PLANT MACROFOSSIL METHODS AND STUDIES | Paleolimnological Applications

Abstract

In this article, we discuss the role of plant macrofossil analysis in the past development of the macrophyte flora (submerged, floating-leaved, and emergent lakeshore plants) and of lake ecosystems, including water characteristics (pH, nutrients, and temperatures), and eutrophication. We also describe the use of plant macrofossils in reconstructions of past lake-level changes. Macrophytes are an important component of lake ecosystems and their processes. The principal factors affecting the structure and composition of aquatic vegetation within a lake are water depth (and related water transparency), water chemistry and nutrient status, and temperature. These can be inferred from the macrofossil record. A hydrosere (aquatic succession) is controlled by these internal factors but may be disrupted or diverted by overriding external factors of climate change or human activity. Natural hydroseres progress over centuries and the paleolimnological macrofossil record is the only way to document them. We present examples of macrofossil studies of long-term Late Glacial and Holocene hydroseres and cases of past and recent eutrophication. These data allow us to link the present status of a lake with its history. Finally, tables of macrophytes species as indicators of temperatures, water depths, and pH are provided.