Chapter 35 - The evolution of glacial landforms in the Tatra Mountains during the Bølling–Allerød Interstadial

Abstract

During the final part of the Oldest Dryas cold stadial (~15ka), the glaciers in the Tatra Mountains were already confined to sheltered areas below high cirque walls and likely disappeared completely responding to Bølling–Allerød Interstadial (B-A) warming. In the High Tatras ice-moulded bedrocks or moraine boulders located in the direct neighbourhood of Younger Dryas (YD) moraines or rock glacier fronts above 2100m a.s.l. were ice-free already at 14.8–14.2ka and there is no evidence for moraines left by glaciers during the B-A retreat. In the lower elevated cirques in the Western Tatras, the stabilisation of debris-covered glaciers and rock glaciers was prolonged until the B-A Interstadial (13–14ka) or even to the YD – Holocene transition (11.9ka).