The relationship between the chemical composition and lithology of Late Glacial and Holocene biogenic deposits of the Żabieniec mire (Central Poland)

Abstract

Geochemical and plant macrofossil analyses of the Żabieniec mire deposits and the palaeoenvironmental changes they record of the past several thousand years constitute an important source for palaeogeographical reconstruction of the Polish Lowland. We describe the phases of the basin’s development from the final part of the Plenivistulian (MIS2), through the Late Glacial and the entire Holocene, encompassing changes determined by both regional and global factors in the surrounding environment, and habitat transformations in the limnogenic mire. The kettle-hole infill of the Żabieniec mire is the only documented example in Central Poland of a succession of biogenic deposits exceeding 10 m in thickness in such a setting. Deposition initially took place in a lake environment, which led to a shallowing of the lake that persisted until the end of the Mesoholocene.