Fluvial response to Weichselian climate changes in the Niederlausitz (Germany)

Abstract

The last glacial shows large variations in climate, which are reflected in the fluvial record in the Niederlausitz, eastern Germany. The entire sequence resembles the fluvial development in other river basins in northwestern Europe, which show contemporaneous changes in depositional style at the onset of a climatic change. During the Middle and the Late Pleniglacial, permafrost conditions resulted in an episodic river discharge. The presence or absence of vegetation, in combination with such ephemeral stream conditions, determined the type of river during each period. A relatively well-developed vegetation cover on the flood plains during the Middle Pleniglacial resulted in a low sediment yield. In combination with the intermittent discharge, this caused the development of an ephemeral anastomosing river system, a river with stable channels and extensive sandy overbank areas. The decline in vegetation cover at ca. 28 ka BP caused an increase in sediment yield and peak discharges, which resulted in the development of a sandy braided river in adjustment to these new conditions. Following the coldest period at around 20 ka, precipitation was so low that fluvial activity was limited and aeolian deposition took place in the valley. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.