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In this essay, we propose to study three recent Australian landscape memoirs – Tim Winton’s Island Home (2015), Mark Tredinnick’s The Blue Plateau (2009) and Germaine Greer’s White Beech (2013) – all of which demonstrate the capacity of landscapes to act as perceptual conduits for the fundamental tension between world and self. Our main contention is that landscape memoir acts as a pre-eminent vehicle for this tension, which is captured across different times and spaces and among multiple, intricately co-constituted life-worlds. Landscape memoir, in this and other ways, functions as both a multi-sensory phenomenological instrument for the recording of physical and emotional engagement with landscape and a distinct, episodically organised mode of life writing that seeks to understand the fractured nature of individual selfhood in the context of a more-than-human world. The essay also looks at the capacity of memoirs of this kind to operate as vehicles for conservationist thinking and action. In each of our three main cases, landscape mediates between an insecure self and a world or worlds that are portrayed as being threatened, although this is not enough in itself to establish a basis for the three works as ‘conservationist’ texts. However, all three can be seen as individual enquiries into different kinds of conservation that use the techniques and characteristics of landscape memoir to reflect on the material possibilities of personal and collective recovery (Winton) and ecological restoration (Greer); or, over and against these, to mark the elegiac registration of irretrievable loss (Tredinnick).

The Younger Dryas interval (YD) was a period of widespread, abrupt climate change that occurred between 12,900 and 11,700 cal yr BP (10,900–10,000 14 C BP). Many sites in the Northern Hemisphere preserve a sedimentary record across the onset of the YD interval, including sites investigated in sedimentary basins located in central Mexico (Chapala, Cuitzeo, Acambay), the Basin of Mexico (Tocuila), and northern Mexico (El Cedral). Deposits consist of lacustrine or marginal lake sediments that were deposited during the Pleistocene and the Holocene. At the Tocuila and Acambay sites, Pleistocene fossil vertebrate assemblages, mainly mammoths (Mammuthus columbi), are found in association with a distinctive organic layer, sometimes called the black mat that formed during the YD. At the Chapala, Cuitzeo, Acambay, and Tocuila sites the black mats contain a suite of distinctive microscopic and mineralogical signatures and are accompanied by a sharp change in the depositional environments as supported by diatom and pollen studies reported here. The signatures include magnetic, Fe-rich microspherules, silica melted droplets with aerodynamic shapes (tektites), large amounts of charcoal, and sometimes nanodiamonds (Cuitzeo), all of which were deposited at the onset of the YD. The geochemistry of the microspherules indicates that they are not anthropogenic, authigenic or of cosmic or volcanic origin, and instead, were produced by melting and quenching of terrestrial sediments. Here, we present the stratigraphy at five field sites, the analyses of magnetic microspherules, including major element composition and scanning electron microscopy images. All of these materials are associated with charcoal and soot, which are distinctive stratigraphic markers for the YD layer at several sites in Mexico. © 2017 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Adventure tourism numbers are estimated for Alaska and the impacts on wildlife are considered in detail. This wildlife includes: black and brown bears, bear-viewing tourism and its management approaches; the impacts on Dall sheep; the effects of winter recreation on ungulates, including mountain caribou; the recreational impacts on bird populations, including bald eagles, black oystercatchers and marbled murrelets; and whale-watching and harbour seal impacts. The effects of recreation caused by camping, hiking trampling pressure on tundra, the invasive plant spread along trails and the development of informal trails in Arctic wildlife refuges are considered. The impacts of off-road vehicles on tundra, helicopter-supported recreation impacts and the effects of waste produced by climbers on Mount McKinley are evaluated. Finally, the effects of recreational fishing and some impacts on native human populations are discussed.

This chapter considers a definition of adventure tourism that includes physical activity, the natural environment and cultural immersion. Both hard and soft adventure can be important. The trends and numbers involved in this tourism area are discussed, including the growth in demand. Other types of often related niche tourism types are considered and defined, such as ecotourism, wildlife tourism, sustainable and responsible tourism.

The Arctic region is defined, and the growth of tourist numbers and cruise tourists documented for Svalbard. The environmental impacts caused by trampling pressure on the fragile Svalbard tundra vegetation are outlined and the potential for the introduction of non-native plants is discussed. The environmental impacts on reindeer, walrus and various bird species are outlined, as are the snowmobile impacts on several species. The impact on historical sites and cultural remains is studied, and examples of the management of specific sites are given. The broader management approaches to the management of outdoor recreation in Svalbard is discussed. In Iceland the tremendous tourist growth since 2000 is discussed and the types of adventure tourism are documented, along with their environmental impacts, such as horse-based tourism; hiking and off-road vehicles. There is a detailed discussion of the introduction of non-native plants. The impacts of glacier and volcanic tourism, diving and snorkelling, whale and seal-watching are documented. The overall management of outdoor recreation impacts is discussed and suggestions are made.

An outline of the characteristics of Antarctic tourism is given, including the growth in the number of tourists. The types of tourism are defined and described as (a) cruise ship tourism, with industry self-regulation, (b) adventure tourism, (c) land-based commercial tourism, (d) last chance tourism, (e) wildlife tourism, (f) unique environment tourism and (g) luxury tourism. The environmental impacts of Antarctic tourism are described in general, and specifically their effect on penguins; whale behavioural modification (noise and collisions); seals; invasion of non-indigenous organisms; and ship accidents and visitor impacts on historic and archaeological sites. There is discussion of how Antarctic tourism is managed: the role of the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO), governance and regulations, the Antarctic Treaty System, the Madrid Protocol, the Polar Code, difficulties in reaching agreement in a consensus-based system, lack of a gatekeeper mechanism and visitor rights.

The types of adventure tourism in the Himalayas are discussed and the numbers taking part estimated. The development of mountaineering and trekking is outlined and examples of the growth of river activities discussed. Religious and cultural tourism is the most important category, but it is debatable if this is adventure tourism. The impact of the 2015 earthquakes on Nepalese tourism is discussed and the environmental impacts related to adventure tourism are detailed, such as trail erosion, the introduction of non-native plants, rubbish disposal issues, the disposal of human waste, deteriorating water quality, the impacts of recreational fishing and ski developments. Ways of counteracting impacts are outlined and attempts to manage tourism are discussed, such as the banning of tourism, the development of Eco Development Committees and the Mountain Shepherds Initiative in Nanda Devi Reserve, the Khanchendzonga Conservation Committee, Bhutan’s tourism policy, the Annapurna Conservation Project and the development of codes of conduct, ethical codes and minimum-impact codes.

The Canadian Arctic is defined and described and the numbers of tourists for the various regions estimated. The impact of adventure tourism on wildlife is documented, such as polar bear hunting and polar bear viewing, and the management approaches to conserve this iconic species are outlined; the possible spread of Giardia by tourists is discussed; and the impact of tourism on marine mammals and their management is described for beluga, narwhal and seals. There are impacts on birds too and on terrestrial vegetation in the tundra. Examples of aboriginal tourism are documented, including the development of the world-class Carcross mountain bike trails. Pleasure craft and cruise tourism have impacts, and the management approaches to minimise these are discussed. Finally the maintenance of the rich and diverse archaeological and historical sites in the face of tourist impacts is discussed.

The areas of interest for adventure tourism are outlined and the number of tourists estimated. Tourism to Franz Josef Archipelago and Novaya Zemyla is described, and the problems related to such tourism development are outlined. These problems include bureaucracy and entry permits, remoteness and logistics, expense, lack of qualified personnel and of research and the lack of shipping infrastructure.

By studying many different proxy data sources from places around the world, scientists have found evidence of global-scale climate change, from ice ages or glacial periods, when huge ice sheets covered most of Earth, to such as the present, when ice is largely confined to the polar and high mountain regions. According to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (2014), warming of the climate system is unequivocal. This is now evident from observations of increases in global average air and ocean temperatures that anthropogenically produced greenhouse gases (mainly carbon dioxide, CO2) are contributing to the present warming of about 1.1 °C that has taken place since the late nineteenth century. Rising sea level is consistent with warming. Global average sea level has risen since 1961 at an average rate of 1.8 (1.3–2.3) mm per year, and since 1993 at 3.1 (2.4–3.8) mm per year, with thermal expansion, melting glaciers and ice caps, and the polar ice sheets contributing. Further warming will continue if emissions of greenhouse gases continue. The global surface temperature increase by the end of the twenty-first century is likely to exceed 1.5 °C relative to the 1850–1900 period for most scenarios and is likely to exceed 2.0 °C for many scenarios. The global water cycle will change, with increases in disparity between wet and dry regions, as well as wet and dry seasons, with some regional exceptions. The oceans will continue to warm, with heat extending to the deep ocean, affecting circulation patterns. Decreases are very likely in Arctic sea ice cover, northern hemisphere spring snow cover and global glacier volume. Global mean sea level will continue to rise at a rate very likely to exceed the rate of the past four decades. Changes in climate will cause an increase in the rate of CO2 production. Increased uptake by the oceans will increase the acidification of the oceans. Future surface temperatures will be largely determined by cumulative CO2, which means climate change will continue even if CO2 emissions are stopped.

In this chapter, recreation diving is defined, and the numbers involved and impacts discussed. However, it is difficult to quantify the impact of any one of many stressors on coral reefs independently of the others. There is often a lack of scientific understanding of the interrelationships which limits the success of efforts to effectively create policy and regulations preventing reef decline. The impacts include direct trampling by reef walking, from the effects of pontoons (installation, anchor damage, fish feeding), direct impacts from diver behaviour including sediments raised, the effects on the corals (including effects of sunscreens), impacts on fish communities and kelp forests. The ways of managing activities to reduce the impacts are discussed, including reducing use levels, modifying diver behaviour, establishing underwater diving and sculpture trails, artificial reefs, fee charging changes, and diver involvement in conservation projects.

Gorge walking, canyoneering, and canyoning use similar techniques and are undertaken by a relatively small number of participants. The impacts and management approaches from three case studies are illustrated. In the UK there is preserved a rare, specialised but diverse flora where the ecology can suffer types of impact and floral loss. Controlling impacts are suggested, like sacrificial gorges, gorge rotation, Adopt-a-Gorge schemes, and educational methods.

In this chapter, the types of climbing are defined and numbers involved are estimated. The effects of traditional summer climbing on cliff vegetation and other biota, like gastropods, are evaluated. This includes “gardening,” footpath erosion up to the crags, at the tops, and a decrease in rare and endangered species and tree damage from abseiling and belaying. The effects of cliff micro-topography and climbers’ preferences are discussed with regard to the vegetation distribution and the fact that not all effects are negative. The impacts on bird populations are evaluated, and the damage to the rock by ropes, chalk, protection, and the creation of rock polish is discussed. Other environmental effects from bouldering, winter, and mixed climbing are evaluated. The management to counteract these impacts such as management plans, memorandums of understanding, liaison groups, closures, seasonal restrictions, star systems in guides, permits, and outreach and education, including codes of conduct, are discussed and evaluated.

One of the opening statements by the New Forest Review Group (1988) that orienteering “by its very nature causes very considerable disturbance to wildlife and damage to flora over wide areas” has been shown to be unsupported. There is trampling of vegetation, but little evidence of disturbance of mammals and birds. It has also been shown that the reason for this is that orienteering, by its very nature, and by procedures of good practice, is a sport of low ecological impact. There also seem to be many wide-ranging educational benefits of orienteering, letterboxing, and geocaching and particularly the development of environmental stewardship, where the benefits outweigh the minor environmental impact. However, the growth in popularity of these activities needs careful monitoring and further research carried out.

The central sector of the last British–Irish Ice Sheet (BIIS) was characterised by considerable complexity, both in terms of its glacial stratigraphy and geomorphological signature. This complexity is reflected by the large number and long history of papers that have attempted to decipher the glaciodynamic history of the region. Despite significant advances in our understanding, reconstructions remain hotly debated and relatively local, thereby hindering attempts to piece together BIIS dynamics. This paper seeks to address these issues by reviewing geomorphological mapping evidence of palimpsest flow signatures and providing an up-to-date stratigraphy of the region. Reconciling geomorphological and sedimentological evidence with relative and absolute dating constraints has allowed us to develop a new six-stage glacial model of ice-flow history and behaviour in the central sector of the last BIIS, with three major phases of glacial advance. This includes: I. Eastwards ice flow through prominent topographic corridors of the north Pennines; II. Cessation of the Stainmore ice flow pathway and northwards migration of the North Irish Sea Basin ice divide; III. Stagnation and retreat of the Tyne Gap Ice Stream; IV. Blackhall Wood–Gosforth Oscillation; V. Deglaciation of the Solway Lowlands; and VI. Scottish Re-advance and subsequent final retreat of ice out of the central sector of the last BIIS. The ice sheet was characterised by considerable dynamism, with flow switches, initiation (and termination) of ice streams, draw-down of ice into marine ice streams, repeated ice-marginal fluctuations and the production of large volumes of meltwater, locally impounded to form ice-dammed glacial lakes. Significantly, we tie this reconstruction to work carried out and models developed for the entire ice sheet. This therefore situates research in the central sector within contemporary understanding of how the last BIIS evolved over time.

Holocene footprints have been reported from several locations around the UK coast preserved within inter-tidal sediments. These sediments are normally fine-grained silts, sands and clays. Here we report potential human footprints preserved in the lower of two inter-tidal peat units exposed on the foreshore at Kenfig in South Wales. The lower peat layer pre-dates 3810 ± 40 BP and its maximum age is constrained by two dates, one of 4930 ± 50 BP and another of 5110 ± 50 BP. The prints may have formed at any point within this time interval. Both peat units formed in a salt marsh, or fen environment, as indicated by the analysis of both diatoms and pollen and have been tentatively assigned to the middle Wentlooge Formation within the Holocene lithostratigraphy established for the Severn Estuary Holocene sequence. The footprints were digitised using an optical laser scanner and are compared to other Holocene human footprints exposed on the Sefton Coast in North West England. In comparison the Kenfig prints have poor anatomical form which may be the result of both the substrate and post-depositional modification. The paper demonstrates the value of using optical laser scanning in the data capture and analysis of transitory archaeological and geological trace evidence.

This paper documents the glaciovolcanic landsystem of the Brekknafjoll–Jarlhettur ridge in Central Iceland. Glaciolacustrine diamict is found beneath, and in association with, a complex assemblage of pillow lava, lava breccias and hyaloclastites. Three depositional environments are identified: glaciolacustrine fan, pillow lava dome, and hyaloclastite fan. These subaqueous environments occurred both simultaneously and at different times along the volcanic fissures which underlie the ridge and have given rise to a complex facies architecture. This facies architecture provides evidence that the ridge evolved in a time transgressive fashion during several episodes of volcanism, some of which may have been punctuated by periods of ice erosion. Associated with the ridge are large-diapiric folds in diamict and gravel which form by the loading and lateral displacement of saturated diamict beneath the developing volcanic pile. A depositional model is presented which emphasises the glaciolacustrine component and the time transgressive nature of the glaciovolcanic landsystem. Much of the eruption occurred in subglacial to englacial lakes or vaults, which were probably linked by water and sediment exchange. The initial subglacial vaults appear to have extended beyond the fissure limits and were infilled by glaciolacustrine diamicts, subaqueous outwash and the eruption of pillow lava. This was followed by the eruption of hyaloclastite sand and breccia forming an elongated fan.

Hominin footprints offer evidence about gait and foot shape, but their scarcity, combined with an inadequate hominin fossil record, hampers research on the evolution of the human gait. Here, we report hominin footprints in two sedimentary layers dated at 1.51 to 1.53 million years ago (Ma) at Ileret, Kenya, providing the oldest evidence of an essentially modern human–like foot anatomy, with a relatively adducted hallux, medial longitudinal arch, and medial weight transfer before push-off. The size of the Ileret footprints is consistent with stature and body mass estimates for Homo ergaster/erectus , and these prints are also morphologically distinct from the 3.75-million-year-old footprints at Laetoli, Tanzania. The Ileret prints show that by 1.5 Ma, hominins had evolved an essentially modern human foot function and style of bipedal locomotion.

Human and animal footprints found in the Valsequillo Basin were formed on the upper bedding planes surfaces of a volcanic ash (Xalnene Ash) deposited by a subaqueous volcano along the shores of a Pleistocene lake. The footprints were made on lake shorelines and the exposed lake floor during low stands associated, either with water displacement during the volcanic eruption, or due to climatically-driven fluctuations in the water balance. The Xalnene Ash has been dated to at least 40 K BP and consequently the human footprints provide evidence for much earlier colonization of the Americas than is often accepted. The methodology used to record, analyze and conserve these footprints used three-dimensional laser scanning, with sub-millimeter precision. This data were used to reproduce polymer models of individual footprints using the application of rapid-prototyping technology. This technology has wide significance for the study of ichnofacies in general. The characteristics of the human footprints and some pro...

This paper describes the internal architecture of a push moraine formed by a winter-spring surge of Hagafellsjokull-Eystri (Iceland) in 1998/99. The sedimentary architecture of this push moraine consists of a multilayered slab of glaciofluvial sediments with a monoclinal structure that has been displaced laterally by the advancing ice margin. The crest and ice-distal face of the moraine consist of subhorizontal sediment sheets, while the ice-proximal face dips steeply (45° to 90°) towards the ice margin. The core of the moraine consists of frozen sediment and thin slabs of glacier ice are embedded in its proximal face. The sediment slabs are characterized by both brittle and ductile styles of deformation. We argue that the observed variation in deformation style is dependent on whether the glacial foreland was frozen or unfrozen at the time of displacement. Frozen foreland would behave in a brittle fashion, while unfrozen foreland is likely to have deformed in a more ductile manner. The associated spatial variations in the degree of foreland freezing could be explained by variation in ice-marginal snow cover. We conclude that the thermal regime of the foreland, and the timing of the ice advance, is of importance to the style of internal deformation found within ice-marginal push moraines.

Although eskers are frequently described glaciofluvial landforms, they are poorly understood. To assist with the interpretation of Pleistocene examples, modern analogue data are required. This paper documents the morphology, sedimentology and formation of a 650 m long esker system in front of the high-arctic glacier Vegbreen in Svalbard. The esker is located between the Neoglacial maximum and the present ice front and appears to have formed both as a supraglacial trough-fill and as a channel/conduit-fill along the suture formed by two confluent glacier lobes. A range of sedimentary facies is preserved within this ridge system providing evidence for braided rivers, ephemeral lakes, episodic flow regimes and sediment gravity flows. This case study provides an important analogue for glaciofluvial sedimentation between retreating ice lobes.

The tidewater glacier complex of Kongsvegen/Kronebreen, at the head of Kongsfjorden in north-west Spitsbergen, has advanced rapidly several times since its Neoglacial maximum. Two such advances, 1869 and 1948, are well constrained in time and space and are widely interpreted as glacier surges. During the 1869 advance an ice-dammed lake formed on the western side of Ossian Sarsfjellet. This ice-dammed lake is associated with a thrust moraine complex. Four lake levels are identified, two of which are associated with rock-cut shorelines implying a degree of lake stability. The history of this lake, the nature of the ice dam and its relationship to the thrust moraine complex are discussed. The lake history spanning 28 to 35 years is used to assess the ice-marginal dynamics of the Kongsvegen/Kronebreen glacier. It is concluded that, contrary to previous suggestions, the rapid advance of this tidewater glacier may simply be an example of a non-climatic ice-marginal fluctuation, of the type common to tidewater glacier, as opposed to a glacier surge. A second ice-dammed lake, to the east of Ossian Sarsfjellet, formed sometime after 1869 as the ice retreated, and still exists today. This largely supraglacial lake is associated with a very different geomorphological assemblage, which has a poor long-term preservation potential. The geomorphological characteristics of the two lakes on Ossian Sarsfjellet are compared and used to discuss the problems associated with the recognition of ice-dammed lakes within the Pleistocene record. On the basis of the evidence presented here, ice-dammed lakes may be more common during deglaciation than currently suggested.

Areas of apparently chaotically organised moraine mounds and ridges are commonly associated with British Younger Dryas glaciers, and are also found at many contemporary glacier margins (Boulton & Eyles 1979; Benn 1992; Bennett & Boulton 1993b; Hambrey et al. 1997). Particularly in the British context, such landforms have commonly been referred to as ‘hummocky’ moraine. Whilst this term is undoubtedly an apt description of their morphology, genetic connotations have become attached to it, with some authors using it exclusively to refer to sediment-landform associations associated with wasting ice (e.g. Benn & Evans 1998: p. 483). Work undertaken over the last two decades has demonstrated that British Younger Dryas ‘hummocky’ moraine only rarely formed in association with stagnant ice, and it is now clear that they are polygenetic in origin (e.g. Benn 1992; Bennett & Boulton 1993b). For this reason the non-genetic, and similarly descriptive, ‘moraine-mound complex’ has been proposed for features of undetermined origin (Bennett et al. 1996b), and this term is adopted here.

The occurrence of glaciolacustrine diamict fans on the south side of volcanic tuyas in the Laugarvatn area (Iceland) is reported. These fans are composed of sheets of diamict, gravel and sand, and contain little or no primary volcanic material. They post-date the volcanic pile within the tuyas and appear to have been deposited in subglacial water-filled cavities, confined to the down-ice side of the tuyas. It is suggested that these subglacial water bodies formed as result of an enhanced geothermal heat flux associated with the tuyas. The volume of glacial sediment within the fans implies that either basal sediment loads were high in this sector of the former ice sheet or that ice flow converged towards the tuyas during their formation concentrating basal sediment into the lee-side cavity and fan. The glaciolacustrine diamict fans add to our knowledge of the landforms and sediments associated with tuyas and may also provide evidence of ice flow convergence at thermal anomalies.

The timing, route and origin of the first colonization to the Americas remains one of the most contentious topics in human evolution. A number of migration routes have been suggested and there are different views as to the antiquity of the earliest human occupation. Some believe that settlement happened as early as 30 ka BP, but most of the currently accepted early sites in North America date to the latest Pleistocene, related to the expansion of the Clovis culture, while the oldest directly radiocarbon dated human remains are 11.5 ka BP. In this context new evidence is presented in this paper, in the form of human footprints preserved in indurated volcanic ash, to suggest that Central Mexico was inhabited as early as over 40 ka BP. Human and animal footprints have been found within the upper bedding surfaces of the Xalnene volcanic ash layer that outcrops in the Valsequillo Basin, south of Puebla, Mexico. This ash layer was produced by a subaqueous monogenetic volcano erupting within a palaeo-lake, dammed by lava within the Valsequillo Basin during the Pleistocene. The footprints were formed during low stands in lake level along the former shorelines and indicate the presence of humans, deer, canids, big felids, and probably camels and bovids. The footprints were buried by ash and lake sediments as lake levels rose and transgressed across the site. The ash has been dated to at least 40 ka BP by OSL dating of incorporated, baked lake sediments.

Microfossil analysis (e.g. diatoms, foraminifera and pollen) represents the cornerstone of Holocene relative sea-level (RSL) reconstruction because their distribution in the contemporary inter-tidal zone is principally controlled by ground elevation within the tidal frame. A combination of poor microfossil preservation and a limited range in the sediment record may severely restrict the accuracy of resulting RSL reconstructions. Organic δ13C and C/N analysis of inter-tidal sediments have shown some potential as coastal palaeoenvironmental proxies. Here we assess their viability for reconstructing RSL change by examining patterns of organic δ13C and C/N values in a modern estuarine environment. δ13C and C/N analysis of bulk organic inter-tidal sediments and vegetation, as well as suspended and bedload organic sediments of the Mersey Estuary, U.K., demonstrate that the two main sources of organic carbon to surface saltmarsh sediments (terrestrial vegetation and tidal-derived particulate organic matter) have distinctive δ13C and C/N signatures. The resulting relationship between ground elevation within the tidal frame and surface sediment δ13C and C/N is unaffected by decompositional changes. The potential of this technique for RSL reconstruction is demonstrated by the analysis of part of an early Holocene sediment core from the Mersey Estuary. Organic δ13C and C/N analysis is less time consuming than microfossil analysis and is likely to provide continuous records of RSL change.

This paper describes aspects of the landform-sediment assemblage produced by a recent surge of Hagafellsjokull-Eystri. This surge occurred during the winter and early spring of 1998/1999 and consequently advanced into a partially frozen foreland. Two aspects of this landform-sediment assemblage are considered. First the evidence for a frozen subglacial sediment layer beneath a lateral piedmont lobe formed during the surge is reviewed. This sediment layer consists of blocks of glacier ice set within a matrix of frozen sediment and was injected into basal crevasses to form a network of crevasse-squeeze ridges prior to freezing. The sediment layer appears to provide evidence of subfreezing deformation at the termination of the surge. Secondly the paper examines the detailed tectonic facies within a push-moraine formed along the eastern latero-frontal margin of the glacier during the surge. Architecturally this push moraine consists of a multi-layered slab of glaciofluvial sediments with a monocline structure that has been displaced laterally by the advancing ice margin. The sediment slabs within this monocline are characterized by both brittle and ductile styles of deformation. The authors argue that the observed variation in deformation style may be explained by spatial variation in the extent to which the glacial foreland was frozen or unfrozen at the time of displacement. Areas of frozen foreland would have behaved in a brittle fashion, while unfrozen areas deformed in a more ductile manor. Both these aspects of the landform-sediment assemblage examined in this paper appear to be the product of the seasonal timing of the surge. Not only do they add to our understanding of surge-type landsystems, but they also illustrate the potential of winter advances around the margins of some temperate glaciers to explore the coupling between glaciers and frozen proglacial sediments.

Remapping of the Quaternary geology of the Isle of Man, and consequent revision of the stratigraphic succession, identifies three glacigenic formations each separated by a major unconformity. The oldest formation, the Shellag, represents an extensive ice advance beyond the island limits to the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). The overlying formation, the Orrisdale, represents a major readvance episode during retreat from the LGM and is associated with the construction of the Bride Moraine and the deposition of extensive proglacial subaqeous sediment. Examination of the sedimentology and micropalaeontology of these sediments indicates that the water body was most likely lacustrine and not marine. Application of sequence stratigraphy to the overlying Jurby Formation identifies evidence for three further phases of readvance, each off-lapping one another into the margin of the lake basin via a complex system of ice-contact subaqueous fans and outwash fan-deltas. The Jurby Formation is dated by organic sediments overlying it as older than 18.5–14.4 kyr BP and provides an ice-marginal correlative for Heinrich event 1 readvance limits identified 50 km to the west in eastern Ireland.

We report evidence of deformation at sub-freezing temperatures beneath Hagafellsjokull-Eystri, an Icelandic surge-type glacier. The bed of a piedmont lobe that advanced during the 1999 surge comprises deformed blocks of glacier ice set within frozen sediment. This material has also been injected through overlying ice to form a network of crevasse-squeeze ridges. This layer contains evidence for two phases of deformation under contrasting rheological conditions: (1) deformation under relatively warm conditions, when the blocks of glacier ice acted as competent clasts within an unfrozen deforming matrix and (2) subsequent deformation at sub-freezing temperatures when the ice blocks were attenuated into the surrounding frozen matrix along fractures and planar shears enriched with excess ice. This suggests that the basal thermal regime of the advancing ice margin changed from warm-based to cold-based during the surge event. The persistence and potential prevalence of subglacial sediment deformation at sub-freezing temperatures has fundamental implications for our understanding of the dynamic behaviour, sediment flux and geomorphic ability of cold-based glaciers.

Applying the principles of structural geology and sedimentology to glacial depositional features indicates that the High-Arctic provides the best analogues for late glacial landforms in the British uplands.

This paper provides the first comprehensive description and interpretation of Pleistocene glacigenic deposits exposed in a cliff section at Thurstaston on the Wirral Peninsula, NW England. The section occupies a strategic position where the Irish Sea ice sheet impinged on the English Midlands and North Wales coast. The section comprises six lithofacies: diamicton, gravel, sand, laminites, mud and cobble pavements. The diamicton lithofacies can be divided into an upper, clast-poor sandy diamicton and multiple units of a lower, clast-rich sandy diamicton. Both diamictons exhibit cobble pavements. The two diamicton lithofacies are distinguished on the basis of textural composition, clast lithology, clast shape, clast surface features and clast macrofabrics. Between the diamicton lithofacies are interbeds of sands and gravels of variable thickness. Minor mud and laminites also occur in close association with the sands and gravels. Both the diamictons are interpreted as basal, deformation tills with the interbeds of the sand, gravel and mud lithofacies as indicators of subglacial meltwater flow and ponding. The cobble pavements are interpreted as the result of clasts sinking within, or to the base of, the deforming layer. The sedimentary succession at Thurstaston is best explained by the advance and subsequent recession of a single terrestrially based ice sheet during the Late Devensian. There is no evidence at Thurstaston to suggest a glaciomarine origin for the Late Devensian deglaciation sediments on this margin of the Irish Sea basin. The evidence at Thurstaston points to constructional deformation with the net accretion of till and interbeds caused by the upward migration of the deforming layer base.

In ice-cored landform assemblages, the process of resedimentation via sediment-flow is important in determining the morphology and sedimentary facies distribution after the ice core has melted. This paper documents the sediment-flow processes associated with the resedimentation of an ice-cored lateral moraine at Kongsvegen, Svalbard. Decay of the ice-cored lateral moraine is dominated by the development of a sediment-flow fan, which has an ‘hour-glass’ form in plan. The fan comprises a broad source area on the crest of the lateral moraine separated from the fan surface, composed of tessellated flow lobes, by a narrow ice-floored channel system. The principle sedimentary facies associated with this fan include matrix-supported diamictons, laminated silts and fine sands. The evolution of this fan and the likely end-products after complete deglaciation are discussed, and this paper contributes modern analogue data relevant to the interpretation of the Pleistocene landform and sediment record.

Landform–sediment assemblages associated with two ice-dammed lakes, one active and one fossil, at Heinabergsjokull in southeast Iceland are described. The current ice-dammed lake (Vatnsdalur) is dominated by a large aggradational terrace, as well as an excellent suite of shorelines. The second fossil ice-dammed lake dates from the Neoglacial maximum of Heinabergsjokull (c. 1887) and drained during the late 1920s. This lake is associated with a suite of shorelines and ice-marginal glaciolacustrine fans. The sedimentology of one of these fans is described. Between 50 and 70% of the sediment succession is dominated by ice-rafted sediment, although rhythmites, matrix-rich gravels, sands and graded sand–silt couplets are also present. A range of intra-formational, soft-sediment deformation structures are present, consistent with liquefaction and deformation associated with loading, current shear, and iceberg calving. The landform–sediment assemblages described from Heinabergsjokull provide important data for the interpretation of Pleistocene ice-dammed lakes.

This paper describes the landform and sediment assemblage produced by a surge (in 1948) of the Kongsvegen/Kronebreen tidewater glacier complex in northwest Spitsbergen. The main geomorphological products of this advance are two large thrustmoraine complexes on opposite sides of the fjord, and a system of geometrical ridges revealed on glacier decay. The thrust-moraines are composed largely of diamicton, sandy and muddy gravel, gravelly sand, sand and mud, with minor laminites. All of these appear to be derived from the fjord floor and represent both fine fjord basin sediments and coarse grounding-line fan deposits. Thrusting was the principal mode of emplacement of the sediment onto the adjacent land areas during the 1948 advance. However, the geomorphology of the thrust-moraine complexes on either side of the fjord is quite different, reflecting a transpressive regime on the southwest side (mainly long ridges) and a normal compressive regime on the northeast side (short ridges and pinnacles of a ‘hummocky’ nature). The advance which produced the moraine complex has previously been attributed to a surge of Kongsvegen, but the glaciological and geomorphological evidence suggests that the advance involved both Kongsvegen and Kronebreen. Comparison of the landform assemblage produced by this event with that produced by other tidewater glacier surges demonstrates the diverse range of landform assemblages associated with glacier surges, or other episodes of rapid flow, within glaciomarine environments.

Marthabreen is a 7 8km long valley glacier in SW Spitsbergen. The glacier is partially covered by a layer of angular debris derived from rockfall in its accumulation area, pierced in places by pinnacles and ridges of glaciofluvial sediment. These concentrations of glaciofluvial sediment fall into three categories: (1) debris pinnacles; (2) longitudinal sediment dykes; (3) longitudinal ridge accumulations. Debris pinnacles are slabs of sediment (predominantly sands, gravels and cobbles) elevated to the glacier surface along thrusts. Longitudinal sediment dykes are low ( 1m high) ridges of sorted sand and gravels which are not associated with penetrative ice structures. Their occurrence downglacier of sediment dykes and debris pinnacles suggests that they originate as supraglacial or englacial channels or tunnels filled by sediment derived from the dykes or thrusts. The presence of large quantities of glaciofluvial sediment on the surface of Marthabreen does not imply englacial water flow at high levels within the glacier, but is related to ice deformational processes such as thrusting and folding of debris-rich stratification. Copyright # 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Three moraine complexes containing large rafts of fractured-bedrock formed by small cirque glaciers occur in Reindalen, Svalbard. Glaciotectonic landforms cored by rock rafts have been described from mid-latitude ice sheets of Pleistocene age in the past, but we believe this to be the first time large-scale bedrock rafts have been reported from moraines formed by small cirque glaciers. These moraine complexes consist of an imbricate stack of thrust slabs composed of fractured-bedrock and diamicton. Although the exact mechanism are unclear, we suggest that these moraines form by the displacement of subhorizontal strata within the cirque floor to form an initial stack of rock-cored thrust slabs, which subsequently confine the cirque glacier. Subsequent glacier advances, against this "barrier," establishes a strong compressive regime within the glacier snout, which leads to erosion and moraine development. Estimates of the thickness of the rock rafts are used to derive erosion rates, which are an order of magnitude greater than those previously reported for arctic regions.

Well-rounded gravels are described from moraine-mound complexes, diamicton forefields and modern englacial thrusts at the margins of four glaciers on the northern side of Broggerhalvoya, northwest Spitsbergen. Their shape charcteristics are compared with modern and fossil glacigenic, modern beach and Early Weichselian beach gravels from this peninsula. The best discriminators of the well-rounded gravels have been found to be the percentage-frequency roundness histograms, the roundness mid-point and roundness range diagrams and the sphericity-roundness plots. It is concluded that the gravels have been derived by englacial thrusting from Early Weichselian or last interglacial beaches in the inner parts of the fjord and in the low level cirques when sea level reached at least 50m a.s.l. and deposited the beach gravels. The discrimination between gravel in basal diamictons, proglacial outwash and modern beaches is difficult as the reworking has resulted in little particle shape change. The potential major problem caused by reworking in the glacial environment is emphasised, especially when clast shape comparisons from modern environments to older sediments are used.

Although there is an established relationship between geological structure and the morphology of certain glacial erosional landforms, the role of lithology is less clear. This is particularly true of the surface wear characteristics of glaciated bedrock. In order to examine this relationship, the surface wear characteristics of eight recently deglaciated metamorphic bedrock slabs in the Kongsfjorden area of Svalbard were mapped and recorded using detailed “micro‐maps.” Features recorded included lee‐side fracture surfaces, lee‐side cavities, and the location and depth of open joints and quartz veins. On schist, glacial erosion is favored by situations where ice movement is parallel to the trend of the bedrock foliation. In these situations, cavities may be elongated in the direction of ice flow. On more homogeneous lithologies such as marble, cavity formation is suppressed and more uniform glacially abraded rock surfaces develop. On all the metamorphic rocks examined, glacial abrasion is favored in situat...

Mapping of the structural glaciology of Kongsvegen, Svalbard, reveals evidence for four main deformational structures. These are stratification, longitudinal foliation, thrusts and crevasse traces. These structures are considered in terms of their contribution to debris entrainment, transport and subsequent landform development. Stratification is associated with small amounts of supraglacial debris that has been folded with flow-parallel axes; longitudinal foliation in places incorporates basal glacial sediments along folds with flow-parallel axes; and thrusts transport basal debris to the glacier surface. Crevasse traces are not significant in terms of debris entrainment. The entrainment of basal debris along longitudinal foliation is not a universally recognised process. At Kongsvegen this process is attributed to the development of a transposition foliation, in combination with incorporation of debris-rich basal ice or soft basal sediment in the fold complex. Mapping of the landforms in the proglacial area shows that debris incorporated along longitudinal foliation is released as “foliation-parallel ridges” and that transverse ridges mark debris-bearing thrusts. The role of longitudinal foliation in landform development has never been documented in this manner. Although the preservation potential of such ridges may be limited, recognition of foliation-parallel ridges in the Pleistocene landform record has important implications for the interpretation of the dynamics of former ire masses.

Irregular mounds of glacial debris, commonly referred to as 9hummocky moraine9, until recently were linked to ice stagnation during rapid climatic amelioration. However, recent work in Scotland has demonstrated that some hummocky moraine, dating from the Younger Dryas event ( c. 10 000 years BP ), was the product of deposition at active ice margins. Observations at modern high–arctic glacier margins in Svalbard (76–80°N) indicate that some moraines of this type form under a dynamic glaciological regime, mainly by thrusting in active polythermal ice undergoing strong longitudinal compression. This situation is particularly common where there is a transition from warm–based ice in the interior of a glacier to cold–based ice at the margins or snout. From their morphological similarity (rectilinear slopes facing up–glacier and irregular downglacier faces), and apparent stacking of slabs of sediment of subglacial derivation, it is concluded that some assemblages of British moraines are also the product of thrusting. This process appears to be most dominant in polythermal glaciers, rather than in temperate glaciers. On this basis, it is tentatively suggested that the Younger Dryas in Britain was characterized by a climatic regime similar to that in Svalbard today (mean annual temperature − 5°C; 400–1000 mm precipitation), and that the associated glaciers may have been of polythermal character.

The formation of a moraine mound (hummocky moraine) complex at the Neoglacial limit of Pedersenbreen, Svalbard is discussed. The moraine mounds are composed for the most part of sheared basal diami...

Traditionally, geometrical ridge networks are interpreted as the product of the flow of subglacial sediment into open basal crevasses at the cessation of a glacier surge (‘crevasse-fill’ ridges). They are widely regarded as a characteristic landform of glacier surges. Understanding the range of processes by which these ridge networks form is therefore of importance in the recognition of palaeosurges within the landform record. The geometrical ridge network at the surge-type glacier Kongsvegen in Svalbard, does not form by crevasse filling. The networks consist of transverse and longitudinal ridges that can be seen forming at the current ice margin. The transverse ridges form as a result of the incorporation of basal debris along thrust planes within the ice. The thrusts were apparently formed during a glacier surge in 1948. Longitudinal ridges form through the meltout of elongated pods of debris, which on the glacier surface are subparallel to the ice foliation and pre-date the surge. This work adds to the range of landforms associated with glacier surges.

The Holocene mud-flats of Formby Point, at the mouth of the Mersey estuary in northwest England, have long provided information about their palaeoenvironment. Now they yield a more direct evidence — in the form of preserved footprints — of the people and animals that frequented the foreshore.

Many glaciers in Svalbard, which tend to be thermally complex with both warm and cold ice, produced complex ‘push moraines’ or ‘thrust-moraine complexes’ at the time of their maximum neoglacial advance, and during their subsequent recession. Uvěrsbreen, which nearly reaches the coast of northwest Spitsbergen, has a push moraine 50 m high, comprising gravel and sand of fluvial origin, and diamicton derived from basal ice, as well as thrust masses of dead ice. The push moraine is almost entirely a product of the tectonic processes, especially thrusting, that occurred in the snout of the glacier and in the frozen sediments immediately in Journal of Quaternary Science front. Thrusting is probably initiated where the glacier switches from a sliding mode to a state of being frozen to the bed. Thrusting in the foreland is an extension of the same processes that occur within the ice itself, and a sole thrust probably extends from the frozen sediment that underlies the base of the glacier near its snout. Thrusting results in subglacial sediment being uplifted to a high level within the glacier or even to the surface. Subsidiary near-horizontal thrusts parallel to the bedding plane link thrusts dipping up-glacier, and result in local thickening of individual subglacial sedimentary units. Gravels incorporated in this way retain their integrity but sands are folded, whereas uplifted debris-rich basal ice is intensely folded. The distinctive tectonic style of low-dip bedding in gravels, truncated by high-angle (30–40°) thrusts, and only localised folding in less competent material, differs from most descriptions of such ridges, but may be typical of many push moraines composed principally of fluvial material.

The timing and origin of the earliest human colonization of the Americas has been the subject of great debate over the last 100 years and is still a matter of heated discussion today (Renne et al., 2005; Gonzalez et al., 2006a). It is widely accepted that the Clovis culture was the first to migrate into the New World at 13.1 ka (Waters and Stafford, 2007). However, archaeological evidence, in the form of stone tools, linguistics, craniometrics and genetics all suggest that the first Americans were ethnically diverse, and a few sites dated to 15e16 ka challenge the ‘Clovis First’ model (Goebel et al., 2008). Perhaps the most spectacular challenge to the ‘Clovis First’ model was the reported presence of human footprints within a basaltic ash (Xalnene Ash, Valsequillo Basin, Central Mexico), dated to 38.04 8.57 ka using optically stimulated luminescence (OSL; Gonzalez et al., 2006a). However, Renne et al. (2005) challenged the validity of the footprints by dating lapilli from the Xalnene Ash using 40Ar/39Ar and reported an age of 1.30 0.03 Ma (2s). Renne et al. (2005) also reported a reversed palaeomagnetic polarity for the ash, consistent with deposition during chron C1r.2r (Cande and Kent, 1995). Such antiquity casts considerable doubt on the interpretation of the impressions as human footprints. Gonzalez et al. (2006b) questioned the 40Ar/39Ar age and highlighted the heterogeneous nature of the lapilli as a potential problem for 40Ar/39Ar geochronology. The lapilli contain phenocrysts and include xenocrysts. Olivine phenocrysts can be contaminated with excess Ar (ArE; McDougall et al., 1969) and hence the dating of

Fridtjovbreen is an actively surging tidewater glacier in western Spitsbergen, Svalbard. This paper presents observations made at the western flank of the glacier in July 1997, when the glacier front was still advancing rapidly and was characterised by steep lateral ice cliffs. The geomorphological consequences of the surge include the formation of push moraines from toppled ice blocks along this ice cliff and the development of debris-rich thrusts. There is also evidence of glaciotectonic deformation within deformed debris-rich thrusts. Thrusts are restricted to the lateral margins and are not seen in the terminal calving cliff. On its western flank, Fridtjovbreen is over-riding Sagabreen, a small-tributary glacier. Large facies variations in this area are a result of recycling by Fridtjovbreen of material originally transported as medial moraines on Sagabreen. There are few observations of landform development at actively surging glaciers in Svalbard. The Fridtjovbreen descriptions provide documentation for post-surge landform development. More observations are required at the margins of actively surging glaciers to determine how representative Fridtjovbreen is of a surge event.