The occurrence of thermophilous trees in the Scandes Mountains during the early Holocene: evidence for a diverse tree flora from macroscopic remains

Abstract

1 Macroscopic remains of the fairly thermophilous tree species Alnus glutinosa, Tilia cordata and Betula pendula were recovered in subalpine and adjacent boreal environments far above and beyond their present‐day distributional limits. This establishes that the early Holocene tree flora of the Scandes Mountains in northern Sweden was indeed richer than it is today. 2 Dates ranged between c. 8600 and 7000 radiocarbon years bp. These are much earlier than previous estimates by conventional pollen stratigraphical analyses of the arrival of these species at their maximum geographical limits. This highlights problems in using only pollen data for vegetation reconstruction, and suggests re‐evaluation of earlier records. 3 The results, together with similar macrofossils for Picea abies and Larix sibirica in northern Sweden, suggest that many tree species spread rapidly and became established at their most extended range limits during the early Holocene. Abundances have subsequently varied in accordance with the ecology of individual species as well as with climatic change. 4 Palaeoclimatic inferences may suggest a strongly continental climate, i.e. warmer and drier summers and possibly fairly cold winters between 8600 and 7000 bp relative to the present. Some change towards a more oceanic climate regime with less pronounced seasonal contrasts may have occurred towards the end of the period.