Sedimentary records of palaeohydrological variability during the Late Holocene in the Lower Narmada Basin, western India

Late Glacial and Holocene vegetation history and paleoclimate of the Kaibab Plateau, Arizona

Lacustrine record of high magnitude flood events and climate variability during mid to late Holocene in the semiarid alluvial plains, western India

Eolian sand in dune fields and sand sheets cover >10 000 km 2 (∼10%) of the Southern High Plains of northwestern Texas and eastern New Mexico. These deposits are concentrated in three west-east–trending belts of dunes (the Muleshoe, Lea-Yoakum, and Andrews dune fields, from north to south) that appear to be eastern extensions of the Mescalero-Monahans dune system in the Pecos River valley, and in the Seminole sand sheet, a discontinuous accumulation of sheet sands between the Lea-Yoakum and Monahans-Andrews dunes. The most common landforms are parabolic dunes associated with blowouts, coppice dunes, and sand sheets, all typical of sandy, vegetated, semiarid landscapes, barchan dunes, in keeping with a relatively limited sand supply and an underlying surface that is relatively hard (Blackwater Draw Formation, Pleistocene), and fence-row dunes, historic dunes formed along field boundaries. These eolian deposits accumulated episodically in the late Pleistocene and Holocene and provide clues to the history of regional drought and aridity. The earliest phase of sedimentation occurred when sheet sands were deposited between 11 000 and 8000 14 C yr B.P., probably in several phases, based on archaeological data, as a result of episodic drought beginning between 11 000 and 10 000 yr B.P. Eolian deposits dating between 8000 and 3000 yr B.P. are rare, although eolian sediment 8000–4500 14 C yr B.P. is ubiquitous in the draws that cross the region, and paleoenvironmental indicators show that the region was subjected to aridity throughout middle Holocene time. The middle Holocene deposits most likely were remobilized in late Holocene time. Most of the deposits and landforms of the dune fields and sand sheets are late Holocene, dating before 4000 14 C yr B.P. and mostly before 1500 14 C yr B.P. The Muleshoe and Lea-Yoakum dunes and the Seminole sand sheet underwent substantial eastward expansion in late Holocene time. Buried soils and radiocarbon ages show that the eolian sand accumulated in several stages, probably in response to cyclic drought. The Muleshoe dunes accumulated after ca. 1300 cal yr B.P. (ca. 1400 14 C yr B.P.), after ca. 750–670 cal yr B.P. (ca. 850–750 14 C yr B.P.), just after ca. 500 cal yr B.P. (ca. 450 14 C yr B.P.), and during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The Lea-Yoakum dunes were active after ca. 3400 cal yr B.P. (ca. 3200 14 C yr B.P.) and historically. The Seminole sand sheet was active ca. 430–330 cal yr B.P. (ca. 360 14 C yr B.P.) and in the twentieth century. The Andrews dunes were subjected to at least two phases of eolian sedimentation after ca. 2320 cal yr B.P. (ca. 2320 14 C yr B.P.). Comparisons with eolian chronologies from other regions on the Great Plains suggest that dune mobilization was a regional phenomenon after ca. 2300 cal yr B.P. (ca. 2300 14 C yr B.P.); after ca. 1500–1400 cal yr B.P. (ca. 1650–1550 14 C yr B.P.); after ca. 700 cal yr B.P. (ca. 800 14 C yr B.P.); between 500 and 300 cal yr B.P. (ca. 450–300 14 C yr B.P.); and in the nineteenth century. The climatic fluctuations responsible for mobilizing the dunes probably were relatively minor, yet the landscape impacts were substantial, resulting in widespread wind erosion and dune construction.

Late Glacial and early Holocene vegetation succession, altitudinal vegetation zonation, and climatic change in the Serra da Estrela, Portugal

Late Pleistocene and Holocene vegetation changes in northeastern Brazil determined from carbon isotopes and charcoal records in soils

A high‐resolution paleoclimatic reconstruction from the Tirna River basin in the Deccan Volcanic Province (DVP) of western India, covering about 2022 ‐ 1596 calibrated years BP, is presented in this paper. The study combines magnetic susceptibility (χ) and elemental geochemistry ratios (Fe/Al, Ti/Al, K/Na, K/Al, Ca/Al, Mn/Al, and Mg/Al) to infer weathering regimes, detrital input patterns, and sedimentary processes controlled by climate. An initial wet and erosive period (~1596–1707 cal yr. BP) characterised by high Fe/Al, Ti/Al, and χ values, reflects intense monsoon‐driven detrital input, and represents one of the several climatic sequences captured in the record. A transitional period with decreasing magnetic susceptibility and Fe/Al ratios (~1722–1785 cal yr. BP) follows, indicating reduced runoff and possible monsoon variability. When chemical weathering markers peak between 1840 and 1872 cal yr. BP, it suggests a humid period with more intensified pedogenesis. Declining χ and subsequent increases in Ca/Al and Mg/Al (~1903–1974 cal yr. BP) indicate reduced erosion and a shift towards warmer and more stable conditions. A shift to cooler, drier, and more stable environmental conditions is indicated by the rapid fall in weathering proxies and χ during the most recent phase (~1993–2022 cal yr. BP). These climate changes are consistent with known regional and global paleoclimatic events, including the beginning of the Dark Ages Cold Period, the end of the Roman Warm Period, and the well‐documented monsoon weakening event around 2.0 ka BP. The results demonstrate sensitivity of the DVP landscape to variations in the Indian Summer Monsoon. Overall, this study highlights the value of multi‐proxy sediment records for reconstructing past monsoon variability and enhances our understanding of Late Holocene hydroclimatic dynamics in peninsular India.

Late Holocene climate variability in central Korea indicated by vegetation, geochemistry, and fire records of the Yongneup moor

Climate forcings on vegetation of the southeastern Yucatán Peninsula (Mexico) during the middle to late Holocene

Sedimentologic and palynologic records of the last deglaciation and Holocene from Ballston Lake, New York

Deglaciation and Holocene climate change in the western Peruvian Andes

Wetland dynamics in northern Brazil during the Holocene were studied by pollen analysis and AMS radiocarbon dating of three cores. Near the Amazon mouth region, covered mainly by primary Amazon coastal forest and herbaceous vegetation, the pollen record indicates the dominance of mangroves between 4800 and 1100 cal yr b.p. A contraction of the mangrove area and an expansion of herbaceous and fern vegetation occurred between 1100 and 750 cal yr b.p. The period between 750 and 200 cal yr b.p. is characterized by an expansion of mangrove and a decrease in herbaceous and fern vegetation. This trend continued until the present. On Atalaia Island, the sediment core indicates a period with poor pollen preservation between 830 and 630 cal yr b.p. Between 630 and 330 cal yr b.p., mangroves expanded. Later, up to 45 cal yr b.p., the mangrove area decreased and the herbaceous vegetation expanded. During the last hundred years, the relative sea-level rise most probably favored the mangrove expansion as far as the topographically highest sector on this island, while the herbaceous vegetation decreased. The pollen data from Agua Preta Lake indicate dry conditions, as reflected by the poor pollen preservation between 390 and 240 cal yr b.p. Between 240 and 60 cal yr b.p., restinga and Amazon coastal forest with palms dominated this region. For the last 120 years, the record indicates an expansion of the mangrove area. However, recent confinement of mangrove development to the topographically highest area, and the loss of mangrove areas on the lowest surfaces have led to a net loss of mangrove coverage during the last decades.

Early to Mid-Holocene Aridity in Central Chile and the Southern Westerlies: The Laguna Aculeo Record (34°S)

This study presents a multidisciplinary perspective for understanding environmental change and emerging socio-ecological interactions across the Amboseli region of southwestern Kenya. We focus on late Holocene (<5,000 cal yr. BP) changes and continuities reconstructed from sedimentary, archeological, historical records and socio-ecological models. We utilize multi-disciplinary approaches to understand environmental-ecosystem-social interactions over the longue duree and use this to simulate different land use scenarios supporting conservation and sustainable livelihoods using a socio-ecological model. Today the semi-arid Amboseli landscape supports a large livestock and wildlife population, sustained by a wide variety of plants and extensive rangelands regulated by seasonal rainfall and human activity. Our data provide insight into how large-scale and long-term interactions of climate, people, livestock, wildlife and external connections have shaped the ecosystems across the Amboseli landscape. Environmental conditions were dry between ~5,000 and 2,000 cal yr. BP, followed by two wet periods at ~2,100–1,500 and 1,400–800 cal yr. BP with short dry periods; the most recent centuries were characterized by variable climate with alternative dry and wet phases with high spatial heterogeneity. Most evident in paleo and historical records is the changing woody to grass cover ratio, driven by changes in climate and fire regimes entwined with fluctuating elephant, cattle and wild ungulate populations moderated by human activity, including elephant ivory trade intensification. Archeological perspectives on the occupation of different groups (hunter-gatherers, pastoralists, and farmers) in Amboseli region and the relationships between them are discussed. An overview of the known history of humans and elephants, expanding networks of trade, and the arrival and integration of metallurgy, livestock and domesticated crops in the wider region is provided. In recent decades, increased runoff and flooding have resulted in the expansion of wetlands and a reduction of woody vegetation, compounding problems created by increased enclosure and privatization of these landscapes. However, most of the wetlands outside of the protected area are drying up because of the intensified water extraction by the communities surrounding the National Park and on the adjacent mountains areas, who have increased in numbers, become sedentary and diversified land use around the wetlands.

Time-slice reconstructions of ocean circulation changes on the continental shelf in the Nordic and Barents Seas during the last 16,000 cal yr B.P.

Paleoecological and climatic changes of the Upper Lerma Basin, Central Mexico during the Holocene