changes. Our results provide robust evidence that the bipolar seesaw mechanisms of millennial climate changes in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres were similar during the last and penultimate glacials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This study investigated the late Quaternary sedimentary evolution of the outer shelf of the East China Sea (ECS) using borehole core data (DH02). Three unconformity-bounded sedimentary facies, namely, prodelta facies of marine isotopic stage (MIS) 3, intertidal to subtidal flat facies of the deglacial period, and offshore tidal sand ridge facies of the Holocene, were identified from the base upward according to combined evidence of lithology, microfossil assemblages, and geochronology. Through comparative analysis with other neighboring borehole cores, these three facies, along with the MIS 3 nearshore facies and the last glacial maximum (LGM) river facies, were found to constitute the late Quaternary sediment strata. Sedimentary processes of these five facies were interpreted based on a synthetic consideration of sea-level change, climate variation, paleotopographic setting, and paleoriver-sea interactions. In particular, the development of the delta was attributable to integration of the slow sea-level decline during the later stage of the MIS 3 and abundant sediment supply resulting from the warm-wet climate. The gentle shelf topography suggests the presence of shallow and wide rivers in the delta, and the lateral shift of river channels might have induced the local formation of nearshore facies at the abandoned river mouth. The LGM river facies, which was rarely observed (presumably due to marine erosion with deglacial transgression), was inferred to have been deposited during the latter half of the LGM in response to the rise in river base level. Occurrences of tidal flat facies imply the formation of a tide-dominated estuary with the deglacial transgression. Furthermore, tidal flat sediments were reworked by enhanced tidal currents in the estuary front environment, forming mud ridges during subsequent deglacial transgression. Formation of tidal sand ridges in offshore environments of the Holocene was attributable to the uneven base caused by the underlying estuarine erosion mud ridges, and this promoted the occurrence of tidal depositional processes. The sedimentary evolution in association with sea-level change was constructed using the above-mentioned results. Overall, this study systematically elucidates the late Quaternary sedimentary processes and evolution of the outer ECS shelf, and provides an insight into the sedimentary development of analogous shelves around the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glacial changes during the Little Ice Age (LIA) in the Himalayan Mountains are important for understanding changes in the monsoonal and westerly climate of the so-called ‘the Third Pole’. However, knowledge of these changes and their dynamics remains limited because of the region's geographical inaccessibility, in addition to geopolitical reasons. In this study, we used high resolution three-dimensional images from Google Earth to identify lateral and terminal moraines as delineators of paleoglacier boundaries, and mapped the boundaries of both modern and LIA glaciers. ArcGIS 9.3 software was applied to map data and to calculate glacier lengths and areas; modern glacier surface elevation data were derived from SRTM (Shuttle Radar Topography Mission) records. Three methods, the toe-to-headwall altitude ratio (THAR), the toe-to-summit altitude method (TSAM), and the toe-to-ridge altitude method (TRAM) were used to estimate equilibrium line altitude (ELA). The transient snowlines (TSL) of ninety-one modern glaciers were acquired using Landsat 8 OLI images in late summer to evaluate the reliability of the calculated ELAs. Our results showed that the total length and total area of two hundred and twenty glaciers in the central and western Himalaya (CWH) had decreased respectively by 35% and 31% since the LIA. The TRAM method was the preferred method for the reconstruction of ELAs. The mean depression of ELAs from the LIA to the first decade of the 21st Century, as reconstructed using the TRAM method, was 123 m. The ELA depression and rate of change of glacier length and glacier area displayed generally increasing trends from west to east along the central and western Himalaya, suggesting that the moisture was most likely transported from an easterly direction. These changes were more intensive on southern than northern slopes, suggesting that southerly and westerly precipitation likely increased over the same period. We speculated that the CWH had been influenced by both the Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) and Westerlies since the LIA. ISM moisture, as in modern times, was the main factor controlling the distribution of glaciers during the LIA. Further, precipitation carried by the Westerlies likely intensified along southerly pathways along the CWH during the LIA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The timing and extent of late Quaternary glaciation in the Hailuogou valley of eastern Tibetan Plateau have been extensively studied over past decades. Debate however exists in the timing of the Gongga II moraine that represents the maximum glaciation in the Hailuogou valley. Furthermore, the Gongga II glaciation is not quantitatively reconstructed; and what climate conditions could support this maximum glaciation is unknown. This study used a glacier-climate model driven by data from local weather stations to simulate the Gongga II glacier extent by fitting modeled glaciers to field geological evidence. Running multiple simulations with different temperature-precipitation combinations, we inferred the climate scenarios sufficient to generate the Gongga II glacier extent. The modeled Gongga II glaciers have an area of ∼119 km 2 and an average volume of 1.35 × 10 10 m 3 , with an average equilibrium-line altitude of 4050 m asl. Combined with other independent climate reconstructions, the glacier-climate model simulations suggested that the Gongga II glacial stage most likely occurred in the LGM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we provide combined biochronologic and chronostratigraphic constraints to the fluvial-lacustrine succession cropping out near the village of Rignano Flaminio, 35 km north of Rome, where two bone instruments have been recovered along with several vertebrate fossil remains. The presence of bone tools is characteristic of the Latium region, whereas it is rare in the rest of Italy, but very few sites in which such artifacts occur have precise geochronological constraints. In the investigated site, the presence of Cervus elaphus eostephanoceros , among other taxa, indicates a time interval limited to Marine Isotopic Stage (MIS) 13 and MIS 11. The occurrence of the Tufo Rosso a Scorie Nere pyroclastic-flow deposit, dated 449 ± 2 ka, at the base of the sedimentary deposits hosting the faunal assemblage allows us at restricting the interval to MIS 11. Moreover, applying a recently validated conceptual model accounting for an aggradational mechanism linked with sea-level rise during glacial termination for the sedimentary successions of the Tiber River and its tributaries in a relatively wider area around Rome, we further constrain the age to 430–405 ka. Following this approach, we present a review of the archaeological sites of Latium yielding bone instruments, remarking that only other four sites have been recently provided with geochronological constraints, through the application of the multidisciplinary methodology applied here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A diverse Late Pleistocene fossil assemblage was recovered from a sea cliff locality near Gopnath in Gujarat, northwestern India. These remains are the first large sample of Pleistocene faunal materials from arid northwestern India. Several taxa known primarily from coarse alluvial deposits of central India are documented for the first time from an undisturbed open-air site adjoining the Great Indian Desert. The sample includes a new species of antelope from a lineage considered extinct outside of Africa since the Early Pleistocene. The paleoenvironmental context, faunal composition and type of fossil preservation reported here is unique. The Gopnath fauna accumulated in a pond within a carbonate dune field that formed part of a larger coastal oasis ecosystem. This paleoscape occupied the Cambay Gulf during hyper-arid glacial low stands. The Gopnath fossils are correlated to Late Acheulean lithics from a coastal cliff locality (<8 km) at Madhuban. These finds provide the first vertebrate evidence of glacial low stands and their influence on Late Pleistocene paleobiogeography within the dynamic dry coastal corridor linking India to Africa. They offer a rare glimpse of a lost landscape and an obscure fossil community that are critical to understanding the paleobiogeography of the hinterland along the Arabian seashore and informing models of early human dispersals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Loess-palaeosol sequences are highly resolved archives for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction and build an important link to correlate European and Central Asian loess sequences. For the loess palaeosol sequence at Toshan, Northern Iran, a luminescence-based chronological framework was established. The timing of dust accumulation and soil formation was investigated and thereby information on changes in palaeoenvironmental conditions in the region obtained. For luminescence dating, the 4–11 μm grain size fraction was used and the pIRIR 290 approach was applied to polyminerals. Tests concerning bleachability, dose recovery and anomalous fading were conducted. The results show that residual doses have only minor influence on the determination of the equivalent dose. The Eemian (MIS 5e) soil seems to be preserved but a chronological classification based on luminescence ages for this soil remains difficult. The pIRIR 290 age estimates from the lower part of the profile range from 104 ± 9 to 127 ± 8 ka. Luminescence ages from the central profile-part point to an increase in dust accumulation starting around the MIS 4/MIS 3 transition. Furthermore, a chronological framework for interstadial soils was developed indicating e.g. soil formation at around 40 ka during MIS 3 and 26 ka during MIS 2. The top part of the profile was dated to about 22 ka. The age estimates show that the Toshan loess profile is a highly resolved loess record providing a valuable climate archive for the last glacial–interglacial cycle reflecting several climatic shifts represented by dust accumulation or enhanced degrees of soil formation (stadials and interstadials). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To identify lithic arrowheads from Prehistoric sites is very difficult because there is a great variability in their morphology and in the ways of hafting and throwing them. Variables playing in their use are numerous. Some experimental approaches try to explain traces in prehistorical lithic points by mean of paying attention at some of these variables. Many researchers have used morphological parameters to distinguish spear from arrowheads, showing which characteristics define the potential of each type of weapon in ethnographical examples. However, only an accurate use-wear analysis that pays attention on macro and micro-wear traces and which is grounded on systematically experimentation references, could help to understand their real context of use. Several attempts have yielded results about facts as the absence of traces in used projectiles, breakages at the end of hafts or some characteristics like macro-wear and micro-wear traces. Many of these results were obtained in laboratory conditions by shooting at artificial targets since only few experimentation approaches use animals. We present the results of experimental shots with bows of 53 exact copies of lithic pointed implements, arrows from the Mesolithic and Azilian layers from La Fru and Gerbaix Haut (from the Savoie and Haute Alpes regions in France) sites. Some of the results and conclusions of this experimental approach can be directly transferred to other contexts. Furthermore, methodological discussion is important for further experimental researches and archaeological interpretation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nine localities with the similar-age deposits (31,800–21,815 BP, Late Pleistocene) containing weevils have been known from West Siberia. Our examination of this material identifies 2011 sub-fossil fragments representing seven species of Brenthidae and 38 species of Curculionidae. The most speciose genus is Otiorhynchus which includes seven species, while the remaining 29 genera are represented by 1–2 species each. The most abundant species are Otiorhynchus karkaralensis , Tournotaris bimaculata , Hemitrichapion tschernovi , Otiorhynchus politus and Stephanocleonus eruditus . Sub-fossil assemblages of weevils from southern sites (57–58° N) markedly differ from the northern (60°30′–61°30′ N) and from known similar-age deposits of Northern Eurasia. This is exemplified by Otiorhynchus spp., especially Otiorhynchus karkaralensis in the southern deposits of West Siberia. Weevils in sub-fossil assemblages of West Siberia differ from the recent fauna. 30 species with sub-fossil representatives are known from the region currently, while sub-fossil 15 species are currently absent from this region. The sub-fossil weevils that were widely distributed during the last glacial currently occur in refugia in the north of Siberia and in mountains of the south Siberia and central Kazakhstan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the basis of detailed analysis (sedimentological, palynological, macroremains, geochemical and GIS analysis) the development of the Sumowskie Paleolake was reconstructed. Obtained results led to distinguish three main stages of the evolution of the basin and its catchment during the Late Glacial and the Holocene: the lacustrine stage, the lake overgrowth stage and the post lacustrine stage. Study site is located in the western part of the Brodnica Lakeland, North-Eastern Poland, within the former Sumowskie Lake bottom. Multidisciplinary research was conducted for two cores (sedimentological, palynological, plant macroremains): SUM A (149 cm) and SUM C (51 cm) and the soil profile – SUM 3 (sedimentological, geochemical). GIS analyses (land cover and water level changes) were carried out for the nowadays Sumowskie Lakes catchment. It was confirmed, that climate was the most important factor influencing the evolution of the lake and its surrounding. Although the role of this factor decreased in the Neo-Holocene period in favor of rapidly growing human impact. Changes of the water level were much more abrupt and lasted longer (e.g. 9500? – 5000? BP hiatus caused by the water level decrease) than in other described basins of the region due to the specific geomorphologic situation. Shallow kettle basins could alternately act as lakes and wetlands. As they are well-spread in the young glacial area, the strong influence of this abrupt and long term events should be reconsidered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Latest Pleistocene fossil soils and deposits have been described in the geoarchaeological site Divnogorie 9 (the Middle Don drainage basin) under the name of Divnogorie pedolithocomplex. For the first time, a soil-sediment series with 2–3 levels of soil formation has been described in the forest-steppe of the Russian Plain and dated to the Bølling–Allerød interval (BØ–AL). That was the last soil formation of Pre-Holocene time. The soils are weakly developed (immature), of meadow and burozem genesis. They formed for a few hundreds of years in periglacial steppe environments, under forest-steppe vegetation. The lower soil (attributed to Bølling) is dated at 13.5–14 ka cal BP and defined as a weakly developed Petrocalcic Skeletic Colluvic Siltic Chernozem. Under coniferous-broadleaf forests the middle soil is described as Umric Calcaric Colluvic Siltic Leptosol and dated at Dryas-2. The uppermost soil dated at Allerød is weakly developed Skeletic Calcaric Colluvic Siltic Cambisol formed under coniferous-broadleaf forest-steppe. The data obtained made possible reconstructions of the Late Glacial climates and landscapes. The underlying sediments are the deposits of Divnogorie paleo-lake. The deposits include seven bone-bearing horizons with Late Upper Palaeolithic lithic tools. They are dated to the interval 17–14 ka Cal BP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Late Glacial was a slow gradual warming associated with short, cold events that occurred between 18.0 and 11.7 ka cal. BP. Pollen analyses from deep-sea and lacustrine cores have well documented the evolution of floral communities in western Europe and suggest that climatic fluctuations influenced the evolution of terrestrial ecosystems. However, the exact impact of these climate changes on small faunal communities in southwest France is still poorly documented. Peyrazet Cave is an archaeological site located in the Lot (France) that has been excavated since 2008 and has yielded a Late Glacial sequence dated between 15.5 and 11.1 ka cal. BP. Thousands of small faunal remains resulting from a natural accumulation have been recovered. Investigation of this material has surprisingly revealed remains of two rodents that currently inhabit Central and Eastern Europe, the northern birch mouse ( Sicista betulina ) and the European hamster ( Cricetus cricetus ). The presence of these two taxa, which had migrated from the east and had been never documented in this region before the Late Glacial, is most likely related to short climatic fluctuations in the Late Glacial, suggesting more complex scenarios than traditionally accepted to explain the evolution of small faunal communities between the Last Glacial Maximum and the Holocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three decades of archaeological investigation in the upper and lower horizons of the Early Epipaleolithic occupation at the site of Tor at-Tareeq (WHS1065) in the western highlands of Jordan have suggested that occupation intensity co-varied with climatic shifts at the end of the Last Glacial Maximum. The faunal record is a sensitive indicator of site occupation intensity, and allows us to further investigate diachronic change in human settlement at the site. Overall, preservation is of special concern, as it appears to have differentially impacted the faunal assemblages and may have influenced behavioral interpretations. Therefore, we apply a taphonomic analysis to the faunal assemblage from the 2012 excavation to investigate the nature and causes of the destruction of bones in each horizon. Our approach reveals differential destruction of the two faunal assemblages, although these did not impact the broad behavioral signatures from each horizon. Finally, we apply the prey choice model of behavioral ecology to test hypotheses for changing occupation intensity throughout the Early Epipaleolithic occupation. The study reveals an efficient subsistence strategy targeting higher-ranked adult ungulates and slow-moving tortoises, and attests to a stable low-intensity occupation across the two horizons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Early Middle Pleistocene Transition (EMPT) is the term used to describe the prolongation and intensification of glacial–interglacial climate cycles that initiated after 900,000 years ago. During the transition glacial–interglacial cycles shift from lasting 41,000 years to an average of 100,000 years. The structure of these glacial–interglacial cycles shifts from smooth to more abrupt ‘saw-toothed’ like transitions. Despite eccentricity having by far the weakest influence on insolation received at the Earth's surface of any of the orbital parameters; it is often assumed to be the primary driver of the post-EMPT 100,000 years climate cycles because of the similarity in duration. The traditional solution to this is to call for a highly nonlinear response by the global climate system to eccentricity. This ‘eccentricity myth’ is due to an artefact of spectral analysis which means that the last 8 glacial–interglacial average out at about 100,000 years in length despite ranging from 80,000 to 120,000 years. With the realisation that eccentricity is not the major driving force a debate has emerged as to whether precession or obliquity controlled the timing of the most recent glacial–interglacial cycles. Some argue that post-EMPT deglaciations occurred every four or five precessional cycle while others argue it is every second or third obliquity cycle. We review these current theories and suggest that though phase-locking between orbital forcing and global ice volume may occur the chaotic nature of the climate system response means the relationship is not consistent through the last 900,000 years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Remarkable and intriguing is the discovery of Desman remains in Sed'yu-1 (Komi Republic, Russia) in the far northeast of Europe; finds that are dated to the Bølling Interstadial. Mammalian communities including desman are dominated by the Siberian lemming. A review of Lateglacial desman finds in Europe and the Urals as well as the contemporaneous mammalian communities in northeastern European are presented and the possible migration ways desmans used during the Lateglacial expansion are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vladimir Opolie is a typical loess island with soil pattern that differs strikingly from that of adjacent territories. Soils are characterized by a controversial set of features. They have common features with other loess islands located in various environmental zones (similar dependence on microtopography with second humus horizons in soils within depressions and accumulation of carbonates in soils on the main surfaces). On the other hand they differ from soils of loess islands formed on typical loess due to specific features of sediments: mantle loams, and a northern variety of loess. A pedostratigraphic approach to the study of soils of Vladimir Opolye reveals that constitution of the upper loess strata depends on paleocryogenic microtopography and that relict soil features (second humus horizon, pattern of carbonates distribution) are syngenetic with the final stages of loess sedimentation. The abundance of relict features indicates that the soils of Vladimir Opolie are surface paleosols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Excavated since the 1860s, the Arudy basin has yielded a number of rich Magdalenian sites that enable us to address the question of the human reoccupation of the lower Pyrenean valleys at the end of the Last Glacial Maximum. Until the 1990s, it was considered that at Arudy this reoccupation started ca. 16,000 cal BP in the Middle Magdalenian and continued into the Upper Magdalenian until ca. 14,000 cal BP. However, since the mid-2000 s, this picture has been modified through a series of new analyses, excavations (caves of Laa 2 and Tastet), 14 C dates and reassessment of ancient collections. Evidence of human occupation ca. 20,000–19,000 cal BP, although limited, has been identified at Laa 2 and Tastet, consistent with numerous data obtained at Pyrenean scale showing a deglaciation of the north Pyrenean foothills as early as the end of the global LGM. The number of sites with evidence of Magdalenian has increased, showing that human presence in the basin was more intensive than previously thought. The Middle and Upper Magdalenian occupations have been redated to at least 18,000–17,500 cal BP to 15,000–14,500 cal BP, with the transition between the two phases probably occurring ca. 16,600–16,200 cal BP. The faunal records of these sites document an emphasis on horse hunting, which is not common in the northern Pyrenees, but also witness an evolution over time in the range of species hunted. Furthermore, the Pyrenean affinities of the Arudy groups and their relations with neighboring regions, such as Spain and the northern part of the Aquitaine basin, can be addressed through new evidence: in particular lithic and osseous raw materials and specific types of projectile tips. These results significantly change our view of the nature, rhythm and chronology of the Late Glacial settlement in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Incomplete bleaching, which will lead to overestimation of age, still remains one of the most significant problems in luminescence dating on glacial sediments. In order to test the bleachability of luminescence signals of mountain glacial sediments, nineteen young samples from different geomorphological positions and different sediment settings, in the source area of the Urumqi River in Tianshan Mountains, a key area of Quaternary glaciation study in China, were collected and dated using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating methods. Equivalent dose ( D e ) was determined by quartz SAR-SGC procedures. Results show that most of the samples suffer from varying degrees of overestimation. In general, glaciofluvial and lateral moraine till samples show relatively low residual doses (0–20.5 Gy); while subglacial tills, tills from terminal moraines, ground moraines and hummocky moraines, show higher residual doses (22.4–205.6 Gy). Reworked loessic sediments exhibit surprisingly high residual doses (24.1 and 46.5 Gy). Glaciofluvial and materials from lateral moraine (upper part) are recommended when sampling, whereas those from subglacial tills, terminal moraines, ground moraines and hummocky moraines should be avoided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The passing of Russell Coope in 2011 brought an end to a vigorous, dynamic research career that launched the field of Quaternary entomology. This issue of Quaternary International is composed mostly of papers given in his honour in June, 2012 at Royal Holloway University of London. It comprises 21 papers that cover a wide range of topics. The reconstruction of British Pleistocene environments was arguably Coope's most important contribution to science. Three papers containing previously unpublished Middle and Late Pleistocene beetle faunas and their interpretations are included here. A discussion paper on the origins of the insect faunas of North Atlantic islands echoes another of Coope's research interests, as do two studies of late glacial climates of northwest Europe. A suite of several papers discussing the environmental archaeology of sites ranging in age from the Bronze Age to the early 20th century honour Coope's pioneering work in this field. Pleistocene research from sites in North America and Japan complete the volume, followed by descriptions of two large-scale insect fossil databases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Based on isotopic and cladoceran investigations of a 6-m-long sediment core, a reconstruction of paleoenvironmental dynamics in Charzykowskie Lake (northern Poland) is proposed. The sediments consist of sandy silts at the bottom, followed (in upward succession) by gyttja characterized by increasing CaCO3 content. The measured δ18O values oscillate from −9.3 to −5‰ and δ13C from – 5.7 to +0.4‰. We identify 24 taxa of subfossil Cladocera and six phases (CAZ) of faunal development. Isotopic and cladoceran data together with detrended correspondence analyses (DCA) allow reconstruction of the environmental conditions, particularly changes in water level, temperature, and trophic status, during the Late Glacial and early Holocene. The lowest water temperature, connected with the inflow of cold melt water, occurred in the Late Glacial and Preboreal period. Since the Boreal period, gradual warming is observed and expressed through a positive trend in both δ18O and δ13C values and changes in Cladocera species assemblages. The lake was deepest at the beginning of the Holocene as a result of dead ice melting (supply of melt water; lowering of lake bottom) and/or precipitation increase (change in atmospheric circulation). During the Boreal period, the fall in water level takes place despite the opposite trend observed at nearby sites. In addition, the cladoceran data indicate an initial decrease in trophic conditions from α-mesotrophic to oligotrophic and then an increase to the β-mesotrophic state. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The last 6000 years are of particular interest to the understanding of the Earth System because the boundary conditions of the climate system did not change dramatically (in comparison to larger glacial–interglacial changes), and because abundant, detailed regional palaeoclimatic proxy records cover this period. Here, we present fossil pollen data and examine their climatic interpretation based on a 200-cm-deep trenched sedimentary profile from Mahanadi river side, located near the Barpahar hillock of Bargarh District, Odisha, which is influenced by the South-west and North-east monsoon. The 5840 y chronology of the sediment core is based on three 14C dates on soil samples. During 5840–4380 BP, dense tropical mixed deciduous forest consisting of Madhuca, Syzygium and Acacia flourished in the region along with Rhizophora under a warm and humid climate governed by high monsoonal activity. This phase of climate is associated with the Holocene Climatic Optimum which falls within the temporal range of 8000–5000 BP. Subsequently, an increase in humidity was discerned between 4380 and 3230 BP, as evident by increase in forest elements, under warm and relatively humid climate in response to an increased monsoon. The climate during 3230–1860 BP was mild and in general less humid than today. This climate event was inevitably influenced by a notable global cold event 4200 years ago, which is synchronous with the collapse of the world's first human empire in Mesopotamia. After this event, there was a return of more humid climate from 1860 to 1300 BP, marked by high values of Potamogeton, Myriophyllum, Nymphoides, and fungal and trilete fern spores. This is further supported by the presence of Rhizophora and Sonneratia indicating high precipitation under the influence of coastal habitation. A striking signal of the Little Ice age (LIA) was observed since 1300 BP when the climate became relatively dry, as recognized in a sudden decline in major arboreals, along with high frequency of occurrence of dry herbs. This changing pattern of humidity was also reflected in the proportions of marshy/aquatic taxa, as well as ruderal taxa which is a result of human impact. The study will be helpful to display the palaeovegetation and climate in the region between Bengal and the Ganga plain. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Kanas River originates on the southern slope of Youyi Peak, the largest center of modern glaciation in the Altai Mountains in Central Asia. Glaciers advanced and retreated repeatedly during Quaternary glacial–interglacial cycles in the Kanas River valley, and four moraine complexes and associated glaciofluvial deposits are preserved in the valley. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating has been used to determine ages of glaciofluvial deposits (sand lenses sandwiched between tills in moraines) using a single aliquot regenerative-dose (SAR) protocol. Based on dating results from this and previous studies (including 14C, electron spin resonance (ESR) and OSL dates) and geomorphic relationships, the innermost moraine complex was concluded to deposit during the Little Ice Age (LIA), the second (Akekule) moraine complex was deposited during the Neoglacial, the third (Kanas) moraine complex was deposited during the last glacial cycle (marine oxygen isotope stage (MIS) 2–4) and the outermost set of moraines is MIS 6 in ages (penultimate glaciation). The Kanas moraine complex could be divided into three subsets (III1, III2 and III3), with inferred ages of MIS 2, mid-MIS 3 and MIS 4, respectively, which is consistent with moraine records from other areas in Central Asia and climate reconstructions from the Guliya ice core. The glaciers in the Kanas valley at their maximum extents during the LIA, Neoglacial, last glaciation and penultimate glaciation were 13.8 km, 32 km, ∼100 km, and ∼120 km long, respectively. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The paper presents new data on climatic, lake level and environmental changes in the Darhad Basin, northern Mongolia, during the Late Glacial and Early to Middle Holocene. Two cores, DN1 and DN2, from Lake Dood were investigated using the following proxies: grain size, total carbon (TC), total inorganic carbon (TIC), total organic carbon (TOC), total nitrogen (TN), total sulfur (TS), δ13C, δ18O and diatom. Our reconstructions indicate that dramatic climatic and environmental changes occurred several times since ca 14 ka cal BP. A cold and dry climate of the Late Glacial changed to a relatively cold and wet climate starting around 9.5 ka cal BP in response to an Early Holocene humidization. A generally warm and humid climate prevailed in the region at ca. 7.8–5.8 ka cal BP. Later on after 5.8 ka cal BP the climate became cooler and drier. The Darhad paleolake, the predecessor of Lake Dood, disappeared during the Late Glacial to Early Holocene times and started to reappear since ca. 9.5 ka cal BP. Lake Dood fluctuated considerably in response to changes in precipitation or/and in ground ice melting between 9.5 and 5.8 ka cal BP and started to decrease at 5.8 ka cal BP. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Lacustrine and alluvial terraces and sediments record the extent of at least three stages of late Pleistocene glacially dammed lakes, along the Tsangpo River at the Dazhuka-Yueju gorge, the Zangga-Gyaca gorge and the Grand Bend gorge, in southeastern Tibet. Analysis of lacustrine samples in the Tsangpo River valley by Optically Stimulated Luminescence and pollen analysis showed that the three dammed lakes in the Tsangpo River valley occurred during the early stage of the last glaciation, the later stage of the last glaciation (the Last Glacial Maximum), and the Neoglacial. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Polish and NW Ukrainian loess covers are situated along the northern margin of the central part of the European loess belt. Because of their intermediate geographic position, they form a bridge for loess studies in eastern and western Europe. Fifteen loess-soil sequences representing the last interglacial–glacial loess cycle were investigated using a new methodological approach elaborated for this purpose. The thickness of the Late Pleistocene sequences ranges between 4 and 14 m. All these profiles were sampled in vertical continuous sections at close intervals (5–10 cm) and documented with respect to their sedimentology, palaeopedology, and stratigraphy. The main litho- and pedostratigraphic units were established during field investigations. Loess–palaeosol sequences confirm the general instability of the Last Glacial climate. The representative, Late Pleistocene interfluve loess sequence in the study area consists of four units: two polygenetic palaeosol complexes and two calcareous loess units. Within these loess units, two generations of ice wedge casts indicate twofold expansion and disappearance of permafrost during the Last Glacial period. This evidence confirms the correlation of main terrestrial events of the Late Pleistocene loess sequences with the marine record. The Last Glacial loess sequences in Poland and NW Ukraine are of crucial importance for palaeogeographic reconstructions of European loess areas. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The current study presents quantitative reconstructions of tree cover, annual precipitation and mean July temperature derived from the pollen record from Lake Billyakh (65°17′N, 126°47′E, 340 m above sea level) spanning the last ca. 50 ka (ca. 50,000 cal yrs). The reconstruction of tree cover suggests presence of woody plants through the entire analyzed time interval, although trees played only a minor role in the vegetation around Lake Billyakh prior to 14 ka BP (<5%). This result corroborates low percentages of tree pollen and low scores of the cold deciduous forest biome in the PG1755 record from Lake Billyakh. The reconstructed values of the mean temperature of the warmest month ∼8–10 °C do not support larch forest or woodland around Lake Billyakh during the coldest phase of the last glacial between ∼32 and ∼15 ka BP. However, modern cases from northern Siberia, ca. 750 km north of Lake Billyakh, demonstrate that individual larch plants can grow within shrub and grass tundra landscape in very low mean July temperatures of about 8 °C. This makes plausible the hypothesis that the western and southern foreland of the Verkhoyansk Mountains could provide enough moist and warm microhabitats and allow individual larch specimens to survive climatic extremes of the last glacial. Reconstructed mean values of annual precipitation are about 270 mm during the last glacial interval. This value is almost 100 mm higher than modern averages reported for the extreme-continental north-eastern Siberia east of Lake Billyakh, where larch-dominated cold deciduous forest grows at present. This suggests that last glacial environments around Lake Billyakh were never too dry for larch to grow and that the insufficient summer warmth was the main factor, which limited tree growth during the last glacial interval. The n-alkane analysis of the Siberian plants presented in this study demonstrates rather complex alkane distribution patterns, which challenge the interpretation of the fossil records. In particular, extremely low n-alkane concentrations in the leaves of local coniferous trees and shrubs suggest that their contribution to the litter and therefore to the fossil lake sediments might be not high enough for tracing the Quaternary history of the needleleaved taxa using the n-alkane biomarker method. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The record of well preserved palynomorphs from sediment samples of Lake Suigetsu mirrors temporal changes in the flora around the lake and spatial changes in the vegetation cover of central Japan during the late Quaternary. This study presents photographic images of 169 identifiable types of moss, lycophyte and fern spores and pollen of gymnospermous and angiospermous plants from the SG06 core sediment obtained at a standard magnification of ca. 750×. Additionally non-pollen palynomorphs (NPPs), which appeared in the pollen slides, are documented, including remains of fungi, rhizopods, arthropods, rotifers, flatworms as well as green algae and plant tissue fragments. All documented taxa are presented in taxonomical order on 66 plates, including 55 plates for pollen and spores of higher plants and 11 plates for NPPs. This study renders an overview on quality of preservation and on the range of palynomorphs found in the last glacial-interglacial sediments of Lake Suigetsu, and furthermore, may serve as a handy and thorough guide for palynological investigations, aiming at the reconstruction of past vegetation, environmental and climate dynamics. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Floodplain and aeolian sediments near Burdukovo reveal a detailed record of Holocene environmental change in the lower Selenga River Valley (Lake Baikal region, Siberia). During the late Pleistocene and early Holocene fine-grained alluvium accumulated on the floodplain followed by a period of increased landform stability and subsequent pedogenic formation. This part of the stratigraphical sequence yielded rich assemblages of terrestrial molluscs, which increase in species diversity from early pioneer communities with about ten taxa to levels containing over twice that number. The land snail assemblages also record an episode of relatively drier local habitats prior to ∼9.2 ka BP with subsequent wetter conditions lasting until ∼8.0 ka BP. This was followed by an abrupt and sustained change in floodplain deposition, shifting from overbank alluvium to aeolian sedimentation, within which a series of weakly developed soil horizons formed during the middle and late Holocene periods. The onset of aeolian processes and relatively drier conditions in the middle Holocene at Burdukovo coincides with major changes observed both in other regional palaeoenvironmental proxy records and in local archaeological sequences, although it is still not clear how the two are linked. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The decline and disappearance of a range of giant marsupials, reptiles and birds from the Australian landscape during the last Glacial cycle continues to capture the imagination of both researchers and the general public. The events hinted at in the Australian fossil sequences appear to be mirrored on other continents through similar time periods, though the exact cause or sequence of extinctions remains largely unresolved. In recent years debate over megafaunal extinctions in Australia has been dominated by reports that humans were the primary drivers, leading some to assert that it is no longer a question of whether humans drove these extinctions, only how. Following the review of Wroe and Field, new reports have been published that claim support for a human-driven extinction (HDE). On closer scrutiny however, the key sites and samples lack firm contextual data and/or clear provenance. These studies fail to prove a key tenet of the HDE – that all, or even most now-extinct species were present at the time of human colonization of the continent. As compared with the easy assertion 5 years ago that this had been established, there are now more faunal species (c. 69% of total known to have become extinct) that cannot be placed within 50–100 ka of human arrival. There are still only two sites that demonstrate a coexistence of humans with some species of megafauna – Nombe Rockshelter in the PNG highlands and Cuddie Springs in the semi-arid southeast of Australia. If there is so little empirical evidence for coexistence or association of megafauna with humans, then support for an HDE through overhunting and ecosystem disruption is seriously compromised. Furthermore, the popularly cited “extinction window”, proposed as c. 51–39 ka when the HDE is argued to occur, is still only a theoretical construct. There is no clear evidence indicating that this period was particularly significant in terms of faunal loss. At present, the great majority of ‘Pleistocene’ sites remain poorly dated and the understanding of faunal turnover through this epoch is almost non-existent. Small datasets, poorly constructed hypotheses and assertive rhetoric are the prominent features of current discussions on a human role in megafaunal extinctions. Importantly, it is yet to be established whether the extinctions are an archaeological problem. The sparse fossil record known from Australia hampers a clear resolution as to how and when the megafauna disappeared, a situation likely to continue into the near future. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Peat, especially from acidic mires (bogs), is a natural archive of past environmental change. Reconstructions of past climate from bogs commenced in the 19th Century through examination of visible peat stratigraphy, and later formed the basis for a postglacial climatic scheme widely used in Northwest Europe. Nevertheless, misconceptions as to how bogs grow led to a 50-year lacuna in peat-climate study, before the concept of ‘cyclic regeneration’ in bogs was refuted. In recent decades, research using proxy-climate indicators from bogs has burgeoned. A range of proxies for past hydrological change has been developed, as well as use of pollen, bog oaks and pines and other data to reconstruct past temperatures. Most of this proxy-climate research has been carried out in Northern Europe, but peat-based research in parts of Asia and North America has increased, particularly during the last decade, while research has also been conducted in Australia, New Zealand and South America. This paper reviews developments in proxy-climate reconstructions from peatlands; chronicles use of a range of palaeo-proxies such as visible peat stratigraphy, plant macrofossils, peat humification, testate amoebae and non-pollen palynomorphs; and explains the use of wiggle-match radiocarbon dating and relationship to climate shifts. It details other techniques being used increasingly, such as biomarkers, stable-isotopes, inorganic geochemistry and estimation of dust flux; and points to new proxies under development. Although explicit protocols have been developed recently for research on ombrotrophic mires, it must be recognised that not all proxies and techniques have universal applicability, owing to differences in species assemblages, mire formation, topographic controls, and geochemical characteristics. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The fifth segment of the Milanggouwan stratigraphical section (MGS 5) in the Mu Us Desert provides high-resolution geological information on environmental variations during the Last Interglacial. The analysis of grain content (<50μm), organic content, SiO2, Al2O3, TOFe, and SiO2–(Al2O3 +TOFe) ratios in the MGS 5 suggest that there were 17 kiloyear-scale climate fluctuations in the Last Interglacial, including 9 warm events (W1–W9) and 8 cold events (C1–C8), dominated by the East Asian summer monsoon and winter monsoon respectively. The analysis also suggests that the Eemian interglacial was unstable, with 3 warm events (W7–W9) and 2 cold events (C7–C8), indicating that climate fluctuations affected the East Asian monsoon in the Mu Us Desert during the Last Interglacial. The change cycles and the nature of the kiloyear-scale climate events have a close temporal relationship with the Greenland ice-core oxygen isotope data, suggesting that the climate forming mechanism was affected by polar weather, North Atlantic sea ice, range of the Eurasian ice front, and movement of the Arctic frontal, all of which affect the intensity of the Siberian–Mongolian high pressure region through the movement of the cold air mass. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A survey of the literature published over the last 50 years on Late Glacial and early Holocene malacofauna in Italy shows that it is possible to obtain information on taxa, their abundance, chorological categories and palaeoenvironments. However, those aspects are only partly known for Northern Italy, including only a few publications to the end of the 1990s. Thanks to greater interdisciplinary collaboration, those of the past ten years are more useful, providing data on palaeoenvironments and other aspects. Of more than forty caves and rockshelters that contain malacofauna, only about a dozen scattered throughout Northern, Central and Southern Italy proved useful for distinguishing natural deposits from artificial shell middens. Whereas the intentional gathering and transport of marine molluscs to places of consumption is perfectly plausible, it remains problematic to understand what can and cannot be considered food waste in the case of land snails. There are only a few sites for which there is evidence of potentially edible land snails in combination with other important archaeological and palaeontological analyses. A better methodology for future research in Italy is imperative. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The loess–paleosol record at Süttő provides an excellent high-resolution archive of climate and environmental changes. Loess deposits with a thickness of 20 m cover the travertine at Süttő, in the northern part of Hungary, next to the right bank of the Danube River. The loess sequence is intercalated with two greyish stratified horizons, three brownish steppe-like soils and a pedocomplex, including a reddish-brown paleosol covered by a chernozem-like paleosol. Detailed infrared stimulated luminescence (IRSL) dating was carried out, revealing more or less continuous sedimentation from Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 6–MIS 2. Sedimentological and paleomagnetic investigations have been performed to provide a high-resolution study of the Süttő loess–paleosol sequence, in order to reconstruct the paleoclimate and environmental changes during the penultimate and last glacial cycles. Grain size and magnetic susceptibility (MS) records of the Süttő profile basically show similar patterns to those of other European loess sections. However, small differences are traced at Süttő, including more intensive deposition of coarser grained materials during MIS 6–4. The loess record at Süttő has a transitional position within the European loess belt, as its sediment was deposited under an intermediate climate between the loess successions from the southern Carpathian Basin, which accumulated under drier climate, and the loess sequences from Western Europe, which developed under wetter climate during the Middle and Late Pleniglacial. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Based on the glacial flood events and climate change in the Yarkant River basin during the past 50 years, the study investigated the long-term change of temperature and precipitation, the characteristics of glacial floods, the origin of sudden flood release, the suggested flood mechanism of glacial lakes and the relationship between glacial floods and climate change. Results showed that there was an obvious increase in the temperature of the basin since 1987. Specifically in the mountainous area, the significantly increasing temperature in the summer and autumn seasons accelerated the melting rate of glaciers and caused glacial-lake burst. Sudden flood release occurred frequently. The frequency of glacial-lake outburst floods was 0.4 times/a during the period 1959–1986 and increased to 0.7 times/a during 1997–2006. Peak discharge also increased. There were seven floods with peak discharge over 4000m3/s from 1959–2006, and three occurred after 1997. The increasing frequency and magnitude of glacial outburst floods mirrored the effect of climate warming on glaciers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Chronostratigraphic control is of substantial importance for palynological studies carried out both on continental and marine sequences. Long pollen records provide an opportunity to examine the response of the vegetation to glacial/interglacial climate changes, and the integration of pollen data with different datasets (biostratigraphic – foraminifers and nanoplankton, δ18O and magnetostratigraphic data) results in a reliable chronostratigraphic control. Unfortunately, long pollen records with multi-datasets are uncommon, and lack of such integration could generate misinterpretations in chronostratigraphic assignment of the sedimentary successions in which only pollen data are available. To specify the chronostratigraphic placement of sedimentary successions controlled by palynological data solely, an alternative approach is proposed in this paper. The procedure is very simple and practical, being based on the combination of Picea and Tsuga pollen data resulting in a new pollen profile to be visually compared to δ18O signals from reference sites. Picea and Tsuga are two of the main conifer forest taxa in Italian sedimentary successions of Pliocene to Early Pleistocene age, and their pollen-types can be unambiguously identified at the microscope. Moreover, Picea and Tsuga are elements of peculiar ecological demands, being very responsive to the variations of temperature (Picea) and precipitation (Tsuga). As temperature and precipitation are also the main climatic parameters which drive the expansion and retreat of ice-caps, by comparing the profile of the stacked Picea+Tsuga pollen curve to δ18O curves from reference sites, a visual resemblance between each other, if present, could be used for chronostratigraphic implications. In order to test and discuss the validity of this approach, the Italian long pollen series of Pliocene–Early Pleistocene age (with Picea and Tsuga concurrently present) are considered in this study. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Fifty-four Italian pollen sites, spanning the last 5.3 Ma, have been the object of an updated synthesis. The chronostratigraphic framework of floral and vegetational events illustrates the development of cooler climates since the Pliocene. Floral and vegetational response to glacial/interglacial cycles, as well as major taxa replacements have been analysed with special attention to latitudinal and altitudinal gradients and to physiographic reorganizations. The pollen flora shows marked changes both at the beginning of the Pleistocene as well as at the time of the Mid-Pleistocene climate transition, when a major decrease in temperature, during both glacial and interglacial phases, occurred. Alternations of Artemisia steppe and thermophilous forest mark the overall glacial–interglacial vegetation changes. However, in northern Italy, the latter are rather expressed by an alternating spread of altitudinal coniferous forest (mainly Picea), without significant expansion of steppe vegetation, and thermophilous forest. More complex vegetational cycles than those pointed out by earlier syntheses are also testified by the detection of an alpine vegetation spreading during glacial phases and a wooded steppe in the earlier phases of interglacials, in some southern marine sections. Such diversified patterns could be associated with obliquity related warm/humid–cold/dry “interglacial”–“glacial” cycles superimposed by precession related warm/dry–cold/humid cycles. However, the role of depositional processes as well as taphonomic biases should not be ignored in the reconstruction of vegetation dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A provisional age model is proposed for HDP-04 sedimentary records from Lake Hövsgöl on the Mongolian Plateau of a middle-latitude zone during the Brunhes epoch. The model is established on the basis of two procedures; first age model (linear age model) with some dates (C-14, 238U–234U–230Th and paleomagnetic events) and a second age model with auto-orbital tuning for the first age model. The age model suggests that the MIS-1 to MIS-7 interval is included in the upper part and the MIS-11 to MIS-19 is included in the lower part, in addition to the missing part of about 100ky. The glacial–interglacial cycle is most clearly presented by aridity (water level change): three Milankovitch parameters (precession, obliquity and eccentricity) are detected in most datasets. Grain size is, occasionally, large in glacial intervals and small in interglacial ones in the upper part (above the hiatus), possibly related to material mobility with water level change (change in erosion area) and wind availability. A deep depression (cold stage comparable to glacial periods), corresponded to an insolation minimum, is detected at about the MIS-5d in records, indicating that this region is highly sensitive to solar insolation. Another depression found during the MIS-11 interval also corresponded to a small insolation minimum, showing that the interval was not a simple prolonged interglacial period. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The present study attempts a correlation between calcareous plankton (foraminifera and nannofossils) and terrestrial (pollen and mammal fauna) bioevents in Italy and Mediterranean Sea, through the last 3.3million years, within a standard chronostratigraphical time scale. The approach was basically interdisciplinary and considered biochronological, biostratigraphical, chronostratigraphical, climatostratigraphical, and tephrochronological data. Despite different timing and mode characterised evolution of marine and continental organisms in relation to their ecology and relationships with environment, the main biota changes seem related with severe climate changes. The short interval of the known global scale Pliocene warmth (∼3.0Ma) has been documented by the last significant expansion of the warm subtropical forest before the progressive disappearance of its main components and possibly by the paracme of some nannofossil species. The first evidence of cooler conditions near 2.8Ma has been mainly indicated by both the progressive decrease of subtropical to warm temperate pollen taxa and by the notable change in the ecological structure of mammalian faunal complexes as well as by the first incursion of left-coiled cold N. pachyderma into the Mediterranean. The first glacial phases related to Northern Hemisphere ice-sheet growth (∼2.5Ma) are indicated by the drastic drop of Discoaster spp. and by the first (cyclical) expansion of steppe or cooler coniferous forests, as well as by the progressive dispersal of mammalian taxa dwelling in open landscapes. The most significant biotical changes have been observed during the Calabrian–Ionian transition; several calcareous plankton appearances and extinctions occurred across marine isotope stages 25–20, together with the expansion of cold steppes (glacials) and the progressive disappearance of the most thermophilous arboreal and non-arboreal taxa. The late Early to Middle Pleistocene terrestrial faunal “revolution” actually was not an “abrupt” phenomenon, which started from about 1.3Ma giving rise to a progressive reconstruction of mammalian faunal complexes, which ended during the early Ionian. The last node of 1.2Ma obliquity cycles, centred at about 0.9Ma, significantly influenced changes in the structure and composition of palaeocommunities. After the Ionian, fluctuations in biota assemblages, without any significant appearance–extinction events, testify that the new oceanographical and climate system is related to dominant periodicity of 100ky in glacial–interglacial cycles. Although the changes observed in fossil assemblages do not always correspond to the standard chronostratigraphical boundaries, the data suggest that the Piacenzian–Gelasian and Calabrian–Ionian transitions are also noticeable by large, even if gradual, biota modifications. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The relationship between climate and glacial equilibrium-line altitude (ELA) during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) has recently received considerable interest. However, in the headwaters of Urumqi River in northwest China, a systematic reconstruction for the paleo-ELAs had not been completed to permit regional and large-scale paleoclimate inferences. Recent improvements in dating and understanding of glacial extents provide the possibility to use glacial reconstruction to infer the paleoclimate. To improve the ability to obtain paleoclimate information, the ELAs during the local LGM (MIS2–3) and modern time (1998–2004) were constructed by using an integrated method. The regional tectonic uplift is considered when calculating the LGM ELAs in order to improve their precision and thus obtain a better estimate of the paleoclimate. The estimated ELA values were input into a robust equation to derive the forcing paleoclimatic conditions. During the local LGM in the study area, the ELA was between 3420 and 3560 m a.s.l., 493–633 m lower than modern ELA. Considering energy and mass balance in the equation to account for the ELA decrease, during the LGM, the temperature decreased by 5.42–6.30 °C and the precipitation was ∼30% compared to the present. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Late Wisconsinan micromammal faunas collected from caves in southeastern North America are characterized by nearly twice the number of species than are present in the region today. It has been proposed that this richness was achieved by paleoenvironments that permitted both the immigration and intermingling of boreal, steppe, and sub-tropical taxa with the present day deciduous forest micromammal community. Contemporaneity of component taxa cannot be assumed without 14C dating because taphonomic processes can produce similar configurations. If ‘non-analog’ specimens are contemporaneous, they represent communities with no modern analogs. If the dates on component species are disjunct, they are an artifact of time averaging and the species have a different paleoecological significance. The question remains: What is a significant interval of time to assert a community versus a time-averaging interpretation for Pleistocene faunal configurations? Analysis of 132 AMS 14C dates from 21 caves in southeastern North America (Fig. 1) on 16 presently allopatric or marginally sympatric (distantly) micromammal taxa demonstrate that these species are contemporaneous in many deposits. While other sites produced non-analog associations because of taphonomic processes, dates on many component specimens are contemporaneous regionally. The regional, as well as local, non-analog associations documented here demonstrate that a widespread, non-analog micromammal community occupied southeastern North America during the last glacial. These species-rich, non-analog communities, which contrast sharply to the species-depauperate Holocene faunas, probably were supported by unique but chronologically and geographically variable last-glacial environments. Although the AMS dates are not evenly distributed chronologically and radiocarbon plateaus occasionally exert influence, late Wisconsinan, non-analog communities of variable composition were present and likely influenced by Heinrich events. Other factors, some not yet identified, undoubtedly contributed to community structures. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Proposed explanations for the terminal Pleistocene large mammal extinction event in North America include climate warming and/or cooling, overhunting by early humans, disease, and bolide detonation or impact. A key assumption common to all these scenarios is that large mammals present in North America near the end of the Pleistocene were also present in similar abundance, with similar geographic distributions, during earlier, equally severe periods of climate change (e.g., ∼130ka BP). This assumption is challenged here. An important difference in the latest Pleistocene was the profusion and geographic extent of the genus Bison, particularly in the American West. During the late Pleistocene, south of the glacial ice, the species Bison antiquus was more widely distributed and present in greater profusion than earlier species such as the larger B. latifrons. The increased abundance of these large, aggressive, herd-dwelling ruminants in the late Pleistocene constitutes a critical difference between this time period and earlier, similarly intense interglacials. Extinction scenarios for Pleistocene North America should avoid assuming a relatively static long-term faunal component, and account for the impacts of non-human immigrant species on natives, particularly when immigration events are close in time and space with climate changes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The greater evolutionary history of Cynomys (prairie dog, Rodentia, Sciuridae) has been established. Earliest members are recorded from the late Blancan Land Mammal age, Late Pliocene. The fossil history for Cynomys is well reconstructed for the Great Plains of the USA and Canada. However, it is insufficiently studied for the arid Southwest and almost entirely unknown for adjacent northern Mexico. This paper reports on the remains of Cynomys recovered from the paleontological site of La Playa, northern Sonora, Mexico. Two species of Cynomys live today in Mexico in disjunct, likely relictual locations, Cynomys ludovicianus and Cynomys mexicanus. The distribution of prairie dogs today does not include the region of La Playa: the closest population lives about 150km north and east in northeastern-most Sonora and adjacent Arizona. The identification criteria presented here indicate that the black-tailed prairie dog, C. ludovicianus, inhabited the valley bottom now exposed as the La Playa fossil deposits. The description of this species from La Playa represents the first report of Rancholabrean prairie dogs from Sonora. Its recovery from the extremely low elevations of northern Sonora indicates that a different climatic regime was in operation during the Late Pleistocene resulting in local vegetation and soil types considerably different from those recorded there today. The late Wisconsinan Glacial climate supported herbivores that cannot inhabit the area today. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The large mammal and micromammal assemblages from Paleolithic cave sites in northwestern Croatia (Veternica, Velika pećina, and Vindija) suggest the presence of relatively temperate environments without dramatic oscillations in faunal composition during MIS 3, and possibly also including MIS 2 and 4. Species such as woolly rhinoceros, arctic fox, varying hare, and saiga antelope were not present, and the micromammal assemblages show that all taxa are indicators of a temperate, continental climate characterized by somewhat less forested conditions than those present today. Nonetheless, the region does not appear to have served as a refuge for mammals whose distribution today is north of Croatia. The region appears to have had a fairly diverse and productive mammal fauna, which in turn could have supported significant hominin populations. Faunal composition did not dramatically change across the Middle–Upper Paleolithic transition (ca. 40 000–30 000BP). The apparent stability in mammalian faunas could be owing to several factors: A) a depositional/preservational bias for warmer phases, B) dampered climatic oscillations in the region, C) faunal communities buffered from climatic oscillations owing to microclimate, topography, etc. Resolution of these factors requires further research. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]