Spores of coprophilous fungi from under the Dawson tephra (25,300 14C years BP), Yukon Territory, northwestern Canada

Abstract

Based on the analysis of pollen and macrofossils Zazula et al. [Zazula, G.D., Froesne, D.G., Elias, S.A., Kuzmina, S., la Farge, C., Reyes, A.V., Sanborn, P.T., Schweger, C.E., Smith, C.A.S., Mathewes, R.W., 2006. Vegetation buried under Dawson tephra (25,300 14C yr BP) and locally diverse late Pleistocene paleoenvironments of Goldbottom Creek, Yukon, Canada. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 242, 253–286.] reported an in situ riparian grassy meadow ecosystem, and regional well-drained steppe-tundra, buried by Dawson tephra (ca 25,300 BP) at Goldbottom Creek in the Canadian Yukon Territory. An additional study of fungal spores in pollen slides from that site was completed. Ascospores of the coprophilous Sordaria type, Sporormiella type and Podospora type, appeared to be of common occurrence, pointing to the former presence of herbivores. The analysis of the various spore types of coprophilous fungi in pollen slides is useful and may lead to further knowledge of the role of different herbivore taxa in past ecosystems.